Little Charlie Bear Goes Mountain Climbing
August 20, 1963
One day when Papa Charlie Bear was out in the yard picking some flowers to take to Mr. and Mrs. Mountain Goat (because Papa Charlie, Mama Bear and little Charlie had been invited to their house for supper), little Charlie came running out of the house and asked, “Papa, can I go over to see Jimmy Mountain Goat this afternoon instead of waiting until supper time?”
“Why I guess so. What’s on your mind?” asked Papa Charlie.
“I thought it might be fun to climb up the mountain if Terry, Jimmy’s older brother, can go with us,” answered little Charlie.
“That sounds all right to me. Go in and tell your mother where you’re going and that I said it was all right,” replied Papa Bear.
With that little Charlie ran into the house and told his mother what he was planning to do and that Papa Charlie had said it was all right. Mama Bear told him to wash his face and comb his hair and be sure not to get dirty on the climb.
Little Charlie never washed his face more quickly or combed his hair faster. In no time at all he was running down the path to his friend, Jimmy The Mountain Goat’s house.
As he arrived, little Jimmy Mountain Goat was starting out of the yard with his brother Terry.
“Hi,” called little Charlie. “Where are you going?”
“Hi,” called Little Jimmy. “We were just going for a run up the mountain. Want to come?”
“Sure. That’s what I hoped we could do this afternoon. That’s why I came over early,” said little Charlie.
“Let’s go,” said Terry, “we don’t have more than a little while before we have to be back for supper.”
So off they went up the path that led to the top of the mountain. They walked and walked and walked through the woods until there weren’t any more trees. Then, they started to climb on the rocks. “This is fun,” thought little Charlie Bear. As they went up higher and higher the rocks got bigger and bigger and it was harder and harder for little Charlie to get from one rock to the next ’cause he could not jump like his friends The mountain goats could.
Little Charlie said, “wait for me, Jimmy. I can’t go as fast as you can.”
Poor little Charlie Bear was having a hard time making his leg stretch from rock to rock and he was so afraid that a rock might fall and he stepped on it ’cause sometimes they did wiggle as he put his weight on them.
“Can’t you jump like we can?” Called back Jimmy.
“No, I tried but I just can’t. I have to work my way up the rocks slowly and sometimes my hands slip. I don’t like this. I think I’ll just sit here and wait for you to come back,” answered little Charlie.
“All right,” said Terry, “we’ll go on and you wait right here for us.”
It wasn’t very long before a little Charlie heard a friendly voice saying, “hi, little Charlie. What are you doing way up here on the rocks?”
“Hello,” said little Charlie as he saw his friend Craig the Chipmunk sitting beside him. “I don’t know you ever came up this far.”
“Oh, sure,” said Craig. “I love to scamper over these rocks. Sometimes I find wonderful sweet plants up here to eat. What are you doing out here?”
“I came up with Jimmy and Terry the Mountain Goats. But, I couldn’t keep up with them. They went ahead and they’ll meet me here on the way back. I’m going to have supper with them tonight,” explain a little Charlie.
“I’m going back home now. Why don’t you come with me instead of just sitting here. I live near the Mountain Goats and we can play at my house until they come home,” suggested Craig the Chipmunk.
“I couldn’t do that,” said little Charlie. “What would Jimmy and Terry think if they came back and I wasn’t here? They might think I had fallen down in the rocks and maybe broken a leg or something. Why don’t you wait and go back with us?” suggested little Charlie.
“O.K. That would be fun. How long do you think it’ll be before they come back?” asked Craig.
“I don’t know. Maybe any minute now,” answered little Charlie. “Here they come now. I can see them just coming around the rocks.”
“Hi!” called Craig the Chipmunk as Jimmy and Terry jumped onto the rock he and little Charlie were sitting on.
“Hi! Craig,” said little Jimmy. “What are you doing here?”
“Oh, I just came for the fun of it and saw a little Charlie waiting for you,” answered Craig the Chipmunk.
Little Charlie had been sitting waiting so long he was happy to start back down the mountain.
It wasn’t very long before they came to Craig the Chipmunk’s home. As they waved goodbye they turn down the path to where Jimmy and Terry lived.
And, there was papa and mama Charlie Bear and papa and mama Mountain Goat so happy to see their little children back safe and sound.
As soon as the three mountain climbers had washed their hands and combed their hair, everyone sat down for a wonderful dinner of baked beans and brown bread with apple pie for dessert.