Otis Fishing Report for August 21, 2023: It’s 4:40 a.m. in Katmai before Brooks Falls cam zooms in, and our boy is in his Office taking care of (fishy) business. Five minutes later, Otis inspects his first fish of the day on cams!
We’ve been talking all season about how big these fish are, and that trend continues! These night snaps on Brooks Falls cam are not the clearest and not our best posts, we know (that’s not a complaint; grateful for the views!), but they do illustrate the size of these fish. We’re thinking we should take all the counts and multiply by two!
All is calm for about an hour and a half. 128 Grazer is fishing the Conveyor and 164 Bucky is… well… being Bucky — “stationary” is not a word we use for him, but he’s calm enough. Otis is in his Office.
Then, just when you think you’re getting on fine on a Monday morning, 747 comes in from the Platform side looking refreshed and strutting his voluminous stuff. He heads to the Conveyor. Grazer moves toward Otis. She chitter chatters at Otis. He chitter chatters back. She chitter chatters harder. And louder (probably). And closer. She moves into Otis’ personal space. Otis shifts toward Wallflower’s Wall. Meh. Just another Monday.
Otis begins to move out and pauses for a drink of water. Grazer comes out of the Office, grumbles at Otis — perhaps his salmon recipe was not all that and a bag of chips — and then… leaves. And Otis moves back into his Office. So apparently Grazer is playing with the boys and just wants to assert her dominance — like her minion 151 Walker, she didn’t actually want the Office.
It takes us quite a while to get another fish, but the Patience in Otis is strong, and it pays off.
About noon, Walker saunters up, and after yesterday’s escapades, we hear chat’s collective groan. He backs Otis out of the Office. 747 intervenes and chases Walker downstream, and then 747 leaves. (Does this sound like a rerun yet?) Walker returns to the Far Pool and launches his large and (temporarily) in-charge self onto the Conveyor.
And so the Big Boar Dance begins. Walker to Office. Otis to Wall. Walker to Conveyor. Otis to Office. Walker… but at least it’s calm.
So far.
An hour and half later (1:37 p.m. Katmai timestamp), Otis gets a FISH! Just like us, Otis remembers yesterday, so when Walker turns around just in time to see Otis with his fresh catch, Otis has one paw out his Office door — he hightails it, fish flopping in his mouth, to the corner wall!
CamOps ZOOM IN on Brooks Falls cam, just as Otis is taking a bite, but Otis sees Hot Walker in Hot Pursuit, and he heads to Alice’s. Thinking he has a decent lead or perhaps thinking to swallow it is his only chance, he stops at the bank, and begins chowing down faster than we’ve ever seen him eat! CamOps ZOOM IN closer, and it looks like Otis has HALF of that fish in his mouth! The downside is that we can’t see where Walker is…
Oh. There’s Walker. As Otis turns to face him, we see he has the WHOLE thing in his mouth and just the tail is dangling!
Walker casually tugs on that tail and gets a piece of Otis’ fish, and now the tail is dangling out of his mouth!
Walker turns to walk away, and Otis side-eyes him…
And finishes the part of the fish he pawed to hide it from Walker!
Then Otis and his Guardian Magpies turn as if to say, “Hey, hey, Walker! We outsmarted you again!”
Otis walks casually back to his Office and returns to inspecting fish. Minutes later, 747 arrives on scene — yes, the Conveyor; also yes, that’s where Walker… was. Walker goes to the Office and Otis sliiiides to the left. And starts consuming Walker’s easy-calorie scraps.
A couple minutes in, Otis heads for the Boulder and threads that needle between the two big boars. Successfully, though with one little splash. Walker is on his best behavior with 747 there, and 747 doesn’t seem to mind (in this moment). But then a minute later, 747 is giving Otis a grumpy old man face-to-face.
The rest of the afternoon is (thankfully) uneventful, and at 3:38 p.m. Katmai time, Otis leaves up the Far Path. We’re suspecting naps, because, again, he does have a spot up there behind the tree line he seems to like later in the season.
So if yesterday’s “Hahahahaha Walker You Didn’t Get it Fish” Walker Fish was The Epic Fish, today’s Walker Fish is The Epic 3/4 Fish. We don’t have a counting category for “Half-eaten Fish Pirated Out of Your Mouth,” so we’re counting it as a high-grade — more calories than a Scrap and less than a Fish. 🙂
Total count midnight until Otis left for naps is 11 Fish + 1 Epic 3/4 Fish High-Grade + 1 Scrap!
Sending wishes for fishes and fat bear dreams! ♥
And today we have a bonus GIF by SuspectCelery, Otis eating fresh salmon in his Office on Brooks Falls cam!
Bear cam images in this post are copyright National Park Service and/or Explore.org
I just love reading about Otis, Grazer, 747, Walker, et al. and your “take” on the action. I look forward to your daily recaps. Just can’t get enough of Otis snoozing – those feet ! <3 Thank you !
Aw, thank you for your sweet comment! 🙂 Don’t tell anyone, but we have a folder full of snaps of Otis sleeping!! Because who doesn’t love bear toe beans? 😀
A book of Otis sleeping photos would be amazing !
Aw, we agree, Cindy! Sleeping Otis just so darned adorable!!