{"id":823177,"date":"2026-08-23T13:28:11","date_gmt":"2026-08-23T13:28:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/823177\/"},"modified":"2026-08-23T13:28:11","modified_gmt":"2026-08-23T13:28:11","slug":"bear-crashes-couples-anniversary-getaway-rummages-through-tennessee-tea-shop","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/823177\/","title":{"rendered":"Bear crashes couple’s anniversary getaway, rummages through Tennessee tea shop"},"content":{"rendered":"

A couple\u2019s anniversary getaway took a wild turn when a bear strolled into a Gatlinburg tea shop and began rummaging through merchandise before suddenly jumping onto the counter in a startling encounter caught on video<\/a>.<\/p>\n

The couple, Victoria Puyol and Joshua Card, were visiting Gatlinburg to celebrate their seventh anniversary when they stopped at The Spice & Tea Exchange on Friday, which is where Card spotted an unexpected visitor near the entrance.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere\u2019s a bear,\u201d Card recalled saying.<\/p>\n

At first, Puyol said she didn\u2019t quite process what was happening, but when Card and the store clerk repeated themselves, she turned and saw the animal standing in the doorway.<\/p>\n

The couple recalled guidance to\u00a0back away from bears<\/a>, but as they stepped away, the bear ventured farther into the store. The clerk directed them behind the register, where they had access to an emergency exit.<\/p>\n

The curious intruder appeared particularly interested in the shop\u2019s inventory, tearing into a sweet-tea blend and investigating tea diffusers as a crowd gathered outside.<\/p>\n

An employee from a neighboring store sounded an air horn, the couple said, but it appeared to have little effect on the bear.<\/p>\n

A couple\u2019s anniversary trip to Gatlinburg turned wild when a bear busted into a tea shop in Gatlinburg, Tenn. Victoria Puyol and Joshua Card<\/p>\n

Card began recording as the bear approached the counter.<\/p>\n

\u201cHey, what you doing there, buddy?\u201d Card can be heard saying in the video.<\/p>\n

The bear then turned and jumped onto the counter, prompting Card to step backward.<\/p>\n

Joshua Card filmed the encounter as the bear, which he first thought was a \u201cshow bear,\u201d explored the shop for 10 to 15 minutes. Victoria Puyol and Joshua Card<\/p>\n

\u201cHe\u2019s talking to this thing like it\u2019s a puppy,\u201d Puyol recalled. \u201cIt\u2019s a bear. It\u2019s not a puppy. It\u2019s a bear.\u201d<\/p>\n

Card said he initially thought the animal might have been a \u201cshow bear\u201d on a leash with a handler nearby because they were in such a populated area. He quickly realized it was a wild bear.<\/p>\n

Card, a military veteran who also has experience as a lifeguard, said his background dealing with emergency situations helped shape his reaction. He described feeling uncertain about what the young animal was capable of and whether he should intervene or simply give it space.<\/p>\n

Victoria Puyol had repeatedly told Card before the trip that she hoped to see a bear during their anniversary getaway. Fox News<\/p>\n

\u201cThis didn\u2019t really feel like an emergency,\u201d Card said. \u201cIt felt unpredictable to me.\u201d<\/p>\n

Card said the bear appeared more curious than aggressive.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe didn\u2019t really seem threatened,\u201d he said. \u201cEven when he jumped up on the counter, I was like, okay, well, I\u2019m going to take a step back.\u201d<\/p>\n

Puyol said she was more shocked than frightened.<\/p>\n

Shop employees revealed the bear was a repeat offender, having snagged sugar earlier in the week. Victoria Puyol and Joshua Card<\/p>\n

\u201cI wasn\u2019t scared,\u201d she said. \u201cI was just shocked.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI wasn\u2019t like, \u2018Oh my God, it\u2019s a bear, I\u2019m going to die,’\u201d she continued. \u201cNo, it was like, there\u2019s a wild animal, like eight feet away from me.\u201d<\/p>\n

Adding to the irony, Puyol said she had repeatedly told Card before the trip that she hoped to see a bear during their anniversary getaway.<\/p>\n

\u201cBe careful what you wish for because I wanted to see a bear, not that up close and personal,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

The clerk eventually told the couple about another exit through the second floor, but\u00a0the bear suddenly ran out\u00a0before they needed to use it. Card and the clerk then shut the door and waited to make sure it was safe before leaving.<\/p>\n

Puyol estimated the entire encounter lasted roughly 10 to 15 minutes.<\/p>\n

The couple said store employees told them the bear appeared to be a repeat visitor and had entered the business earlier in the week.<\/p>\n

The shop also posted a photo of a bear earlier in the week with the caption, \u201cThis young bear came into our shop today, snagged some sugar and came back for more!\u201d<\/p>\n

Now that they made it out safely, the couple said the encounter made for an anniversary they will never forget.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe trip has been filled with oddities, and so this just kind of \u2026 fuels that whole experience,\u201d Card said.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"A couple\u2019s anniversary getaway took a wild turn when a bear strolled into a Gatlinburg tea shop and…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":823178,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[51],"tags":[36197,19122,32820,79,2219,194,201],"class_list":["post-823177","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-wildlife","tag-anniversaries","tag-bears","tag-romance","tag-science","tag-tennessee","tag-us-news","tag-wildlife"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/823177","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=823177"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/823177\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/823178"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=823177"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=823177"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=823177"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}