We live in a wooded area. On Friday evenings our neighborhood has a happy hour, and it was nice tonight so we did.
A BIG bear almost joined the happy hour. It lumbered past the group and kept going to the next house.
This bear has been hanging around the neighborhood all day!
Yikes.
That’s much scarier than the aggressive chipmunks that come too near in hopes of being fed!
We lived in suburban DC for many years. About 10 years ago there were reports of a bear seen near our neighborhood. Sure enough, it walked through our yard one Saturday morning! I was at a fitness class, but H was home, saw it and got some pictures which I posted on the neighborhood FB page.
When I was living in Albuquerque, which has a high desert environment, bears were spotted in the city during a severe drought a time or two. They had traveled from the Sandia mountains west of the city.
They are seen often in the town where I live in VA, which has a more forested environment. About 3-4 years ago, there was a bear on the campus of Virginia Tech, just ambling around outside a dorm building.
Black bears are rarely aggressive.
We are across the state from you. There are bear sightings daily in my town, the most since we’ve lived here (25 years).
Chance of being attacked by a black bear - like 1 in 2.1 million. And attacks are usually avoidable.
I don’t worry about being attacked. But these bears in residential areas are causing a lot of damage. The bear in our neighborhood yesterday ripped the door right off of a three season porch. No one in our neighborhood has trash pick up anymore (we all go to the landfill) because the bears (and raccoons) trashed the trash! No bird feeders either. No keeping garage doors open on nice days. No compost piles either.
When we first moved to this house 30 years ago, a bear sighting was rare. Now it’s an expected occurrence.
Most likely due to their habitat encroached upon. My parents live in an area of PA where black bears have always been prevalent. They can’t have bird feeders out. Have to lock up trash etc
We’ve lived in a few places where black bears were prevalent. Trash stayed in the garage and was put out and taken back in immediately on trash day. No bird feeders. I one town, neighbors told us not to use a gas grill because right before we moved in, a bear badly damaged their deck/patio and broke the grill looking for food.
Our last house had them too but interestingly they were mainly spotted on golf courses. That’s where our local coyotes are now. I don’t think either animal actually lived on the course but they are easier to spot there.
We know a guy from Siberia who lives in Redmond (close to Microsoft where he worked). He said when he moved to the US in the early nineties, he was frequently asked whether it was true that in Siberia bears roamed the city streets. Lol. He has never seen a bear other than in a zoo until he moved here! Black bears rummaging in dumpsters and trashcans are a common occurrence in MSFT neck of the woods! 
No bears have been spotted where we live yet but fat coyotes and an occasional bobcat have visited our backyard. I even have photo evidence!
We were on the highway north of Asheville NC last week early evening when my husband slowed to a crawl. I looked up from my book and saw a bear climb over the center guard rail, lumber across the road and run up the hill on the other side. My husband said it came from the other side of the highway and climbed over both middle guardrails. Definitely the closest I’ve ever seen a bear not in captivity.
Wow - we have lots of coyotes in Atlanta area but I’ve never seen a fat one. They all look emaciated to me…but then every photo I’ve seen on the internet shows them looking that way as well - kind of like tall foxes. We have the occassional black bear roam through and tons, and tons of deer - they live in the suburbs.
And climate change changing their habitat. Whatever the cause (encroachment), animal and plant populations have changed considerably in the last couple of decades. Some have flourished. Others have declined alarmingly.
Just remembered that when little kid went to her new elementary school after we moved to House1, she brought home a note saying that a bear had been spotted eating apples off a tree by a school bus stop half a mile from our house… Parents were advised to watch their kids until they got on the bus. Our kid had to walk to school because we lived less than a mile away and zero traffic lights. Needless to say, we drove her to school for quite a while. Never saw bears though. Only well fed coyotes.
I’ve had close encounters with a few black bears because my family does a lot of hiking, but I was never concerned for my safety. To be honest, I have a healthy respect for black bears, but no fear of them.
Grizzlies are another matter. We saw one at a good distance in Glacier and that was definitely close enough.
Bears are very present around Lake Tahoe. Homes have electrified windows, decks, etc. to keep bears from breaking in. Always have to remember to turn it off before opening the door!
Oh my. This week here in bear land.
Everyone on my Yosemite bus was sooooo excited when someone glimpsed a bear. Also when we saw deer. I was just laughing thinking about CC - so what, big deal, at least it’s not your back yard.
I grew up in a reletively rural area of NH and spent a good number of my adult summers working there. Often saw bears outside of my house, by the road, etc… I remember one night walking to where I was staying around midnight and hearing an animal running close to me. It was bear that I must have startled while it was rummaging through a dumpster. It ran by me and I was fine. I think it might have been as scared as I was! I also would sometimes go to get gas at the ski resort where my company had privileges to fill up company vehicals in the summer. Often would run across bears and thought to myself that next time I should bring a friend with me. 
