We’re parked in Chitina, about 60 miles from McCarthy, the town that is an inholding within the park and that is 5 miles from the Kennecott Mine. Chitina is right by the confluence of the Copper River with the Chitina River.
What they call the Copper River delta is a huge delta of glacial silt deposits and braided riverbed. The scale of this can’t be captured in a picture.
It is an important spot for salmon fishing. Above the bridge, dip netting and fish wheels are allowed. We saw this but couldn’t get a good picture.
credit – Alaska.org
Eagles soar above the fishermen and also wait patiently for a catch.
We didn’t have great weather again, the locals say it is abnormally cold, rainy, and windy. But we did see spectacular views.
The gravel road from Chitina to McCarthy was originally a railway to move the copper ore from the mine at Kennecott to Cordova where it was loaded onto ships.
This was the location of a rail bridge, and now is a road. Over 6,000 men constructed the rail line beginning in 1907 over four years.
There is a remnant of the original wood rail trestle that can still be seen.
On the way down the road we surprised a moose so here is a pic of a moose tush on the run 🙂
The town of McCarthy is an experience. To get there you have to park and walk across the bridge where you can get a shuttle into town every half hour.
The copper ore mined at Kennecott yielded over a billion dollars profit in today’s dollars. In addition to being a National Park historical site, it is also a Superfund site.
Unfortunately, after we took another shuttle the five miles from McCarthy, the weather turned from bad to worse as heavy sleet, so we didn’t make it to the ghost town of Kennecott. In the forefront of my picture are the huge mine tailing piles.
credit – NPS
There is a beautiful waterfall at Liberty Stream on the drive.
3 For the Road 
Who doesn’t love a good moose 🫎 tush?
Sorry you had cold and rainy weather.
The views are spectacular.
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