This ranking synthesizes publicly reported bear–human attacks and injurious encounters (2010–2025, with older landmark cases where relevant) from wildlife-agency bulletins, park service reports, and reputable news outlets. “Towns/Areas” refers to a municipality or a well-recognized recreation area that functions as a local hotspot. When the species was confirmed in reporting, it’s listed (black bear vs. grizzly/brown). Recency and repeat incidents raise an area’s placement.
25) Trinidad / Boncarbo, Colorado (Las Animas County) — Black bear
A small, cinnamon-colored black bear broke into a home west of Trinidad and scratched an 82-year-old woman as she tried to react; officials said the bear had entered shortly after midnight. The same summer, CPW warned about similar food-conditioned behavior in the area—classic house-entry risk when garbage or pet food is accessible.
24) New Castle, Colorado (Garfield County) — Black bear
A backyard attack occurred after a homeowner encountered a bear at 2 a.m. Officials described it as a defensive response by a black bear in a residential interface—dogs and attractants again featuring in the setup. CPW has repeatedly flagged New Castle and the Colorado River corridor as bear-conflict zones in low-food years.
23) Steamboat Springs, Colorado (Routt County) — Black bear
A hiker was knocked down and swiped by a sow after seeing one of her cubs. Wildlife officers located and ultimately removed the sow; the incident spurred renewed messaging in Routt County about cub proximity, dogs, and backing away instead of running.
22) Leavenworth, Washington (Chelan County) — Black bear
In 2022 a woman was mauled near her home on the edge of the Enchantment foothills—serious but survivable injuries. WDFW called it a rare, defensive attack, and the bear was later located and removed. The Leavenworth valley, surrounded by fruit trees and high-density recreation, sees regular bear traffic through neighborhoods.
21) West Milford / Apshawa Preserve, New Jersey — Black bear
New Jersey’s first recorded fatal bear attack (2014) happened here: a hiker was killed by a large male black bear after a prolonged encounter. The case remains a touchstone in the East for predatory black-bear behavior and the risks of approaching/photographing wildlife at close range.
20) North Canaan, Connecticut (Litchfield County) — Black bear
In June 2025, a man suffered chest lacerations when a sow with cubs confronted him and his dog on his own property. Wildlife officials said the man was between the bear and cubs—classic trigger for a defensive swat. The northwestern CT hills continue to report rising bear–human conflicts as populations expand.
19) Avon, Connecticut — Black bear
A morning dog-walk turned into an attack in 2023; the woman survived with arm/leg injuries. DEEP later confirmed the bear’s removal. Suburban greenbelts, unsecured trash, and backyard bird feeders keep this Hartford-area town on the map for bear incidents.
18) Morris / Litchfield, Connecticut — Black bear
A 10-year-old boy was pulled by a bear in 2022 in a harrowing yard incident; adults intervened and the child survived. State wildlife officers captured and euthanized the offending bear, underscoring how food-habituated animals can escalate to bold, daylight interactions.
17) Butler Township, Pennsylvania (Butler County) — Black bear
In March 2024, a woman was mauled in her yard after letting out her dog; a sow with three cubs was nearby. She sustained serious injuries to her arm, face, neck and head. Authorities euthanized the sow; the cubs were safely relocated. Dogs and cubs are a combustible mix in spring.
16) Wright Township / Mountain Top, Pennsylvania (Luzerne County) — Black bear
Two children (5 and 14 months) were attacked in their driveway in 2023—non-life-threatening injuries, but chilling. The Pennsylvania Game Commission later captured and euthanized one bear and trapped a second in the neighborhood.
15) Alpine, Arizona (Apache County) — Black bear
A teen was attacked inside a remote cabin in 2024; AZGFD said the bear forced entry during pre-dawn hours. Crews tracked and put down the bear. Alpine sits in prime summer bear habitat—dry-year food stress plus human foods sets the stage for high-risk encounters.
14) Prescott / Groom Creek, Arizona (Yavapai County) — Black bear
Arizona’s first modern fatal black-bear attack: in 2023 a man was killed during an unprovoked, daytime attack while working on his property near Groom Creek. Necropsy findings didn’t show illness or starvation—rare predatory behavior by a black bear in the lower 48.
13) Tuolumne County (near Sonora), California — Black bear
In 2024 a 24-year-old runner was attacked on a forest road; wildlife obtained the bear’s DNA profile and indicated the animal would be euthanized once located. California’s Sierra foothills combine heavy recreation with high bear densities—especially in late summer.
