Yellowstone Park Dangers

Yellowstone is a wilderness filled with natural wonders that are also potential hazards

There is no guarantee of your safety. Regulations are strictly enforced to protect you and the park's wonders.

The Fires of 1988
Beware of Falling Trees
Following the fires of 1988, thousands of dead trees, known as snags, were left standing in Yellowstone. These snags may fall with very little warning. Be cautious and alert for falling snags along trails and roadways, and in campsites and picnic areas. Avoid areas with large numbers of dead trees. Again, there is no guarantee of your safety.

Your visit may be marred by tragedy if you violate park rules
Law enforcement rangers strictly enforce park regulations to protect you and the park. Please help keep their contacts with you pleasant by paying special attention to park regulations and avoiding these problems:
Speeding (radar enforced)
Driving while intoxicated (open container law is enforced)
Improper food storage
camping violations
Pets off leash
Littering
Swimming in thermal pools
Removal or possession of natural or cultural features
Feeding or approaching wildlife
Spotlighting (viewing animals with artificial light)
Boating and fishing violations
Failure to remove detachable side mirrors when not pulling trailers.

12 people have been cooked to death
Scalding Water Can Ruin Vacations
Stay on boardwalks and designated trails; watch for frosty and icy trails and boardwalks, especially in the morning. Scalding water underlies thin, breakable crusts; pools are near or above boiling temperatures. Each year, visitors off trail in thermal areas have been seriously burned, and people have died in the scalding water. Thermal features are easily destroyed. Visitors throwing objects into these features have damaged a number of geysers and hot springs. Walking on them, carving or defacing them, or removing souvenir pieces of formation destroys decades or centuries of intricate natural processes.

It is illegal to throw objects in features, deface them or remove any natural features from the park. Yellowstone's thermal features are extraordinary natural wonders. Please help us to keep them that way.
Pets are prohibited in thermal areas. Swimming or bathing in thermal pools or streams whose waters flow entirely from a thermal spring or pool is prohibited. Thermal waters may contain organisms known to cause infections and / or amoebic meningitis which can quickly be fatal. Swim at your own risk.

All of Yellowstone is Bear Country
People have been seriously injured, maimed, and killed by bears. Do not approach bears! Observe them at a distance (you are at greatest risk if you are closer than 100 yards (91 m)). Bears may appear tolerant of people but are known to attack without warning. Feeding wildlife is unlawful. Animals who are fed often become demanding and aggressive, cause personal injury, and must be destroyed. Odor's attract bears! Bears need your concem - not your food. Never leave food or garbage unattended. Dispose of garbage in bear-Proofed trash or garbage cans. To decrease the likelihood of personal igiury, store all food and cooking utensils in a secure place such as: the trunk of your car; suspended 10 feet (3 m) above the ground and 4 feet (1.2 m) horizontally from a tree or post; or in a food storage box, available in selected campground sites.

If you are involved in a conflict with a bear, (regardless of how minor) or if you observe a bear or bear sign, report it to a park ranger as soon as possible. Someone's safety may depend on it.
All wildlife, especially bison and bears, are unpredictable and dangerous. Keep a safe distance from all wildlife; view from your car. It is against the law to approach within 100 yards (91 m) of bears or within 25 yards (23 m) of other wildlife. For your safety and the animals' welfare, avoid all wildlife with young.
6 people have been eaten by bears

Warning: Bison are more dangerous than they appear.
Each year visitors approach bison too closely and are gored. People have been killed by these animals which weigh up to 2,000 pounds (900 kg) and sprint at 30 miles per hour (48 km per hour) (three times faster than you can run)
Big Horns, Big neck muscle


	Beware of Falling Trees Following the fires of 1988, thousands of dead trees, known as snags, were left standing in Yellowstone. These snags may fall with very little warning. Be cautious and alert for falling snags along trails and roadways, and in campsites and picnic areas. Avoid areas with large numbers of dead trees. Again, there is no guarantee of your safety.

Your visit may be marred by tragedy if you violate park rules Law enforcement rangers strictly enforce park regulations to protect you and the park. Please help keep their contacts with you pleasant by paying special attention to park regulations and avoiding these problems: Speeding (radar enforced) Driving while intoxicated (open container law is enforced) Improper food storage camping violations Pets off leash Littering Swimming in thermal pools Removal or possession of natural or cultural features Feeding or approaching wildlife Spotlighting (viewing animals with artificial light) Boating and fishing violations Failure to remove detachable side mirrors when not pulling trailers.

	Scalding Water Can Ruin Vacations Stay on boardwalks and designated trails; watch for frosty and icy trails and boardwalks, especially in the morning. Scalding water underlies thin, breakable crusts; pools are near or above boiling temperatures. Each year, visitors off trail in thermal areas have been seriously burned, and people have died in the scalding water. Thermal features are easily destroyed. Visitors throwing objects into these features have damaged a number of geysers and hot springs. Walking on them, carving or defacing them, or removing souvenir pieces of formation destroys decades or centuries of intricate natural processes.

It is illegal to throw objects in features, deface them or remove any natural features from the park. Yellowstone's thermal features are extraordinary natural wonders. Please help us to keep them that way. Pets are prohibited in thermal areas. Swimming or bathing in thermal pools or streams whose waters flow entirely from a thermal spring or pool is prohibited. Thermal waters may contain organisms known to cause infections and / or amoebic meningitis which can quickly be fatal. Swim at your own risk.

All of Yellowstone is Bear Country People have been seriously injured, maimed, and killed by bears. Do not approach bears! Observe them at a distance (you are at greatest risk if you are closer than 100 yards (91 m)). Bears may appear tolerant of people but are known to attack without warning. Feeding wildlife is unlawful. Animals who are fed often become demanding and aggressive, cause personal injury, and must be destroyed. Odor's attract bears! Bears need your concem - not your food. Never leave food or garbage unattended. Dispose of garbage in bear-Proofed trash or garbage cans. To decrease the likelihood of personal igiury, store all food and cooking utensils in a secure place such as: the trunk of your car; suspended 10 feet (3 m) above the ground and 4 feet (1.2 m) horizontally from a tree or post; or in a food storage box, available in selected campground sites.
If you are involved in a conflict with a bear, (regardless of how minor) or if you observe a bear or bear sign, report it to a park ranger as soon as possible. Someone's safety may depend on it. All wildlife, especially bison and bears, are unpredictable and dangerous. Keep a safe distance from all wildlife; view from your car. It is against the law to approach within 100 yards (91 m) of bears or within 25 yards (23 m) of other wildlife. For your safety and the animals' welfare, avoid all wildlife with young.

Warning: Bison are more dangerous than they appear. Each year visitors approach bison too closely and are gored. People have been killed by these animals which weigh up to 2,000 pounds (900 kg) and sprint at 30 miles per hour (48 km per hour) (three times faster than you can run)