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Katmai National Park & PreserveBear carrying salmon
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Katmai National Park & Preserve

Katmai National Monument was created in 1918 to preserve the famed Valley of Ten Thousand Smokes, a spectacular forty square mile, 100 to 700 foot deep ash flow deposited by Novarupta Volcano. A National Park & Preserve since 1980, today Katmai is still famous for volcanoes, but also for brown bears, pristine waterways with abundant fish, remote wilderness, and a rugged coastline.

 

Brooks Camp Information

Eager to make a campground reservation? Please visit www.recreation.gov for more information, or to make a reservation for Brooks Camp Campground.

Looking for frequent Brooks Camp Updates?
If so, please consider following us on Twitter. While logged in to Twitter, look for Brooks Camp or click this link. During the summer months we will update this regularly.
 

Extra! Extra!

Read all about Katmai! Download (PDF, 4.96 MB) the latest edition of the Katmai newspaper, The Novarupta. It's a great resource for planning your visit—not just to Katmai, but to other public lands in Southwest Alaska as well, including Alagnak Wild River and Aniakchak National Monument and Preserve.

 
Local resident Homer Mellickand Nick Holstrum harvesting red salmon at Brooks Camp in 1960.

A Wilderness Untouched?

Think Katmai is just a wilderness of bears, salmon, and volcanoes? Think again: For at least the last 9,000 years—before the Valley of Ten Thousand Smokes and before Brooks Camp was a paradise for bears—Katmai has been a home for people.
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Write to

P.O. Box 7
King Salmon, Alaska 99613

E-mail Us

Phone

Visitor Information
(907) 246-3305

Fax

(907) 246-2116

Climate

Be prepared for stormy weather and some sunshine. Summer daytime temperatures range from about mid–50s to mid–60s degrees Fahrenheit; the average summer low is 44 degrees Fahrenheit. Strong winds and sudden gusts—williwaws—frequently sweep the area, occassionally at speeds up to 50 to 60 miles per hour. Skies are clear about 20% of the summer. Light rain can last for days.
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Fording Windy Creek in the Valley of Ten Thousand Smokes  

Did You Know?
The only bridge in Katmai spans the Brooks River. All other rivers in the park must be crossed on foot or by boat. Be careful as heavy rains or melting snow can quickly cause the river to become uncrossable.

Last Updated: December 08, 2008 at 13:42 EST