The Millstone Times August 2020

10 Things You Didn’t Know About Wrangell - St. Elias National Park &Preserve in Alaska

Have you ever dreamed of an unspoiled wilderness with towering mountains and curv- ing river valleys? A place where humans have lived for thousands of years? Where wildlife thrives amid rock, ice and tundra? Stretching across Alaska’s southeast corner, Wrangell - St. Elias National Park & Preserve offers visitors a truly wild experience. With its incred- ible natural landscape, diverse wildlife and rich human history, Wrangell - St. Elias really does have something for everyone. Grab your hiking shoes, binoculars and camera, and explore the vast wilderness of the United States’ largest national park. Rising from sea level to America’s second tallest mountain, this park is the definition of the word epic. Check out some fun facts about this epic park and start planning your visit. It’s the largest National Park in the United States. With 13.2 million acres to explore, Wrangell - St. Elias is roughly six times larger than Yellowstone National Park, and over 17 times larger than Yosemite National Park. Across this expansive landscape, visitors can find a wide variety of natural features including mountain peaks, glaciers, volcanoes, riv- ers and boreal forests. Roughly 70% of the park is designated and managed as wilderness, giving visitors ample opportunity to find solitude. Wrangell - St. Elias is big and tall. Four major mountain ranges converge in Wrangell - St. Elias: the Wrangell, St. Elias, Chugach and the eastern part of the Alaskan Range. The difference in elevation between Wrangell - St. Elias’ lowest point on the shores of the Gulf of Alaska to its highest point at the peak of Mt. St. Elias is enormous — over 18,000 feet! Many of the United States’ highest peaks can be found in the park, including Mt. Bona, Mt. Sanford, Mt. Blackburn, and Mt. St. Elias — the second highest peak in the country. With several summits over 16,000 feet, mountaineering in Wrangell - St. Elias is unlike any climbing experience in the Lower 48. Climbers who are up for the challenge have the option to join guided trips or to go out on their own. Sometimes it gets a little hot at Wrangell - St. Elias. Though the air temperature in Wrangell - St. Elias seldom breaks 70°F, this park is still hot in terms of geothermal ac- tivity. Spanning over 2,000 square miles, the Wrangell Volcanic Field includes one of the world’s largest active volcanoes by volume. Though Mt. Wrangell has not erupted since 1900 — and shows no signs of erupting soon — visitors can see steam rising from its vents on winter days and cool summer mornings. While the lava from igneous volcanoes like Mt. Wrangell can reach temperatures of over 2,000°F, the temperatures of Wrangell - St. Elias’ mud volcanoes — called Upper Klawasi, Lower Klawasi, and Shrub — range from just 70°F to 100°F. These three volcanoes, collectively called the Klawasi Group, are rare in North America and differ from other mud volcanoes in that they mostly discharge carbon dioxide, rather than methane. The largest glaciers in North America are found in Wrangell - St. Elias. Within Wrangell - St. Elias National Park is the largest glacial system in the United States, covering nearly 35% of the park’s land. One notable glacier in Wrangell - St. Elias is Hubbard Glacier. At 76 miles long, seven miles wide, and 600 feet tall, Hubbard Glacier is North America’s largest tidewater glacier. What’s really special about Hubbard Glacier is that currently, while the vast majority of glaciers across North America are shrinking, Hubbard is actually growing. Increased global temperatures have caused there to be more snowfall over Hubbard Gla- cier, which over time compacts to become part of the glacier itself. Bison and beavers and bears, oh my! Wrangell - St. Elias’s natural environment supports a diverse array of wildlife, including 54 species of mammals and 239 species of birds. Ob- servant visitors can find moose near bogs or lakes, grizzly bears near streams, Dall sheep high in the mountains and dozens of other species in between. The park’s coastal areas are home to several marine mammals including harbor seals, sea otters and a threatened pop- ulation of the Steller sea lion. In the summer, Wrangell - St. Elias’s abundant food sources make it a popular destination for migratory birds such as trumpeter swans, warblers and thrushes. In the winter, only the toughest 34 species of birds remain, making their presence known with their songs and brilliant colors. When viewing all these amazing animals, please

Rain and sunlight fall upon the beautiful Wrangell Mountains. Photo by Neal Herbert, National Park Service.

A snow-covered Mt. St. Elias towers over the Icy Bay. Photo by Neal Herbert, National Park Service.

Steam escapes Mt. Wrangell as it overlooks the snow-covered forest. Photo by Bryan Petrtyl, National Park Service.

44 The Millstone Times

August 2020