"If you guys need any volunteers, I'll go up there and get him down now...I ain't scared!" a drunk guy next to me shouted at police and animal control while they were trying to get a bear down from a tree in Albany.

That's how I knew I was in my hood, and this was going to be an interesting afternoon!

The Albany Bear captivated many for hours on Tuesday after it was first spotted - early in the morning - wandering near Washington Park in Albany. It's not every day that a bear makes its way into this part of town!

Hours later, he was spotted up in a tree inside the park on State St. just north of the main entrance into the park from Henry Johnson Blvd.

Photo: Steve Smith APD
Albany Bear
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I live like 3 blocks away, so when I finished at the GNA studio, I went home, grabbed my binoculars, and walked down to see if I could catch a glimpse of the meandering mammal.  It was around 12:30 pm.

A few blocks up the street, I could see a large crowd gathering in the vicinity of where the bear was, as well as a slew of people from the DGS, DEC, Albany Police and I think Albany fire was there too with the ladder.

Photo: Steve Smith APD
Albany Bear
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Crowd control wasn't much of an issue - a very stern - yet polite woman (think Melissa McCarthy) was keeping me and all the others at bay.

The man who had too much to drink asked to borrow my binoculars and I handed them to him, immediately wishing I hadn't.  Again he shouted to the DEC, complaining that he couldn't get closer.  Melissa McCarthy shouted back at him -  threatening to remove him.

But all I wanted were my binoculars back, they were expensive.  Plus, the man didn't smell too pleasant and when the tipsy observer eventually calmed down, I got 'em back.

In fairness, I got hollered at probably 3 three times by her and others because I kept trying to creep closer to catch a good look.

With my binoculars, I could see movement, and only occasionally the bear's face and claws as he maneuvered up and down nervously on the sturdy tree branches.

At around 1 PM, I watched the wayward bear get pelted with a tranquilizer dart through my binoculars, and thought he would immediately fall.  But he didn't - he laid down on branches and appeared to take a little snooze - while animal rescue gathered about 20 feet under him with a net, hoping to catch his fall.

Photo: Steve Smith Albany Police
Bear hangs on to a tree in Albany's Washington Park
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After about an hour in the heat - and dealing with some of Albany's finest onlookers- I decided I had enough and went home.  The bear was chillin' and animal control told us it could be a while before he fell to the ground.

Photo: Steve Smith APD
Ready with a net for him to fall
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As soon as I walked in the door, I saw online that the bear had "safely" had fallen out of the tree, and this big boy was ready to catch a ride back to the Catskills.

A happy ending for sure.  Shout out to everyone involved who worked to get this bear down safely.  As I said, he was a big boy, and they handled the situation well.

Photo: Steve Smith APD
Once the bear safely fell from the tree, he was taken back to the forest, presumably somewhere in the Catskills
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As for the relatively unruly bystander who "ain't scared", he's still waiting for someone to take him up on his offer to help.

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