Kluane National Park and Reserve

Kluane National Park and Reserve, in the southwest corner of Yukon Territory bordering Alaska, is one of the great wilderness parks on Earth — 22,013 square kilometres of glacier-mantled St. Elias Mountains, boreal forest, sub-alpine meadow and tundra protecting the largest non-polar icefield in the world: the Kluane Icefield, a continuous mass of glacial ice covering more than 5,000 square kilometres. Mount Logan — at 5,959 metres (19,551 feet) Canada’s highest peak and the second-highest mountain in North America — stands at the heart of the park.

Kluane is part of the Kluane / Wrangell-St. Elias / Glacier Bay / Tatshenshini-Alsek UNESCO World Heritage Site — the largest transboundary protected area in the world, spanning the Yukon, British Columbia and Alaska. Wildlife is extraordinary: Grizzly bears, black bears, wolves, Dall sheep, woodland caribou, moose and wolverine roam the park. For wilderness travellers and mountaineers, Kluane is North America’s ultimate fly-in wilderness destination.

Late June through August is the primary visitor season — the Alaska Highway is fully accessible, the day hiking trails are snow-free, the Dall sheep are on the visible slopes above Sheep Mountain, and the Grizzly bears are active in the valley bottoms and river bars. June brings the long Arctic light (nearly 20 hours of daylight near the solstice) and the wildflower bloom in the sub-alpine meadows. July and August are the prime mountaineering window (more stable weather; the jet stream lifts off the summits in the warmest weeks). August brings the first blush of fall colour on the tundra — the willows and bearberries turn crimson against the grey glacial outwash. Flightseeing operates from May through September. The park receives very few winter visitors (the Alaska Highway is open but the interior is deeply cold and accessible only to fully equipped expeditions).

The Southern Tutchone people have lived in the Kluane region for at least 8,000 years — the glaciers, river valleys and mountain slopes are deeply embedded in their traditional territory and oral history. Kluane Lake (adjacent to the park) was a central hub of Southern Tutchone life, providing salmon, game and trade routes to the Pacific coast. The Kluane Game Sanctuary was established in 1942 (driven by concerns about wildlife depletion during Alaska Highway construction); the national park reserve was created in 1972 and formally gazetted as Kluane National Park and Reserve in 1993, with a co-management role for the Champagne and Aishihik First Nations and the Kluane First Nation established by the Yukon Umbrella Final Agreement. The Alaska Highway (built in 1942 for military supply during World War II) runs along the park’s eastern boundary, providing the modern access corridor.

The first ascent of Mount Logan was completed by a Canadian Alpine Club expedition in 1925 — a landmark in the history of North American mountaineering. Logan remains one of the most demanding mountaineering objectives on the continent.

Kluane sits at the collision zone of the Pacific and North American tectonic plates — the St. Elias Mountains are among the youngest and most rapidly uplifting mountain ranges on Earth, driven by the ongoing subduction of the Pacific Plate beneath North America. The combination of extreme uplift rates (the mountains are rising several millimetres per year) and the proximity to the moisture-laden Gulf of Alaska (which drops enormous volumes of snow on the windward slopes) produces the Kluane Icefield — the largest non-polar icefield in the world outside Antarctica and Greenland. The icefields feed outlet glaciers (the Kaskawulsh, the Lowell, the Walsh, the Steele) that are among the longest in the sub-polar world. The geological instability of the region was dramatically illustrated by the 2016-2017 Slims River capture event — when the Kaskawulsh Glacier retreated sufficiently to divert its meltwater from the north-flowing Slims River (which fed Kluane Lake) to the south-flowing Kaskawulsh River (which flows to the sea) — the first documented case of rapid river capture by glacier retreat in modern times.

Kluane supports one of the most intact large-mammal communities remaining in North America — Grizzly bears (the park is a core area for the Kluane Grizzly Bear Research Project, one of the longest-running Grizzly bear studies in Canada; the density of Grizzlies in the park’s boreal and sub-alpine zones is exceptional), black bears (in the boreal forest), wolves (several packs use the park; sometimes visible on the Slims River flats and in the sub-alpine valleys), Dall sheep (the brilliant white sheep are visible from the Alaska Highway at Sheep Mountain — one of the most accessible Dall sheep viewing sites in North America), woodland caribou (in the park’s northern ranges), moose (in the wetlands and riparian corridors), wolverine, lynx, arctic ground squirrel (the primary prey base for the Grizzly bears) and ptarmigan. The Grizzly bears and Dall sheep are the wildlife icons.

Kluane’s ecological complexity spans boreal spruce forest in the valley bottoms, sub-alpine shrub (willow, alder, dwarf birch), alpine tundra and permanent glacier and snowfield above 2,000 metres. The Kluane Grizzly Bear Research Project has documented the central role of arctic ground squirrels (and their cyclical population dynamics) in structuring the Grizzly bear population of the park — the Grizzlies’ body condition, reproduction and survival are tightly linked to the ground-squirrel cycle. The boreal forest is dominated by white spruce, with periodic spruce bark beetle outbreaks reshaping the forest structure. The Kluane region’s glaciers are retreating dramatically due to climate change — the Kaskawulsh Glacier has lost significant mass and length in recent decades, and the rate of icefield loss is accelerating. Kluane is a critical long-term sentinel for documenting glacier response to climate change at the continental scale.

