To the Editor:

I saw a black bear on Bozenkill Road on Monday evening at about 7:30. I wanted to let you know in case you wanted to alert your Altamont readers that there might be a bear in the vicinity, so they could secure their garbage and be more vigilant when they are out with their dogs or kids. 

It was definitely a bear — it was right by the side of the road and it looked directly at me as I went by.  I was coming home up Bozenkill Road and saw it standing behind the guardrail on the right hand side (Schenectady side), about halfway up the bend in the road to the first hill, between the house with the white outdoor sculpture and the house at the top of that first hill. 

I called the Department of Environmental Conservation but the man who answered the phone more or less yawned in my ear and told me that they are all over, and this is the time of year they are around.

Since I had never heard of a bear around here I was pretty startled to see one, and, knowing that folks leave their dogs outside during the day, I'm concerned about a possible confrontation (if it’s even still around). I was also concerned about the alpacas at the Bozenkill Fiber Farm, although I don't know if a bear would mess with alpacas and it was pretty far up the road from where I saw it.

Michele Cole
Knox