There is hope - sometimes the good bear wins - In a thrilling rematch, the winner of Fat Bear Week 2024 is … By Forrest Brown, CNN

128 Grazer won once again – which made my daughter and the students in her class very happy.  As reported by CNN - In a thrilling rematch, the winner of Fat Bear Week 2024 is …  by Forrest Brown, CNN. This was a very personal rematch from last year, 128 Grazer and 32 Chunk faced off again in the final round of 2024’s Fat Bear Week contest.

Why was the final of this match up billed as “very personal”? 

128 Grazer was mothering two cubs.  32 Chuck in the dominant male bear of the area. In July 2024, both of her first-year cubs were swept over the Brook Falls. The rushing water in the Brooks River swept both cubs toward 32 Chunk. Unfortunately for the cubs, Chunk attacked them and was able to severely injure one of the cubs before mother Grazer could rescue them. That cub later died from its injuries.

The surviving cub, called 128’s Spring Cub, was a contender in the 2024 Fat Bear Junior contest held in late September. That contest was won by 909Jr., a “large-bodied nearly 4-year-old female cub.”

Photo source - credit: Explore.org

NOTE: The contest is held by Katmai National Park & Preserve to promote public awareness about the wild brown bears of Alaska. Like scenic drives to see the changing leaves, it’s become a popular fall ritual in the United States and around the world.