Overview
- The encounter on Monday on the Mystic Falls Trail near Old Faithful injured two hikers and prompted a rapid rescue that included a helicopter evacuation.
- Park officials say “one or more” bears were involved, the species has not been identified, and investigators have not released the hikers’ conditions.
- Yellowstone closed an area west of Grand Loop Road between Fountain Flat Drive and Black Sand Basin, including parts of Fairy Falls, Sentinel Meadows, Imperial Meadows, Fairy Creek, and Summit Lake trails, backcountry campsites OG1 and OD1–OD5, and fishing on sections of the Firehole River.
- Eyewitness Craig Lerman described finding a bloody hat and a badly injured hiker calling for help before rangers arrived, with video showing a victim on the ground and an airlift from the scene.
- Officials call this the park’s first bear-related injury of 2026 and urge visitors to stay 100 yards from bears, carry bear spray, hike in groups, and expect more bear activity in May as animals leave dens and enter mating season.