NATIONAL PARK SERVICE • U.S. DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR Foundation Document Overview Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve Alaska Contact Information For more information about the Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve Foundation Document, contact: [email protected] or (907) 697-2230 or write to: Superintendent, Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve, P.O. Box 140, Gustavus, AK 99826 Significance and Purpose Fundamental Resources and Values Significance statements express why Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve resources and values are important enough to merit national park unit designation. Statements of significance describe why an area is important within a global, national, regional, and systemwide context. These statements are linked to the purpose of the park unit, and are supported by data, research, and consensus. Significance statements describe the distinctive nature of the park and inform management decisions, focusing efforts on preserving and protecting the most important resources and values of the park unit. Fundamental resources and values are those features, systems, processes, experiences, stories, scenes, sounds, smells, or other attributes determined to merit primary consideration during planning and management processes because they are essential to achieving the purpose of the park and maintaining its significance. Scientific Investigation: Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve fosters unique opportunities for scientific studies of tidewater glacial landscapes and associated natural successional processes. • Intact Natural Ecosystems The purpose of GLACIER BAY NATIONAL • Research, Inventory, and Monitoring PARK AND PRESERVE is to protect a dynamic • Partnerships tidewater glacial landscape and associated • Park Collections natural successional process for science and • Education and Outreach discovery in a wilderness setting. Prehistoric and Historical Site Records: Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve gathers and protects records of exploration, scientific endeavor and human use, and provides for understanding the landscape through the lens of human experience and study. • Park Collections • Point of Reference • Ethnographic Resources • Prehistoric and Historic Sites and Structures Ecological Integrity: Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve protects ecological integrity by preserving a diversity of large, contiguous, intact ecosystems (from the highest peaks of the Fairweather Range to the open Pacific Ocean and sheltered inland fjords) that are strongly dominated by natural processes. • Intact Natural Ecosystems • Natural Processes • Research, Inventory, and Monitoring • Cultural Processes Fundamental Resources and Values Dynamism and Succession: Glacier Bay National Park Visitor Experience: Glacier Bay National Park provides and Preserve protects a natural biophysical landscape that is diverse opportunities for visitors to experience a dynamic continually changing through large-scale natural disturbance tidewater glacial landscape. followed by the biological succession of plants and animals, • Visitor Experience and accompanied by an evolving physical environment. • Scenery • Physical Landforms • Natural Conditions • Natural Ecosystem Processes • Intact Natural Ecosystems • Intact Natural Ecosystems • Alaska Native Culture • Cultural Landscape Alsek River: Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve Wilderness: Glacier Bay National Park preserves one of protects the remote and wild character of the Alsek River as the largest units of the national wilderness preservation a significant route of discovery and migration through the system, encompassing more than 2.7 million acres of glacially coastal mountain range to the Pacific Ocean. influenced marine, terrestrial, and freshwater ecosystems. • Free-flowing River • Intact Natural Ecosystems • Migration • Marine Wilderness • Intact Natural Ecosystems • Natural Conditions • Archeological and Sacred Sites • Inspiration/Challenge • Visitor Experience • Scientific Research • Partnerships Protected Marine Ecosystems: Glacier Bay National Park The Preserve – Glacial Outwash Ecosystem: Glacial preserves one of the largest (nearly 600,000 acres) areas of Outwash Ecosystem: Glacier Bay National Preserve protects federally protected marine ecosystems in Alaska (including a productive, evolving, glacial outwash ecosystem at the submerged lands) against with other less protected marine terminus of the Alsek River and provides a setting for ecosystems can be compared. subsistence uses, commercial fishing activities, and hunting as • Intact Marine Ecosystems outlined by the Alaska National Interest Lands Conservation • Habitat Diversity Act (ANILCA). • Water Quality • Landform • Water Movement • Habitat Mosaic • Reference Information • Diverse and Healthy Biota • Diverse Fisheries Management • Cultural Landscape Tlingit Ancestral Homelands: Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve lies within two Tlingit ancestral homelands that are of cultural and spiritual significance to living communities today. • Spiritual and Cultural Landscapes • Living Traditions • Partnerships • Archeological Sites • Intact Natural Ecosystems • Sacred Sites Description Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve was established as exhibits, Park Headquarters, several trails, a public dock, kayak a national monument February 26th, 1925, by presidential rentals, and walk-in campground provide a variety of services proclamation. With additional lands added in 1939 and again surrounded by the Alaskan wilderness. Park Rangers provide in 1955. The monument became a national park and preserve regular guided activities, and also board cruise ships and tour under the Alaska National Interest Lands Conservation Act vessels to present information about Glacier Bay and answer (ANILCA), to protect areas containing tidewater glaciers, questions. As its name implies, Glacier Bay National Park is a variety of forest covering consisting of mature areas and largely water. Whether on a cruise ship with thousands of other youthful trees which have become established since the retreat passengers or in a single kayak, most visitors experience Glacier of ice, a unique opportunity for scientific studies of glacial Bay from a boat. Sea kayaking is the easiest and most popular behavior, and historic interest. way to travel into Glacier Bay’s wilderness under your own power. Kayaks can be brought to the park by ferry, rented locally, Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve is in the panhandle or provided on guided trips. of southeast Alaska. The center of the park is approximately 90 miles northwest of Juneau, the state capital, and about Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve lies west of Juneau, 600 miles southeast of Anchorage, the state’s largest city. The AK and can be reached by plane or boat. The Bartlett Cove primary features that define the perimeter of this 3.2-million- area can be accessed with your vehicle by taking the ferry from acre area are the Gulf of Alaska to the west, the Chilkat Range Juneau to Gustavus. There is a road from Gustavus that connects to the east, Cross Sound and Icy Strait to the south, and the St. the airfield and ferry dock to park headquarters at Bartlett Elias Mountains and Alsek River to the north. Cove which is about 10 miles. Air service is available with daily jet service from Juneau to Gustavus (about 30 minutes) in the The park is characterized by snowcapped mountain ranges summer season. Year-round scheduled air service to Gustavus is rising over 15,000 feet, coastal beaches with protected coves, also provided by a variety of air taxis and charters. deep fjords, 16 tidewater glaciers, coastal and estuarine waters and freshwater lakes, and a mosaic of plant communities To Haines Junction and Whitehorse, Yukon Territory To Whitehorse, Yukon Territory ranging from “pioneer species” and Fairbanks, Alaska er CANADA v l i r R i e a v r i i U.S. n T A i R Glacier ls h at ek s t R u n ak iv e Y e 98 r h t in areas recently exposed by TONGASS s t o a o T a y k i l NATIONAL 3 i N a h o T v C a FOREST t receding glaciers to climax a k Dyea G Mount McDonnell la 5481ft White Pass & c TATSHENSHINI-ALSEK 1671m Ch i C ilk Yukon Route e h o B r i o Railroad R lk PROVINCIAL PARK t A a Skagway B t communities in older coastal A B Z BRITISH COLUMBIA T o u O w N t a c g k K h lehin e r l R r w i ive R G R A e Klukwan i n i l v er a e N iv cie e I ek R c r ls A ALASKA l r G a atk l l a si G E l r G and alpine ecosystems. S T acie G l ALSEK RANGE A a t T ALASKA c a x k i y I o e o i p r N a m e R a i T BRITISH COLUMBIA v T n G e o r K la rku Glacie c si r M Glaci i T ke er e R e Tik r E E lb I u ver Glacier Bay National Park and C L r Ri Mount Hay n T A r sirk I 8870ft ie Mount Harris u L c A 2704m a 5177ft G l G G 1578m la 7 S ay c Takhin ver Alsek K H ie Ri Alsek E r Ri Lake S T Haines Preserve contains the nation’s ve L A C r Gateway A M K TONGASS H h Knob C i Dry Bay Ranger Station I l . N O M Mount Krause h k R S NATIONAL Airstrip i o u H 6978ft l Dry k P A C I F GLACIER BAY I C A k o e N D i s U A 2127m l R r a t Bay G CANADA Airstrip G FOREST A M t NATIONAL t N L o G largest protected marine area s M I r Public use cabin A s l n a a O I E PRESERVEDoame e C n l UNITED STATES c U River T e I i l e N e D E G t E r T C A t R E C l R A PT a IO Mount Lodge u c i I N Chilkat N I Enlarged area at right s ie g 10530ft h r g S H N C i s r Peninsula and part of Earth’s largest IL 3210m Mount Barnard A n Mount Brock e L g G i S 8214ft R 4990ft la c Sitth-gha-ee Peak R c a S R i l 5870ft r 2504m e O G 1521m e e i n l r G ac L 1789m r l d a e A N D G L c 1966 Glaci R u e n G P Ferris ie o L G G 1976 d r s 1960 i e A L r ci id la r v A la T c 1972 1948 B a World Heritage Site.