While millions of people around the world enjoyed the famous "Fat Bear Week" livestream from Alaska’s national parks, where bears feasted on salmon in preparation for winter, the wildlife action is much closer to home for Anchorage residents. In the outskirts of Alaska's largest city, trail cameras regularly capture the raw beauty of nature, showcasing everything from wolverines to moose.
A Facebook group, Muldoon Area Trail Photos and Videos, has been rapidly growing in popularity. The page features footage from trail cameras set up near a well-populated neighborhood, and while some videos capture predatory events—such as a wolf pack taking down a moose calf—the group also shares lighter moments, like playful brown bear cubs rubbing against trees.
The group, co-run by Donna Gail Shaw, a retired professor, has installed 10 trail cameras in and around Anchorage’s Far North Bicentennial Park, a 4,000-acre area at the base of the Chugach Mountains. These cameras document the movements of a wide range of animals, including lynx, wolves, foxes, coyotes, eagles, black bears, and brown bears.
Shaw began her wildlife documentation journey after being inspired by Joe Cantil, a retired health worker who set up his own cameras in the area. Cantil, after witnessing wildlife in remote Alaska, decided to start documenting the animals near his home in Anchorage. Shaw, intrigued by his footage, eventually started her own project, setting up nine cameras of her own.
Anchorage, home to around 290,000 people, also hosts about 350 black bears, 65 brown bears, and 1,600 moose. The trail cameras have revealed just how much wildlife roams near residential areas, sparking interest not only among locals but also people from other states eager to see Alaska’s wildlife in action.
Shaw regularly shares updates with the Facebook group, offering followers glimpses into the wild. While she’s reached her limit of nine cameras, the demand for her captivating wildlife videos continues to grow.
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