North Carolina hunter harvests record black bear

Congratulations to a group of North Carolina hunters led by Jeff Teague. The group broke a 30-year record with the recent black bear harvest shot by Caleb Henry. The 695-pound black bear was killed on the second day of the state’s open season on Oct. 18, 2022, in Haywood County, according to Channel 13 ABC News.

“When we turned loose, we didn’t realize exactly how big it was,” said Teague. “I run down the trail and I saw the bear, and I could tell it was a big bear, but honestly, you couldn’t tell that it was 700 pounds. So, I got on the radio and yelled at Lucas (Teague) and Caleb (Henry), ‘Hey, the bear’s coming to you.’ It went up the mountain to them, and then Luke and Caleb was able to cut it off, and Caleb was able to get the kill shot on it.”

While the hunting party included hunting dogs and several others, including members of Teague’s family, because Henry took the fatal shot, he’s the one whose name is in the record book. The previous record, which held for the last 30 years, was a 688-pound black bear killed by a bowhunter in the early 90s in Madison County, according to Channel 13 ABC News.

“We’re controlling the population, so to speak. We’re not getting rid of the population, but we’re helping control it, and that's just the way nature’s supposed to be,” said Teague.

Congratulations to all who were involved with this amazing record harvest.