World Heritage Wilderness (Alaska Geographic),Used

Review !! Good Today's Books, October 11, 1999... a collaboration of photos good enough to frame and hang weave the information into a work of art. Coast, Dec. 2000 Product Description Alaska Geographic is an awardwinning series that presents the people, places, and wonders of Alaska to the world. Over the past 30 years, Alaska Geographic has earned its reputation as the publication for those who love Alaska. The series boasts more than 100 books to date, featuring communities from Barrow to Ketchikan, animals from bears to dinosaurs, history from the Russian explorers to today, and natural phenomena from the aurora to glaciers. Written by leading experts in their fields, these books are illustrated throughout with worldclass photography and include colorful maps for reference. About the Author Scientist and economist George Matz has spent more than 20 years traveling to nearly every corner of Alaska. He has been an active member of conservation organizations in Alaska, including the Anchorage Audubon Society where he served as president. His natural history writing has appeared in past issues of ALASKA GEOGRAPHIC as well as other Alaska, national and international publications. Excerpt. Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved. Chapter 1. In a Class by Itself. My first excursion to the WrangellSt. Elias mountains occurred in July 1959 when I was a 17yearold kid, freshly graduated from a suburban Chicago high school. A buddy and I decided we would spend the summer in Alaska before we started college. We had big ideas about adventure and making lots of money. We were right about the adventure but had to call home for money to afford the trip back. One of the strongest memories I have of this HuckleberryFinntype journey was my first airplane ride from Chitina on the Copper River south to Tebay Lakes, now within WrangellSt. Elias National Park. I flew into this pair of beautiful mountain lakes to visit a rustic camp and spend a couple of days fishing from a leaky rowboat. As the floatplane took off and climbed into the clear sky, the bush pilot told me to look to the left and take in the grandeur of the "worlds largest icefield" that covered Mount Wrangell. While this wasnt exactly correct (it isnt the largest icefield), it didnt matter. I was amazed. So much ice and so many big mountains. I knew then that this was a special place. As you get older, you learn more about a lot things you already knew. Now, nearly 40 years later and after numerous hiking, skiing, kayaking, canoeing and rafting trips in the WrangellSt. Elias region, after having lived in the three climactic zones that determine the regions weather, and after studying the natural history of Alaska for more than 20 years, I am reassured that my first impression on seeing the icefield was right: This is a special place. In fact, now that I better understand some of the natural forces that have shaped this landscape, I think the vast area covered by the WrangellSt. Elias Mountains is sacred. The region is too powerful, too dynamic and too undisturbed by humans to be compared to anywhere else. It is in a class by itself. One difference from my first visit is that the region is now officially recognized as a special place. The mountains are now protected by four large parks: WrangellSt. Elias National Park and Preserve and Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve in Alaska, Kluane National Park and Reserve in the Yukon and TatshenshiniAlsek Wilderness Provincial Park in British Columbia. To further recognize the areas uniqueness, all four parks are now one Natural World Heritage Site totaling more than 24 million acres (9.6 million ha), the largest contiguous expanse of protected land in the world. In addition to these four jewels, several smaller gems, such as the Alaska Chilkat Bald Eagle Preserve near Haines and the Copper River Delta Critical Habitat Area near Cordova, flank this world heritage wilderness.