Wandering bears chased back into mountains

A bear takes a swim in a Pasadena resident's swimming pool

PASADENA, California (CNN) -- One or possibly three bears wandered out of the San Gabriel Mountains into a suburban Los Angeles neighborhood on Friday afternoon, leading authorities and news helicopters on a chase through woods and around yards.

State game and fish officers had been prepared to shoot the bears with tranquilizer guns, but they were eventually able to flush them out of the residential areas and chase them back up into the mountains, said Deputy Ron Bottomley of the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department.

VIDEO A loose bear in California takes a dip in a swimming pool (June 9) Play video (QuickTime, Real or Windows Media)

While one bear could clearly been seen from the air, residents in the area reported seeing as many as three bears, believed to have been a mother and two cubs, Bottomley said.

The bears probably came out of the mountains in search of food, Bottomley said.

At one point, the bear being tracked from the air took a brief dip in a swimming pool. It then climbed out and continued its trek through the wooded areas amid the neighborhood's residential properties.