A 60-year-old woman from New Hampshire suffered second- and third-degree burns on one of her legs while walking off-trail in a thermal area near the Mallard Lake Trailhead at Old Faithful in Yellowstone National Park.
A park release said the unidentified woman, from Windsor, New Hampshire, was walking with her husband and their dog on Monday afternoon when she broke through a thin crust and was burned by scalding water. The husband and dog were uninjured.
While the woman went to a park medical clinic to be evaluated, she was later flown by helicopter to the Eastern Idaho Regional Medical Center in Idaho Falls for further treatment.
Park officials remind visitors to stay on boardwalks and trails in hydrothermal areas, as the ground in these areas is fragile and thin, often with scalding water just beneath the surface. Pets also are prohibited on boardwalks, hiking trails, in the park's backcountry, and in thermal areas.
The matter remained under investigation Wednesday.
Comments
Rules, smules. They're for the rest of park visitors! I am SPECIAL!
I'ts been 10 years since I pointed out to a "hiker" and her pooch on the trail going up to Granite PArk that dawgs were not allowed on the trails. Geez, what a glare I got.
As people and their pets are found in nearly all corners of our day, and folks demanding tto take their pets everywhere, the NPS is going to have an increasingly difficult time enforcing these rules about pets on trails. How soon before pet owners sue the NPS when Boo Boo eats their precious FuFu?
Sorry, but they get no sympathy from me. Her and hubby broke the rules, endangered their dog and possibly others at the park. Charge them criminally, fine them and set a lifetime ban from ALL National Parks.
Thanks to a gift from my dearly departed father, I have been visiting Yellowstone for over two decades. Before one of those visits, My dad handed me a copy of Lee Whittlesey's book DEATH IN YELLOWSTONE to read. He also advised me and my family to attend the lectures being held at the NPS Information Center in West Yellowstone re: trail safety tips, and how to deploy bear sprays and proper disrance to keep away from bison and other wildlife.
Visitors, please prepare yourself before visiting Yellowstone. Carry your bear sprays, stay on the boardwalk, and don't pet the fluffy cows.