Fat Bear Week is a bracket-style, single-elimination tournament, where the public votes online to determine which bear has gained the most weight after a summer of salmon feasting. Matchups continue until one bear is crowned the 2025 Champion on Tuesday, September 30. The bracket reveal takes place Monday, September 22 at 3pm AKT.
Fat Bear Week began in 2014 with just 1,700 votes and has grown into an international sensation, with over 1.2 million votes cast in 2024 from more than 100 countries.
"Chunk's resilience, Grazer's skill, and Bucky's intelligence were just a few of the powerful stories we witnessed at Brooks River this summer," says Charlie Annenberg, founder of Explore.org. "Thanks to another great salmon run, the bears are the fattest I've ever seen!"
Reigning champion 128 Grazer, the first mother bear to win Fat Bear Week, returns in 2025 while raising a yearling cub. She's joined by contenders like 32 Chunk, who overcame a broken jaw this spring and remains one of the largest bears on the river.
Voters can explore profiles and compare before-and-after photos on the Fat Bear Week website. Educational live streams with park rangers and experts offer insights throughout the week, and social media buzzes with updates under #FatBearWeek.
The action starts with Fat Bear Junior, a two-day competition for cubs. The bracket reveal is on Wednesday, September 17 at 3pm AKT, with voting on September 18 & 19.
Support conservation efforts by donating to the Katmai Conservancy's Otis Fund, with explore.org matching contributions from September 23 - October 4 and the Fat Bear Week Celebration Fundraiser on October 4 at 12pm AKT.
Fat Bear Week is a celebration of strength, survival, and the wild spirit of Alaska's Katmai National Park, a region that is home to more brown bears than people and the largest runs of sockeye salmon left on the planet.
Photo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2776039/explore_org_Fat_Bear_Week_2025.jpg
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