Wrangell-St. Elias National Park

State: Alaska. Type: National Park & Preserve, proclaimed a national monument in 1978 and redesignated a national park in 1980. At about 13.2 million acres it is the largest unit in the U.S. National Park System, roughly the combined size of Yellowstone, Yosemite, and Switzerland. Home to Mount St. Elias and one of the greatest concentrations of glaciers in North America. No general entrance fee.

Wrangell-St. Elias National Park and Preserve, in south-central Alaska near the Canadian border, is the largest unit in the entire U.S. national park system at roughly 13.2 million acres, an area larger than several U.S. states. The park protects a dramatic collision of mountain ranges — the Wrangell, St. Elias, and Chugach — along with the second-highest peak in the United States, Mount St. Elias, and what the National Park Service describes as the greatest concentration of glaciers in North America. Despite its enormous size, the park has very limited road access: two long gravel roads, the McCarthy Road and the Nabesna Road, are the only ways to drive into its edges, and the vast bulk of the park remains reachable only on foot, by small plane, or by raft. The historic mining community of Kennecott, along with the small town of McCarthy just outside the park boundary, forms the park's most-visited hub, combining early-1900s copper-mining history with easy access to glacier hikes. Because of its remoteness and scale, Wrangell-St. Elias rewards visitors who come prepared for self-sufficient, slow-paced travel rather than a quick highway stop.

The park sits in south-central Alaska, stretching from the Gulf of Alaska coast to the Canadian border with Yukon and British Columbia. Its main visitor center is located along the Richardson Highway near Copper Center, roughly 190 route miles northeast of Anchorage. Two unpaved roads penetrate the park's edges: the McCarthy Road, which leads to the historic McCarthy-Kennecott area in the south, and the Nabesna Road, which leads into the park's northern district near Slana. The overwhelming majority of the park's 13.2 million acres has no road access at all and is reached only by aircraft, raft, or extended backcountry travel.

Wrangell-St. Elias spans a huge range of elevation and terrain, from coastal rainforest near Yakutat to high alpine and glacial environments around Mount St. Elias and Mount Wrangell, so conditions vary widely across the park. In general, summers are short and mild by outside standards, with cool nights, while the high peaks and glaciers create their own localized, often severe weather regardless of season. The McCarthy and Kennecott area sees a subarctic climate with warm, relatively dry summer days interspersed with rain, and winters that are long, cold, and largely off-limits to typical visitors since the access roads receive minimal winter maintenance. Because weather can shift quickly in the mountains, visitors doing any hiking, flightseeing, or glacier travel should check current forecasts and be prepared for rain and wind even on a promising morning.

The park's short visitor season runs roughly from mid-May through mid-September, when the main visitor centers at Copper Center, Kennecott, and Slana are staffed and services in McCarthy are open. Most travelers aim for June through August, when weather is warmest and hiking and glacier trails are most accessible. Because the road into McCarthy is a long gravel drive with no fuel stops, and the flights, tours, and lodges in the area are seasonal businesses, visiting outside this window means very limited services. Fall brings fewer crowds and vivid color but colder, less predictable conditions.

Long before European contact, the Ahtna and other Alaska Native peoples lived throughout the region that is now Wrangell-St. Elias, and Indigenous communities continue to live off the land within and around the park today. The area's modern history was reshaped in the early 1900s by the discovery of an extraordinarily rich copper deposit, which led prospector and engineer Stephen Birch to found what became the Kennecott mining operation in 1903. Kennecott grew into a substantial company town, complete with a long railway built to move ore and supplies between the mine and the coast, and over roughly three decades it produced an enormous quantity of copper and silver before the richest ore was exhausted and the mine closed in 1938, leaving the buildings largely intact and abandoned. Conservation interest in the surrounding wilderness grew through the mid-twentieth century, culminating in the Alaska National Interest Lands Conservation Act, under which President Jimmy Carter first proclaimed Wrangell-St. Elias a national monument in 1978. Congress then established it as a national park and preserve in 1980, protecting it at its current size of about 13.2 million acres, the largest in the National Park System, and preserving both the Kennecott Mines National Historic Landmark and one of the largest single wilderness areas in the country.

