After noticing black bears on his land, a man decided to show the animals kindness over the years. Much to his surprise, a mama bear that he had seen many times before eventually showed up in a big way, seemingly wanting to “thank” her “friend.” Luckily for us, cameras were rolling and the entire encounter was caught on video.
As a native of Asheville, North Carolina, where black bears are very common, Patrick Conley wasn’t all that surprised when he began noticing a family of bears visiting his property on a regular basis around late 2017. Over time, the bears seemed to become friendly with Patrick as he took many videos of them, sharing them on his YouTube channel for his many subscribers.
The family of four bears visited Patrick so regularly, that he named them. There was the mother, which Patrick named Maïté, and she had three baby bears: her hefty son Maurice, shy Solange, and Simone. Sadly, the family of bears seemed to go their separate ways around May 2018, except for Simone, who Patrick said he still saw at least once a week for years to come.
At one point, Patrick noticed that Simone was donning a tracking collar after having the “misfortune” of “volunteering” for The North Carolina Urban/Suburban Black Bear Study. However, when Simone showed up in May of 2021, Patrick would notice something very different about the bear he had watched grow up. Simone seemingly had a surprise for Patrick.
As Simone come out of the woods to say hello, Patrick realized she wasn’t alone. Instead, Simone was soon followed by “the cutest things to ever have walked these woods,” according to Patrick, who captured the encounter on video for his YouTube channel. “First visit this year by your favorite girl, Simone!” Patrick captioned the clip, excitedly adding, “AND YES, SHE BROUGHT HER FIRST EVER LITTER OF CUBS!!!!”
Indeed, it seemed Simone had arrived at Patrick’s porch to show the man, who had befriended her over the years, her babies. It seemed to be her way of saying “thank you” for Patrick’s kindness. And, as another welcomed surprise, Patrick noticed the tracking collar was gone and Simone appeared well-fed.
“Being that it’s her first litter I tried my best not to spook her or the little ones,” Patrick explained, adding, “She seemed pretty comfortable with the proximity so I’m guessing we’ll be seeing her again soon.” And, he wasn’t wrong. In fact, in April of 2023, Simone showed up with an even bigger surprise. She had “batch #2 of adorables,” as Patrick called them, and this time, there were four cubs!
The bears seem right at home visiting Patrick’s porch as he calmly enjoys their presence. Neither seems to have any fear of the other. Instead, they appear to be lifelong friends, and for Simone, who first visited Patrick as a cub, they really are. The cubs, however, are a little more cautious as they encounter mom’s friend for the first time, but they trust their mama and follow her lead, curiously exploring the porch.
While Patrick Conley’s experience has been a beautiful one, we must warn that you should never approach a wild bear, especially a mother and her cubs, as it could be extremely dangerous. The trust and respect that Simone has for Patrick Conley is incredibly remarkable, but the fact remains that black bears are wild animals and can be unpredictable. Luckily for us, we don’t have to risk life or limb to enjoy an up-close encounter of this kind. Instead, Patrick offers plenty of videos as “Simone and Company” visits his porch time and time again.
