The bears are out. There were several reports last month of Sandisfield bears wandering our fields and woods and through our front yards and back yards, looking for food.

According to a report on Connect- Sandisfield/Facebook, a bear visited Matthew Sermini’s home in South Sandisfield when he and his wife were out of town. The bear broke into the house and rummaged around. Captured on a home camera, the bear was wearing an ear tag, indicating he had been a problem before.

On Sandisfield Road, Rachel Burdick filmed a large black bear wandering through her front yard, taking his time.

Others have seen mother bears with cubs. Driving with a friend on Cold Spring Road, I saw a young bear in a field, which was not unusual.

Another Town driver saw what appeared to be a very large black bear, “maybe 300 pounds?” on the side of Route 57 near the York Lake sign on the border between Sandisfield and New Marlborough.

If you surprise a bear while hiking any of our Sandisfield trails, do not run. The common advice is to stand as tall as you can and raise your hands. You might shout at the bear. They are fearful animals, unless provoked, and will normally run away from you faster than you can run from it.

So don’t provoke a bear. Especially a mother bear with cubs.

And while driving, drive with the knowledge that there are a lot of animals on our roads, from tiny turtles to fast-moving deer, some with fawns scurrying behind them, to slow-moving bears and occasionally, a very tall moose or two.

Give them all the right of way.