A bear attack at Great Smoky Mountains National Park, the mystery of a missing guide in Grand Canyon National Park, and word of two areas of Cape Cod National Seashore now open to leashed pets are among the news in the National Park System this week.

Bear Pulls Teen From Hammock At Great Smoky Mountains National Park

A 16-year-old backpacker at Great Smoky Mountains National Park was pulled out of his hammock by a black bear, but was saved when his father drove off the bear.

Park officials say the incident occurred in the Hazel Creek area of the park on June 6. The incident happened about 10:30 p.m. at a backcountry campsite about 4.5 miles from the Fontana Lake shoreline.

After the father drove away the bear, the two hiked to the lakeshore, where they were transported across the lake to Cable Cove boat dock by campers at backcountry campsite 86 who had a boat. Graham County Rescue EMS transported them to a landing zone where the injured party was flown by Mountain Area Medical Airlift (MAMA) to Mission Hospital in Asheville, North Carolina, at approximately 3 a.m. 

The young man received multiple injuries including lacerations to the head, a park release said. He remained conscious throughout the incident and was reported in stable condition.

While park rangers and wildlife biologists investigated the attack, the Hazel Creek Trail, Jenkins Ridge Trail, Bone Valley Trail, Cold Spring Gap Trail and backcountry campsites 82, 83, 84, 85, 86, and 88 were closed until further notice. Derrick Knob shelter along the Appalachian Trail has also been closed to camping until officials can determine whether recent bear activity at the shelter may be related to the same bear.

“While incidents with bears are rare, we ask park visitors to take necessary precautions while hiking in bear country and comply with all backcountry closures,” said Superintendent Cassius Cash. “The safety of our visitors is our No. 1 priority.”

The father and son were on a multi-day backpacking trip in the Smokies. Both campers were sleeping in hammocks approximately 10 feet apart and had all equipment, food, and packs properly stored on aerial food storage cables.

No Sign Of Missing Guide At Grand Canyon National Park

With no signs of a missing Colorado River guide who vanished on June 2 in Grand Canyon National Park, rangers were scaling back their search.

Morgan Heimer 22, of Cody, Wyoming, went missing about 4 p.m. around River Mile 213 near Pumpkin Springs during a hike. Initial park response included searching the last known area by air and an immediate hasty search by rangers. For six days park rangers extensively searched the river between River Miles 211-225 and on land stretching from River Mile 211-215.

The guide is described as 6-foot tall with blond hair and blue eyes. He was last seen wearing a dark-colored Astral personal flotation device, a blue plaid long-sleeve shirt, a pair of Chaco flip-flop sandals, a maroon baseball cap, and brightly colored shorts. Heimer was also carrying a purple water bottle with him when he was last seen. He was working as a guide for Tour West and the group was on day six of an eight-day trip when he went missing.

With no additional clues to guide search efforts on land or water, the search was scaled back to a continuous, but limited, mode in which rangers and pilots will continue to search for clues when in the area. In addition, flyers with Heimer's picture and description remain posted at various South Rim locations and all launching river trips are to be briefed on the incident.

Anyone with information on the location of Morgan Heimer should contact the National Park Service Tip Line at 928-638-7840.

Leashed Areas For Pets Opened At Cape Cod National Seashore

Two areas of Cape Cod National Seashore are being seasonally opened to leashed pets. Leashed pets will be allowed on the Nauset Bike Trail in Eastham from Salt Pond Visitor Center to Coast Guard Beach from November 1st through April 30th each year. The trail will remain closed to pets outside of these dates. Visitors are reminded that bicycle activity on the trail can be frequent and pets must be on a leash of six feet or less.

Additionally, leashed pets are now allowed on a portion of the Great Island trail system. Year-round dog walkers can traverse the trail with their pets from both the upper Great Island main parking area and lower "gut" parking area, down to the first dune cut and out onto the beach, unless the area has been closed due to shorebird activity. Laminated maps are in place to guide users to the newly opened area. The remaining area of the Great Island trail system remains closed to pets.

As Cape Cod National Seashore works to create and maintain areas accessible to responsible pet owners, visitors are reminded that the leash rule is strictly enforced in all areas managed by the seashore. These rules are put into place for the protection of wildlife and visitors alike. Conformity to existing pet restrictions helps limit pet and wildlife interaction, which in turn allows the national seashore to consider expansion of uses into new areas such as was done here.

With the return of spring, piping plovers have also returned to their breeding grounds on outer Cape Cod. Piping plovers are listed as a threatened species under the federal and Massachusetts Endangered Species Acts. They have been courting and establishing territories and are now nesting.

Piping plovers are ground nesting birds and raise their flightless chicks on beaches where they are vulnerable to predators, storm tides, and human disturbance. Also, migratory birds including endangered roseate terns and threatened red knots will soon be arriving to national seashore beaches for resting and feeding in preparation for their long-distance southward migration. 

Both nesting and migrating shorebirds are particularly sensitive to the presence of dogs. They have a similar behavioral response when predators (e.g., coyotes and foxes) are nearby, with the effect being even greater when dogs are off-leash. Most loose dogs naturally chase any movement on the beach including adult plovers, flightless chicks, and flocks of migratory birds, all of which will be disturbed and could be killed in the process.