Bernie From Burney Falls State Park
Created more than a million years ago MacArthur–Burney Memorial Falls California State Park is far from the Folsom City Zoo Sanctuary but there’s a story to tell.
An orphaned newborn raccoon was found in the Burney Falls area. Her eyes weren’t open yet and she was being attacked by wild birds. Rescued in the nick of time, and with the assistance of multiple helping human hands, she moved to the Folsom Zoo. Named Bernadette – Bernie for short – she’s a healthy, exceptional, yes, spunky 8-month-old raccoon. Fortunately for the rest of the world, Bernie has a raccoon mentor named Crash who moved to the Zoo in 2006. Crash is exceedingly patient. In the first week Bernie managed to crawl up and down every inch of her new home, her four little black paws literally grasping every inch of cage wire – hanging from the top, climbing up the sides, investigating all the wooden lying-up ramps. And both ponds. She checked out straw filled raccoon tunnels and investigated the little napping rooms in the tall faux tree stump. Crash is tidy with his meals. Bernie Not So Much but she gets it done. Some days the dynamic duo takes naps, both curled up together on one of the high walkways. They play together, too. Bernie wrestles Crash, Crash wrestles Bernie. Crowds gather.