Na Mee

New Champion, who dis??? A historic night for three-time runner up, first-time Fat Bear Week champion, 32 Chunk! He defeated enormous elder 856 in the finals on Tuesday, ousting two-time title holder 128 Grazer.  

32 Chunk started the season strong but had a major setback when he showed up during mating season with a broken jaw. Lucky for him, a historic salmon run spelled a rags to fishes story for this busted up behemoth, and he managed to side-mouth slow-chew his way through summer. By the time Fat Beat Week rolled around, 32 Chunk had more than qualified in size, hustle and gains. 

He took the week one match at a time, but his bad boy history threatened to weigh him down. Could he make a comeback from the darkness of his past? Then, the bracket offered an unseen advantage: a final match against the only bear on the bracket with a rap sheet longer than his, 856. 

Oooh, the plot thickened! Ultimately, 32 Chunk’s grit and determination tipped the scale. We celebrate this impressive, massive, emphatically fat bear and all his resilience. Congratulations Chunk the Hunk! 

This was Fat Bear Week’s biggest year ever. Online, over 1.5 million votes streamed in from around the world. Offline, we saw some of the fattest fat bears to date, thanks to their top sponsor — salmon. Shout out to the ecosystem for being so dang epic, and big ups to all who preserve it.  

If you want to support Katmai Conservancy’s research, education and outreach, I encourage you to donate to their Otis Fund (named for beloved bear 480 Otis). This is their biggest fundraiser of the year and explore.org will match all funds donated before Oct. 4.

Our communities are interconnected. If you feel endeared to the bears of Fat Bear Week, I hope you’ll also nurture the wildlife in your area, and the wild life within yourself. The champions do more than survive; they engage with their world in their own extraordinary ways, with their own unique strengths and stories. 

May your story be as great as theirs.

May you be loved and protected.

May you eat well

and live large

Oh, lorge. It’s the Fat Bear Week Finals and two of the biggest boars of Brooks River are here to conceptually duke it out. It’s a packed house (around 150K voters each day!) and this one’s a real claw-biter. 

Interesting play by the voters yesterday, stomping out 602 Flotato! If nothing else, he is certainly a People’s Choice Award kind of bear. Fat, happy, fat: truly a triple threat. Had it been Favorite Bear Week he might have had a better chance. Same with 128 Grazer, whose airtight brand of fierce motherhood has a stout and devout following. Still, she came up short against “Daddy Long Legs” 856. 

And so, dear readers, amid a bracket of broad babes and lover boars it’s come down to the two bad boy antiheroes. 

856 is tearing through Fat Bear Week, 3-0. Despite his king-sized history, he has never come this close to the finish line. He, like all the bears, does not know about Fat Bear Week, or care, but I do in general think he wants it more. He has always wanted it more. He got known for his explosive plays when he was only 10. He threw everything he had at this and rose to fame, gaining a reputation as a super dominant, extremely aggressive bear. He was kingpin of the River for over a decade. 

Meanwhile, starting last year, 32 Chunk the Hunk had had enough. We don’t know what switch went off the previous winter, but Chunk came out of hibernation chomping at the bit, the butts, everyone. He was gonna be the next big thing and he wanted all the bears to know. He was dark and broody and on an actual tear. Then, the thing happened: he killed 128 Grazer’s cub, Smalls. 

Many thought this was unforgivable. But, for the record, 856 also killed multiple cubs during his reign.

So how did two semi-villains make it to the finals? Complexity! Depth! Conflict! 

32 Chunk shows up this season and he’s injured. His mouth is falling out of his mouth. At first we didn’t know if he could eat / survive. To top it off, he was born with these narrow-set eyes that make him look worried basically all the time. It was vulnerable. It was high stakes. It was drama. 

