I interrupt this column, which was supposed to be about how proud I am of myself for making it to Memorial Day without turning on the air conditioning in my house even once, because something way more interesting came up.
BEAR!
I awoke Friday morning a week ago to a warning from the Cookeville Police Department that a bear had been spotted in the area of 10th Street and Washington Avenue. Yikes. That’s my neighborhood. I mean really, really my neighborhood. There’s no way to leave without either getting on or crossing over 10th Street or Washington Avenue, except for cutting through the McDonald’s parking lot and accessing the Rail Trail, which makes no sense with a bear on the loose.
First dilemma: Should I let my dog out in the back yard to do her business? It’s fenced with five-foot-high chain link, which might slow a bear down but certainly wouldn’t stop it. But would any bear in its right mind take on a dog who—according to the folks at AARF from whom I adopted Kamala six years ago—is almost certainly part mountain cur? Curs are the dogs pioneers took with them when they crossed the Appalachian Mountains back in the 1700s. They were popular because they were ready, willing and able to battle many kinds of threatening wildlife, including bears.
Yeah, but. Though Kamala is tough and brave, she only weighs 45 pounds. Would she be a match for a black bear many times her size? Almost certainly, the prudent thing to do was snap on her leash and be on the lookout as we took a quick walk around the block.
It’s not as though I’ve never seen a black bears on the loose before. I’ve been to the Smoky Mountains more times than I can count and have encountered them not only on remote trails but also in campgrounds. (My family once received a ranger-warning for leaving salt and pepper shakers on a picnic table and another for leaving a completely empty ice chest beside a tent. Those kinds of things attract bears.) I’ve been in Gatlinburg when a bear crashed through the back door of the Ole Smoky Candy Kitchen seeking salt water taffy, though I didn’t witness the break-in with my own eyes. And I’ve seen plenty of bears while hiking or riding my bicycle on the Cades Cove Loop.
My son and his family live in Asheville, where bears strolling through town scarcely make the news.
So why should a bear in Putnam County be such a big deal? Simple. It’s because bear sightings are extremely rare here, especially within the city limits. Heck, I lived out in the county for forty years and never saw one.
Social media was abuzz over the bear. When, just a couple of days after the Cookeville sighting, the Algood police posted an actual video of a bear, excitement grew. Thanks to the wonders of AI, folks posted “photos” of the bear at Ralph’s Donuts, Gunnels Florist, Jared and Jared law offices and even at Tennessee Tech graduation.
People speculated about where the bear might be living, with some pointing out that the large wooded lot across Washington Avenue from Walgreen’s is a likely spot. One woman whom I do not know but who apparently lives nearby swears that a mama bear and her two cubs have lived behind the IGA grocery story for years and that “everybody” knows it and nobody bothers them.
I’ve decided to just carry on about my business and see what happens. So far, so good. I walk the dog whenever I want. I let her hang out unsupervised in the back yard. I haven’t brought my birdfeeder inside because what fun would that be? As for the enormous city-owned garbage can with the easy-open lid, I’ve left it in place, too.
I’d just as soon wrestle a bear as to wrestle that garbage can from the carport into the house.
(May 30, 2026)