Backpack, Bear 89, Wins Fat Bear Week 2026 in Close Final

Backpack, known as Bear 89, won Alaska's Fat Bear Week on September 30, 2026, beating Bear 910 in the final with just over 50 percent of votes. The 12th annual contest included 16 brown bears in Katmai. It highlights pre-hibernation weight gain — bears bulking up for winter — among 2,200 bears on the Alaska Peninsula.