Brown bear 89 Backpack has been declared the winner of Fat Bear Week 2026, defeating competitor Bear 910 in the final round of the annual online competition. The contest, organized by Katmai National Park and Preserve, concluded with Backpack securing 103,344 votes to 910’s 98,253 votes in a closely contested final tally.
The event, now in its 13th year, celebrates the resilience of brown bears in the park by highlighting their ability to gain weight ahead of hibernation. This year’s competition featured 16 bears, with participants selected based on their presence near Brooks River, a key salmon-fishing site.
Backpack, a male bear, is the son of Holly, the 2019 Fat Bear Week champion. His name originates from his youthful habit of climbing onto his mother’s back while swimming in the river. The bear is known for his pacifist nature, often using non-aggressive strategies to access fishing spots, unlike many adult males who display territorial behavior. Park officials noted that Backpack suffered a significant leg injury as a cub but recovered and became independent by 2008.
Bear 910, the runner-up, is a female who raised both her biological cub and an adopted niece this year. Supporters of 910 highlighted her consistent weight gain and maternal efforts, with some voters arguing she was the larger bear overall, though Backpack’s posterior was noted as particularly voluminous by some observers.
The competition, which runs as a single-elimination bracket, allows the public to vote online via explore.org’s livestream cameras at fatbearweek.org. Organizers emphasized the event’s role in educating the public about brown bears, which are coastal cousins of grizzlies. Last year’s winner, Bear 32 (Chunk), was eliminated in the first round of this year’s contest.
Backpack is expected to enter hibernation soon, a period that can last up to six months, having successfully accumulated fat reserves to survive the winter. The park thanked the 16 competing bears for their participation in the event.