Hikers recount terrifying grizzly bear encounter in Glacier National Park

A routine trail walk in Glacier National Park turned into a grizzly stand-off that shows how fast a careless moment can become an emergency in bear country. Alyssa Olsen of New Zealand and Mason Van Zeeland of Wisconsin said hikers ahead of them had already warned that grizzlies were nearby, and the pair avoided a worse outcome by staying still and not rushing through the encounter.

Olsen said she began by joking before the seriousness of the scene hit her. One bear ran past them, then a second stopped close by, and the trail fell into the kind of stillness that can save lives in grizzly habitat. Van Zeeland recorded the encounter, and the footage captured the fear of the moment as the two hikers weighed whether to wait out the situation rather than move forward.

That response matched standard bear-country guidance from Glacier National Park, which says bears are active in spring, summer and fall. Park officials advise hikers to travel in groups, store food properly, stay alert and give wildlife plenty of space. The park also warns that size or color alone is not a reliable way to distinguish black bears from grizzlies in Waterton-Glacier International Peace Park, where both species live.

The encounter also underscored why Glacier remains a place where caution matters as much as awe. The park says it contains the core of one of the largest remaining grizzly bear populations in the lower 48 states, and managers in the Northern Continental Divide Ecosystem have aimed to keep 25 female grizzlies radio-collared for monitoring. Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks and other partners have also been involved in ongoing conflict-prevention work in the region.

The danger is not theoretical. In May, the National Park Service said a missing hiker’s body was found about 2.5 miles up the Mt. Brown Trail, roughly 50 feet off-trail in a densely wooded area with downed timber. The victim was later identified as Anthony Pollio, 33, of Davie, Florida. Park officials said the injuries were consistent with a bear encounter and described it as Glacier’s first fatal bear encounter in nearly three decades, following a similar fatal incident in 1998.

A separate bear injury at Lake Janet in August 2025, involving a hiker and a bear with cubs, showed that conflict can happen even when attacks are not fatal. With 3,136,931 visitors in 2025, Glacier remains one of the nation’s most heavily traveled parks, and that mix of high visitation and active grizzly habitat makes fast, informed decisions on the trail essential.