A bear attacked a solo hiker in Yellowstone National Park on Tuesday, causing serious but lifeless damage and life-threatening.
Yellowstone officials said in a press release that the 29-year-old man covered parts of Idaho, Montana and Wyoming on the muddy lake trail inside the park when he encountered and surprised the bear.
The man, who was not named by officials, used bear spray and was injured in the bear’s chest and arms. National Park Service medical staff arrived at the scene and walked 2.5 miles with him before returning to a trail, then took him in an ambulance to the clinic and then flew to the hospital for treatment from there.
The hiker believes the bear involved is a black bear, but Yellowstone officials said it could be a grizzly bear depending on the position, behavior and size of the bear.
Park officials closed the muddy lake trail until further notice. Since the bear attacks only as a defensive action in a surprise encounter with a person, the park will not take any “management action” against the bear.
Parker officials said the incident was the first bear injury in Yellowstone Park in 2025 and the first since 2021.
