There are plenty of signs of spring at Northwest Trek: skunk cabbage and red flowering currant are blooming, fern fiddleheads are unfurling, Oregon grape is blossoming, birds are chirping, and the grizzly “brothers” are waking up from their winter naps and becoming more playful every day. After being in a state of torpor (a form of hibernation) all winter, Huckleberry and Hawthorne can be seen playing and exploring in their forested habitat. “A stick in their habitat recently caught Hawthorne’s attention and he rolled around with it all day,” said keeper Carly. Carly says Hawthorne is the more excitable of …

“It’s your turn tomorrow!” Northwest Trek head veterinarian Dr. Allison Case yelled to Hawthorn the grizzly bear. Hawthorn, out in his habitat, was peeking inside his den, curiously watching as keepers and veterinary staff circled around his buddy Huckleberry, who was laying anesthetized on the den floor ready for his wellness exam. There were only a few more nudges at the den door before Hawthorne was distracted by a tub filled with food and a big, berry-flavored popsicle left just for him. “I’m going to need a few people to help me move Huckleberry!” called out Dr. Case. Instead of …

We welcomed a second orphaned grizzly bear cub to Northwest Trek Wildlife Park over the weekend. He arrived from Montana, where he was rescued on the Blackfeet Nation lands after his mother was legally killed. She had been attacking pigs on a farm, wildlife officials said.   Staff at Montana Wild, where he was cared for since the end of June, estimate him to be a yearling cub, born in the winter of 2017.   He joins a 6-month-old cub from Alaska in our recently renovated grizzly bear habitat. That cub flew in last week from Anchorage. He was rescued …

He’s here – and he’s beautiful! And now he’s home. Our orphaned grizzly bear cub arrived at Northwest Trek on Wednesday morning, following an overnight flight from Anchorage. (Read curator Marc Heinzman’s story on his journey.) There was a beautiful sunrise and optimism in the air on this first day of August – and the first day of a new life for this 6-month-old cub in his new home. He’s growing fast. The as-yet-unnamed cub already weighs 89 pounds, thanks to the care and nurturing he received from keepers at Alaska Zoo, who bottle fed him several times a day …

By Marc Heinzman, Zoological Curator Northwest Trek Day 1, 3:00 p.m. I’ve arrived for my first ever visit to Alaska, and I was immediately struck by the expansiveness and beauty of the landscape. As soon as my plane broke through the low clouds during our descent into Anchorage, I had my first views of the emerald green coastal waters and a backdrop of dark mountains looming in the distance. Even before we touched down, the far too fleeting glance of that amazing landscape had me thinking about why I was here. I couldn’t help but picture bears splashing about as …

Imagine – you’re hiking in deep Northwest forest. Silence and solitude surround you. Suddenly you round a corner and freeze – a grizzly bear is standing on the path. Actually, chances are that won’t happen. Biologists estimate there are fewer than 10 grizzlies in the North Cascades. – an area of nearly 10,000 square miles. And if we take no action, there will soon be none. We can’t let this happen to an American icon. Northwest Trek is joining Point Defiance Zoo & Aquarium, Woodland Park Zoo and other Friends of the North Cascades Grizzly Bear in endorsing one of …