2024 Katmai bear pins by Cianne Adams /NPS, Becca Nourot

Katmai National Park and Preserve is celebrating a winning design by a 13-year-old student from Newhalen, Alaska, that is featured on the Brooks Camp bear pins this summer.

“I was inspired to create this work of art because I really wanted to express Alaska,” said Cianne Adams. “I wanted to add not only the bears but also other famous animals that reside in Katmai.”

Adams' beautiful design highlights some of Katmai’s marine residents, including sockeye salmon, a keystone park species, and sea otters. In the design the otter and salmon circle a scene of two bears by a lake with mountains in the background. Two birds soar in the distance. “I aspired to make the salmon seem like it was swimming upwards,” she said, “because that is what they do in rivers, going up the stream.”

Park staff distribute the pins to visitors who complete mandatory bear safety training at Brooks Camp, also known as “bear school.”  A limited-edition color pin is awarded to visitors who exhibit especially safe and responsible behavior around the bears. For over 20 years the pins have served as safety reminders to visitors, confirmations to park staff that visitors completed the training, and treasured mementos for people of their wonder filled park visits.  The annual design contest opens in January to residents of southwest Alaska.

Adams' design honors the pristine lake and river systems that sustain salmon and other park wildlife. “I added water because you really can't have salmon, otters, and bears without water," the teenager said. “I also received a lot of inspiration from my teachers and parents, so thank you to them.”