Katmai
Designation	National Park
Location	Alaska USA
Nearest City	Kodiak, Alaska
Latitude	57° 30' N
Longitude	155° 00' W
Area	4,725,188 acres 1,912,216 ha
Date of Establishment	December 2, 1980
Visitation	23,754 (2003)
Governing Body	National Park Service
IUCN category	Ib (Wilderness Area) II (National Park)

Katmai National Park and Preserve is a United States National Park in Alaska, notable for the Valley of Ten Thousand Smokes and for its brown bears. The park covers 7,383 mi² (19,122 km²). Most of this is a designated wilderness area, including 5,288 mi² (13,696 km²) of the park.

Novarupta lava dome

Established on December 2, 1980, the park is located on the Alaska Peninsula, across from Kodiak Island, with headquarters in nearby King Salmon, about 290 air miles southwest of Anchorage. Originally, on September 24, 1918, the area was designated a national monument to protect the area around the major 1912 volcanic eruption of Novarupta, which formed the Valley of Ten Thousand Smokes, a forty square mile (100 km²), 100 to 700 foot deep, pyroclastic flow.

There are at least fourteen active volcanoes within the national park. Katmai is also well known for brown bears and the salmon which attract both bears and people. Bears are especially likely to congregate at Brooks Falls, where there is a viewing platform. Many well known photographs of brown bears have been taken at Brooks Falls.

Pyroclastic flow deposits in the Valley of Ten Thousand Smokes

See also

• List of nationally protected areas of the United States

External links

• Official site: Katmai National Park (http://www.nps.gov/katm/)
• Photos of Katmai National Park - Terra Galleria (http://www.terragalleria.com/parks/np.katmai.html)
• Katmai National Park & Preserve Pictures (http://www.nationalparksgallery.com/parks/Katmai-National-Park-Preserve)