Two hikers injured by bear in Yellowstone National Park in first 2026 conflict
Two hikers were injured by a bear or bears while hiking in Yellowstone National Park on Monday, according to a news release from the national park.
The hikers, whose identities have not been made public, were airlifted from the park to Eastern Idaho Regional Medical Center in Idaho Falls, according to reporting from EastIdahoNews.com.
Yellowstone’s news release said the hikers were on Mystic Falls Trail, a 2.4-mile trail northwest of Old Faithful Geyser, when the incident occurred. Yellowstone officials said the hikers “sustained injuries by one or more bears,” but no further details were available on the situation, what preceded the conflict, or what injuries the hikers sustained. The hikers’ health status was not public Tuesday morning.
Park officials did not indicate whether the bears were believed to be grizzly or black bears — both of which inhabit the park.
Yellowstone officials closed a swath of the western edge of the park as officials investigated the incident. The closures included the area west of Grand Loop Road between Fountain Flat Drive and Black Sand Basin; trails in the area including Fairy Falls, Fairy Creek and Summit Lake; and fishing in the Firehole River in the general closure area. A handful of backcountry camping sites were also closed.
The full closure map can be found at the Yellowstone National Park website.
Officials noted this is the first time a bear has injured a human in the park in 2026. The last bear-inflicted injury was in September 2025, when a solo hiker was injured after a “surprise encounter” east of Yellowstone Lake with a bear whose species was undetermined. The last bear-caused fatality in Yellowstone was in 2015, when a 63-year-old Montana man was killed and partially eaten by a female bear with cubs. The adult bear was captured and later euthanized.
Yellowstone National Park urges visitors to keep a distance of at least 100 yards from bears and other large wildlife at all times. Visitors are also strongly encouraged to carry bear spray.
