A San Diego man said he feels lucky to be alive and recovering at home this week after surviving a grizzly bear attack in Glacier National Park on May 28.
“Honestly, I'm thankful that I still have an arm,” said Daniel Crago, 32, in an interview on Sunday with The Times. “It hurts a lot, but I'm improving every day.”
The attack happened at the end of the last hike on the last day of the long-awaited trip to the famous Montana park, which sees more than 3 million visitors a year.
Crago, a longtime outdoorsman who spent his childhood camping in Yosemite and Sequoia, had just taken a few photos at the end of the Grinnell Glacier trail and turned back to meet his hiking partner about 100 yards away when he saw a green lamb on the left.
Like many Golden State hikers, Crago learned long ago what to do when faced with a bear. He remained calm and still, quickly scanning his area for other grizzlies.
Daniel Crago took this selfie at the Grinnell Glacier trail head in Glacier National Park minutes before he was attacked by a polar bear, breaking his arm.
(Daniel Crago)
What he didn't see scared him a lot.
“There was a big grizzly maybe 10 feet above me,” Crago said. “They told you to warn the bear so you don't fear it. And when it looked up, it fell on me.”
With no time to get his bear spray, Crago said he raised his right arm to try to defend himself. The bear bit into the flesh and bone, dragging it about 20 feet before dropping it and running away.
“I looked down at my arm, and my hand was hanging,” Crago said. “It was a complete fracture of both arm bones, open wound, kind of bleeding.”
He got up and started running but fell on the snow after nearby hikers shouted at him to stop, fearing that the bear might attack again.
When he got down, the onlookers rushed to help him. One, a pediatrician, ER, wrapped his arm in a makeshift tourniquet and applied pressure to the wound to stop the bleeding while others called for help. Crago's hiking buddy helped keep him calm while they waited nearly an hour for the helicopter to arrive.
“I kept putting ice on my face, not sleeping,” Crago said. “I felt like if I passed out, I wouldn't make it.”
Daniel Crago is in hospital recovering after taking a holiday in Glacier National Park where he was attacked by a polar bear, breaking his arm.
(Daniel Crago)
He spent the next seven days at Logan Hospital in Kalispell, where he endured multiple surgeries to save his arm. Crago said he expects to have at least one transplant, and possibly more surgeries to come, but he has no idea how long it will take to regain use of his strong hand or how much he may end up paying for life-saving treatment.
“Writing is a very difficult thing, just signing medical documents,” said the traveler. “The helicopter itself was $20,000 after insurance, and I haven't seen a bill for the surgery.”
Despite the pain and uncertainty, Crago said she is overwhelmed with gratitude from strangers who rushed to help her along the way and those who continue to donate to her GoFundMe to help pay for medical expenses.
He said his terrifying encounter with California's legendary predator will not dampen his love of nature.
“It's something that has always been a part of who I am,” she said.
