Wrangell-St. Elias National Park, continued
Mt. Drum and Mt. Sanford from Willow Lake
The national parks in Alaska are the worst and best-kept secrets of the entire park system. The worst kept in that their singularly stunning vistas, bountiful wildlife, extremes in temperatures, and pristine wilderness are legendary. As the Internet and digital age shrink the outer reaches of the planet, what was once relegated to obscure journal accounts of expeditions and the glossy pages of National Geographic magazine, is now readily available to the masses online. Alaska, that pinnacle, once-in-a-lifetime goal in the psyche of the outdoor enthusiast and nature lover, is now a less daunting, more easily planned, attainable, and even affordable destination. It is the best-kept secret in that unless one experiences it firsthand, there is no way to fully comprehend the unknown, unpredictable, vast frontier that lies beyond the popular iconic images; even today there is still so much that is unexplored. Majestic and titanic features that can be seen from nearly every roadside are seemingly close enough to touch, yet so far away that they can only be explored by insertion via bush plane or weeks of hiking. In other words, the allure of Alaska remains the conundrum of accessible remoteness. However, it is naïve to think it will always remain so because of its size and distance from the population of the Lower 48. Therefore, while Wrangell-St. Elias is still young and fresh, and relatively unadulterated by the tourism industry, it’s not too early to start thinking about its long-term future, vis a vis development, relative to other older (established) parks.
The jewel of Alaska’s parks, Denali, has hotels (albeit outside the park), camping grounds, park service buildings, and shuttle buses to bring in and attend to tourists. Wrangell does not have that infrastructure - yet. There has been talk of paving the road from Chitina to McCarthy, and maybe even building a vehicular bridge across the Kennicott River (attempts have been made, none have survived Mother Nature). This would bring in more visitors to the park. For example, when the Park Service completes the restoration of the Kennecott Copper Mine, it will become a more desirable place for tourists. Don’t get me wrong. Denali is actually a good model for other parks, especially those in the Lower 48, of how to limit growth inside the park yet remain visitor friendly and wild. However, unlike Denali, Wrangell has a town site at the end of the road. Currently, McCarthy (and Kennecott) could not meet the needs of more tourists without growing considerably and risking the towns going the way of Banff or Gatlinburg. The few hardy residents who live in and around the park year-round lead a life too simple, austere, and squeamish for most people to even think about, let alone experience. It’s one thing if the residents want to improve their standard of living, but if they do not, should their lifestyle be threatened just so that park visitors can drive their cars up to a paved overlook, snap a few photos of the Root Glacier, and then have the convenience of ordering a hamburger from the fast food restaurant strategically placed across the street before returning to the comforts of a five-star hotel? Can we make the park explorable, but not exploitable?
The resolution to this will undoubtedly come after much local and national debate. For debate we must; Alaska is the last battlefield in the war on our environment begun with Manifest Destiny in the 19th century and perfected with rampant commercialism in the late 20th century. If it is anything like the debate over the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, then we have a long struggle ahead. We still have a chance to do it right this time, however. Rather than reverse the damage to ecosystems after it has already been done, like in other parks, the future of Alaska’s wilderness should be guided by retaining the original, unspoiled character that caused us to preserve them initially instead of redefining their character to meet our needs. For Wrangell-St. Elias that means preserving a place where the echoes of the last ice age still resonate in the inexorable march of its glaciers; where the only jams are of ice and logs; where clouds dance in the sky in front of unnamed mountains unobstructed by power lines, buildings, and air pollution; where eagles ply the rivers which run wild and free all the way to the sea; where balance and transformation, order and chaos coexist and link the animate with the inanimate; and where the climate, isolation, journeys over vast, trail-less distances, and the occasional buzz of a bush plane remind us that we are only visitors. Wrangell-St. Elias is innocent and pure and has a vitality that makes this land uniquely Alaskan. If we can embrace this unconditionally, and let Nature’s rhythms proceed unfettered by man, then we can delight in the next reappearance of her ever-changing beauty.
The jewel of Alaska’s parks, Denali, has hotels (albeit outside the park), camping grounds, park service buildings, and shuttle buses to bring in and attend to tourists. Wrangell does not have that infrastructure - yet. There has been talk of paving the road from Chitina to McCarthy, and maybe even building a vehicular bridge across the Kennicott River (attempts have been made, none have survived Mother Nature). This would bring in more visitors to the park. For example, when the Park Service completes the restoration of the Kennecott Copper Mine, it will become a more desirable place for tourists. Don’t get me wrong. Denali is actually a good model for other parks, especially those in the Lower 48, of how to limit growth inside the park yet remain visitor friendly and wild. However, unlike Denali, Wrangell has a town site at the end of the road. Currently, McCarthy (and Kennecott) could not meet the needs of more tourists without growing considerably and risking the towns going the way of Banff or Gatlinburg. The few hardy residents who live in and around the park year-round lead a life too simple, austere, and squeamish for most people to even think about, let alone experience. It’s one thing if the residents want to improve their standard of living, but if they do not, should their lifestyle be threatened just so that park visitors can drive their cars up to a paved overlook, snap a few photos of the Root Glacier, and then have the convenience of ordering a hamburger from the fast food restaurant strategically placed across the street before returning to the comforts of a five-star hotel? Can we make the park explorable, but not exploitable?
The resolution to this will undoubtedly come after much local and national debate. For debate we must; Alaska is the last battlefield in the war on our environment begun with Manifest Destiny in the 19th century and perfected with rampant commercialism in the late 20th century. If it is anything like the debate over the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, then we have a long struggle ahead. We still have a chance to do it right this time, however. Rather than reverse the damage to ecosystems after it has already been done, like in other parks, the future of Alaska’s wilderness should be guided by retaining the original, unspoiled character that caused us to preserve them initially instead of redefining their character to meet our needs. For Wrangell-St. Elias that means preserving a place where the echoes of the last ice age still resonate in the inexorable march of its glaciers; where the only jams are of ice and logs; where clouds dance in the sky in front of unnamed mountains unobstructed by power lines, buildings, and air pollution; where eagles ply the rivers which run wild and free all the way to the sea; where balance and transformation, order and chaos coexist and link the animate with the inanimate; and where the climate, isolation, journeys over vast, trail-less distances, and the occasional buzz of a bush plane remind us that we are only visitors. Wrangell-St. Elias is innocent and pure and has a vitality that makes this land uniquely Alaskan. If we can embrace this unconditionally, and let Nature’s rhythms proceed unfettered by man, then we can delight in the next reappearance of her ever-changing beauty.