Hiking to and across Root Glacier from the Kennecott area is the park's signature activity, popular both as an independent walk to the glacier's edge and as a guided trip with crampons for exploring further onto the ice itself. Guided ice climbing on Root Glacier is available for visitors who want a more technical experience. The Kennecott Mill Town offers a guided tour through the preserved copper-mining buildings, giving insight into the area's industrial history. Flightseeing tours over the park's glaciers, peaks, and mining ruins are a popular way to appreciate the sheer scale of Wrangell-St. Elias, since so little of it can be reached on foot or by road. Rafting and float trips run on rivers such as the Kennicott and Nizina, and backcountry hikers and packrafters can access far more remote terrain with proper planning. The Nabesna Road side of the park offers quieter hiking and wildlife viewing away from the McCarthy-Kennecott crowds.

The Kennecott Mill Town is the park's best-known destination, a cluster of red mining buildings preserved as the Kennecott Mines National Historic Landmark that visitors can explore on a guided tour. Root Glacier, a short walk or bike ride from Kennecott, is one of the most accessible glaciers in the park and a popular destination for day hikes and guided ice walks. The town of McCarthy, just across a footbridge from the end of the McCarthy Road, retains a small, historic frontier character with a handful of lodges, a saloon, and shops. The Wrangell-St. Elias Visitor Center near Copper Center, on the paved Richardson Highway, is the easiest stop for anyone not driving all the way to McCarthy, with exhibits and views of the surrounding mountains. For those with more time, the Nabesna Road area offers a quieter alternative district with its own trails and mining history, and flightseeing tours can reach otherwise inaccessible glaciers and peaks such as Mount St. Elias and Mount Wrangell.

Most visitors drive from Anchorage or Fairbanks, following the Glenn and Richardson Highways to the Wrangell-St. Elias Visitor Center near Copper Center, then continuing to Chitina to pick up the McCarthy Road, a roughly 60-mile gravel road that takes a couple of hours to drive to its end near the McCarthy footbridge. From there, visitors walk or take a shuttle across the footbridge into McCarthy, since there is no public vehicle access into town itself; a further shuttle or hike connects McCarthy to Kennecott. The Nabesna Road, reached via the town of Slana, offers an alternative, quieter route into the park's northern section. Because there are no fuel stations on either road inside the park, drivers should fill up beforehand. Small aircraft and scheduled or chartered flights from Anchorage, Chitina, or Glennallen are another option for reaching McCarthy or remote parts of the park directly.

The park itself has no fixed hours, but its visitor centers operate seasonally, roughly mid-May through mid-September, with the Copper Center visitor center generally open daily during that window; confirm current hours on the official NPS site before visiting, especially outside summer.

Wrangell-St. Elias charges no park entrance fee. Some privately run parking areas near the McCarthy footbridge charge their own fee, and the Kennecott Mill Town tour has a separate ticket price; check current rates directly with those operators before your visit.

A worthwhile visit to the McCarthy-Kennecott area takes at least a full day, but most visitors find two to three days lets them fit in the mill tour, a glacier hike, and time to relax in McCarthy.

Lodging is concentrated in the McCarthy and Kennecott area, ranging from historic in-town options like Ma Johnson's Hotel and a nearby backpacker-style hotel in McCarthy, to a more upscale lodge built in the style of Kennecott's historic mining buildings within the old town site. A few smaller family-run guesthouses and a riverside lodge/hostel option near the footbridge round out the choices, along with at least one glamping-style tent camp. Along the route to McCarthy, the town of Glennallen and the area near the Copper Center visitor center offer additional hotel and cabin options for travelers who prefer to break up the long drive or stay somewhere with easier vehicle access. Because the McCarthy-Kennecott area has limited rooms overall, booking ahead for the short summer season is strongly recommended.

