I have never had an encounter with a bear. Maybe you haven't, either, but I point it out because I know a surprising number of people who have. All of them came away completely unscathed.

Black Bears

It's not that they are completely harmless; it's just that American black bears, the ones indigenous to Kentucky, aren't as aggressive as their cousins out West. You most certainly want no part of a grizzly bear, a species of brown bear.

Black Bear Gatlinburg

And honestly, unless you wander a busy street in Gatlinburg, Tennessee, or head for the hills of Bluegrass Appalachia, you're not likely to have such an encounter. But at this time of year, those "chance meetings" are a little more possible.

Do you really have to be told to leave bears alone? Don't answer that. Anyway...

Black Bears Wander in the Summer

Early summer is when young male black bears tend to wander outside their core range, leaving their mothers to essentially start lives of their own by seeking new digs, safe habitat, and food. The Kentucky Department of Fish & Wildlife Resources tells us that young black bears' natural tendency to disperse can send them great distances and even into neighborhoods. WKYT reports that they're already on the movie.

How to Keep Bears Away

But if you'd just as soon not take any chances, KDFWR suggests you do things like removing bird feeders, securing your garbage totes, keeping your grills clean, and moving pet food indoors overnight.

Nobody likes surprises, and going out back to see if you remembered to stow the lawn mower, only to come face to face with a black bear, would certainly count as a surprise. And this would depend on who you are, but it would probably be an unwelcome surprise.