Planning a Trip

Getting There

By Car -- The paved Edgerton Highway starts 17 miles south of Copper Center on the Richardson Highway, and then runs east for 33 miles to the tiny, dried-up former railroad town of Chitina (chit-na), the last reliable stop for groceries, gas, and other necessities until you return here. Do fill your tank; prudence also demands a full-size spare tire. Heading east, into the park, the McCarthy Road continues along the roadbed of the Copper River and Northwestern Railway. This is 60 miles of narrow dirt road, muddy in wet weather and clouded with dust when it's dry. Each year it has been improved a little, and two-wheel-drive cars can normally make it. The drive is a fun adventure, passing through tunnels of alders and crossing rivers on some of the original wooden railroad trestles; one wood-decked bridge spans a canyon more than 200 feet deep. There are virtually no services, very few buildings, and little traffic on the 3-hour drive. If you are driving a rented car, consider using the van or air options mentioned below, leaving the car in Chitina.

The road ends at a parking lot and collection of temporary businesses on the banks of the Kennicott River. You can drive no farther. A fee applies to park at the riverside lot, but you can park free for the day ($6 overnight) a little way off at Glacier View Campground. Next, you walk across a footbridge or two. Late in the summer the Kennicott Glacier releases a flood from a glacier-dammed lake, but at other times the second channel is a dry wash and the second bridge isn't needed. Handcarts are available to move your luggage across, and on the other side you can catch a van. The place where you are staying will send one, or you can ride the van operated by Wrangell Mountain Air (tel. 907/554-4411), $2 to McCarthy or $5 per person, one-way, to Kennecott. It runs every half-hour. A public telephone is near the bridge you can use to call your lodgings.

By Van -- The Backcountry Connection (tel. 866/582-5292 in Alaska only, or 907/822-5292; www.kennicottshuttle.com) runs vans from Glennallen and Chitina to the Kennicott River footbridge daily in summer. The van leaves Glennallen at 7am and Chitina at 8:30am, arriving at the footbridge around 11am. The trip departs from the footbridge at 4:30pm, getting back to Chitina around 6:30pm and Glennallen at 8:30pm. The same-day round-trip fare is $99, $10 more to return on a different day.

By Air -- A simple way to Kennecott and McCarthy is to drive to Chitna -- as far as you can go on pavement -- and fly the rest of the way on one of the air taxis. Once there, get around in the vans that shuttle back and forth over 5 miles of dirt road. Wrangell Mountain Air (tel. 800/478-1160 or 907/554-4411; www.wrangellmountainair.com) offers three flights daily from Chitina to McCarthy for $199 round-trip. Using their day-trip option, you can have plenty of time at Kennecott without having to spend the night there. A reputable service operating between Chitina and McCarthy on an on-demand basis is McCarthy Air (tel. 888/989-9891 or 907/554-4440; www.mccarthyair.com).

Wednesday or Friday, it's possible to fly in a small prop plane all the way from Anchorage. A couple of flight services team up to do this: You fly on one from Anchorage to Gulkana and then on the mail plane from Gulkana to McCarthy. The fare is about $300 one-way. Contact Ellis Air Taxi (tel. 800/478-3368 in Alaska only or 907/822-3368; www.ellisair.com), which handles all the booking and flies the Gulkana to McCarthy leg.

Visitor Information

The main park visitor center is on the Richardson Highway near Copper Center (tel. 907/822-5234; www.nps.gov/wrst). Stop in to buy maps and publications, watch a movie, or to get advice from a ranger on outdoor treks. Hours are Memorial Day to Labor Day, daily from 8am to 6pm; in winter, Monday through Friday from 8am to 4:30pm. You can write for information to P.O. Box 439, Copper Center, AK 99573. The park service is restoring buildings and developing visitor services in Kennecott itself. A former train depot has become a visitor center, a good place to stop with questions for rangers, plan a backcountry trip, or to join one of the daily guided activities. A ranger station for the less-visited northern area of the park is on Nabesna Road near its intersection with the Glenn Highway, about 80 miles north of Glennallen. That's an area for solitary roadside camping among broad views.