Dining options in McCarthy are small but characterful: the historic McCarthy Lodge runs a restaurant serving regional dishes such as Copper River salmon, along with an attached saloon-style bar and restaurant for more casual meals. Breakfast is included for guests staying at some of the in-town hotels. Beyond the lodge restaurants, options directly in McCarthy and Kennecott are limited, so many visitors bring their own snacks and supplies, especially for day hikes on the glacier. Along the drive in, the towns of Glennallen and Copper Center have a modest selection of restaurants, cafes, and grocery stores, useful for stocking up before heading down the McCarthy Road, where there are no services once you leave the highway.

The Wrangell-St. Elias Visitor Center area near Copper Center makes a natural pairing with a stop at the nearby Copper River, known for its salmon fishery. Glennallen, the regional hub along the Glenn and Richardson Highways, offers services and is a common overnight stop for travelers heading to or from the park. Travelers combining a longer Alaska road trip sometimes continue on to Valdez, reachable via the Richardson Highway, for its own glacier and fjord scenery, or loop back toward Anchorage via the Glenn Highway, passing Matanuska Glacier along the way.

The nearest paved-highway access point is the Wrangell-St. Elias Visitor Center on the Richardson Highway near Copper Center, reachable by car from Anchorage or Fairbanks. The nearest airports with significant commercial service are in Anchorage; smaller regional airstrips and charter flights serve Chitina, Glennallen, McCarthy, and other points nearer the park. There is no scheduled train or bus service directly into McCarthy, though some private shuttle operators run seasonal service from Glennallen; most independent travelers reach the park by rental car via the McCarthy or Nabesna roads.

Both access roads are long, remote gravel roads without fuel or extensive cell coverage, so travelers should depart with a full tank, a spare tire, and a plan in case of a flat or breakdown. Glacier travel on Root Glacier and elsewhere carries real risks from crevasses and slippery ice, so unroped travel without proper footwear, such as crampons, and an experienced guide for anything beyond the immediate glacier edge, is discouraged. Wildlife including bears is present throughout the park, so standard bear-awareness practices, such as making noise on trails and storing food properly, apply. Weather in the mountains can change quickly, so check forecasts and carry layers even on hikes that start out sunny and warm.

A full tank of gas and a spare tire are essential before driving the McCarthy or Nabesna roads, since there are no fuel stations along either route. Sturdy hiking boots, and crampons or similar traction devices if walking on Root Glacier, are important given the rocky trails and ice. Pack layers and rain protection for changeable mountain weather, along with cash, since some small local businesses and parking areas may not accept cards. A paper map or downloaded offline map is useful given limited cell coverage.

Plan for the McCarthy Road to take longer than the mileage suggests, since it is a slow, sometimes rough gravel road; budget a couple of hours each way and drive cautiously. Because there is no public vehicle access into McCarthy itself, arrange in advance whether you will walk the footbridge, use a local shuttle, or park in a paid lot near the bridge. If you want to see Kennecott's mill buildings up close, book the guided mill tour ahead of time in peak season, since it is a popular, limited-capacity activity. Consider basing yourself in McCarthy or Kennecott for at least one night rather than attempting the drive as a single long day trip from Anchorage, since the road alone can consume most of a day each way. Finally, bring cash for small local vendors and parking, since card acceptance and ATMs are limited this far off the highway system.

For any emergency in the United States, dial 911. Wrangell-St. Elias National Park & Preserve can also be reached for general park inquiries at 907-822-7250 (source: nps.gov/wrst/planyourvisit/hours.htm).

Wrangell-St. Elias National Park & Preserve (National Park Service): https://www.nps.gov/wrst/index.htm

This section is being updated and will be available shortly.

This section is being updated and will be available shortly.

This section is being updated and will be available shortly.