Best moment? When my boy 503 — aka Cubadult, aka the Prince of Katmai — invites him to play. 32 Chunk used to get down all the time as a little boar but in his rise to serious adulting he stopped messing around. 503 (also an adult, but younger than Chunk) was like “Come on bro, loosen up, have some fun,” and then they — *holds back tears* — did. They splashed and pawed and gnawed, gently and tenderly, at each other’s faces. 503 went easy on Chunk’s jaw. 32 Chunk let his guard down. 

32 Chunk is not the only one exposing his soft spot. 856 is moving at senior speed, now yielding to younger and smaller bears. And, we were witness to what many describe as his grief. (Trigger warning for the next paragraph). 856 was on-again-off-again lovers with a female bear named 402. So 856 was also known as 402’s husband. Last fall, 402 was killed by a completely different boar, 469 Patches. I won’t get into the hows and potential whys. But after 856’s wife was killed, 856 went to her. He went to her body, went to the site where she died. He spent a long time there — pacing, gazing, sniffing — and he returned every day for a week. Animals experience emotions. Many, including me, believe the once powerful 856 was in mourning. 

So you see; these fat bears are — wait for it — well-rounded. In many ways, some of the greatest fun of Fat Bear Week is the characterization of the contenders. We know that the bears demonstrate individuality — that is, they have distinct traits, preferences and behaviors. Even though they are mostly solitary, they remember and regard each other; they have sustained, elaborate webs of relationships that are constantly being negotiated in a collectively understood hierarchy. So, it is natural to acknowledge them not just as unique numbers, but as unique, complex stories. 

Past Fat Bear Week winners have represented enormity, yes, but also generosity, patience, protectiveness and more. Today we see a finals match that goes beyond size; it captures vulnerability, pain and resilience. 32 Chunk and 856 are not just big; they’re tremendous. They remind us how wild and complicated it is to be a bear, to be human, and to be alive.

I can’t choose. But you can; you will. I’ll be back tomorrow with the results. 

May the fattest bear win. Voting is open 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. AKST at fatbearweek.org.

Good morning, fat bear fanatics! Here we are at the semifinals of Fat Bear Week and everybody’s fired up. Who’s with me??

Let’s recap last week’s matches: Regrettably, neither Beady sister (909 and 910) could land their paunches against 128 Grazer and 856. Despite being truly, deeply, unfathomably fat, each sow separately lost their spot on the line. They weren’t necessarily upsets though we (me and about 23,000 voters) were a little upset. Come on! 910 might not have a large following, but she is a generous bear and she is shaped like a post office. I thought she had a chance! She did not.

We’re down to the final four, and it’s any bear’s game. Note that Fat Bear Week thus far has been landslide wins for each victor; we’re now looking at a set of bears that dominate on and off the bracket. There’s so many pounds we could unpack here — including the very real life conflicts between these bears over the years at Brooks River. It’s like Real World: Katmai National Park, and these are not just main characters of the season; these are series regulars.  

We started Fat Bear Week with a sow advantage (7 of the 12 bears were female), and we’re down to one: 128 Grazer. Grazer’s known for her strong defense, which is basically an offense. She fights the power, she’s a mom icon, and she eats like a champ. However, she’s also already taken home the title for two years running, and Fat Bear Week voters have been known to want to pass the trophy around. 

Will they pass it to 32 Chunk the hunk, who has teetered close to the title but has never sealed the deal? Broken jaw 32 Chunk kept his head low this summer, quite literally, and it paid off. Not only did he adapt, he put on the fat. Will voters look past his (somewhat shady) past? 

And 856, who long ruled the Katmai kingdom with a sharp fist, is finally getting some good press. Our tall boy started this season on a gaunt foot, and we think he knew that. Unpretentious, he’s been living a quieter life. Turns out, he doesn’t need to be boss bear to bulk up. Retirement looks good on 856. Are we ready to throw him a party? 

