A video capturing a "magical" moment of bears waiting to catch fish along a river in southwest Alaska has amazed viewers on TikTok.
The clip, captured at Brooks Camp at the Katmai National Park and Preserve, was posted by @grohnola and has amassed 1.7 million views since it was posted on September 1.
The video begins with a woman smiling in awe with her hands held over her face. The camera then pans over to a flowing river where a group of bears are watching the water to catch fish.
A caption shared with the post reads: "Staying forever."
Katmai National Park is one of the prime brown bear viewing spots in the world, notes the National Park Service (NPS), with around 2,200 brown bears living in the park and more bears than people estimated to live on the Alaska Peninsula.
Brooks Camp has four safe wildlife viewing platforms along the Brooks River to minimize any potential impact on the brown bears as they congregate to feed on sockeye salmon in the river.
Those who can't make it to the viewing platforms can also follow the lives of brown bears along the Brooks River by connecting online to the live web cameras set up by the park during the summer and early fall, usually from late June through early October.
According to the NPS, the Pacific Coast of Katmai National Park "harbors some of the highest densities of bears anywhere on the planet," but thick vegetation and rugged terrain can make it hard to see the bears.
There are several backcountry locations available for watching bears in season. "In spring and early summer, bears migrate to open meadows to feed on sedges and dig for clams on the nearby mudflats. Later in the summer and fall, bears are more easily and consistently seen along salmon streams," the NPS states.
'Magical'
Viewers on TikTok were moved by the moment captured in the viral post.
Katie Michelle wrote: "Whoa. this is pure magic!" Victoria DeHart said, "Alaska in itself is magical! This is on my bucket list!"
Dark_soul2069 noted: "I would start crying from how beautiful this is" Mandy said, "Wow - this made me spontaneously tear up INSTANTLY."
Broken angel wrote: "Omg it doesn't even seem real."
Eef said, "OMG I've been watching the live stream every night for over two months now. What a dream to be there!"
Angel wrote: "What human eyes are really supposed to experience."
Newsweek has contacted the original poster for comment via TikTok. This video has not been independently verified.
Brown bears salmon fishing at Katmai National Park, Alaska. A video of bears spotted waiting to fish at the park's Brooks Camp area has gone viral on TikTok.Brown bears salmon fishing at Katmai National Park, Alaska. A video of bears spotted waiting to fish at the park's Brooks Camp area has gone viral on TikTok.iStock / Getty Images PlusDo you have a travel-related video or story to share? Let us know via life@newsweek.com and your story could be featured on Newsweek.
