Kluane National Park

Administrative unit: Yukon Territory

Kluane National Park, in the south-west corner of Yukon Territory and bordering on Alaska and British Columbia extends over an area of 2,2015 sq. km (8498 sq. mi.). Part of the Haines Road (Highway 3) and the Alaska Highway run along its eastern edge.

The snowcapped mountains of the Kluane (pronounced Klu-ah-nay), Canada's largest park of its kind, which has the world's most massive icefields outside the polar region, was designated a Mountain Park in 1976, and recognized as a United Nations World Heritage site in 1979. Great glaciers at the edges of the ice - up to 1.6 km (1 mi.) thick in places - have swept over the mountain valleys.

Many of the close on 4000 glaciers are more than 10 km (6 mi.) across and up to 100 km (60 mi.) long.

The most common conifer in the park's river valleys is white spruce (picea glauca), and the most common deciduous trees are birch (betula) and poplar (populus). The colorful alpine and arctic flora beyond the tree line extend to stunted shrubs, flowers and grasses, whilst on islands in the everlasting ice mosses and lichens defy the harsh winters, forming a vital link in the food chain. The park is rich in wildlife such as grizzly and black bear, moose, caribou, wolf, mountain goat, Dall sheep, beaver, marten, fox, musk rat, and eagle, and has many kinds of fish, including salmon, trout and pike.

Climbers and naturalists from all over the world come here every year to explore this fantastic mountain world. The first of the St Elias peaks to be conquered was Mount St Elias (5498 m (18044 ft)), climbed by the Duke of Abruzzi in 1897. Mount Logan was first climbed in 1925. Trekking tours in the park and around Mount Logan require physical fitness and careful planning. For further information, including details of such facilities as winter camping, contact the Visitor Center and park headquarters at Haines Junction.