The internet says this is black bear poo. "So what?", I hear you cry. Well, if the internet is correct, then the most notable thing about this particular bit of black bear poo is that it is on the trail through the wood in my garden where the dog and I take our daily morning constitutional - and it wasn't there yesterday.😳

So far, I have only seen bears from safely inside the house. They are awesome, don't get me wrong, but I still don't want to meet one face to face on a dog walk, particularly not in the garden where the dog's not on the lead - as I just don't know how she'd react, or how the bear would react to her. We don't go down into the garden wood at dawn and dusk (peak bear time), and I tap on the screen door as a warning sound before letting the dog out for a before-bed pee, in the hope any wildlife within earshot will scarper pronto...but I've bought a can of bear spray nevertheless. Let's hope I never have to use it. I want the bears to be able to do their hairy thing undisturbed by me...and vice versa.