Wyoming
Hiker mauled by grizzly in Grand Teton National Park played dead, officials say; bear won’t be pursued
A grizzly that accidentally inflicted itself with a burst of pepper spray while attacking a hiker in Wyoming’s Grand Teton National Park won’t be captured or killed because it may have been trying to protect a cub, park officials said in a statement.
While mauling a hiker on Signal Mountain, the grizzly bit into the man’s can of bear repellent and was hit with a burst of it, causing the animal to flee. The 35-year-old Massachusetts man, who’d pretended to be dead while he was being bitten, made it to safety and spent Sunday night in the hospital.
There was no word when Signal Mountain or a road and trail to its 7,700-foot (2,300-meter) summit would reopen after being closed because of the attack. Such closures are typical after the handful of grizzly attacks on public land in the Yellowstone region every year.
The decision not to pursue the bears, which officials determined behaved naturally after being surprised, also was consistent with attacks that don’t involve campsite raids, eating food left out by people, or similar behaviors that make bears more dangerous.
Rangers track and study many of the Yellowstone region’s 1,000 or so bears but weren’t familiar with the ones responsible for the attack Sunday afternoon, according to the statement.
The attack happened even though the victim was carrying bear-repellant spray and made noise to alert bears in the forest, the statement said.
Speaking to rangers afterward, the man said he came across a small bear that ran away from him. As he reached for his bear repellant, he saw a larger bear charging at him in his periphery vision.
He had no time to use his bear spray before falling to the ground with fingers laced behind his neck and one finger holding the spray canister.
The bear bit him several times before biting into the can of pepper spray, which burst and drove the bears away.
The man got to an area with cell phone coverage and called for help. A helicopter, then an ambulance evacuated him to a nearby hospital.
Investigators suspect from the man’s description that the smaller bear he saw was an older cub belonging to the female grizzly that attacked. Mother bears aggressively defend their offspring and remain with them for two to three years after birth.
Park officials didn’t release the victim’s name. He was expected to make a full recovery.
Recent grizzly attacks
The attack in Grand Teton National Park came just days after a man in Canada suffered “significant injuries” after being attacked by a grizzly bear while hunting with his father.
Last fall, a Canadian couple and their dog were killed by a grizzly bear while backpacking in Banff National Park. Just weeks before that, a hunter in Montana was severely mauled by a grizzly bear.
Last July, a grizzly bear fatally mauled a woman on a forest trail west of Yellowstone National Park. The bear was later euthanized after breaking into a house near West Yellowstone in August.
Also that month, a 21-year-old woman who was planting trees was seriously injured by a bear in British Columbia. Canadian officials could not locate the animal but believe it was a grizzly bear that attacked the woman.
Grizzly bears in the 48 contiguous states are protected as a threatened species, according to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.
Last month, the U.S. National Park Service announced it was launching a campaign to capture grizzly bears in Yellowstone Park for research purposes. The agency urged the public to steer clear of areas with traps, which would be clearly marked
The 2026 postseason has arrived for Wyoming High School boys’ basketball teams in Class 3A and 4A. They participate in regional tournaments from Thursday through Saturday. The regionals will be in Buffalo, Evanston, Gillette, and Lovell. Three sites will use the format: two wins qualify a team for the state tournament next week in Casper, or two losses eliminate a team. The 4A East Region has three loser-out first-round games on Thursday, followed by two days of games for seeding. The 4A East Regular Season champ draws a first-round bye and has qualified for the state tournament.
WYOPREPS 3A-4A BOYS BASKETBALL REGIONAL TOURNAMENT SCHEDULES
Except in the 4A East Regional, Friday starts with elimination games. The regional semifinals are on Friday night. The final seeds for next week’s state tournament will be determined on Saturday. The schedules below for this weekend are based on the brackets sent to WyoPreps. It is subject to change.
