The Anan Wildlife Observatory, with its improved walkways and trails, is a popular spot for people - and for bears. A family of brown bears found the walkway to their liking in this 2013 photograph. The U.S. Forest Service continues to make improvements at the Anan Creek site this summer, with more planned for the future.
Most of a half-mile of slippery boardwalk trail at the Anan Wildlife Observatory is being replaced with gravel this summer, but that's just one of several U.S. Forest Service projects planned and proposed for the Wrangell area over the next several years.
The agency is accepting public comments on another project proposed at Anan - a new deck at the viewing platform.
"The existing viewing platform has reached the end of its usable life and needs to be replaced,"according to the Forest Service website. "The new deck will eliminate deferred maintenance, reduce long-term maintenance costs, generate revenue through new guide permits, and provide safe, high-quality wildlife viewing for locals and guided visitors."
The bear observatory is gaining popularity as Wrangell's premier attraction for visitors. Before the pandemic cut into tourist traffic last year, the Anan Creek site drew about 2,400 visitors during the two-month-long, permit-only viewing season, said Tory Houser, of the Forest Service's recreation staff for the Wrangell and Petersburg district.
This summer's trail work started in the spring and the crew from Ketchikan Ready-Mix & Quarry will shut down during the heavy visitor traffic of the permit season in July and August, Houser said. The workers will return in the fall to finish the job.
The improvements extend from the trailhead to the end of the lagoon, connecting with a stretch of trail to the viewing deck that was improved in an earlier project.
The Forest Service has been making steady upgrades at the Anan observatory, including a 2017 work project that added steps at the trailhead to make the trek easier.
"It used to be you had to scramble up a rock face to get to the trail,"Houser said. The 2017 work included construction of a new double-stall outhouse at the trailhead and updating a smaller outhouse at the observation deck.
Replacement of the viewing deck is listed on the agency's Alaska Region Outdoor Projects for 2023 website, where the Forest Service is soliciting public comments.
"Here in Wrangell, I feel that is our most important project,"Houser said.
Among other projects, the Forest Service plans to issue a contract this year for work in 2022 to improve "2 miles of structurally deficient Road 6267,"about halfway down the island from Wrangell, near McCormack Creek. The unpaved road needs some work to ensure its edges don't slough off down the embankment, Houser said.
Improved fish-passage culverts will be part of the work, she said.
"When competed, the construction ... will improve road deficiencies to provide access to timber stands, subsistence hunting and fishing,"the agency website says.
Additional projects have been approved by the Forest Service and funding is included in the president's budget request, but start of any work will depend on congressional appropriations and actual construction could be two or three years away.
Those projects include:
Improved access to the Deep Bay Cabin near Roosevelt Harbor on Zarembo Island. "This project will provide improved access to the cabin and trailhead. The project will also reconstruct an 80-foot bridge on St. John's Creek,"the agency website says.
A two-phase project to improve the Rainbow Falls Trail network, which the agency says are the most heavily used trails on the island. The first phase of about one mile would rebuild the steepest part at the start of trail, making it easier for more people to take the walk, particularly those with reduced mobility, Houser said.
The second phase would replace wooden boards and improve about six miles of trail, rerouting some sections in the steepest parts.
Engineering and design are estimated at $120,000, Houser said, which will give planners more certainty in the total project cost.
"Some survey and design work will also be completed for the Institute Creek and North Wrangell trails,"the website says.
Replacement of the deck at the Chief Shakes outdoor hot tub up the Stikine River is also on the work list, pending funding.
The Middle Ridge Cabin rehab is on the list, too. "The back wall of the cabin is rotting and needs to be replaced,"the agency says. The work would include "replacing the logs on the north-facing wall and building a shed roof to keep the new logs dry."
Replacement of the trail to Kunk Lake on Etolin Island is also on the list for possible funding. "Often accessed by paddle-craft, Kunk Lake is a short boat ride from Wrangell. The trail follows fish-filled Kunk Creek through forests of huge spruce trees and accesses the largest lake on Etolin Island. This project will replace the existing trail."
Maintenance on the dock at Roosevelt Harbor on Zarembo Island would include improvements to four acres of parking at the site, restoring proper drainage and resurfacing the area. Plus, a permanent outhouse would be installed.
The Forest Service list of future projects includes additional work with the Wrangell Cooperative Association for maintenance on Turn Island, Long Lake and Thoms Lake trails. "Work will include replacing boardwalks, fixing gravel drainage sections, installing culverts and installing non-skid material on the trails."
Reader Comments(0)