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
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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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.