KATMAI NATIONAL PARK AND PRESERVE – There are swarms of salmon this summer at the world famous Brooks Falls in Alaska’s Katmai National Park & Preserve. There are so many fish that the bears are hardly visiting the falls where the fish have to jump into the air, sometimes right into a waiting brown bear’s jaws. Instead, the bears are just catching fish wherever they want because the pickings are so plentiful.
All those fish translate to a lot of calories for the brown bears as they pack on the pounds ahead of winter. And of course, that means the 2025 “Fat Bear Week” competition could be one of the biggest yet.
Every year, the National Park Service and Explore.org host the online competition, allowing people to vote on which bears plumped up the most. The competition is fun but it’s also informative, educating people about the vital importance of a healthy ecosystem to the wildlife we love.
The incredible video was captured and shared by Brooke Hartman (@brookesbooksak on Instagram) on July 31, 2025. She says she’s never seen anything like it after 20 years of traveling to the falls.
NATIONAL PARK NEWS
