A bear 'hunt' engages kids and connects the community

An unusual number of bears are showing up in local neighborhoods this spring. Desperate measures are being taken as families enlist their children to hunt a variety of species such as Teddy, Panda and Pooh.

The fuzzy ursine have emerged from numerous human dens, pressing their plastic noses against windows, signaling the start of "hunting" season.

It began after a social media post on Nextdoor by Amanda Dean, who shared the idea that was inspired by a children's book, "We're Going on a Bear Hunt." She thought it would help entertain her nine-year-old son and other families who need something to do while they hunker down due to the coronavirus.

"Let's be honest, it isn't really appealing for kids to go for a walk. You get the big groan,"

said Dean who lives in the Clover Creek neighborhood. "This gives them something to focus on."

But Dean thinks it is good for adults too. "In times like this, it's going to be something fun for people of all ages to do instead of wander around your house and panic."

Dozens of people responded to the post the first day. I was one of those who offered to pull stuffies out of closets and trunks and perch them in windows. For me, it was a tawny stuffy that had been sitting, bored, in a chair at my house in Niwot for years.

Putting a bear in a windowsill is harder than it sounds. My ledges aren't wide enough to hold Teddy. Plus, my dogs wanted to eat him. So I wove the cord from the blinds through a red ribbon that adorned Teddy's neck and hoisted him up to dangle mid-window. I wasn't sure if people would think he was levitating, choking or guilty of some heinous stuffed-bear crime, like being mean to Piglet. Surely, a game for children shouldn't be gruesome.

Teddy's round, brown, pleading eyes seemed relieved when I detangled him. At least until the dogs spied him again. I held him overhead and put him safely out of reach on the dining room table where he lay with arms and legs outstretched in a Shavasana yoga pose, counting ceiling tiles while I considered his fate.

The dogs got busy sniffing for living stuffies out back, so I whisked Teddy away to the front porch where I plopped him on the step like a pumpkin. I could bring him in if it rains. But that spot felt too easy for the kids. And what if I forgot him? It didn't seem right to cast him out like that.

My next idea was to wedge him in the space between the screen door and the front door. I quickly slammed the front door to see if he would stay. Teddy was falling before I even got my hand out of the way. He wasn't fat enough. (He's not a Pooh bear.) He slipped to the floor and gave me a look of helplessness. Perhaps a hint of disdain.

There must be a way to do this without resorting to duct tape.

I looked up at the mechanism that controls the screen door that, according to Google, is technically called "a door closer." I turned Teddy upside down and hung him by his feet, like a gymnast on the uneven bars. He stuck.

But I wondered if he was visible from the outside, all squinched into the upper corner of the screen door. Debatable. I put myself at ease with the idea that keen hunters will feel especially proud when they spot him.

For his part, Teddy looked like he was having fun there. A silly hello from a cartwheeled bear peeking out to see who might be looking for him.

Since my bear was having this much fun, I wondered what the other neighborhood bears were up to. I rewarded the dogs for not eating Teddy by taking them with me on a bear hunt down my street.

I ran into a few children who didn't know about the hunt, but got animated when I told them. I wished they had tagged along with me. The reflections were causing me to stare into my neighbor's windows for an unnatural amount of time. It would have been more acceptable if I had kids with me. Or not. I worry the hunt may lead to some TMI moments between households. Tip: It's easier to see bears when the sun is shining directly into the window, allowing the hunter to swiftly bag the prey.

So far, I can only claim one panda as my trophy but I spied two chalk rainbows on a couple of driveways, another thing people are displaying as a symbol of hope that the storm will pass.

Even though I only had a few official finds, it felt good to be part of the game. Something Amanda Dean thought about when she posted the idea of a bear hunt.

"It's just to show we're all in this together," said Dean. "We can bring the community together in a weird little way."

The hunt gave my regular walk a new sense of adventure. I wasn't sure what I'd find or when. And I did feel a larger sense of connection, especially when I was rewarded with an unexpected discovery--the outline of a heart, crafted with red sticky notes, alongside the word LOVE.