THURSDAY, MARCH 5:
Final Score: (3) Pinedale 58 (6) Mountain View 40
Final Score: (2) Cody 58 (7) Powell 46
Final Score: (1) Lovell 75 (8) Lyman 43
Final Score: (4) Lander 65 (5) Worland 40
FRIDAY, MARCH 6:
Game 5: Mountain View vs. Powell, noon – loser out
Game 6: Lyman vs. Worland, 1:30 p.m. – loser out
Game 7: Pinedale vs. Cody, 6 p.m. – semifinal
Game 8: Lovell vs. Lander, 7:30 p.m. – semifinal
SATURDAY, MARCH 7:
Game 9: Winner Game 5 vs. Loser Game 8, 11 a.m. – loser out
Game 10: Winner Game 6 vs. Loser Game 7, 11 a.m. – loser out (at LMS)
Game 11: Winner Game 9 vs. Winner Game 10, 5 p.m. – 3rd Place Game
Game 12: Winner Game 7 vs. Winner Game 8, 2 p.m. – Championship Game
THURSDAY, MARCH 5:
Final Score: (3) Douglas 85 (6) Rawlins 50
Final Score: (2) Wheatland 57 (7) Burns 40
Final Score: (5) Torrington 35 (4) Newcastle 28
Final Score: (1) Buffalo 69 (8) Glenrock 44
FRIDAY, MARCH 6:
Game 5: Rawlins vs. Burns, noon – loser out
Game 6: Newcastle vs. Glenrock, 1:30 p.m. – loser out
Game 7: Douglas vs. Wheatland, 6 p.m. – semifinal
Game 8: Torrington vs. Buffalo, 7:30 p.m. – semifinal
SATURDAY, MARCH 7:
Game 9: Winner Game 5 vs. Loser Game 8, noon – loser out
Game 10: Winner Game 6 vs. Loser Game 7, 1:30 p.m. – loser out
Game 11: Winner Game 9 vs. Winner Game 10, 7:30 p.m. – 3rd Place Game (if necessary)
Game 12: Winner Game 7 vs. Winner Game 8, 4:30 p.m. – Championship Game
Read More Boys Basketball News from WyoPreps
WyoPreps Boys Basketball Week 11 Scores 2026
WyoPreps Coaches and Media Basketball Polls 2-25-26
WyoPreps Boys Basketball Week 10 Scores 2026
WyoPreps Coaches and Media Basketball Polls 2-18-26
WyoPreps Boys Basketball Week 9 Scores 2026
WyoPreps Coaches and Media Basketball Polls 2-11-26
WyoPreps Boys Basketball Week 8 Scores 2026
WyoPreps Coaches and Media Basketball Polls 2-4-26
Nominate A Boys Basketball Player For Athlete Of The Week 2025-26
THURSDAY, MARCH 5:
Final Score: (NW-3) Kelly Walsh 64 (SW-2) Riverton 49
Final Score: (NW-1) Natrona County 77 (SW-4) Jackson 23
Final Score: (NW-2) Green River 50 (SW-3) Evanston 40
Final Score: (SW-1) Star Valley 62 (NW-4) Rock Springs 60 – Erickson makes a turnaround jumper at the buzzer off an offensive rebound for the Braves.
FRIDAY, MARCH 6:
Game 5: Riverton vs. Jackson, noon – loser out
Game 6: Evanston vs. Rock Springs, 1:30 p.m. – loser out
Game 7: Kelly Walsh vs. Natrona County, 6:30 p.m. – semifinal
Game 8: Green River vs. Star Valley, 8 p.m. – semifinal
SATURDAY, MARCH 7:
Game 10: Winner Game 6 vs. Loser Game 7, 11:30 a.m. – loser out
Game 9: Winner Game 5 vs. Loser Game 8, 1 p.m. – loser out
Game 11: Winner Game 10 vs. Winner Game 11, 4:30 p.m. – 3rd Place Game (at EMS)
Game 12: Winner Game 7 vs. Winner Game 8, 4:30 p.m. – Championship Game
THURSDAY, MARCH 5:
Game 1: (1) Sheridan = Bye
Final Score: (2) Cheyenne Central 75 (7) Cheyenne South 35 – Bison are eliminated
Final Score: (3) Thunder Basin 75 (6) Laramie 59 – Plainsmen are eliminated; Bolts qualify for state
Final Score: (4) Campbell County 59 (5) Cheyenne East 39 – loser out; Thunderbirds are eliminated; Camels qualify for state.
FRIDAY, MARCH 6:
Game 6: Cheyenne Central vs. Thunder Basin, 4:30 p.m. – semifinal
Game 5: Sheridan vs. Campbell County, 7:30 p.m. – semifinal
SATURDAY, MARCH 7:
Game 7: Loser Game 5 vs. Loser Game 6, 11:30 a.m. – 3rd Place Game
Game 8: Winner Game 5 vs. Winner Game 6, 2:30 p.m. – Championship Game
James Johnson Winter Showcase Basketball Tournament 2026
Photos from game action at the James Johnson Winter Showcase tournament in Cheyenne.
Gallery Credit: Courtesy: Shannon Dutcher
‘Hoppers’ is delightfully unhinged and a dam good time
Trump’s surgeon general nominee is running the wellness grifter playbook perfectly
Iranian vessel suffers engine failure, offloads crew days after US submarine sank other ship
Appeals court declares DC ban on certain gun magazines unconstitutional
Brain aging may accelerate after cancer treatment, study suggests
Florida High School Football Rankings: Top 25 teams – Oct. 21
Cleary's 21 help Le Moyne down Central Connecticut State 69-64 in OT
How old is Bo Nix? What to know about Oregon quarterback ahead of 2024 NFL Draft
99th annual Pony Swim held in Virginia
Indiana Members Credit Union announced as new anchor tenant at Bottleworks District
Appeals court declares DC ban on certain gun magazines unconstitutional
‘No deal with Iran except unconditional surrender,’ Trump says
A dead woman’s key fob and two grisly crime scenes: How the Utah triple-murder suspect was tracked across state lines | CNN
DOJ continues Biden autopen probe despite former president unlikely to face charges
Fact check: Did French border guards mock influencers returning from Dubai amid Iran war?
-
World1 week agoExclusive: DeepSeek withholds latest AI model from US chipmakers including Nvidia, sources say
-
Wisconsin4 days agoSetting sail on iceboats across a frozen lake in Wisconsin
-
Massachusetts3 days agoMassachusetts man awaits word from family in Iran after attacks
-
Massachusetts1 week agoMother and daughter injured in Taunton house explosion
-
Maryland5 days agoAM showers Sunday in Maryland
-
Florida5 days agoFlorida man rescued after being stuck in shoulder-deep mud for days
-
Denver, CO1 week ago10 acres charred, 5 injured in Thornton grass fire, evacuation orders lifted
-
Oregon7 days ago2026 OSAA Oregon Wrestling State Championship Results And Brackets – FloWrestling