Why Kenai Fjords National Park
Kenai Fjords National Park encompasses 669,984 acres on the Kenai Peninsula in south-central Alaska, situated west of Seward and roughly 130 miles south of Anchorage. Bordered on its western and southern boundaries by the Kenai National Wildlife Refuge and Kachemak Bay State Park, the park protects a deeply indented coastline, a narrow fringe of coastal forest, and an expanse of interior ice fields. The highest point within the park is an unnamed peak reaching 6,450 feet in the Kenai Mountains.
Over half of the park's territory is covered by ice, dominated by the Harding Icefield. Formed approximately 23,000 years ago, this massive ice sheet serves as the source for dozens of glaciers, the largest of which is Bear Glacier. Geological activity driven by plate tectonics has lowered the area's land surface over time, allowing rising seas to flood former glacial valleys and form deep fjords such as Aialik Bay, Harris Bay, McCarty Fjord, and Nuka Bay.
Archeological evidence demonstrates long-term human occupation of the coastal area, including historic native village sites dated from 950 AD into the early twentieth century and old gold mining operations around Nuka Bay. President Jimmy Carter initially proclaimed the region a national monument in 1978, and Congress formally established it as a national park in 1980 under the Alaska National Interest Lands Conservation Act. Native village corporations retain interests and specific subsistence rights on inholdings within the park boundaries, while park administration operates from headquarters in Seward.
The retreat of glaciers has created a ecological succession pattern, where initial pioneer species like lichens and mosses give way to Sitka alder, black cottonwood, and mature coniferous forests of Sitka spruce and mountain hemlock. The park provides habitat for land mammals such as brown and black bears, moose, mountain goats, wolves, lynx, and porcupines. Its marine waters and coastal skies support humpback whales, orcas, Dall's porpoises, sea otters, harbor seals, Steller sea lions, puffins, bald eagles, and murres.
As one of only three Alaskan national parks accessible by road, visitors can reach the area via the Seward Highway. The Exit Glacier Nature Center provides direct land access to Exit Glacier and serves as the trailhead for the 7.4-mile Harding Icefield Trail. The remainder of the park is reached by boat, aircraft, or foot. Commercial boat tours departing from Seward traverse Resurrection Bay to view glaciers and sea life, while public-use cabins are maintained along the coast and near the icefield. The park experiences a subarctic climate with cool summers and year-round precipitation.
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