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Gates of the Arctic National Park

🧊 AK · National Park & Preserve · Established 1980

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About Gates of the Arctic

This vast landscape does not contain any roads or trails. Visitors discover intact ecosystems where people have lived with the land for over ten thousand years. Wild rivers meander through glacier-carved valleys, caribou migrate along age-old trails, endless summer light fades into aurora-lit night skies of winter. Virtually unchanged, except by the forces of nature.

Weather & when to go

The climate of Gates of the Arctic National Park & Preserve is generally classified as arctic and sub-arctic, with exceptionally cold winters, relatively mild summers, low annual precipitation, and generally high winds. The weather is influenced by many different systems, and can change rapidly.!!

Getting there

Gates of the Arctic is a wilderness park, with no roads or trails into the park lands, so visitors must fly or hike into the park. Access begins in Fairbanks, Alaska & there are several small airlines that provide daily flights into the communities of Bettles, Anaktuvuk Pass, and Coldfoot. Most visitors access the park by air taxi or hike in from the Dalton Highway or from the village of Anaktuvuk Pass. River crossings are necessary from both locations.

Park information from the official National Park Service page (public domain). Check the official site for current conditions, closures and reservations before you travel.

Quick facts

Official nameGates Of The Arctic National Park & Preserve
DesignationNational Park & Preserve
StateAK
RegionAlaska
Established1980
Coordinates67.78, -153.3