🐻 Beware of campsite bears | Outdoorsy Newsletter

We’ve made it through the dog days of summer — the climatologically hottest stretch of the season, named for the rise of Sirius, the “Dog Star.” As Inquirer weather writer Tony Wood put it last year: “The ancient Romans evidently believed that the star added to the Earth’s heat, proving that even the brightest people are clueless about something.”

In today’s edition:

☀️ Your weekend weather: Mostly clear and sunny.

— Paola Pérez (outdoorsy@inquirer.com)

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Jason Nark isn’t mincing words here: “Yes, bears can invade your Pennsylvania campsite.”

Nark, who reports on rural parts of Pennsylvania and the outdoors beyond city life, considers himself comfortable and prepared in bear country. He’s a well-rounded outdoorsman, with about 30 years of camping experience.

But one night at Ricketts Glen State Park in Benton, Nark found himself in a spooky situation: He drew a bear to his campsite.

“I’d broken more than Bearwise rules,” Nark wrote in his recollection of the encounter. Lesson learned.

Here are some common sense guidelines to stay safe from bears:

🐻 Keep a clean camp.

🐻 Don’t burn food or trash in your fire ring.

🐻 Don’t store food, trash, clothes worn when cooking, or toiletries in your tent.

Hear more from Nark on this heart-stopping moment, and important tips to avoid bears at campgrounds.

🎤 Now we’re passing the microphone to environmental reporter Frank Kummer.

Near a trailhead in Wissahickon Valley Park, Dhan Parker drilled into the wide root flare of a mature beech tree. Then, he inserted plastic taps into the holes, and connected them with clear tubing.

Using a tub of solution, Parker injected the tube with a mix of water and chemicals. The liquid was taken up by the tree’s tissue to branches where millions of parasitic nematodes were slowly, methodically killing it from the inside.

“We need about 15 to 20 gallons of water and several ounces of thiabendazole to inject into each tree,” said Parker, an environmental scientist with Philadelphia Parks and Recreation. “It takes up to three hours per tree,” he said, noting that beeches make up about 40% of the area where he was working.

The tree is just one of thousands of beeches under siege, succumbing to a relatively new and dreaded beech leaf disease first found in Philly in 2022. “This is an extinction-level event,” Parker said of beech leaf disease. “It’s inevitable that these worms will find their way to every beech tree here in the city.” — Frank Kummer

Learn more about how Philly parks and rec are trying to stave off beech leaf disease in Wissahickon.

Bill Moore wrote in to tell us what he gets up to with his community:

Hi Paola! My church has a group of senior to middle-aged adults who enjoy walking on nice Sunday afternoons and are always looking for scenic trails to explore. Bear in mind, we are not looking for challenging trails more suitable for younger adults, but can accommodate moderate inclines! We prefer to stay within a 30-minute drive of Media. We have already hit many of the obvious spots but if you come across any suitable locations, please let me know!

Thanks for letting us know your needs. A little bird tells me we are tracking down the best Media-area trails, so look out for that in a future edition.

In 200 words, tell us about your favorite outdoor memories. We love pictures if you have them. You might see it featured in a future newsletter.

👋🏽 May your walks and all other outdoorsy adventures be peaceful. Until next time.

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