Signs of fall on the North Fork
North Fork Views
By Larry Wilson
The calendar says there is nearly three weeks of summer left. It does not seem that way on the North Fork. This week we saw snow on Glacier’s peaks. In addition, this week the aspen have turned increasingly yellow and the larch are showing signs of changing from green to gold.
Even the next to the last meeting of the Landowners Association indicated the summer residents are gone or are planning to leave soon, and the hunters are getting ready to take the field. In fact, bow season started this week and already neighbor Joe Novak has harvested a nice white tail buck which was at the butcher’s within hours.
Hunting season creates a lot of activity. Folks are renewing their No Trespassing signs and the North Fork Patrol is increasing patrol activity to protect private property and aid in stopping poaching.
Hunters need to be aware that it is their responsibility to know who owns the property they are hunting on. You must have written permission to hunt on any private property you don’t own yourself.
This is true whether or not the property is posted. If you hunt and kill a game animal on unposted private property you could be subject to a fine, loss of hunting license and the animal you shot. Check land ownership of places you want to hunt before the season starts. If it is private ask permission and get a written permission slip.
The Labor Day weekend brought a last surge of summer tourists despite the cool weather. I checked out Sondreson Meadows and found 20-plus campers, most of whom planned to float on Sunday if the weather was decent or just enjoy camping if the weather was bad.
In this case, most campers had tin tepees so garbage and toilets were not really an issue. These folks had contained toilets and planned to haul their garbage out with them. Maybe the Forest Service educational programs are working after all.
Finally, bear activity is much less than in recent years. I have only seen five bears all year, three griz and two blacks so I am behind Gary McDonough yet again. Last I heard his count was eight so I still have a chance of catching him.
Other neighbors have had more sightings but there has only been one problem bear. One female was euthanized after getting into human food several times. Apparently she broke into several unoccupied camp trailers and also got into someone’s chickens.
I still think the grizzly should be delisted — at least on the North Fork — before we have multiple confrontations and someone gets hurt.
What do you think?