Porch pal

When Steve Bartlett heard a loud noise on the front porch of his Timber Knob home Wednesday night, May 6, he walked to the window, turned on the outside light and found a 300-pound black bear looking back at him through the glass. “I pecked on the glass, and it just looked at me,” said Bartlett, a former Ozark County Sheriff and Missouri State Highway Patrol officer. After a few minutes, he said, the bear “went halfway down the porch steps and then went over the bannister and walked off into the woods.” He estimated its 300-pound weight and was happy to see that it looked like a “nice, healthy bear – pretty fat.” He suspects the bear was attracted to his porch by the barbecue grill. “I really enjoyed it, to tell you the truth,” Bartlett said. “I love that they’re here. It just tickled the dickens out of me.” 

Ozark County Times

504 Third Steet
PO Box 188
Gainesville, MO 65655

Phone: (417) 679-4641
Fax: (417) 679-3423