RED LODGE — An assault on the Basin Lakes Trail near Red Lodge Sunday has law enforcement searching for the alleged aggressor.
Carbon County Sheriff Josh McQuillan said that one female was hiking when another female was running with two dogs.
Watch Carbon County Sheriff talk about the assault:
Initially, words were exchanged about the dogs, McQuillan said. A half hour later, the two women encountered each other again.
“At that point, it escalated from a verbal altercation to an actual physical altercation,” McQuillan said Wednesday. “Rocks were thrown, and then a walking stick was used by the female that had been running to try to strike the other female."
The Carbon County Sheriff’s Office is asking the public for help for more information to identify the woman with the dogs, whom they are calling the suspect.
“We know that there are other people up there that day,” McQuillan said.
Melissa Cole is an avid hiker, hiking weekly in the area.
“I had a goal to go hiking once a week in the Beartooth, (Absaroka) Mountains,” Cole said Wednesday.
Cole heard about the assault through a Facebook group dedicated to hiking.
While Cole was not present during the altercation Sunday, she said it concerned her.
“Usually we prepare for wild animals and not other humans,” Cole said.
Cole also emphasized the importance of being considerate on the trails with dogs.
“When you're hiking with dogs, you have to be really careful and keep them on the leash, and be considerate of other people and their dogs also,” Cole said.
