Bio: Frank Galey’s Nephew; Staff at the Ranch, 1950’s and 1960’s. Descriptor: Caretaking the ranch and encountering a black bear in the kitchen.
Fran’s Story: White Grass Memories…. Some funny… some sad…. but some remain as if they had happened yesterday. Of all the years I spent on the White Grass several of those memories clearly stand out for me. “Bears and Bowls.”
On a typical, beautiful fall day in late Oct in 1962 or ’63, the likes of which only that special place can offer, the dudes were long gone and Frank, as I recall, was in Mexico. Lori and I, along with our two-year-old son, Francis, were taking care of the ranch. I was sanding, chinking and varnishing one of the small cabins facing east towards the meadow just north of Marmie’s cabin. Lori was cleaning in the kitchen of the main lodge. The crystal clear, mid-morning air was suddenly shattered by a loud scream. We had recently experienced several uneventful encounters of black bears on the ranch and I automatically assumed the worst. It was a long run from where I was to the main lodge. About half way there I saw Lori run out of the kitchen carrying a large wooden bowl full of apples. She was frantically throwing apples out in front of her. The receiving end of some short passes and angry words was a medium size black bear who seemed delighted with the projectiles… if not the method of delivery! Lori was well aware that she should bang pots and pans or throw something should she encounter a bear. This bear, however, had gotten into the kitchen through the screen door and in such close quarters, Lori had little time to choose a more suitable weapon.