I Turned And Beat-Feet for Home!!!!

I was out at the nursery today, working on some bonsai.  The girls were with me so I took them for a walk.  They were off leash and running back and forth in pure joy!
    As I always, I was looking on the path to see what was there to be seen.  In the past I have found all kinds of animal tracks.  And... the Ocala National Forest is very large and home to deer, boar, bear, panther, alligator, hundreds of bird species, including hawks and eagles.
Today was the first time I came across bear tracks, which I posted.  I tried to highlight the toe nails in the thumbnail and in the full picture you can the pad of the left front foot, with the toes and claws turning off to the right (as the bear strides it rolls forward and inward with every stride).
     Now, the Florida blackbear is not a big bear, but far stronger than I.   I called the girls, leashed them, and headed back to the nursery in a hurry.  I didn't want to get caught out a 1/2 mile away from help.   The bears usually aren't aggressive, unless they have cubs.
     At the nursery, I asked David if it was a bear track, and he confirmed it was. He has had bear at his front door, looking for food  so the bears are known to travel there.  It's early for a cub, but it's also early for them to be that close to the nursery.  David and Linda have lived at the nursery for 38 years and seen many bear, but have never had any real trouble with them.  I was just glad to back and safe around the group of people.