Unbearable bears

Something is raising havoc at the oasis and I think it must be bears. Lots of ripe persimmons and when the acorns start ripening, I'm planning to tie up the branches so the bears won't break them.

When I arrived this morning a hummingbird feeder was on the ground and it wasn't the easiest one to reach. The ant guard came unscrewed, so maybe it fell on its own. But the seed feeder that was ravaged by bears once before is no longer repairable. I had hung it way higher after the last time, and thought it was safe.

The worst damage, though, was to the fiberglass barrier in the viewing blind. I'll have to put a new panel on there when I'm up to it. And bizarrely, a low hanging hummingbird feeder above the table next to the panel was untouched.

Now the mosquitoes are nearly gone, and after squandering a lot of daylight napping today, my knee is much better. I just don't sleep good in town, so have to catch up here. My madrone project is on hold for now, but doesn't have priority. As the weather cools off, and maybe more rains, with what I've already done, it should survive until I get to it.

Bear-proof now???                              

I came up to the house for an hour or two this afternoon and when I got back down to the oasis a bench had been tipped over and a nearby water hose had been chewed on. I had used the hose a couple hours earlier and sat on that bench. No wind today, so it's pretty obvious something beastly is hanging around. That about sums up my day.