Hiker Survives Grizzly Bear Attack At Denali National Park In Alaska

A 55-year-old hiker survived a grizzly bear attack in Denali National Park in Alaska on Monday (August 23) night. The unidentified man was hiking by himself through dense fog near the Thoroughfare Pass area when he stumbled upon a grizzly bear and her two cubs.

The bears were hiding in a bush about 100 yards away and charged towards him when he got too close. He managed to deploy bear spray, but not before he was knocked down by one of the bears.

He suffered puncture wounds to his calf, left ribs, and left shoulder but managed to walk 1.5 miles to the Eielson Visitor Center. Medical personnel who happened to be on vacation in the park provided first aid to the man while a bus driver called for an ambulance.

The man was transported to the hospital, where he remains in stable condition.

The park said that the attack was defensive in nature, and they have no plans to hunt down the bear.

"Due to the apparent defensive nature of this attack, there are no plans to locate the bear involved. Female bears with cubs are naturally defensive of their young, especially when surprised. There is no indication that this bear is unusually dangerous," the Parks Service said in a statement.

Park officials said they closed two sections of the park to backcountry travel for one week following the attack.

"Separation of bears and people following a natural defensive attack helps achieve the objective of keeping people safe and bears wild," park spokesman Paul Ollig told the Anchorage Daily News.