CODY, Wyo.- A Minnesota man was injured by a bear Sunday afternoon while backpacking in the Beartooth Mountains near the Montana border, according to Wyoming authorities.
According to a Monday release from the Wyoming Game and Fish Department, the man, Bradley David Johnson, 48, of Plymouth, Minn., was backpacking with a group of friends and hiked ahead of them. That’s when he said he came upon two bears at close range, too close to deploy bear spray.
Based on the initial investigation, his group alerted authorities at the Park County Sheriff’s Office, and Wyoming’s Game and Fish Department responded. The man was flown by helicopter to an area hospital where he was receiving treatment.
The Park County Sheriff’s Office said Johnson was taken to St. Vincent Healthcare in Billings with serious injuries.
The investigation is ongoing, and Game and Fish personnel are at the scene gathering further details Monday.
Story by Zoe Zandora, MTN News
