Hunters find body while scouting ‘treacherous’ mountain terrain, NC sheriff says

Hunters exploring in a remote section of the 500,000-acre Pisgah National Forest stumbled onto a body in the dark, according to investigators in western North Carolina.

It happened around 8:30 p.m. Thursday, April 2, in northeast Buncombe County, near the Yancey County line, the Buncombe County Sheriff’s Office said in a news release.

“Officers responded to a call of human remains found by hunters scouting the area of 87 Coleman Boundary Road,” the sheriff office said.

“The remains were in an advanced stage of decomposition and BCSO investigators are awaiting autopsy results for both identity and cause of death.”

Recovering the remains required first responders to “navigate treacherous terrain throughout the night,” according to Capt. Chris Stockton of the Buncombe County Sheriff’s Office.

“Our Criminal Investigations Division and CSI team will work with the U.S. Forest Service to provide answers and closure to those impacted by this investigation,” Stockton said in the news release.

Investigators did not release details of how the hunters found the body. Scouting is a form of preparation done by hunters in the off season, to “create strategic stalking and positioning plans,” according to Ilearntohunt.com.

Pisgah National Forest is about a 95-mile drive northwest from uptown Charlotte.