But the guy to watch, in my opinion, is the fourth bear, Fat Bear Week rookie: 602 Flotato. He embodies the 2025 season better than anyone. It was a summer marked with a historically high salmon run. The water was so dense with fish, the color of the river changed. Everyone was rolling in it, literally. In this incredible season of abundance, we saw a cultural shift: the bears leaned into joy. 

Dance parties, slow wrestling, gentle bitey-face — it was a spectacular display of pleasure and play. There were sticks to discover and mud to roll in and naps on naps on naps. It was a vibe, and 602 Flotato was a top influencer. 602 has always loved the water (his first nickname was Snorkel Bear). But this year he lavished deeply; it was a regular occurrence to see him lounging in his own spa. There’s a photo of him, on his back, with a dead salmon laying on his face like an eye pillow; it’s peak Flotato. His delight may not be the key to the championship, but it’s the key to something bigger and we’re here for it. 

Weigh your choices carefully! 

May the fattest bear win. Voting is open 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. AKST at fatbearweek.org!

Welcome back to Fat Bear Week! It’s halftime and things are really heating up. In yesterday’s matches, 602 was a hot Flotato and Biggie (128jr) could barely touch him. 32 Chunk and his humongous hero journey had 901 punching above her weight. Both boy bears put an end to the ladies’ winning streaks. 

But hold on to your hats, adoring fans of flabulous, because defending Fat Bear Queen 128 Grazer competes today. 

Match 7: 909 vs 128 Grazer

Spicy 909 goes muzzle to muzzle with reining Fat Bear champ, 128 Grazer. Grazer is a seasoned veteran on the bracket, and FBW champion for two years running. She is an older, wider, deeply-respected bear. She is a blonde barrel and a very big deal. 

What I love about this match is the fierce femininity on both sides. Actually, if you couldn’t tell by their frequent knee jerk growls, 128 Grazer and 909 are related! These aren’t just any two broads — they’re some of the toughest and gruffest gals at the Falls, and fierce protectors of their family. 

909 is part of the 909/910 clan that became known as The Beady Bunch. They raised their kids together as a blended family and were out running these streams like a girl gang. 

There’s not much new I can say about the mighty nature of 128 Grazer, but it bears repeating that her reputation precedes her. You know you’re a legend when your name becomes a verb. e.g. “151 just got Grazered.”

One of the most assertive and powerful female bears in the Brooks River area, 128 Grazer has earned a high place on the hierarchy despite not being male. The respect is palpable. When Grazer walks by, she walks with confidence, and a path is parted for her. If a bear is smart, they try not to get on her bad side, or her good side, or any side – they leave a wide berth. “She is beauty, she is grace, she will bite you in the face,” is a common chorus amongst bear cam viewers. 

Match 8: 910 vs 856

Fat Bear Week respects our elders and 856 is cashing in on the love. “Respect to grandpa,” someone wrote in the YouTube chat. 856 has taken a wildly demure disposition in his retirement, a reflection of his wisdom more than his weakness. Although 856 still makes attempts to reclaim some dominance, he does so with discretion. Physical changes in his body, whether it be old age or illness, has made 856 slow down and become more aware of his capacity. His spring pics have him looking like a wheat thin but by late summer he was a bread loaf of a boar. 856’s fatness represents a shift in not just his 2025 season, but a season of life. His size represents a nobility in knowing his limits. 

856 faces 910: Daughter of 409 Beadnose, Niece of 408 Crooked Claw, Sister to 909, Mom to 910jr, Adopted mom/Auntie to 609, and I list all her relations because that’s how 910 would introduce herself. This, my friends, is your family girl. 

Judging from 909’s more feisty nature, I imagine it was 910’s idea to blend families and raise their kids together in 2022. When 909 kicked her daughter out of the house, 910 took her in. Note that adoptions in the bear community are extremely rare. Then, 910 could have emancipated her daughter and niece the following summer, but she kept them in tow for an extra year. Personal human opinion here, but I think she likes when everybody is together. Most adult bears are more solitary than social, but we see that preference on a spectrum. 910 definitely swings social. She is a loyal, nurturing bear. 

