ACTIVITIES | kennylakemerc

AROUND kenny lake

Although the town is small, visitors will find visitor services offering accommodations, groceries and tire repair to visitors on their way to McCarthy and the national park.

Anglers are drawn to the area in early June with hopes of landing king and red salmon in the beautiful, fast flowing Klutina River or the serene, slow-moving Gulkana River.

Trails abound in the area. At Mile 12 of the Edgerton Highway is the Tonsina River Trail, a well-marked path maintained by the Bureau of Land Management that heads two miles south through the woods to a picnic area overlooking the Tonsina River.

DAYLIGHT

"Land of the Midnight Sun" isn't just a clever term. On summer solstice in June, the sun is up by 4:30 a.m. and sets just before midnight in Southcentral Alaska. That's more than 19 hours of daylight! Don't forget to get some sleep. From summer solstice to winter solstice in late December, daylight hours slowly shrink to the shortest day when its light by 10 a.m. and getting dark by 4 p.m. Then the tide turns and daylight hours begin the ascent to summer solstice again.

WILD LIFE VIEWING

The first thing to remember is that the "wild" in wildlife isn't an arbitrary distinction. These animals are not tame and are not in a zoo. They roam free in their natural habitat and sometimes they roam free in yours. It isn't uncommon for a moose to be strolling down a residential street looking for a tree to prune.

Wild animals in Alaska can be dangerous if they are provoked. They are also extremely protective of their young, so animals who have calves, cubs or some other kind of young, should be viewed at a good distance and with extreme caution.

SPORT FISHING

Southcentral's coastal communities cater to the saltwater fishing enthusiast with all kinds of salmon and the famous Alaska halibut. Freshwater anglers can catch the salmon as they head up the rivers or cast for trout, northern pike or Dolly Varden in the myriad of lakes throughout the area.

NATIVE ALASKAN ARTWORK

Wherever you go the Great Land, you'll find unique, authentic Alaskan products and crafts.

These can include:
– Gold nugget jewelry and items carved from ivory and jade
– Handmade clothing and toys
– Collectors items made from animal skins, fur or bone
– Woven baskets of beach grass, bark or baleen
– Alaskan delicacies - canned and smoked salmon, wild berry products and reindeer sausage
– Native seal oil candles, beaded mittens, fur mukluks and miniature hand-carved totem poles
– Be sure to look for the "Made in Alaska" logo, which indicates an item genuinely manufactured in Alaska. If you find a silver hand logo, it identifies the item as a Native Alaskan handicraft.
– Handcrafted items made of walrus ivory and other by-products of subsistence hunting provide an income source for Native Alaskan artisans and a valuable investment for the buyer