Bear country new Alaskan brown bear exhibit

Thanks for the photos of the renovated exhibit. It appears that the zoo added a layer of dirt and also filled in the moat to give the bears a bit more space. Is there anything else that was done?

Here are a couple of photos of the exhibit from my 2014 visit:



Existing moat in 2014:

They also added new viewing panels to the exhibit

Considering the size of the zoo and its limited financial resources its nice to see any progress. I remember when this zoo had some crazy expensive master plan that is not realistic. As we see now, sometimes having limited growth plans are best for the fiscal stability of the zoo. The dirt and glass viewing may be limited improvements but improve animal welfare, and bring guests closer to the animals.

I know I was ecstatic when this exhibit opened. It’s there biggest exhibit opening in 30 years

The dirt in the exhibit may have grown into grass by now. I will be visiting again next month and will take pictures of the indoor buildings.