McNeil Falls facts for kids

McNeil Falls is a beautiful waterfall located on the McNeil River in Alaska, close to Katmai National Park. This river is super famous because it's home to a huge number of brown bears and lots of salmon.

The salmon are a big reason why so many bears come here! They arrive mostly in July after living in Kamishak Bay. When the salmon swim up the river to lay their eggs, it's like a feast for the bears. This area has the largest group of brown bears anywhere on Earth! Sometimes, up to 144 different brown bears have been seen at the river in one summer, and as many as 72 bears have gathered in one spot at the same time.

The entire 35-mile (55 km) length of the river is part of the McNeil River State Game Sanctuary. This special protected area was created in 1967 by the State of Alaska to keep the many brown bears safe. It's also located within the Kenai Peninsula Borough. The McNeil River State Game Sanctuary and Refuge is part of a huge protected area, about 3.8 million acres (1.5 million hectares), where hunting is not allowed. The rest of this protected land is Katmai National Park.

Mother brown bear with her cubs near the McNeil River.

Why McNeil Falls is Special

McNeil River is more famous for its amazing bear population than for the size of the river itself or how many salmon run through it. Because of all the bears, McNeil River has been shown in many TV shows and movies.

Visiting McNeil Falls

This area became so well-known for watching bears that in 1973, the State of Alaska started limiting how many people could visit. During the busiest months of June, July, and August, only ten visitors are allowed per day. If you can't visit in person, you can still see the bears! The area has special webcams that let people watch the bears from far away.

Protecting the Bears

Many groups have been formed to help keep the McNeil River area wild and safe from bear hunting. Even though bears sometimes wander outside the protected zone, their numbers have slowly grown over the years.

How Protection Helps Bears

In 2007, a group of people who care about nature worked hard to keep the state game refuge, which is just north of the sanctuary, closed to bear hunting. Before this, bears could be legally hunted in that area. When hunting was allowed, the number of bears at the falls dropped, and fewer different bears visited. Now, with better rules for hunting and viewing, the number of bears at the falls has gone up again!

The Alaska Department of Fish and Game (ADFG) and the Friends of McNeil River group have worked to keep the area closed to hunting. They even offer special ID books each year to help visitors recognize individual bears. July is definitely the best month to see bears; sometimes, up to 100 bears have visited the falls in just one day during that month!