Skip to content

Bear hibernationAlaska

When Do Bears Hibernate in Alaska?

Alaska bears are feeding hard before winter, and go into their dens in early November.

Today, October 13

The bears

Fattening up

Bears start going into their dens in early November.

Bird feeders

Keep feeders down until November 1

Alaska Fish and Game gives November 1 as the day feeders can go back up.

Where these dates come from

Photo: “Black bear on a snowy spring day”, Neal Herbert, National Park Service, Public domain

Dens and feeders in Alaska

By Alaska Fish and Game's den and wake months
Early November
Into the den
per Alaska Fish and Game
Mid March
Out of the den
per Alaska Fish and Game
Mid March
Feeders down
per Alaska Fish and Game
November 1
Feeders back up
per Alaska Fish and Game

Bears go into their dens over several weeks and come out over several more, so each is a span. Both feeder dates are Alaska Fish and Game's own, quoted below.

The sources

The dates, in the agencies’ own words

Into the den and out

Bears in Alaska go into their dens in early November and come out in mid March.

To protect wildlife and keep problems from arising, either locate feeders out of reach of moose and bears, or put up feeders after bears are hibernating (Nov. 1) and take them down before bears begin to wake up in spring (mid-March).

Alaska Fish and Game, Winter Bird-Feeding in Alaska, read October 13, 2026

The bird feeder

Down in mid March, back up on November 1. Both dates are Alaska Fish and Game's. They are in the den sentence quoted above.

Bears in Alaska

An estimated 100,000 black bears inhabit Alaska.

Alaska Fish and Game, Black Bear Species Profile, read October 13, 2026

As with brown bears, black bears spend the winter months in a state of hibernation.

Alaska Fish and Game, Black Bear Species Profile, read October 13, 2026

In the northern part of their range, bears may be dormant for as long as seven to eight months.

Alaska Fish and Game, Black Bear Species Profile, read October 13, 2026

In northern areas, bears may spend up to 8 months in dens, while in areas with relatively mild winters, such as Kodiak, some male bears stay active all winter.

Alaska Fish and Game, Brown Bear Species Profile, read October 13, 2026

In October and November, a pregnant female will find a denning area either on land or on the sea ice.

Alaska Fish and Game, Polar Bear Species Profile, read October 13, 2026

By late March or early April when the cubs weigh ~20-25 lbs, they leave the den.

Alaska Fish and Game, Polar Bear Species Profile, read October 13, 2026
A dark opening dug into a hillside underneath a large grey fallen tree trunk, with green plants around it
A bear den under a fallen tree in Yellowstone, photographed in late May. Under fallen trees is one of the den sites BearWise names, along with hollow trees, dug out mounds and nests under briar patches. “Bear den underneath a fallen tree”, Jacob W. Frank, National Park Service, Public domain
Advertisement
Month by month

The Alaska bear year

Where the bears are in each month, from the den and wake months above, and where the feeder stands.

  1. January: In the den, feeders up
  2. February: In the den, feeders up
  3. March: Waking up, feeders down
  4. April: Out and hungry, feeders down
  5. May: Out and hungry, feeders down
  6. June: Out and hungry, feeders down
  7. July: Out and hungry, feeders down
  8. August: Out and hungry, feeders down
  9. September: Fattening up, feeders down
  10. October: Fattening up, feeders down, this month
  11. November: Denning now, feeders up
  12. December: In the den, feeders up

Up and Down mark where the feeder stands in the middle of each month. The bar for this month is outlined.

Sightings

When Alaska bears are seen

The months people report black bears in Alaska on iNaturalist, from every year, and the reports from the last 30 days.

JFMAMJJASOND
1,774 research grade black bear reports from Alaska on iNaturalist, all years, by the month they were seen. Most come in July, fewest in January. Counted September 19, 2026. The bars count sightings people logged, not bears.

Reading the last 30 days of bear reports from iNaturalist.

Bears out in winter

What Alaska Fish and Game says about bears out of the den in winter:

Occasionally, in the more southern ranges, bears will emerge from their dens during winter.

Alaska Fish and Game, Black Bear Species Profile, read October 13, 2026
A cinnamon brown black bear walking through low shrubs and dry grass
A black bear at Great Sand Dunes, photographed by the park in spring as bears were coming out of their dens, hungry. “Black Bear, Great Sand Dunes National Park”, Great Sand Dunes National Park and Preserve, Public domain
Questions

Bears in Alaska: questions and answers

Advertisement
By state

Bear hibernation in the other 41 states

Other guides for Alaska

Bear Season in AlaskaFall activity and hunting dates by state.Hummingbird Migration in AlaskaWhen hummingbirds arrive and leave, and when to take feeders down.Winter Backyard Birds in AlaskaThe top feeder birds by state, December to February.Attic Wildlife in AlaskaWhen you may and may not evict animals from an attic.Bear Hibernation in every stateDen, wake and feeder dates for all 42 states, with the eight that have no dens.

Den, wake and feeder sentences are quoted from Alaska Fish and Game, nearby agencies where named and BearWise, read October 13, 2026. The phase and the feeder verdict are worked out from those months and today’s date. Bear reports are research grade iNaturalist observations of the American black bear, counted September 19, 2026.