Bear injures solo hiker in Yellowstone

Posted 5/28/21

A 39-year-old man was injured by a bear Friday morning while hiking in Yellowstone National Park.

Park officials said the man had been hiking alone on the Beaver Ponds Trail in the Mammoth Hot …

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Bear injures solo hiker in Yellowstone

Posted

A 39-year-old man was injured by a bear Friday morning while hiking in Yellowstone National Park.

Park officials said the man had been hiking alone on the Beaver Ponds Trail in the Mammoth Hot Springs area. He was about 1.5 miles from the trailhead when he encountered two bears, which he believed to be grizzlies.

One bear attacked the man, inflicting significant injuries to his lower extremities, according to a news release from the park. The man was able to hike out on his own and then was transported by ambulance to a hospital in Livingston, Montana.

Following the incident, park officials closed the Beaver Ponds Trail until further notice and performed a sweep to ensure there were no other hikers on the trail.

In the news release, Yellowstone officials reminded the public to be “bear aware” — including by hiking in groups of three or more people.

The recommendations also include remaining alert to avoid a surprise encounter with a bruin.

“Watch for fresh tracks, scat, and feeding sites (signs of digging, rolled rocks, torn up logs, ripped open ant hills),” the Park Service said.

Other recommendations include:

• Stay 100 yards away from bears at all times.

• Carry bear spray and know how to use it.

• Make noise.

• Don’t hike at dawn, dusk, or at night, when grizzlies are most active.

• Don’t run from a bear.

The last bear-related attack in Yellowstone came in June 2020, when a grizzly bear knocked a woman to the ground and scratched her thigh. The Missouri resident had similarly been hiking alone — on the Fairy Falls Trail north of Old Faithful — when she suddenly came upon a female grizzly and cub.

Before that, the last time a bear injured a park visitor was in June 2019, when a black bear bit into a tent and bruised the thigh of a camper.

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