Compost Fortress

We have been having a continual problem with bears, and at first it seemed kind of cool and the stuff or dinner party fodder, but at some point you realize that you may have a problem. Plus, it's apparently illegal to intentionally feed bears, not that you would ever want to. As much as I find them interesting, I don't want to encourage such behavior.

It all started last year when we were doing the market. A big bear came and raided our garbage and then spent about 45 minutes eating the compost, which for the record smells repulsive. Granted, we make the mistake of sometimes tossing meat scraps or residual cat food into the compost, so that may be what's attracting them. The incident last year was a one time occurrence, and we figured (hoped?) that it was over, but no such luck. This year as soon as spring hit, two bears came rummaging through the compost, and then R saw a bear trying to drag our garbage away. She managed to scare it away, but little good that did, because he, or some other bear, has been returning and feasting on the compost.

The time had come to take serious action. I know bears are strong and rip through brick walls, but I wasn't about to get too serious or spend too much money. What I ended up doing was taking several heavy pallets that I use for firewood and securing them together with plywood, nails, and heavy nylon straps. It's pretty secure, and maybe just strong enough to make it a hassle to eat the compost and discourage him from coming back. We shall see.

I built the thing yesterday, and as of last night, no sign of the bear, but it's only been one day. I'll take it.

Until the next time, thanks for reading.