CLEAR LAKE KEYS — The water of Clear Lake must have looked especially inviting to a large furry visitor on the insufferably hot afternoon of last Saturday, July 15.
Callers started reporting sightings of a black bear to the Lake County Sheriff”s Office at approximately 7:14 a.m. as it ambled through a residential neighborhood in Clear Lake Keys, a subdivision built during the 1960s which is unique for having canals behind the homes that provide access to Clear Lake.
Lake County Sheriff”s Office Lt. Pat McMahon said the department received phone calls from the M & M campground, located on the tip of Stubbs Island, regarding “a big bear on a neighbor”s roof.”
Their dispatch then called the California Department of Fish and Game in Yountville to relay the information.
Jim Mahon, president of the Property Owner”s Association, said he came out on his back porch with his morning coffee and frightened the bear, which scrambled down the lake bank and jumped in for a swim.
“I started calling to it thinking it was a dog,” Mahon said. “Then I noticed it had an awful large head for a dog and that its ears were pointed.”
Bob Ekelmann lives on Lakeland Street and found the bear”s paw print in the mud of his yard and made a plaster of Paris cast. According to Ekelmann the black bear, which is estimated to have weighed between 300 and 350 pounds, “Cleared a 6-foot fence in my yard like it was nothing.”
Bear sightings are not unusual in this area, but Mahon said, “They don”t come down here and go for a swim very often. I think it was the heat and the fires that drove him here.”
Wildlife experts say bear sightings are becoming more frequent, as the state”s population grows and development encroaches on bear habitat.
According to the Department of Environmental Protection Web site, bears are attracted to garbage, pet food, compost piles, fruit trees and bird feeders around homes. The agency warns that bears should never be intentionally fed, because then they can become accustomed to finding food and become problems in residential areas.
People who encounter bears outdoors should make their presence known by making noise and waving their arms, then walk away slowly, officials say.
According to the Environmental Protection Web site, homeowners who see a bear on their property should scare it off by making loud noises with pots and pans or garbage can lids. Bears will typically react by wandering back into a more secluded area.
The Keys” black bear was last seen moving up the banks of the canal and heading toward the hills.
Contact Cynthia Davis at cdavis@record-bee.com.
