Wave your hands in the air if you’re ready for Fat Bear Week 2021! 🐻🐟

The time honored tradition of rooting for your favorite rotund Katmai National Park and Preserve bear is back. As the fall comes and goes in Alaska, brown bears have been going through a process called hyperphagia — an overwhelming urge to eat as much as possible to prepare for winter.  

Fattening up is a matter of life and death for these beefy bears. The ones that pack on the most pounds are the bears most likely to survive the dark, cold months ahead. So always remember, a fat bear is a healthy bear.  

Voting starts tomorrow and you can participate in all the virtual fun on the Katmai social media sites.

Video by Lian Law, NPS. Video description: A bear laying on its back in a lumpy grassy area, sticks its paws straight up in the air and waves them back and forth as it wiggles for 12 seconds.

Ladies and gentlethems, we give you the REAL stars of Fat Bear Week…the salmon.

At Katmai National Park and Preserve in Alaska, salmon are the lifeblood of a fertile coastal ecosystem. At Brooks Falls, the salmon must run a gauntlet of hungry bears, wolves, birds, and other fish-eaters before proceeding further inland to spawn.

Every summer, tens of thousands of sockeye salmon migrate from Bristol Bay to spawn in rivers adjacent to large lakes, such as the Brooks River, which connects Lake Brooks and Naknek Lake in the park. These homecoming salmon—weighing an average of 5-7 pounds—spend their first years of life in freshwater and their last 2-3 years in the ocean, where they attain the bulk of their mass.

A sockeye salmon fresh from the sea in July contains around 4,500 calories; a spawned out salmon in September may only have half that many. Bears feast on them and turn into the celebrities of Fat Bear Week, but for those of us who know the story, the bears couldn’t get girthy without a little help from some amazing fish.

Photo by National Park Service. Photo description: A pool of red fish swim in a circle in a crystal clear river with a rocky bottom.

Amazing Nature Moment Alert! 

A female black bear at Great Smoky Mountains National Park wasn’t impressed with her male suitor and spent an hour in a tree barking at him to leave.  

Getting to watch wildlife be wild is amazing! #TeamPublicLands members know how serious it is to give these creatures their space.

Give em’ room, use a zoom. No zoom lens, no problem. You can still watch wildlife by staying a safe distance back, especially when viewing predator animals like bears. The safety of these animals, as well as your safety, depends on using good judgment.

Photo by Robert Wagner (sharetheexperience.org). Photo description: Two bears in a tree growl and bark at each other with their mouths open.

This bear is faced with multiple dinner choices and no wrong answers.

It’s captivating to witness Katmai National Park and Preserve’s magnificent brown bears catching a nutritious meal, thanks to the healthy population of sockeye salmon the Bristol Bay ecosystem supports. As anticipation builds for Fat Bear Week, we can all tune into the bearcam and experience front row seats to the impressive feasting.  

Link to Cam: http://ow.ly/eQZ750FE21l

Photo by Tom Fenske (sharetheexperience.org). Photo description: A bear stands at Brooks Falls choosing between three salmon jumping in the air.

Slowing down saves lives – especially through parks and public lands where wildlife are just as busy traveling as you are. Deer, black bear, wild turkey, and a host of other woodland animals call Shenandoah National Park home and will regularly cross Skyline Drive in their daily travels. 

Watch out for these animals who may dart across your path, 🐻 bear-ly giving warning. At 35 mph, you’ll stand the best chance of a paw-sitive wildlife encounter rather than an unpleasant wildlife experience. If you want a closer look, be sure to pull completely off the road and stay in your vehicle. #TeamPublicLands

Photo by Valerie Richards (sharetheexperience.org). Photo description: a black bear mom and cub cross a foggy road.

You wake up in the morning, open your tent, and see these bear prints leading straight to your campsite. 😲

That’s what happened to this backpacking photographer at Gates of the Arctic National Park in Alaska.

With record breaking attendance to public lands sites this year, we could see an increase in bear encounters.

If you are visiting bear country, what should you do if you see one of these amazing animals? Here’s some tips to help keep you AND the bear safe: https://www.nps.gov/subjects/bears/safety.htm

Photo courtesy of Matt Meisenheimer. Photo description: Large grizzly bear tracks in the sand and silt, lead away from mountains in the background

#TeamPublicLands Tip: Follow the beaten path. If you’re exploring public lands with a designated trail system, stay on the trail to focus your impacts. Yes, that might mean walking through a mud puddle on the trail. If you’re exploring public lands without trails, then do your best to stay on durable surfaces like rocks, sand or gravel or have your group spread out to prevent unplanned trails from forming when that isn’t possible. Photo by Adam Jewell (ShareTheExperience.org)

The omnivorous coastal brown bear has approximately 42 teeth: large predatory teeth for shredding and molars for grinding. In Katmai National Park and Preserve, Alaska, a bear’s diet during the summer consists primarily of salmon with the addition of sedge grasses and berries. Take it from these two and check your teeth after every meal! Happy National Dentist’s Day! Photo of by Taylor Albright (ShareTheExperience.org).

A sweet reminder to give other families you see on the trail plenty of space! Take it from Grizzly 399, the safest way to hike in bear country is with groups of 3 or more. We also recommend making noise, carrying bear spray, and knowing how to use it. Photo of grizzly bear 399 with her four cubs at Grand Teton National Park in Wyoming, courtesy of Daniel Ewert.

Winner! Winner! Salmon Dinner!! After a season of serious dedication to stuffing salmon in his face, 747 has earned the title of the King of Chonk. The winner of Fat Bear Week is in excellent shape to survive the cold winter ahead. Thanks to everyone who voted and took the time to learn more about these amazing animals and Katmai National Park & Preserve, the park that feeds them. We sure love fat bears! Photo by Naomi Boak, National Park Service.