Kenai Fjords National Park

This 580,000-acre national park occupies the southern edge of the Kenai Peninsula south of Anchorage. The terrain is a mix of ice-carved fjords, ragged mountains, and massive glaciers, capped by one of the largest icefields in North America. The nearby town of Seward serves as the primary access point, especially for boat tours, with a National Park Service visitor center and popular day trips offered by several local companies. Exit Glacier (13 miles by road from Seward) has campsites and a variety of hiking trails, including one that leads onto massive Harding Icefield, source of more than 30 glaciers. Park Service cabins are available in ...

This 580,000-acre national park occupies the southern edge of the Kenai Peninsula south of Anchorage. The terrain is a mix of ice-carved fjords, ragged mountains, and massive glaciers, capped by one of the largest icefields in North America. The nearby town of Seward serves as the primary access point, especially for boat tours, with a National Park Service visitor center and popular day trips offered by several local companies. Exit Glacier (13 miles by road from Seward) has campsites and a variety of hiking trails, including one that leads onto massive Harding Icefield, source of more than 30 glaciers. Park Service cabins are available in Aialik Bay, Holgate Arm, and Nuka Bay, and water taxis provide drop-offs to the cabins. Other Seward companies guide multi-night sea kayak trips into the park, and have kayak rentals for experienced paddlers. Take a boat trip into Kenai Fjords for opportunities to see humpback and orca whales, sea otters, Steller sea lions, kittiwakes, puffins, bald eagles, and other animals.

About the Expert

Don Pitcher has written or photographed 10 travel guidebooks to Alaska, Wyoming, Yellowstone-Grand Teton, and the San Juan Islands for Avalon Travel Publishing, Random House, and Sasquatch Books.