Backpack Crowned Champion of Alaska's Fat Bear Week

Backpack, a brown bear known for his gentle demeanor, has been declared the winner of Alaska's annual Fat Bear Week competition. The nonprofit organization hosting the event announced Tuesday that Backpack received more than 100,000 votes, narrowly defeating fellow contender Bear 910.

Fat Bear Week, now in its 12th year, highlights the success of the approximately 2,200 brown bears inhabiting Katmai National Park and Preserve. The competition serves as an educational tool about these bears, which are coastal relatives of grizzly bears. This year's event featured 16 bears competing in a single-elimination bracket.

Backpack, officially known as Bear 89, is the son of former Fat Bear Week champion Holly. He earned his name from a habit he developed as a cub of riding on his mother's back as they navigated the river. His contestant profile notes his lack of aggression towards other bears, attributing his success to "quiet strength" rather than dominance. Images show Backpack wading in the water, likely feeding on the abundant salmon.

The bears frequent the Brooks River, where they gorge on salmon to build fat reserves for their winter hibernation. Adult male brown bears typically weigh between 600 and 900 pounds in midsummer, but can exceed 1,000 pounds by the time they hibernate. During hibernation, which lasts through the winter, bears do not eat or drink and can lose up to a third of their body weight.

Last year's champion, Chunk (Bear 32), who was estimated to weigh 1,200 pounds, was eliminated early in this year's competition. This year's event also included several bear families, recognizing a high number of cubs observed in the park this summer.

Online voting for the competition took place on www.fatbearweek.org, with the final results announced on Tuesday evening. Spectators could follow the bears' progress and prepare for hibernation through live-streaming cameras provided by explore.org.