Summertime Entertainment

Summer tv is bad, for the most part very bad. Yes we have streaming services and a few shows we watch that air in the warmer months. And the Blue Jays, at least until they sell the farm in hopes of future success. But sometimes you just want to put something different on and be entertained.

Enter the grizzly bears at Katmai National Park...

Over the last month we have tuned in to the live cameras that explore.net has at Brooks Falls and the river below the falls to watch the annual event. I have watched online for maybe the last 5 years but now I'm casting the live youtube action to our tv from my phone.

We have seen one mother with her 3 cubs return almost daily. She is the most skilled salmon hunter I've ever seen. Whether standing in the knee deep water at the far bank or on the lip of the falls, she has a wiggling fish in her mouth within minutes of finishing off the last one or passing it off to one of her cubs. Last night she stood on the lip and we watched as at least 6 fish jumped right into her waiting jaws in less than an hour. From 9-11pm there were up to 8 bears at the falls as we watched, including one huge male that sat above the falls staring into the frigid water. Never saw him eat or even try to catch anything. Other than his head and neck, he never moved.

Maybe we're just starved for entertainment but we both find the bears fascinating as we try to understand their behavior. Check it out at the link above.