Wildlife Viewing

Katmai National Park is a premier wildlife viewing destination. 2,200 brown bears live in the park boundaries. Bear viewing opportunities are abundant, particularly in July and September when the bears feast on salmon returning upstream to their spawning grounds in Lake Brooks, near the Brooks River Falls. Brooks Camp, located on Lake Brook near Brooks Falls, has several hike-to viewing platforms, which offer a safe way to watch the bears in their natural habitat. Outside of July and September, Katmai coastline is the best place to see bears. When the salmon are not running, bears feed on clams and sedges, so you are likely to find them around mud flats and sedge groves as well as fishing for salmon along the shore. The coast here has the highest density of wild brown bears anywhere in the world. Of course, there are other animals in the park, too. The coastline is the most wildlife-rich area of the park: moose, wolf, fox, puffins, kittiwakes, and cormorants can all be seen here, thriving on the diverse habitats of the shoreline and intertidal zones. You can take a boat to the coastline, or charter a flightseeing tour to cover vast spreads of wildlife territory in a short amount of time.