Kachemak Bay State Park

Kachemak Bay at sunrise

Halibut Cove is one of the main access points to the park.

Kachemak Bay State Park and Kachemak Bay Wilderness Park is a 400,000-acre (1,600 km²) park in and around Kachemak Bay, Alaska.^[1] Kachemak Bay State Park was the first legislatively designated state park in the Alaska State Parks system. Kachemak Bay State Wilderness Park is the state's only legislatively designated wilderness park. There is no road access to most areas of the park, visitors normally fly in or travel by boat from Homer. Kachemak Bay is considered a critical habitat area due to the biodiversity in the area. Wildlife within the park includes marine mammals such as sea otters, sea lions, and whales, large land mammals such as moose and black bears, and numerous sea and land birds. Terrain consists of both rocky and sandy beaches, dense mountain forests, and higher up, glaciers, and icefields. Because of the rugged conditions and unpredictable coastal weather, visitors are advised to be prepared for sudden wind, rain, or snowstorms at any time of year, especially at higher elevations, and to file a travel plan with rangers. The park is mostly wild land, although there are a few cabins and semi-developed campgrounds. The park ranger station is located in Halibut Cove Lagoon. The Kachemak Bay area was infested with spruce bark beetles during the late 1990s, and thousands of acres of dead trees are still standing within the park. There has been at least one wildfire, the Mile 17 fire that burned areas of dead standing spruce on park land.^[2]

References

External links

Wikivoyage has a travel guide for Kachemak Bay State Park.

U.S. Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System: Kachemak Bay State Park

Coordinates: 59°31′58″N 151°12′36″W / 59.53278°N 151.21000°W / 59.53278; -151.21000

Protected areas of Alaska

Federal

National Parks	Denali Gates of the Arctic Glacier Bay Katmai Kenai Fjords Kobuk Valley Lake Clark Wrangell–St. Elias

National Historical Parks	Klondike Gold Rush Sitka

National Monuments	Admiralty Island (USFS) Aniakchak Cape Krusenstern Misty Fiords (USFS) World War II Valor in the Pacific

National Preserves	Bering Land Bridge Noatak Yukon–Charley Rivers

National Wildlife Refuges	Alaska Maritime Alaska Peninsula Arctic Becharof Innoko Izembek Kanuti Kenai Kodiak Koyukuk Nowitna Selawik Tetlin Togiak Yukon Delta Yukon Flats

National Forests	Chugach Tongass

Forest Service units	Mendenhall Glacier

U.S. Wilderness Areas	Aleutian Islands Andreafsky Becharof Bering Sea Bogoslof Chamisso Chuck River Coronation Island Denali Endicott River Forrester Island Gates of the Arctic Glacier Bay Hazy Islands Innoko Izembek Karta River Katmai Kenai Kobuk Valley Kootznoowoo Koyukuk Kuiu Lake Clark Maurille Islands Misty Fjords Mollie Beattie Noatak Nunivak Petersburg Creek–Duncan Salt Chuck Pleasant/Lemusurier/Inian Islands Russell Fjord Saint Lazaria Selawik Semidi Simeonof South Baranof South Etolin South Prince of Wales Stikine-LeConte Tebenkof Bay Togiak Tracy Arm-Fords Terror Tuxedni Unimak Warren Island West Chichagof-Yakobi Wrangell–Saint Elias

National Conservation Area	Steese

State

State Parks	Afognak Island Alaska Chilkat Bald Eagle Baranof Castle Hill Birch Lake Chena River Area Chena River Site Chugach Deep Creek Denali Kachemak Bay Totem Bight Wood-Tikchik

State Forests	Haines Southeast Tanana Valley

Alaska Department of Natural Resources

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