Howdy Humans,
It’s Thanksgiving week and to me, Thanksgiving is all about family. This year Osito says he is going to give me and Osa a break by taking on the lion’s share of the cooking duties. We like to go big on Thanksgiving – and I mean, “send-me-into-winter-hibernation” big – so we’re hoping he has the verve to create all the accouterments needed to make this a feast worthy of the occasion. Claws crossed.
Speaking of family, you may have caught Fat Bear Week a few months ago, but did you see the news about a pair of adult bear sisters who banded together? Female bears mostly travel alone with their progeny, but these two were spotted traveling with their cubs as a family. The sisters and cub cousins were seen fishing together at one of my favorite spots, Katmai's Brooks River area in Alaska. The moms caught salmon in the waterfall while the cubs watched and learned.
Park Ranger Mike Fitz shared that “this is an example of how bears can be quite social animals when the circumstances are correct.” Darn right, Ranger Fitz! I’ve never met a bear who didn’t love a Thanksgiving gathering. Anyway, we decided to invite Dottie and Peg (also known as bears 909 and 910) to our table this year, creating a new kind of family. That’s the Cow by Bear way, isn’t it? They’ll be arriving with their cubs Thursday morning, with fresh caught salmon in tow, and we couldn’t be more pleased to host them. I’m hoping Osito’s cheffing can be a little inspiration for the cubs and maybe they can teach him a thing or two about fishing.
If that’s not enough excitement, I would be remiss not to mention our upcoming ‘Magic of the Holidays’ Chef’s dinners on December 22nd and 23rd. These will be five decadent courses chock full of traditional holiday flavors along with a few fun surprises, and what we hope will be new traditions. We say to you what we said to Dottie and Peg – please join us!