12) South Lake Tahoe, California (El Dorado County) — Black bear
Tahoe’s neighborhoods have seen home entries and at-home injuries by food-conditioned bears—multiple cases in 2024, including a person injured inside a residence. Long-term patterns: unsecured food/garbage, ripening fruit trees, and open windows escalate risks.
11) Mammoth Lakes, California (Mono County) — Black bear
In August 2024, a well-known 500-lb boar (“Victor”) swiped a woman’s leg, causing a serious laceration at a crowded campground; the bear was later euthanized after investigators judged the attack unprovoked. The Mammoth Basin has chronic bear–human overlap at lakeside campgrounds.
10) Aspen, Colorado (Pitkin County) — Black bear
After a rash of tent-related incidents, the Forest Service temporarily banned tent camping at Difficult Campground in 2025. One case involved a bear puncturing a tent with two children inside (they weren’t badly hurt). Aspen’s valley bottoms concentrate both campers and bears seeking calories.
9) Durango / Trimble, Colorado (La Plata County) — Black bear
In 2021, a woman walking dogs was fatally attacked near Durango—Colorado’s first fatality in many years. CPW later removed multiple bears from the area. It remains one of the state’s stark reminders that black-bear attacks, though rare, can be deadly.
8) Eagle River (Anchorage Municipality), Alaska — Brown (grizzly) and black bears
A 2018 fatal mauling occurred deep in the South Fork valley; a searcher was also injured the next day. In 2025, a 67-year-old hiker was mauled near a popular trailhead outside the neighborhood. Eagle River’s trail network is quintessential bear habitat right at the city’s edge.
7) Big Sky, Montana (Custer Gallatin National Forest) — (Often grizzly)
South-central Montana saw multiple serious hunter maulings in 2023; one well-publicized case involved a surprise encounter in thick cover. Fall archery seasons and heavy use of brushy drainages make “surprise at close range” a recurring risk factor here.
6) Glacier National Park & Flathead Valley, Montana — Grizzly (brown) and black bears
Two bookends define Glacier’s risk profile: the 2016 Brad Treat fatality (a high-speed mountain-bike collision with a grizzly on adjacent Flathead NF) and a 2024 Highline Trail closure after a hiker was injured. Park guidance emphasizes groups and bear spray; managers note no recorded attacks on groups of four or more in Glacier.
5) Island Park / Henrys Lake, Idaho (Fremont County) — Grizzly (brown)
A 2020 grizzly attack on a hiker at Henrys Lake State Park and a 2024 grizzly bite on an archery hunter west of the lake bracket a cluster of Island Park incidents. Idaho Fish & Game and AP confirmed the same female grizzly later linked by DNA to a fatal mauling near West Yellowstone in 2023.
4) Grand Teton National Park / Jackson Area, Wyoming — Grizzly (brown)
In May 2024, a Massachusetts hiker was mauled by a grizzly on Signal Mountain, surviving by playing dead before bear spray ended the attack. Teton managers also made headlines in 2024 with the death of famous Grizzly 399 (vehicle strike south of Jackson), underscoring how densely bears and people share this valley.
3) West Yellowstone, Montana — Grizzly (brown)
In July 2023 a Kansas woman was fatally mauled on a forest trail; the same grizzly, with a prior 2020 Henrys Lake attack on its record, later broke into a house and was euthanized. West Yellowstone sits at the hinge of multiple grizzly recovery zones and busy trail systems—surprise encounters are a perennial hazard.
2) Gatlinburg / Great Smoky Mountains, Tennessee — Black bear
The Smokies have a long bear history: a 2000 backcountry fatality, a 2021 predatory hammock attack on a teen at a backcountry site, and hotel-area scratches in 2024 when a sow with cubs fed at unsecured trash. Rangers stress that attacks remain rare, but food conditioning around lodgings and campgrounds fuels risky behavior.
1) Anchorage, Alaska — Brown (grizzly) and black bears
Anchorage saw two separate maulings within one week in July 2025—one involved a black bear during a dog walk, another a brown bear near salmon water. The city also recorded a 2022 on-base fatality (brown bear) at JBER. With hundreds of miles of trails, salmon streams, and neighborhoods woven into wild land, Anchorage sits at the top for recency, frequency, and urban-interface risk.
