Fat Bear Week crowns champion, meet 89, aka ‘Backpack’

The votes are counted and we now have a new champion to rule the wilds of Alaska.

Fat Bear Week has concluded, and No. 89, also known as “Backpack,” is the champion for 2026.

Backpack beat out 910, 103,344 to 98,253, according to Explore.org.

Fat Bear Week is the annual tournament that pits brown bears against each other online to see which one packed on the most pounds along Brooks River in Katmai National Park before they retire to their dens for winter hibernation. As park officials said, “Fat bears are successful bears.”

According to park officials, Backpack is an adult male with blond ears and brown fur. He has a “quiet strength” and “usually avoids unnecessary aggression, relying instead on body size, patience, and experience.”

He got his nickname from climbing on his mother’s back while she swam.

The competition dates back to 2014. That year, Fat Bear Week was a single day called Fat Bear Tuesday, where bear 480, named Otis, won. The next year, the single day turned into a week, and Bednose (No. 409) became champion, beating Otis, who returned to win in 2016, 2017, and 2021.

© 2026 Cox Media Group