We certainly did attend many events at Beetle Rock including our wedding reception after being married in Round Meadow in 1981. We called it Beetle rock rec hall. A portion of the building served as a retail warehouse for the gift shops and downstairs were employee dorm rooms. Over the years we had many bear encounters both in the frontcountry and backcountry. My wife worked seasonally for park service as a campground ranger then as a naturalist and finally in resource management where her job included work with problem bears. As avid joggers we would see bears on a regular basis in the early morning and early evening. Most bears went about their business eating manzanita berries and ants, avoiding or ignoring us. It was far more concerning to see a bear on the back deck of the restaurant or in a parking lot. Once bears become used to getting human food then they become much more dangerous. We just returned from a 4 day stay in Bearpaw high sierra camp where we ran into a young black bear on the trail to Hamilton lakes he/she was happy to turn around and walk away from us. Just like old times. We sure do miss that place.
-G. &M.E. L.