References
Alaska & Yellowstone region
- Associated Press — Anchorage warns hikers after 2 bear attacks in a week (KSTP syndication)
https://kstp.com/ap-top-news/anchorage-warns-hikers-after-2-bear-attacks-in-a-week/ - ABC News — Man mauled by black bear while walking dog, marks 2nd attack in 1 week: Police
https://abcnews.go.com/US/man-mauled-black-bear-walking-dog-marks-2nd/story?id=124205350 - Anchorage Daily News — Wildlife officials working to identify bear in Anchorage attack, with 67-year-old hiker stable
https://www.adn.com/alaska-news/wildlife/2025/07/23/wildlife-officials-working-to-identify-bear-in-anchorage-attack-with-67-year-old-hiker-stable/ - Alaska’s News Source (KTUU) — JBER soldier killed in bear attack on base
https://www.alaskasnewssource.com/2022/05/11/jber-soldier-killed-bear-attack-base/ - Ursus (journal) — Gunther & Atkins (2025), Risk of bear-inflicted human injury in Yellowstone National Park (1979–2023) (abstract)
https://bioone.org/journals/ursus/volume-2025/issue-36e1/URSUS-D-24-00010R1/Risk-of-bear-inflicted-human-injury-in-Yellowstone-National-Park/10.2192/URSUS-D-24-00010R1.full - Associated Press — Grizzly bear blamed for fatal Montana mauling and Idaho attack is killed after breaking into a house
https://apnews.com/article/033a1eaa972e9752e1f4513b0c13e24b - Daily Montanan — Bear attacks hunter in south-central Montana
https://dailymontanan.com/2023/09/11/bear-attacks-hunter-in-south-central-montana/ - KBZK (CBS MT) — Bear attacks hunter near West Yellowstone
https://www.kbzk.com/news/local-news/dillon-area/bear-attacks-hunter-near-west-yellowstone - NPS Grand Teton — Grizzly Bear 399 fatally struck by vehicle in Snake River Canyon
https://www.nps.gov/grte/learn/news/grizzly-bear-399-fatally-struck-by-vehicle-in-snake-river-canyon.htm - CBS News — Hiker mauled by grizzly in Grand Teton National Park played dead; bear won’t be pursued
https://www.cbsnews.com/news/hiker-mauled-grizzly-grand-teton-national-park-played-dead-bear-wont-be-pursued/
Glacier & Flathead
- U.S. Forest Service / Board of Review — The death of Mr. Brad Treat due to a grizzly bear attack (2016), Report (PDF)
https://igbconline.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/09/160629_Treat_BOR_Report_Flathead_NF.pdf - NPS — Section of Highline Trail closed due to bear encounter (injury)
https://www.nps.gov/glac/learn/news/section-of-highline-trail-closed-due-to-bear-encounter.htm - PEOPLE — Man, 35, Attacked by Bear on Popular Trail at Glacier National Park…
https://people.com/man-35-attacked-by-bear-while-hiking-popular-trail-at-glacier-national-park-8715964
Idaho / Island Park – Henrys Lake
- Idaho Fish & Game — Hiker attacked by bear near Henrys Lake Outlet
https://idfg.idaho.gov/press/hiker-attacked-bear-near-henrys-lake-outlet - Idaho Fish & Game — Archery hunter survives bear attack in Island Park
https://idfg.idaho.gov/article/archery-hunter-survives-bear-attack-island-park - Idaho Statesman — Idaho hunters kill grizzly after attack near Island Park
https://www.idahostatesman.com/outdoors/hunting/article291871220.html
Great Smoky Mountains / Gatlinburg
- NPS — Madura bear fatality (2020)
https://www.nps.gov/grsm/learn/news/madura-bear-fatality-2020.htm - NPS — Park responds to bear incident in Elkmont Campground
https://www.nps.gov/grsm/learn/news/park-responds-to-bear-incident-in-elkmont-campground.htm - ABC11 — Teen girl attacked by bear while sleeping in hammock in Great Smoky Mountains National Park
https://abc11.com/post/bear-attack-black-great-smoky-mountains-national-park-camping/10816290/ - WVLT — Woman recovering after bear encounter in Gatlinburg, TWRA says
https://www.wvlt.tv/2024/07/07/woman-recovering-after-bear-encounter-gatlinburg-twra-says/
Colorado (Durango, Aspen, New Castle, Trinidad, Steamboat)
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- 9NEWS — Woman killed in suspected bear attack near Durango identified
https://www.9news.com/article/news/local/colorado-news/colorado-bear-attack-woman-dead-durango/73-a1908474-3adc-4e82-aa2f-9f63d491dfa2
- 9NEWS — Woman killed in suspected bear attack near Durango identified
- Colorado Parks & Wildlife — Responds to bear attack in New Castle (2022)
