Video shows black bear roaming around Raccoon Creek State Park

BEAVER CO., Pa. — It was a rare sight to behold at Raccoon Creek State Park. New video shows a black bear roaming around the park in the middle of winter – when bears are supposed to be hibernating.

Two people who were at the park recorded the bear as it made its way across a lake and up a hillside.

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The park’s manager told Channel 11 he isn’t sure what brought the bear out of hibernation but that it could be the warmer weather we’ve seen recently. He also said these sightings are so rare that this was the first bear he’s seen in two decades.

A woman also came face-to-face with the bear. She was looking for eagle nests when she saw the bear just about 25 feet away.

“I was able to snap a picture and then he jumped in the water, and then I thought it was safe to get out of my car. And I videod (sic) him swimming across the lake,” said Lori Pepka.

Now, park officials are trying to figure out if the bear was simply passing through or if it lives there.

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