Morning Surprise

Recently I have hesitated to hop on my bicycle to ride to work in the mornings. Here's why: black bears. I ride to work when it's still dark outside, at 5AM. On two different occasions I nearly ran into a bear. One of those near run-in's happened this morning, when a small furry creature crossed Mill Street in front of my cycle, near the Aspen Brewing Company. I yelled, "Hip, hip, move outta the way!" The bear went jogging, afraid of what this human on two wheels might do. I was told recently by a Colorado Division of Wildlife official that we Aspen residents are right in the middle of some of the best berry territory in Colorado. But the bears have gone beyond the berries to forage for leftover dinners and wrappers in unsecured trash cans. Homes have been broken into, messes have been made and one person was injured. The bears are a nuisance but we are in their territory and witnessing a bear running across a two-lane street shouldn't be too big of a surprise.