Newbury resident Ellsworth “Butch” Spear, 69, who’d been reported missing late Thursday afternoon, was found early Friday afternoon after a search led by the Vermont State Police and Fish & Wildlife wardens, according to a press release from Vermont State Police.
Spear had been training his hunting dogs Thursday afternoon on Gore Road in Plainfield, police said in the release. He told his wife he needed to retrieve one of the dogs Thursday at about 4:30 p.m. When he was not heard from for several hours, his wife alerted authorities, and the search began.
Spear was located safe early Friday afternoon after emerging from the woods near Pigeon Pond in Groton. He told police he became disoriented in the woods Thursday night and was able to find his way out Friday morning.
Spear is former president of the Vermont Bearhound Association, which works to preserve the right to hunt with hounds, among other hunting rights. Last December, he was part of a viral video when the owner of Gold-Shaw Farm in Peacham took issue with Spear hunting on his property. The video sparked a statewide debate about the legality of bear hound hunting in Vermont.
Earlier this month, a Groton resident instigated an altercation with Spear and two fellow hunters after stopping them in the middle of a road in Groton, state police have said. The resident also sprayed the hunters with bear spray and now faces three charges stemming from the incident.
— Jenna Peterson