Dad Recalls Final Voicemail Son Left Mid-Hike Before Death by Apparent Bear Attack

Dad Recalls Final Voicemail Son Left Mid-Hike Before Death by Apparent Bear Attack https://ift.tt/h31J2jU

Anthony Pollio, 33, was identified as the missing hiker found dead in Glacier National Park after a suspected bear attack on May 6

Anthony Pollio
Credit: anthony pollio/Facebook

NEED TO KNOW

• Anthony Pollio, 33, has been identified as the missing hiker found dead in Glacier National Park after a suspected bear attack

• Pollio was remembered by loved ones as "fearless" and "smart"
• His father also recalled the final voicemail that Pollio left him while hiking just before his death

The man who died from a suspected bear attack at Glacier National Park has been identified.

The missing hiker, found dead of a suspected bear attack on Wednesday, May 6, has been identified as 33-year-old Anthony Pollio of Davie, Fla., the Montana-based park announced in a news release on Saturday, May 9.

Anthony's remains were found by search and rescue crews at around 12 p.m. local time. They were located around 2.5 miles up the Mount Brown Trail in a “densely wooded area with downed timber,” around 50 feet off the path, officials said.

The Florida native's injuries were “consistent with those sustained by a bear encounter,” the park said in an initial news release about the tragedy.

Anthony Pollio
Credit: anthony pollio/Facebook

In its latest update, Glacier National Park said “the sequence of events leading to the bear encounter remains under investigation,” though “evidence suggests that this was a surprise encounter.”

Anthony's family is now mourning the 33-year-old University of Central Florida grad, who they described as a smart and brave individual.

The man's father, Arthur, told Florida's WPLG Local 10 that his son “was a fearless man” and “an experienced hunter."

“He's an educated man, and the bear just attacked him and killed him,” he said.

Speaking with another Florida outlet, The Sun Sentinel, Arthur said Anthony left him a voicemail during the hike. He updated his dad on what he was doing and said that he loved him, according to the grieving father.

Arthur told The Sun Sentinel that, beyond his hunting abilities — of which he had two decades of experience — Anthony loved animals, as well as racing cars and other vehicles.

He was also a “motorhead,” church deacon and natural leader at his jobs, Arthur told the local newspaper.

Adding that his son had visited many national parks before, Arthur said of Anthony: "His life experiences in 33 years, some people don't get to do 'til they're 90 or their whole life."

Anthony Pollio
Credit: anthony pollio/Facebook

Anthony's brother, Nicholas, spoke with WPLG Local 10 and offered more insight into his brother's final moments at the Montana park.

“He saw a trail. It was only a few miles. It was daytime,” the sibling told the outlet. “His intention was to go up and see the sunset from the fire watch tower.”

“On the way down" is when Anthony's father said he and other members of the family think tragedy struck.

“I believe he was probably accosted by the bear,” Arthur told WPLG Local 10. “Used the bear spray. He might have ran from there. I think the bear may have chased him down, grabbed him by the shoulder.”

Montana's Glacier National Park
Credit: getty

The mourning father also said he believes that officials found Anthony after they discovered a can of bear spray. Park officials previously asserted that search teams located Anthony's body shortly after finding some of the hiker's “personal items.”

Anthony had “communicated plans” to hike the trail toward the Mount Brown Fire Lookout on Sunday, May 3, according to the latest release from Glacier National Park. Park officials were notified of his disappearance the following day and subsequently initiated search and rescue operations.

The apparent bear attack took place nearly three decades after the last deadly bear attack in Glacier National Park occurred in 1998 in the Two Medicine Valley. (More recently, a 34-year-old female hiker was injured by a brown-colored bear in August 2025.)

As of Saturday, May 9, the trail where the apparent bear attack took place is temporarily closed, park officials said.

“Park staff are working to determine next steps based on field assessments and wildlife behavior monitoring,” the park said in a statement.