Kluane holds a central place in Southern Tutchone traditional culture — the mountains, glaciers, rivers and game animals of the Kluane region are part of a continuous 8,000-year relationship between the Southern Tutchone people and their homeland. The Champagne and Aishihik First Nations and the Kluane First Nation co-manage the park with Parks Canada, integrating traditional knowledge into park management. The park is a pillar of Yukon’s wilderness tourism identity and the anchor of the Kluane / Wrangell-St. Elias UNESCO World Heritage designation (the largest transboundary protected area on Earth). For the global mountaineering community, Mount Logan and the St. Elias Range represent some of the greatest remaining high-altitude wilderness.

Kluane National Park’s primary visitor facilities are along the Alaska Highway (Hwy 1), accessible by driving west from Whitehorse (approximately 160 km / 100 miles to the park visitor centre at Haines Junction). Haines Junction is the gateway community, with the Parks Canada Visitor Centre (open daily in summer), accommodations, fuel, and outfitter services. Flightseeing and helicopter tours depart from operators at Kluane Lake (on the Alaska Highway within the park boundary) and from Haines Junction. The park interior and backcountry are accessible only on foot (trail-less; full wilderness navigation required) or by air (helicopter or fixed-wing). Backcountry registration with Parks Canada is mandatory for all overnight visitors to the park interior. International travellers fly into Whitehorse (the Yukon capital, served by Air Canada, WestJet and charter carriers).

Kluane is managed by Parks Canada in partnership with the Champagne and Aishihik First Nations and the Kluane First Nation. The park’s glaciers are a global indicator of climate change — long-term monitoring of the Kluane Icefield is one of the most important glaciological datasets in the world. Backcountry visitors must register with Parks Canada (mandatory); leave a detailed trip plan with a contact outside the park; carry emergency communication (satellite communicator); practice strict bear-safe food storage (canister or hang) and carry bear spray; pack out all waste (no waste facilities in the backcountry). The park’s remoteness and size mean self-rescue is the default in any emergency — the wilderness demands full preparation.

Kluane is serious wilderness — the hazards are real, remote and frequently life-threatening. Grizzly bear encounters require constant vigilance: travel in groups of four or more, make noise, carry bear spray and know how to use it, store all food in a bear canister, and never run from a Grizzly (back away slowly, maintaining eye contact). River crossings in the backcountry (glacial meltwater rivers; the Slims, Donjek and other rivers are silty, fast, and extremely cold) are among the most dangerous hazards — never cross a glacial river above knee depth without assessing current and bottom; unbuckle your pack hip belt before crossing. Weather changes rapidly and severely (storms from the Gulf of Alaska can arrive in hours; temperatures can drop 20°C in an afternoon). Glacial travel requires crevasse rescue training and full glacier travel gear (rope, harness, crampons, ice axe). Helicopter rescue in the park interior is weather-dependent and can be delayed for days. There is no cell service in the park. A satellite communicator (SPOT, inReach) is mandatory for any backcountry trip.

Parks Canada entrance fees apply (free for visitors 17 and under; annual Discovery Pass accepted). Mandatory backcountry registration for all overnight trips in the park interior (in person at the Haines Junction Visitor Centre or by telephone before departure). Bear canister or certified bear-resistant food storage required for all backcountry travel. Campfires permitted only in designated fire rings at front-country campgrounds (no open fires in the backcountry — use a stove). All waste must be packed out (no waste disposal in the backcountry). Fishing requires a valid national park fishing permit. Mountaineering expeditions to Mount Logan and other major peaks require advance coordination with Parks Canada (contact the park well in advance of the climbing season). Hunting is prohibited in the national park (permitted in portions of the national park reserve — check Parks Canada for boundary details).

Haines Junction (the gateway community, 160 km west of Whitehorse — full visitor services, the Da Kü Cultural Centre of the Champagne and Aishihik First Nations, and the Alaska Highway junction with the Haines Road to Skagway, Alaska), Kluane Lake (the largest lake entirely within Yukon, on the Alaska Highway adjacent to the park — a stunning sapphire-blue glacially fed lake with flightseeing operators and fishing), Tatshenshini-Alsek Wilderness Provincial Park in British Columbia (the southern wilderness extension of the Kluane World Heritage Site — the Tatshenshini and Alsek river raft journey through this park to the Gulf of Alaska is one of the world’s great wilderness river adventures), Wrangell-St. Elias National Park in Alaska (adjacent — together with Kluane they form the largest protected area complex in the world), and the Alaska Highway itself (one of the world’s great wilderness drives) define the Kluane region.

Book a flightseeing tour from Kluane Lake (operators include Icefield Discovery and Kluane Glacier Air Tours) as the first thing you do after arriving — the weather windows for icefield flying are short and unpredictable, and the experience of floating over the Kluane Icefield in a small plane, watching the blue seracs and medial moraines disappear to the horizon, is the defining experience of visiting Kluane. Arrive in Haines Junction the afternoon before and register your backcountry trip (or day hike) with Parks Canada that evening. Stop at Sheep Mountain (on the Alaska Highway, just inside the park eastern boundary) for the most reliable Dall sheep viewing in North America — the brilliant white sheep on the grey talus slopes are often visible with the naked eye from the highway pull-off. The visitor centre in Haines Junction has outstanding displays on the Kluane Icefield and the Southern Tutchone culture; it is worth a full hour.