Grizzly bear spotted near Cochrane's Fireside neighbourhood

A young grizzly bear wandered through a Cochrane neighbourhood on Saturday and officials believe it might have come back on Sunday.

Residents were able to take several photos of the bear as it roamed through the Fireside neighbourhood Saturday and Sunday.

"I was just having my cup of coffee and I looked out my door, and he was right there! I shook my head and went, 'Seriously, a bear?'" said Judy Kerr, a local resident. 

Several neighbours went door to door warning people to get their children and pets inside as the bear moved through the community.

The bear was seen heading southwest into the Foothills but officials with the province's department of fish and wildlife arrived Sunday to set up a container trap anyway.

They baited the trap with beaver meat and stationed it in a resident's yard in an attempt to coax the bear inside.

Their theory is that the small grizzly had been forced out its natural environment by larger bears.

"There were no incidences, it was just a spectacular event, " said Elaine Wood, who lives near where the bear was seen. "It's a little surreal but it's been a lot of fun — meet the neighbours!"