https://cpw.state.co.us/news/08312022/colorado-parks-and-wildlife-responds-bear-attack-new-castle - CPW — Searching for bear that broke into home, scratched 82-year-old woman near Trinidad (2023)
https://cpw.state.co.us/news/08122023/cpw-searching-bear-broke-home-scratched-woman-leaving - Associated Press — Mother bear swipes at hiker in Colorado after cub sighting (Steamboat Springs)
https://apnews.com/article/31ccfdb16cfd56d1480d661ef97ec2e8
California (Tahoe, Mammoth, Tuolumne, statewide context)
- Los Angeles Times — A bear crashed a picnic and swiped a woman’s leg. Wildlife cops had a decision to make (Mammoth Lakes)
https://www.latimes.com/environment/story/2024-09-11/a-bear-crashed-a-wine-picnic-officials-had-a-choice-to-make - KCRA — First deadly black bear attack on a human in California documented in Sierra County
https://www.kcra.com/article/california-deadly-black-bear-attack-on-human-sierra-county/61009436 - CBS Sacramento — Bear that attacked 24-year-old runner in Tuolumne County will be euthanized, officials say
https://www.cbsnews.com/sacramento/news/bear-that-attacked-runner-in-california-will-be-euthanized-officials-say/
Arizona (Prescott / Groom Creek & Alpine)
- Arizona Game & Fish Dept. — Alpine cabin attack (2024) — teenager injured; bear euthanized
https://www.azgfd.com/azgfd-investigates-alpine-bear-attack/
Pennsylvania (Butler Township; Wright Township/Mountain Top)
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- Pennsylvania Game Commission — Investigating bear attack (Wright Twp., two children)
https://www.pa.gov/agencies/pgc/newsroom/game-commission-investigating-bear-attack.html - Pennsylvania Game Commission — Bear in Luzerne County attack captured
https://www.pa.gov/agencies/pgc/newsroom/bear-in-luzerne-county-attack-captured.html - CBS Pittsburgh (KDKA) — Bear cubs released after mom attacks woman in Butler Township
https://www.cbsnews.com/pittsburgh/news/bear-cubs-released-woman-attacked-butler-township/
- Pennsylvania Game Commission — Investigating bear attack (Wright Twp., two children)
Connecticut (North Canaan; Avon; Morris/Litchfield)
- CT Public — Bear slashes chest of Connecticut man protecting his dog (North Canaan)
https://www.ctpublic.org/news/2025-06-23/bear-attack-connecticut-north-canaan - CT Insider — Bear slashes chest of Connecticut man protecting his dog
https://www.ctinsider.com/waterbury/article/north-canaan-ct-bear-attack-dog-20389237.php - The Register Citizen — 65-year-old man injured in bear attack in Litchfield
https://www.registercitizen.com/news/article/litchfield-bear-attack-man-18180828.php - Boston.com (AP) — Black bear bites New England homeowner and attacks his dog (Avon area)
https://www.boston.com/news/local-news/2023/07/03/black-bear-bites-new-england-homeowner-and-attacks-his-dog-both-are-recovering/
New Jersey
- NJ Division of Fish & Wildlife — The West Milford Fatal Bear Attack (2014)
https://dep.nj.gov/njfw/bears/the-west-milford-fatal-bear-attack-september-21-2014/ - ABC News — College student killed in rare bear attack while hiking in NJ
https://abcnews.go.com/US/college-student-killed-rare-bear-attack-hiking-nj/story?id=25680953 - Reuters — Hiker took cell phone photos of bear before fatal New Jersey mauling
https://www.reuters.com/article/world/uk/hiker-took-cell-phone-photos-of-bear-before-fatal-new-jersey-mauling-idUSKCN0JA219/
Eagle River / Anchorage (additional context)
- Anchorage Daily News — Man killed, member of search party injured in Eagle River bear attacks (2018)
https://www.adn.com/alaska-news/wildlife/2018/06/20/man-killed-member-of-search-party-injured-in-eagle-river-bear-attacks/
Notes on interpretation
- “Most” here reflects where attacks have been reported and clustered, not a per-capita risk metric. In places like Anchorage, West Yellowstone, the Smokies, Jackson/Teton, and Island Park/Henrys Lake, repeated, recent incidents and high visitor volume raise their rank.
- Species matters: Grizzlies (brown bears) dominate the northern Rockies’ most severe maulings; black bears account for most incidents in the East, Southwest, and California.
- Patterns recur: dogs, food/garbage, tent or structure intrusion, and surprise encounters at close range (especially with cubs) are the common setups.
