Fat Bear Week came to a close on October 10th, 2023. Now, most people are probably saying “-Fat what?” Fat Bear Week! It’s when for one week – usually before bears go to hibernate – people can vote on their favorite chubster in the Katami National Park and Reserve located in Alaska. At the end of the week, one bear will remain champion.

Before gaining so much success, this was commonly known as Fat Bear Tuesday. Due to popularity, the competition was extended to a week. The competition is between 12 bears placed in a bracket based on a compilation of both winners and losers from prior years, as well as upcoming adult bears. The bears eat as much salmon as they can manage to get incredibly chubby before hibernation. Voters can watch the bears live on explore.org and vote daily on their favorite big bear. Each day, one bear gets eliminated from the competition.

This year, the final two competitors were #32 Chunk and #128 Grazer. Don’t let the fluffy ears fool you! Chunk is a strong and beefy male known for his tough-guy attitude. He’s never afraid to start swinging in a fight. His competitor, Grazer, is also known for her grittiness. Grazer is the definition of mamma bear-when it comes to her two cubs; she does not play around! Both are very loveable to the public, but only one could be crowned the winner… 

Grazer was crowned Queen Fat Bear, winning by a landslide with over 88,000 votes more than Chunk!

While the queen enjoys her year, fans are already talking about next year’s competition! So, mark those calendars for October 2024 to see the next group of lovely chubby bears!