While working on a walking staff, one of the carvers had a guest. This three year old black bear munched on hazelnuts that had fallen from a tree, while the human whittled. Both more or less ignored each other. (The photographer was a little more nervous, so the pictures are a bit blurry.)

The bear eventually wandered off into the meadow and the carver wandered back to the woodshop. Bears are more frequent at the end of the season. We let them do their own thing and they don’t disturb us. It’s a relaxed work setting for all parties concerned.