It was her first year as an empty nester after raising cubs for four straight years and 910 had herself a hot grrl summer. She danced her heart out at the beach, she played with her besties, she dated some big shots and she fished the lip with her sis. On the fatness scale, the pictures do more justice than my writing can. Words that have been used to describe 910 include “a rectangle” and a “cruise ship.” I call her a super-sized sweetheart, and she is pound for pound becoming one of my favorite bears. 

May the fattest bear win. Voting is open 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. AKST at fatbearweek.org!

Correction: Grazer has actually won the competition twice. 

Welcome back for Day 3 of Fat Bear Week! Did 909 wave her magic paw over the votes? They swam towards her yesterday ten times over. And it appears that ol’ man 856 is enjoying a bit of a retirement party; voters lined up to salute the elder. 

128jr and 901 have enjoyed easy wins so far, but today two big-bellied boars enter the chat.

Match 5: 128jr “Biggie” vs 602 “Flotato” 

128 Grazer’s girl is on a roll! She may be a toddler but she is waddling into this match having now defeated 609, 26’s girl cub, and both of 803s yearlings. The people love that Biggie baby. But can she strut the right stuff in a match with 602? 

602 is this year’s class clown. Holy fatman! He is large, he is sometimes in charge and he is often seen chilling out, maxing and relaxing, all cool. Here he is: on his back, in the river, floating like a potato. This is why they call him The Flotato. 

602 Flotato has perfected the art of eating a colossal amount of food and then doing absolutely nothing. He maximizes his net caloric intake by burning the least amount of energy possible. After gorging at the falls, some bears go on a walkabout, but 602 is like, what if I … didn’t. He’s got a beer belly dad bod – built for comfort, not speed. When he sheds at the end of summer, it looks like he’s not wearing pants. He, predictably, has a lot of nicknames. But secretly I call him The Dude. 

I admire the way The Dude / Flotato can go to The Office and still exude an unemployed attitude. A cute thing about 602 is that when faced with conflict, he does a funny little stompy dance (“The Mashed Potato”). Yeah, well, you know, that’s just, like, your opinion, man, I imagine him saying. 

The Dude will likely abide in today’s match. And, I can think of no bear who would care less. 

Match 6: 901 vs 32 Chunk 

Look, 901 is an actual boat. She’s so wide, I don’t know how she turns a corner. She is the Michelin man in a bear suit. She is a runaway parade blimp. What we love about 901 is that she has always had her priorities straight  – eat, mate, and sleep – and her prodigious peach is proof that she’s a very focused gorl. 901 gave us a historical upset several years ago: it was her first time on the bracket when she ousted King 480 Otis. She made it all the way to the finals, coming in 2nd to 747 Bear Force One.  

Apparently “Almost Champions” is the theme here, because 901 faces perpetual runner up 32 “Chunk.” 32 Chunk is a familiar face on the fat bear circuit, but he has yet to do a victory lap. Character sketch aside, this boar is borderline bursting. Chunk the Hunk, we call him. Even standing, his belly almost kisses the ground. 

Full disclosure, Chunk was my gateway bear; and I cheered for him in my first Fat Bear Week, even though I knew zero things about him. But you always remember your first. At that time, Chunk was sort of an enigmatic bear – he was huge but he didn’t throw his weight around. If anything, he acted like a subadult in an adult body, and as the years went on I thought he had this fight club anti-establishment energy. It seemed like he was consciously refusing to play the hierarchy game. 

All that changed in 2024. Chunk the Hunk woke up on the wrong side of the riverbed and he tore through the park, demanding dominance. He was cruisin’ for a bruin, and he was not there to make friends. He even killed a cub. On camera. It was not a good look. 

