It’s not at all uncommon to see bears in and around the town of Gatlinburg, Tennessee. After all, the town thrives off of its proximity to the Great Smoky Mountains National Park.
According to the Park’s official website, biologists have estimated that over 1,500 black bears live there. “This equals a population density of approximately two bears per square mile,” the Park’s website reads.
Since it takes just a matter of minutes to travel to the Park from Gatlinburg, it makes sense why bear sightings often occur. Still, visitors and residents continue to be surprised whenever they see a bear in town.
Recently, the sandwich shop Tennessee Jed’s Gatlinburg shared a clip of a bear strolling through the town’s Baskin Square shopping center.
Tennessee Jed’s posted the video of this wandering bear to its Facebook page on November 29. They said it was the second bear they had seen that morning!
The bear was filmed slowly walking through the shopping center before pausing at a trash can near a display of lit up Christmas decorations. This trash can sparked its interest, and it stood on its hind legs to check out its contents and see if it could find anything tasty to eat.
Watch the footage Tennessee Jed’s filmed of the bear below.
How would you react if you saw a bear in a populated area like Gatlinburg?