Anna Tomkins - The Adventures of Aries, The Little Bear That Couldn`t Sleep

Bor looked at her incredulously. “Taste nice? Are you kidding? Cousin, let me tell you, fish are even tastier than ants, and that’s saying something.”

“Last year we ate so many we could hardly walk.” Said Bru, while he patted his stomach fondly remembering the experience.

“Don't worry Aries. Not far to go now,” said Ethyl. We should be able to see the big river from the next ridge.

Reassured, Aries picked up her pace and caught up with the others.

A short time later, the group reached the top of the next ridge and looked down onto Antler Falls. The Big River lay below them, a series of rapids with foaming waterfalls and deep pools. There were bears everywhere, some along the banks, some in the water, others perched precariously on slippery rocks waiting for the salmon to come.

“Wow! Just look at all those bears!” Aries had never seen so many bears.

“It looks like we are a little late. Everybody got here before us,” said Gentle.

“From up here it looks like the best fishing spots are already taken.”

Ethyl wasn’t worried. “Don’t worry,” she said. “There's always more than enough fish to go around. I see Aunty has got the best spot as usual.”

Ethyl pointed to a large female bear stood on a flat rock in the middle of the river. The water was funneled around her and fish were jumping within touching distance of her as they tried to swim upstream.

Aries was curious.

“Is she really my Aunty?” she asked.

“Actually no. We are related to most of the bears here some way or another.” The mother bear replied. “Aunty is just her nickname among the other bears.”

“It’s not her real name. It’s short for antisocial. She has made being bad tempered into an art form. She’s the girl that put the “Grrrrr” into Grizzly.”

As they watched a male bear tried to join Aunty on the rock, but she jumped up and karate kicked him in the chest. She landed nimbly on her feet as the other bear fell back into the water with a huge splash.

“Go find your own fishing spot sucker! Hah!” yelled Aunty.

Ethyl and Gentle looked at each other. “Yep, that’s Aunty alright.” They agreed.

With that, the bears made their way down towards the river and Antler Falls.

After reaching the river, the two families split up to fish from their favorite spots. Gentles fishing spot is on a rock surrounded by foaming water. Aries is on another rock in shallower water, much closer to the riverbank.

The salmon are swimming upstream and can frequently be seen jumping out of the water. “Now watch me closely Aries,” she tells the young cub. “Every bear has their own fishing technique, but this way works fine for me.”

Gentle is an experienced angler and patiently waits for the right moment to strike.

Suddenly a fish jumps out of the water to her right. She flashes out a paw and the salmon lands at her feet, flapping around on the rock.

She flashes a paw out at another jumping fish, but this time misses her mark.

“Watch how I do it Aries. We’ll just catch another one or two then go relax for a while in the grass. After dinner when there aren't so many bears fishing we’ll find a quiet safe spot where you can try your hand at catching some supper.”

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