On a normal year, I would say fat chance to 32 Chunk taking home the title, but this summer he showed up with a broken jaw. Like, imagine a mouth. Now imagine half the mouth, dangling out of the mouth. Chunk was likely in pain, and we saw him resting his jaw in the cold river. It was a major injury, and it could be fatal for a bear if they can’t adapt their eating habits. 

Fat isn’t a number, it’s a lifestyle. We love to see a big boi but we want a big boi we can root for. Packing on the pounds this summer has taken a tremendous amount of strength, resilience, and restraint. Whether you’re a fan or a frenemy, you have to acknowledge 32 Chunk’s enormous achievements. 

May the fattest bear win. Voting is open 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. AKST at fatbearweek.org!

Welcome back to Fat Bear Week, Day 2! We’re off to a roaring start: the tiny but ginormous, glorious and notorious B.I.G.G.I.E 128jr took the dub in Match 1, and in Match 2 the crowds went wild for beach babe 901. Let’s take a look at today’s lineup: 

Match 3: 26 vs. 909 “Bella” 

This quadrant of the bracket is all about the sow power. In today’s match we welcome newcomer 26. While 26 is a Fat Bear Week rookie, her family is no skinny stranger to the competition. Her mother, 435 Holly was/still is the people’s sweetheart and 2019 Fat Bear Week champion. 26 arrived in July with two spring cubs, fresh out the den and ready to tumble. Even with COYs (cubs of the year), 26 maintains a chill, almost effortless vibe — honestly one of the most relaxed twin moms I’ve ever seen. And, she’s a provider. Through hard work (fishing) and patience, 26 has managed to not only plump her own rump, but transform her cubs into a couple of poofy patooties. A vote for her is a vote for family fatness. 

But 26 is not the only daughter of a dynasty in this match. 26 faces 909, who some call Bella, part of the 409 Beadnose (2015 and 2018 Fat Bear week champion) legacy. If this family’s beady and boopable noses didn’t give them away, their telltale fishing style would: they are all known for holding their “magic paw” out on the lip of Brooks Falls. 909 in particular is known for putting her hand on her heart, like she is pledging allegiance to her dinner. It works, too; the fish are solemnly sworn into her mouth. When 909 is not fishing, she is often seen yelling. She loves to yell at 164 Bucky, and also 384, and also birds or fish or the waterfall. 909 talks a big game, but she’s got the booty to back it up.  

Match 4: 99 vs. 856 

Some speculate that 99 and 856 could be related, but in this match they are truly on other ends of the spectrum. 99 is a fairly young, chocolate stud muffin of a bear. He is often seen sweetly greeting his brothers and known for playing bitey-face (very gentle, much fun) for literally hours. He’s gorgeous, and he has sort of a Ponyboy personality. As the summer progressed, we started to see 99 move his way up the hierarchy – hanging with the gang / fishing amongst the big boys. Still, I think he is ultimately a softie — did you see how he broke up the fight between 909 and 384? Time will tell how 99 arcs in this coming-of-age story.

Opposite 99 is 856: one of Katmai’s biggest boars and an outgoing boss bear. For over a decade, 856 maintained a hyper-dominant position at the top, largely through fear and fervent physical aggression. His movements had a ripple effect across the river, displacing bears in descending order. I have read, and regretted, reading his history of killing cubs. Yet, in recent years, his kingpin status has fluctuated, mostly with the takeoff of bear 747, but also as a result of an even larger wild threat: aging. 856 is in his mid-twenties, an old man for a bear. He is slowing down, choosing his battles, and conceding to bears he once beat up. The fall of his reign is imminent, if not already past. 

We all get older. Even the most powerful of us and powerful parts of us will one day yield to the quiet. It can be done with dignity, if we are lucky. I used to be afraid of 856. This year, I feel tender to him. 856 is built like a tank. But somewhere in that tank is a little white flag, and it’s starting to wave. 

May the fattest bear win. Voting is open 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. AKST at fatbearweek.org!