The annual tournament to crown the park’s heftiest brown bear reached its conclusion after a week of fierce competition. Backpack, officially designated as Bear 89, secured 103,334 votes according to Explore.org to edge out fellow finalist Bear 910, who finished close behind with 98,253 votes according to the final results released from the Alaska reserve. The National Parks Service thanked the 16 bears who involuntarily participated
in the competition, now in its thirteenth year.
How Backpack Secured the Heavyweight Crown
Backpack entered the single-elimination bracket as a strong contender, standing out as an early favorite by beating out other contenders in the first two rounds by more than 100,000 votes each. The competition got tougher in the semifinal rounds, with Backpack barely edging out 164 Bucky before the final showdown against 910, who had easily overtaken 132.
Supporters on social media rallied around the winning bear’s distinctive appearance and lineage. Backpack is the son of former 2019 Fat Bear Week champion Holly. His unusual moniker stems from early life experiences in the park.
Park officials note that Holly first brought Backpack to the Katmai National Park and Preserve’s Brooks River back in 2006. While navigating the park’s salmon-rich Brooks River alongside Holly, the young cub earned his moniker from a tendency to climb right onto her back. Around the age of 2, Backpack sustained a severe leg injury that made park rangers doubt whether he would survive, though he ultimately bounced back and gained independence in 2008.
Unlike many large adult male bears, Backpack has not shown much aggression toward his competitors, earning a reputation for his pacifist nature. Eschewing physical fights, Backpack relies on his "quiet strength" and can frequently be observed via wildlife cameras resting on a downstream boulder while seemingly absorbing the surrounding scenery.
Fierce Rivalries and High-Voter Turnout
As reported by the National Park Service, the contest originally launched in 2014 as a single-day showcase for bears in southwest Alaska, yet by 2025 it drew upwards of 1.7 million ballots cast across more than 100 nations.
The Biological Reality Behind the Popular Contest
Behind the internet humor and bracket-style competition lies a crucial biological milestone. Designed initially in 2014 as an engaging educational tool to teach people about coastal brown bears—the close relatives of grizzlies—Fat Bear Week honors the toughness of the 2,200 brown bears residing across the Alaska Peninsula reserve.
During summer and autumn months, this group gorges itself on the abundant salmon that return to the Brooks River starting in late June to accumulate the fat reserves they will need to survive the winter. While midsummer usually finds adult male brown bears scaling between 600 and 900 pounds, substantial males can easily surpass 1,000 pounds once they gorge on spawning and migrating salmon just ahead of hibernation.
Transitioning From Online Stardom to Winter Denning
With the ballots counted and his title secured, Backpack will shortly enter hibernation, which can last up to six months.