Tourist in Our Town: Bear Visits Bedford

A black bear, rambling through a backyard in Bedford on Monday morning – Image (c) Hans van der Lee, 2018 all rights reserved

Compiled by The Bedford Citizen

Courtesy image (c) BPD, 2018 all rights reserved – Click to view larger image

Caught in the act of snagging a snack from a bird feeder in Bedford on Monday morning – Image (c) Hans van der Lee, 2018 all rights reserved

Update: 2:20 pm: According to Det. Scott Jones, Davis School was notified when the bear was seen moving from one yard to another on Ten Acre Drive.

Captain Mark Sullivan of the Bedford Fire Department reported that an ursine visitor rambling around Bedford on Monday morning had traveled across town, moving from an encounter on Elmbrook Circle to Bedford Farms’ parking lot. Sullivan added that the bear is presumed in the woods, and that Massachusetts Environmental Police are in Bedford.

This image from Ben Chambers-Maher was taken at 8:50 on Sunday morning along Old Billerica Road; it could be the first image of the bear’s perambulation of Bedford – Image (c) Ben Chambers-Maher, 2018 all rights reserved

A Facebook post on Sunday showed a bear visiting a bird feeder on Earl Road, then a Monday morning phone call alerted The Citizen that a sizeable bear had just ambled across Brooksbie Road and headed up Hill Road.

Lt. Det. Scott Jones of the Bedford Police Department confirmed Monday’s sightings, adding one on Hillside Avenue, behind the Bedford Shopping Center..

The bear appeared on Channel 7 news on Sunday, in a video captured near Grove Street in Lexington.

Editor’s Note: This story is being updated as further information is received.