My street is losing the trash battle with the bears. But after (several beers) and several weeks of careful "trash-can-cat-and-mouse", we've come up with a potentially effective deterrent idea: Glitter bomb the trash cans and scare the hell out of the bears.
Montana wilderness has bears. Montana TOWNS have bears right now too. There are a few very simple but absolutely crucial things you must do NOW to ensure black bears don't cause any trouble in your 'hood.
It seems to me, and I could be wrong, they are kind of a Montana tourist thing. Not that locals don't enjoy them, because they do, but it seems like every time I see them, it's either in the Airport in the "Montana" section or in the "Montana" section of the grocery store or a local gift shop.
One of the most popular sites to visit in Yellowstone is the Grand Prismatic Spring. It's popular among people and also for bears as recent visitors at the park discovered when they saw a huge grizzly walking down the boardwalk.
I should probably disclose that I'm not very good at math. That being said, I'm having a hard time figuring out how a bear mom and cubs managed to climb and stay in a very fall tree where they appear to defy gravity.