Coming soon: There’s a new record black bear in Maine

I love it when I wake up in the morning find messages in my email in-box that have words like “state record” in them.

That’s exactly what happened this morning: On Friday (as thousands of you read my blog post on one hunter’s 600-pound black bear) another hunter was sitting in a tree stand, getting ready to etch his name into the state’s record books.

A big black bear came in. The hunter took advantage of the bear’s error.

Yes, the bear I told you about last week was big.

But this one will make your head spin.

It was weighed on a state-certified scale, before being field-dressed, so no conversion from field-dressed weight to estimated live weight was necessary.

I’ll save the rest of the story until I get one more interview done (I’m hoping to hear from the hunter himself), but I will tell you this.

The 1995 record bear — a 680-pounder — has just dropped to No. 2.

I’ve got a guide’s perspective on the hunt; Stay tuned, and as soon as I can track down the hunter, I’ll let you know more about our newest state record.

And most important to many of you, I’ll share the photos.

Also on tap this week (as soon as I receive the photos that have been promised): Another 500-pounder from Aroostook County.

John Holyoke

About John Holyoke

John Holyoke has been enjoying himself in Maine's great outdoors since he was a kid. Today, he's the Outdoors editor for the BDN, a job that allows him to meet up with Maine outdoors enthusiasts in their natural habitat. The stories he gathers provide fodder for his columns, and this blog.