In the woods, the dogwood and redbud trees are blooming, the wildflowers make for an enjoyable hike. The waterfalls and streams run clear and cold. The sky is crystal clear blue and the weather is warm. The 3-mile round trip hike to Benton Falls is an easy trail, we did it just last Sunday.
There are so many things you have to watch out for in the woods, poison ivy, snakes, bears, unfriendly folks… But usually if you keep a wide berth you will go away unscathed.
But that was not the case yesterday… a family of 3 visiting here from Ohio hiked to Benton Falls and were attacked by a bear, now the 6-year-old daughter is dead and the 2-year-old son and mother are in the hospital in critical condition. This is the time of year for the bears to come out, looking for food after the long winter. We usually have a few come through here. We make sure to keep the cat food inside and move the grill out of the screened-in porch onto the deck. (This after the bear came through the screen in 3 places last time, including the door.) They like the sugar water in hummingbird feeders and the sunflower seeds in bird feeders. They are usually very scared and will run off before I can even get a good picture of them, which is a good thing, of course. Bear attacks are very rare, but I know that is no consolation to the family attacked yesterday.
