Missing hiker found dead in Glacier National Park with injuries pointing to bear attack

May 7-A hiker who went missing in Glacier National Park in Montana on Sunday was found dead on Wednesday, with injuries that appeared consistent with a bear attack.

Search and rescue crews found the hiker's body about 2.5 miles up the Mount Brown Trail near Lake McDonald, about 50 feet off the trail in a "densely wooded area with downed timber," a park news release said Thursday. "His injuries are consistent with those sustained by a bear encounter."

The release continued, "The National Park Service is withholding the identity of the victim until 72 hours after next-of-kin notification." But Anthony Pollio, a 33-year-old-man from Florida, is the only reported missing person in the park, and his route and last known area are consistent with where the unnamed victim was found.

Wildlife and law enforcement personnel are "assessing the area for bear activity," the release said. The section of the Mount Brown Trail, a 10-mile steep trail to a fire lookout, is currently closed while the death is investigated. "Field assessments and wildlife behavior monitoring" will determine the next steps, the park said.

Fatal bear attacks are rare in Glacier National Park. The last confirmed human fatality caused by a bear in the park happened in the Two Medicine Valley in 1998, when a sow and two cubs killed a 26-year-old park concession worker, Craig Dahl.

The last confirmed bear attack in Glacier happened in August 2025, when a "medium brown colored bear" with two cubs charged a 34-year-old woman at Lake Janet. The woman was injured but survived.

At least one bear attacked two brothers hiking near Old Faithful in Yellowstone National Park in Wyoming on May 4. The hikers, aged 15 and 28, were seriously injured. Most bear attacks are defensive: a bear defending its food, itself or its cubs from a surprise encounter.

Copyright 2026 Tribune Content Agency. All Rights Reserved.