National Parks

When Denali Is Too Crowded, Visit These Alaska National Parks

Glacier Bay and Denali national parks each get more than a half-million visitors a year. These underappreciated alternatives each see fewer than 100,000 people annually. But after looking at these photos, you decide.
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    Wrangell-St. Elias National Park

    It’s the country’s biggest national park—twice the size of Massachusetts—and has an embarrassment of glaciers and peaks, including 18,008-foot- high Mount St. Elias. It had 79,047 visitors last year.

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    Wrangell-St. Elias National Park

    Get there by driving five hours from Anchorage to the town of Chitina, then take a half-hour flight on Wrangell Mountain Air to the heart of the park. Once there, you can hoof it across Root Glacier to the mile-high Stairway Icefall (pictured on the previous slide), or you can just see it from above by taking a “flightseeing” trip on a Wrangell bush plane.

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    Lake Clark National Park

    Think of it as a microcosm of Alaska, with hiking, kayaking, and wildlife watching. With four million acres, there’s way more than just the lake. Only 21,102 adventurers passed through last year.

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    Lake Clark National Park

    There’s no road access, so fly from Anchorage to Port Alsworth, and make the rustic Farm Lodge your home base. From there, you can take a puddle jumper to Chinitna Bay and catch sight of brown bears and their cubs walking the beach and digging for clams.

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    Katmai National Park

    Famous for its brown bears, the park, which saw 37,818 visitors in 2016, also has desolate, Icelandesque volcanic landscapes.

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    Katmai National Park

    The stark terrain of the Valley of Ten Thousand Smokes, shown here, makes for otherworldly photos. The best way in is with PenAir, going from Anchorage to the town of King Salmon, just outside the park.

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    Gates of the Arctic National Park

    Situated entirely above the Arctic Circle, this 8.5-million-acre expanse is larger than Maryland, and almost all its territory is raw wilderness—seen by just 10,047 people in 2016.

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    Gates of the Arctic National Park

    Warbelow’s Air departs Fairbanks for Anaktuvuk Pass, a village of about 400 people that was grandfathered in when the park was established in 1980. You might hop a private prop plane to remote Walker Lake, where you can cast for pike, salmon, and sheefish; the outfitter Alaska Fly-In Fishing can tackle logistics.

TopicsNational Parks