Katmai National Park and Preserve

For years, Katmai National Park has had a problem with "bear jams." On June 30, the park opened a new, permanent, elevated bridge aimed at fixing the problem for good. 

A new study centers on Katmai bears, but it's the people watching them both in the park and online who are the focus. Researchers are looking at how watching wildlife changes attitudes toward conservation.

Superintendent positions are open in King Salmon and Kotzebue, and the National Park Service's Alaska Native liaison is encouraging locals to apply. 

Brown bears, salmon, Katmai rangers and camera-wielding tourists -- Coming soon, probably, to a LEGO box set near you. 

A North Pole Republican wants to consolidate the University of Alaska system, lawmakers and Bristol Bay students react to Governor Bill Walker's State of the State, and a park ranger presents LEGO Katmai.

The cub tested positive for canine infectious hepatitis, a disease that's been detected in more than 10% of Kodiak and Alaska Peninsula brown bears.

Thousands watched via bear cams as two bruins quietly laid down and died. In a rare and mysterious case of non-traumatic bear death, those viewers have taken on the roles of both witness and investigator.

Artist Ray Troll and Katmai's Roy Wood were on the search for evidence of Jurassic creatures... and all signs pointed to the stomping grounds of the duck-billed dinosaur. 

The bear cams at Brooks Camp, first installed by Explore.org in 2012, have a massive and dedicated online following.

The Brooks Camp Visitor Center in Katmai National Park will be open through October 12th this year.  Rangers will be at the center to answer questions and provide bear safety orientations. 

Usually Brooks Camp closes for the winter in early to mid-September. However, after an incline in camp attendance in late fall, this year the campground and the visitor center will stay open longer. 

One of the purposes of national parks is to ensure that animals have a place where they can live and roam freely.  Part of that involves not being hunted or encroached upon by humans, but that wasn’t the case for a bear at an Alaska National Park.  KDLG’s Chase Cavanaugh has more.

The National Park Service released a new report showing that 2.5 million visitors came to national parks in Alaska in 2013.  Those millions of visitors brought with them money that supports some communities. 

Alaska national parks brought in $1.1 billion in economic support to communities across the state.  These parks employ 17,000 workers directly and thousands more indirectly.  The three most visited parks in the state last year were Klondike Gold Rush at 928,000 visitors, Denali at 530,000 visitors and Glacier Bay at 500,000 visitors.