July 15, 2024, started off as a normal morning in the small town of Winsted, Conn., a small town located in Litchfield County with a population of roughly 7,000 people. Winsted is part of what they call the Northwest Hills Region, about a half-hour drive from Hartford.

Further to the northwest, only a short distance away, sits Canaan where I used to hunt wild turkeys, probably 20 years ago, until the farmer sold the land and moved south. And let me tell you, saying goodbye to that family was tough, as I loved hunting that property, along with nearby property in New York State.

But I’m deviating from the topic here, of how this quiet and lovely July morning in Winsted suddenly turned into a chaotic scene that included trespassing, vandalism, breaking and entering, and destruction of property which, in any other instance, might have turned into a crime scene.

But on this morning in Connecticut, sudden horn blaring and sounds of a radio blasting away broke into the tranquility of the moment, while rapidly catching the attention of everyone within shouting distance. Shortly after, local police, state law enforcement officers, and environmental agents were called to the scene, now in progress, on the grounds of a local residence. And when everyone was gathered, they quickly realized an adult black bear was sitting in the passenger seat of a vehicle, looking directly out the front window. Alongside was a very stressed-out bear cub, both caught red-handed inside the vehicle, with a second cub in complete distress as it continually raced around outside the vehicle searching for its mother and sibling.

At that moment, everyone began to realize that these malefactors were trapped and could not find their way out of the car. As the chaos continued, both officers and residents looked on with startled disbelief and astonishment while wondering aloud, “How could they have gotten in there, and what could their motive have been?”As the minutes ticked away, the vehicle owner finally came forward with the fact that she had not locked the car doors when she arrived home the evening before, which resulted in these two black bears, now inside this car, frantic, frightened, and trapped.

It was then that someone noticed numerous claw marks around the door handle of the passenger side door, quickly concluding that the mother bear, or the cub, somehow managed to enter the vehicle, but it wasn’t at all clear how the door then closed behind them. But no matter how it happened, they were inside, and wanted desperately to get out!

A plan was eventually developed to remove the bears from the vehicle. Two officers would approach the car from what they hoped would be the safest vantage point. They would open the door, quickly back out of the way, and if all went well, release the bears back into the wild.

Luckily, the plan unfolded perfectly. Within a few seconds after the officers opened the door, the two bears leaped from the vehicle and raced off into the woods with the second cub, who had been watching from a distance, hot on their heels and eventually disappearing into the woods.

The car’s interior wasn’t so fortunate, as it was left completely destroyed and unrecognizable. But in the end, law enforcement did their job that day, no one was injured, and the bears were safely returned to the woods. Bears have been breaking into cars, trash bins, and homes in northern and central New England for years now, and this very real incident would have been an extremely rare occurrence in Connecticut just a few short decades ago. Black bears in the Nutmeg State have become a growing phenomenon and have been present in Connecticut since the late 1980s, and the incident that occurred in Winsted is just another sign that the animals have become a growing presence in the state.

So whether in Connecticut, Massachusetts, or any other New England state, remember that a black bear that breaks into homes, cars, trash cans, or destroys property is not a bear that can go into rehab or bear reform school, no matter how cute and cuddly they appear to be. These animals are wild, and worse yet, they are opportunists with a memory that will astound you. Never give them easy access to human-sourced food. And keep your doors locked and secured on your vehicles, sheds, barns, and homes. Don’t encourage them in any way to come onto your property to the point where an injury, or worse, may occur. Because in the end, it’s usually the bear that loses!

Joe Judd is a lifelong hunter and sportsman. He is an outdoor writer, seminar speaker, member of the New England Outdoor Writers Association, and a 2019 inductee into the N.E. Turkey Hunting Hall of Fame. Joe is also on the Quaker Boy Game Calls and Bass Pro Shops/Cabela’s Pro-Staff. He can be reached at jjontheridge@comcast.net