Mama Bear and her three cubs were heading home after a day spent at the beach. This is a rare capture from one of our several encounters with this Kodiak Brown family because all four bears are visible and distinct. It was so much fun to watch the family dynamic. We concluded that Mama Bear was a good mother. She kept her eye on her cubs and shepherded them to safety from the swift river current but let them roam and discover the world around them. The cubs seemed to know when it was time to go with Mom although one occasionally lagged behind, only to get some sort of signal and then scurry to catch up.