August 21, 2017 – (an excerpt from North Bay Narrative by Walter Staples)
“Bears had always been a problem at the Salmon Hole cabin (in the 1970’s). Carl Ross (a regular member of the fishing party led by Salmon Hole Lodge founder Duncan Smith) vividly remembers waking one night at the old log cabin (the original ‘camp’) as the door appeared to explode. Thinking it must have been a gust of wind, he got up, pulled the door closed, and hooked it. Telling the experience at the kitchen table the next morning, he was reminded there had been no wind during the night. A daylight look at the outside of the door revealed new deep claw marks left by the would-be visitor. The fishermen agreed that the bear may have found the inside smell offensive, causing his retreat.”
Note from Salmon Hole Lodge owner Scott Smith – While close encounters with resident black bears may have been common in the 1970’s and prior years, thankfully nowadays, sightings of black bears in the LaPoile River valley are rare and usually occur at our compost pile (1 km from the Lodge).
