Kluane / Wrangell – St. Elias / Glacier Bay / Tatshenshini-Alsek, Protected areas network in Alaska, United States, Yukon and British Columbia, Canada
This protected area network comprises four linked parks spanning millions of acres filled with towering peaks and massive glaciers representing the largest concentration of such features in North America. The regions connect to form a continuous wilderness landscape.
The site was inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1994, linking Kluane National Park and Reserve in Yukon, Wrangell–St. Elias and Glacier Bay in Alaska, and Tatshenshini-Alsek in British Columbia. Tatshenshini-Alsek Provincial Park is managed in cooperation with the Champagne and Aishihik First Nations. Commercial fishing once took place in the area, targeting salmon, Tanner crab, red king crab and Pacific halibut, but the activities were phased out by 2023.
Tatshenshini-Alsek Provincial Park is managed in cooperation with the Champagne and Aishihik First Nations, whose territory covers this corner of northwestern British Columbia. The park system also protects habitat for species such as grizzly bears, glacier bears, wolverines, caribou, marbled murrelets and Kittlitz's murrelet, and holds the world's largest concentrated population of Dall sheep.
Access to these four parks involves boating, small aircraft, or hiking across remote terrain, with most travel happening during summer months when weather permits. Planning ahead is essential since the regions are far from major towns and services are scattered.
The network hosts hundreds of glaciers on a central plateau, some ranking among the longest ice fields outside the polar regions. These frozen landscapes shift and change visibly over time, offering visitors a look at geological processes seen in few other places worldwide.
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