With a little bit of luck and a lot of patience, Maryland Department of Natural Resources officers captured a bear cub that had wandered into a residential area of Frederick, Md. and climbed a tree.

"The bear's probably much more afraid of the kids than the kids would be of the bear," said Cpl. Joe Hayer with the Frederick Police Department.

The 30 pound black bear spent the day camped out about 60 feet up in a tree in the Hickory Hills Apartment complex off Key Parkway in Frederick. 

"Fascinating!" declared stunned Frederick resident Mickey Arroyo. "You don't have bears in Frederick like this, up trees like this. You're in a residential area--you don't have that!"

An employee of the apartment complex thought it was all a hoax. "I thought it was a joke. I thought maybe it was a teddy bear!" said Emma Rivera.

Department of Natural Resources officials and police decided the yearling did not pose much of a threat, and they decided not to tranquilize it. They stood guard waiting for the cub to climb down.

"He might go up farther, he might go farther out on a limb, he might go to sleep and fall," said Cpl. Hayer. 

As authorities waited it out, the bear's scratching, stretching, and snoozing kept the crow captivated. "I'm supposed to be on bedrest, but mom told me there was a bear and I wanted to see him!"

Cpl. Hayer said he never experienced a situation like this, "Going on eight years in the Frederick Police Department and this is the first time I've ever encountered a bear in the city."

When the yearling eventually lumbered down to the ground, it found an apple tree and started munching. Officers moved in with an animal control pole, wrangling it into a cage.

Authorities took the yearling to a state forest to release it. DNR officials suspect the yearling was released into the wild by its mother.