| Although bears were not usually a problem at
Rainbow Lodge, one summer a bear kept coming around the grounds, getting
into the garbage and stealing food scraps from the kitchen. At first, staff
tried to scare the bear with loud noises and shouting. However, she was
particularly persistent and continued to come around. Not wanting to place
their guests in any danger, the Philips finally decided that it was necessary
to get rid of the animal. While troublesome bears in present-day Whistler
are tranquilized and transported to another area, the pioneers at Alta Lake
did not have such resources and were thus forced to shoot the bear. |
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| A few days later a group of guests were hiking in
the woods near Rainbow Lodge when they heard a strange sound. Upon closer
inspection they discovered a small baby bear. It seemed that he had lost
his mother. Myrtle had a kind heart and did not want to see this baby animal
suffer so she brought it back to Rainbow Lodge where she nursed and fed
him. The bear was named Teddy, and soon became very popular with everybody
at the lodge. Teddy was very good at climbing
poles, standing
on his hind legs, chewing
on shoes and, cuddling
in warm laps. He even became friends with a piglet
in the Rainbow barn. Over the summer Teddy grew very quickly and by autumn,
Myrtle decided that he was too big to stay at Rainbow Lodge. She wrote a
letter to the zoo at Stanley Park in Vancouver to see if they could accommodate
him. Zoo officials quickly wrote Myrtle back to say that they would love
to take Teddy into their care, so a few weeks later Myrtle and Teddy took
the train down to Vancouver. Although she was sad to leave her furry friend
behind, she knew that he would be safe and happy. Myrtle would visit Teddy
each time she traveled down to Vancouver. Teddy recognized the sound of
Myrtle's voice and would go running over to her when she called his name.
Myrtle would sit for hours talking to Teddy and although most zoo visitors
thought she was crazy to be talking to an animal, Myrtle did not care. She
knew that her friend could understand her. |
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