CHAPTER XXIX.
WILD SPORTS.
Notwithstanding the thick growth of the forests of Oregon and Washington, the hunter may find sport, with game worthy of his rifle, if he is not afraid of the exertion and foot-service. There are numerous "openings" in the forest, and plenty of wild country in the foot-hills, where game may be found, if the habitat of each animal is known.
The most formidable of the Bear family is the grizzly, which inhabits less the thick forests of the north than the manzanita thickets and the scrub-oak coverts of Southern and Eastern Oregon, yet is occasionally found as far north as the Olympian Range in Washington Territory. The color of this bear is a silvery gray, its bulk immense, sometimes weighing two thousand pounds, and its habits herbivorous chiefly, though it will, on sufficient provocation, kill and eat other animals, and even man. It subsists in Southern Oregon upon the berries of the manzanita, of which it is very fond, and will feed upon any berries or fruits within its reach; occasionally, as a relish, digging up a wasps'-nest for the sake of the honey, not being able, like the black bear, to climb in search of bees'-nests.
In seasons when drought has destroyed its customary food in the mountains of California, it has been known to descend into the valleys and dig up gophers for
