It was an eventful Monday morning at Hope’s Memorial Park, as two black bear cubs were hoisted up into trees above the watchful eye of their momma bear.
These particular bears were made of wood and were carved by Randy Swope.
“It just gives a little positive thing to everybody,” said Victor Smith, wearing his Communities in Bloom ‘hat.’ Why the organization chose to commission and install bear cubs, Smith said, is due to the ‘aww factor.’
“Everybody goes ‘aww’ when they see them and it’s like a treasure hunt, when they see a bear cub it’s that much more special than a full sized bear,” he said.
Read more about the artist behind the cub carving, Randy Swope
A number of community members stopped to watch the bear installation, a joint effort by Victor Smith together with Garry Arrowsmith from the district maneuvering a bucket truck with a bear and a drill in tow. The carvings have several coats of sealant on them, and were installed with strong screws to ensure the carvings have longevity Smith said.
Arrowsmith noted it wasn’t his average day at work. “I wish it was, it’s a bit different,” he said, suggesting people who read the paper should come down to Memorial Park and try to spot the bears.
Lydia Koot just happened to walk by as the cubs were being hoisted into the trees, on her way to rescue two real bear cubs up the Skagit. Koot confirmed the carvings looked a lot like the many baby bears she has seen and rescued in her work with the Hope Mountain Black Bear Committee.
“They usually have their hind legs a little more stretched out but when they rest, that’s exactly the position,” she said of the cubs. “The mom is usually below, on the ground…not all the time of course, because sometimes she goes down to eat and sends the cubs up in a tree.”
Koot said Memorial Park is the perfect place for the new carvings.
“That means that we really all have to do our best to protect them, watch our attractants,” she said. “If we don’t do our part it won’t happen, because the bears are driven by food.” Human food is especially attractive to bears if left out as it has more calories, she noted, especially compared to what bears eat this time of year before berries are ripe.
Communities in Bloom sponsored the carvings, at $500 a piece. Despite it not being a chainsaw carving year in Hope, Smith said the organization will be unveiling two more carvings this summer that will surely make locals and tourists alike turn their heads and pull out their smart phones.
VIDEO: Masterpieces begin to take shape at Hope’s chainsaw competition
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