Bear filmed taking a dip in family's swimming pool (video)

Bear takes a dip in California family swimming pool

A reasonably large bear was caught on camera escaping the California heatwave - by taking a dip in one family's swimming pool.

Homeowner Thomas See arrived back at the house in Sierra Madre to find the bear cooling off in the water on Sunday afternoon.

According to the Mirror, the bear swam around in the pool for about 15 minutes before leaving.

A woman in the background can be heard exclaiming: "This is unreal. Oh my God, how awesome is that!"

According to the LA Times, the bear can hardly be blamed for wanting to cool off - temperatures have this week hit 103F.

The black bear population in southern California has been on the rise, and there is now reportedly around 30,000 in the state.

Just last month, another California family got the fright of their lives when they looked out their living room window to see a brown bear rolling about in their paddling pool.

Toshi Miyamoto's daughter was the first to spot the bear but when she shouted "big bear!" her father presumed she was referring to the place.

"We just came back from Big Bear Mountain," Miyamoto told KNBC News in Los Angeles. "So [I thought] she is talking about Big Bear mountain."