89 Backpack won Fat Bear Week, like his mom before him

A blond-eared adult male known as 89 Backpack won this year's Fat Bear Week, the annual contest run by Katmai National Park in Alaska that celebrates the bears who have packed on the most weight before winter. Voting opened September 29, with thousands of people choosing between Backpack and a large adult female called 910 in the finals. The field started at 16 contenders. Backpack earned his nickname as a cub, when he would climb onto his mother's back to swim in the river. He later overcame a serious leg injury. The National Park Service noted that he is unusually mellow for a big male. "He'll stand up for himself when necessary, but he prefers to use a quiet strength to gain access to preferred fishing spots. His body size suggests that the strategy works." His mother, Holly, won the title herself years ago. She raised him well.