Katmai looms so vast that the bulk of it must elude all but a very few persistent visitors. This unseen Katmai lies beyond our usual experiences here of fishing from Brooks Camp, walking up to Brooks Falls, and riding the bus out to the Valley of Ten Thousand Smokes. We come to Katmai to sample but an edge of this enormity of raw natural forces, a sampling that itself constitutes a rare and endangered opportunity. Alaska's brown bears and grizzlies are now considered one species. People commonly consider grizzlies to be those that live 100 miles and more inland.
Browns are bigger than grizzlies thanks to their rich diet of fish.
Kodiak brown bears are a different subspecies that is geographically isolated on Kodiak Island in the Gulf of Alaska. Mature male bears in Katmai may weigh up to 900 pounds. Up to four cubs may be born, at a mere pound each. Cubs stay with the mother for two years, during which time she does not reproduce. The interval between litters is usually at least three years.