The unusual sight of a brown bear sow with four cubs in tow this summer drew bear watchers, photographers and enthusiasts to the crowded Chilkoot River corridor, the narrow two-lane road running alongside the river north of Haines.

For many, it was a chance for a glimpse at an extraordinary phenomenon with a stunning backdrop. But the sightseers also caused traffic jams, ignoring bear safety protocol — and state workers say they receievd several reports of reckless behavior by bear viewers at the state recreation area 10 miles north of town.

The sow, who was tracked for years as part of a long-running study, is known to the state as 925, said Alaska Department of Fish and Game biologist Anthony Crupi.

She is a creature of habit. Each year, she dens in the Ferebee Range. Then she comes to the lower Chilkoot River in late July or early August.

“Last year, she came to the lower river on the same exact day she did the year before,” he said.

She’ll feed there, almost exclusively on the lower river and lake until October. “Occasionally, she makes a foray into the lake for sockeye. But she’s very much a homebody,” he said.

Bear 925 is 11 years old, which is in the prime reproductive age for the species, but Crupi said she got off to a slow start.

Typically, brown bears start reproducing at age 5, but 925 didn’t successfully have cubs until 2022 when she was 8. Crupi said she had two cubs and both of them survived until they were separated in 2024; he’s not sure what happened to them because they weren’t tracked.

Then, last year, she must have eaten well — at least that’s the assumption because she reappeared with four cubs.

“That bear’s access to salmon is really what drives productivity and reproductive success,” Crupi said. “There’s a strong correlation between the pink salmon run and the number of cubs produced the following year.”

During Fish and Game’s study of bears, Crupi said they were able to reconstruct the portion of meat in their diet based on blood, hair and tissue samples. 925 has a high percentage of salmon in her diet.

It’s also not clear which bear, or bears, may have sired them. Crupi said Fish and Game has a genetics database of many local bears so, if they were to get DNA from the cubs it’s possible he could identify paternity.

It could be one bear, or multiple bears, and the cubs could have half-siblings in the area. Fish and Game has documented relationships where one male controls breeding in an area. “In a study we did in Berners Bay we had one male that sired 16 offspring from six different females and he was the most dominant dad in the whole population,” he said.

On any given day this summer, a mix of bear watchers, photographers and traffic along the Chilkoot River crowded in on 925 as she tried to find fish to eat and keep track of all four of her cubs.

One Sunday in August, while the state park ranger was away for training, a bus labeled Alaska Nature Tours parked in the middle of the road and let dozens of people out along the shoreline near the pack. Noticing the growing crowd, other cars slowed to a standstill or pulled off — in one case running over Fish and Game cones — in a marked no-parking zone along the road side.

The sow, who was huffing loudly, headed toward the shoreline and someone in an Alaska Mountain Guides shirt hurried the group down the road and away from her. A handful of people stayed behind, including one man with a camera who crouched behind a tree just a few feet away from the bears.

Upon hearing the details of the situation, regional state park superintendent Brad Garasky said the tour operator was violating both its permit conditions and the general rules of the road in the park.

“You can’t just park in the middle of the park road,” he said. “All state traffic laws apply.”

In addition to state traffic laws, commercial tour operators have to agree to a whole list of stipulations, including several specific to the Chilkoot Lake region which, in bold print, makes it clear that there is no stopping allowed on the roadway.

But one violation on the part of a tour operator is not exceptional. According to state records, at least 10 written citations or permit violations have been issued against commercial tour operators in the Chilkoot area in 2025. That doesn’t count the volume of verbal warnings they’ve received.

“Commercial tours are a big contributor but they’re not the sole contributor and that type of behavior and issue has been ongoing for decades,” Garasky said. “It’s not just an issue with commercial operators either. Independent tourists will go in there, local photographers, any of the park users, whether they’re fishermen or anybody will have a tendency to contribute to this issue.”

In the case of commercial operators, those kinds of violations can lead to a suspension or revocation of permits, or the state can refuse to grant them a permit to operate the following year.

But, Garasky said, that happens on a case-by-case basis and is a decision made by the state parks director.

“I am not aware of any situation that a permit is up for any of these actions based on the egregiousness and/or number of violations,” he said.

“People have this fear of bears when they watch this nature documentary and then they get to the river and all common sense is lost,” Crupi said. “They get so excited to get this photo of the mom and four cubs and they get closer than — probably in the back of their minds — they should. Fortunately, she has chosen to be tolerant of people who push those limits.”