Brooks River

The most famous bear-and-salmon river in the world. The Brooks River is a 1.5-mile tributary of the Naknek inside Katmai National Park, where dozens of brown bears gather each July to feed on sockeye salmon leaping the 6-foot Brooks Falls. The viewing platform at the falls is the most-photographed wildlife scene in Alaska. The river itself is fly-fishing-only and produces wild rainbow trout, char, grayling, and sockeye — but bear safety regulations close the river to fishing during the peak of the bear viewing season in early July.