THE DAILY WIRE · MONTANA, USA · 2026-09-25
Bigfork Bear Adds Dumpster Diving to Library Programming
A black bear in Bigfork, Montana, has apparently decided the local library's collection isn't the only thing worth checking out — the waste container behind the branch made the cut too.
Per the Daily Inter Lake, the bear was caught trashing the waste container at the Bigfork library branch, leaving the scene in a state officials presumably had to clean up rather than shelve.
Webster notes this marks a new frontier in Montana bear activity: not homes, not cars, not fire stations, but municipal infrastructure dedicated to quiet reading. There is no word yet on whether the bear returned anything.
This reporter reached Ranger Fennimore, a Rocky Mountain elk who grazes near the branch most evenings, for an eyewitness account of the incident. His read on the bear's motive did not align with the official statement.
The library, this reporter assumes, remains open. The dumpster's condition is unconfirmed.
“That bear's been casing that dumpster since Tuesday, same as the rest of us who wait for taco night at the diner down the road. Folks leave food waste out here like it's a buffet, then act surprised when nature shows up to eat — bears can smell garbage from over a mile off, that's just biology, not bad behavior.” — Ranger Fennimore, Rocky Mountain elk
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