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M/V Columbia. Photo by Teresa Haugh.
Fisherman with coho salmon. Photo by
Ashley Atkinson. |
Alaska’s National
Forests are among America’s most spectacular treasures. The Alaska Region
covers a land area the size of Indiana. Encompassed within theses 22
million acres are pristine wetlands, cathedral-like forests, silent
icefields, jewel-like islands, and bustling communities alive with
independent residents. Yet, it is the interaction between the forest and
the sea that best characterizes these public lands. The Tongass and
Chugach National Forests contain over 15,000 miles of saltwater shoreline.
The following
sections highlight some of the outstanding resources and places that make
the Alaska Region a public treasure.
Forests That
Provide for Us
Ever wonder where
that fiber comes from to produce the rayon in your clothes? How about the
silver in the shiny dime in your pocket? Or the wonder drugs you may hear
about that can cure cancer? In many instances, these important resources
come from Alaska’s national forests.
Visitors often
imagine Alaska as pristine wilderness, largely untouched by human hands.
Although this image is accurate for large areas of the state, it misses
the fact that Alaska’s national forests have been, and continue to be,
working forests that produce thousands of items we use daily. For the last
100 years, people have lived and worked within the national forests. In
some instances, as people have moved on, the forests have reclaimed the
land and erased human footprints. In Prince William Sound, it is difficult
to find any evidence of the over 100 fox farms that operated there in the
1920s.
In other cases,
there are clear indications of ongoing uses of the land. People still lead
resource-dependent lifestyles. People hunt and fish within the forest,
they pan for placer gold in its streams, and they harvest timber for
personal and commercial use.
Communities in
Southeast and Southcentral Alaska are in a state of transition. Even the
larger metropolitan areas such as Anchorage, Juneau, and Ketchikan enjoy
the benefits of having hundreds of thousand of visitors come to their
communities to enjoy the outstanding natural resources of coastal Alaska.
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Alaska Marine Highway Interpretive Program
Take a voyage through your national forest. During the summer, the ferries
of the Alaska Marine Highway carry Forest Service interpreters. Since
1970, these shipboard guides have helped lead passengers on a voyage of
discovery in the waters of Southeast and Southcentral Alaska. Interpreters
give programs
about wildlife, human history, native culture, geology, and more.
Forest Service interpreters ride the ferries Columbia, Malaspina,
and Matanuska through the waterways of the Tongass National Forest
in Southeast Alaska. In the Chugach National Forest (Prince William
Sound), interpreters are on the Aurora and Tustumena during
the summer months.
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Hiking Trails & Recreation Cabins
Hiker on the Tongass National Forest. Photo by Kip Tyler.
The
national forests in Alaska offer a broad spectrum of outdoor experiences,
from adventurous wilderness travel to peaceful scenery viewing. Visitors
also enjoy a variety of interpreted historic and prehistoric cultural
sites.
In
1996, recreation use of the Chugach and Tongass national forests totaled
almost 7 million recreation visitor days, the majority of which were
related to viewing scenery and wildlife. Much of the activity is
attributed to passengers on ferries, cruise ships, and charter boats, and
to those traveling by vehicle in the Chugach National Forest. In Alaska,
the Forest Service provides and maintains about 962 miles of road at
passenger car standards. Another 1,220 miles are maintained for high
clearance vehicles. These highways and roads lead visitors through some of
the most scenic public land in the United States.
The
Forest Service maintains a system of 192 remote cabins and 25 shelters for
public and emergency use. Tucked in quiet saltwater bays, or along popular
hiking trails, the cabins offer forest visitors a wide range of
backcountry experiences. Reservations are handled through http://www.recreation.gov.
Rental fees vary and begin at $25 per night. The most popular cabins are
available on a lottery basis.
Nearly 900 miles of hiking trails wind through Alaska’s national forests.
Leading to alpine meadows, across muskegs, or through quiet rain forests,
these trails provide a range of hiking opportunities for visitors of all
abilities. The Alaska Region manages 27 campgrounds and 37 picnic grounds.
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Alaska’s Amazing Salmon
The
streams and lakes in Alaska’s national forests provide a key link in the
production of major commercial, subsistence, and sport fisheries. Located
along the fisheries-rich rim of the Gulf of Alaska, the 29,000 miles of
streams and 189,000 acres of lakes on the Tongass and Chugach are
important producers of fishery resources that are vital to local and
regional economies of the state. During the 1980s, Alaskan waters produced
nearly 90 percent of the nation’s salmon catch.
The
seafood industry in Alaska is the state’s largest basic employer,
providing 33,000 direct, indirect, and induced year-round jobs. Salmon are
responsible for about 40 percent
of the total value of all seafood
catch, and national forest waters are
mainly associated with this segment of the industry. In addition to
commercial fisheries, national forest waters annually produce an
additional one million pounds of salmon for subsistence users and 900,000
recreational fishing-use days for both anadromous and resident fish. Total
economic value of these forest-related commercial, subsistence, and
recreational fisheries is estimated at over $286 million.
Habitat protection is the highest priority for the fisheries program. To
accomplish this, the Alaska Region employs approximately 40 fisheries
professionals and technicians. Fisheries expertise is included on all
major projects to ensure that fisheries habitat is protected and that
adverse impacts are minimized.
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