Wrangell Island

Wrangell Island   July 9^th and 10^th

Our ferry ride to Wrangell was a night passage from 10:45pm to 5:15am on the M/V Matanusca which is the same ship we took from Prince Rupert to Ketchican on our first leg of the Inner Passage. We slept in the recliner lounge which was quiet enough bar the continuous drone of the engine. When we arrived there we stopped at the boat harbor that offered parking for RVs and I promptly fell asleep for a few hours while Tim went and explored the National Forest Campground at Nemo Point which was about 14 miles south of the town on Zimovia Strait. Originally, we thought it might be too far from town, but we were thrilled with this campground and its location. It had 3 sites all very large and extremely well done and maintained by the Tongass National Forest Service and was free. The site we chose over looked the strait with spectacular views of the mountain range in all directions. We were in Wrangell from early on the 9^th until the ferry departure at 11:30pm on the 10^th so we had plenty of time to explore this island and sit by the fire and just enjoy the views. The weather was cooperating and the rain was nowhere in sight.

Campsite at Nemo Point

The town of Wrangell is located on the northern tip of Wrangell Island which is about 30 miles long.  It is the only town in the state of Alaska that has been ruled by 4 different nations. The Tlingit (clink it) Indians, Russia, England and the United States.  It was first formed as a trading post for the Tlingit and the early settlers and was incorporated as a town in 1903. Most of the original town was ruined in 2 different fires first in 1906 and then in 1952 so much of the town has been rebuilt. We were told that the population has declined from about 3000 to a mere 1500 due to government regulations on fishing. Fishing is the major industry with Salmon then halibut, shrimp, crab and herring as its mainstay. The timber industry is fairly small here while tourism is increasing. There is a huge cannery with hundreds of large refrigerated containers for shipping fish off the island on barges.  

Wrangell Harbor

We saw several tour companies touting excursions to Anan to see the bears and to the Stikine River and Leconte Glacier.  The Stikine (Stick EEN-means Great River) River is said to be the fastest free flowing river in North America. It is 330 miles long through British Columbia, where we first saw it, through mainland Alaska. It opens out into the Pacific Ocean just 5 miles north of Wrangell. The Stikine/ Leconte Wilderness area was established in 1980 and is a very popular place for the tour companies to explore. We had not planned a trip here, so we were unable to go up the river to the LeConte Glacier but we could see it in the distance and we will be seeing many more as we continue our journey.

View from Campsite

There are very few cruise ships that come in to Wrangell and the only sign that we saw of catering to the adventure cruise ship passengers now in the harbor was a young lady selling garnet stones. She has a list of when these adventure cruises come through and she sets up her stones to sell. The first published report about the “Wrangell Garnets” was in 1906. In 1907, the all-woman Alaska Garnet Mining and Manufacturing Company based in Minneapolis became interested in the area after seeing an article in the Wrangell Sentinel about them. They applied for a patent, got it and started mining for the garnets. They made and marketed things like watch fobs and garnet pins. The activity dwindled through the 1920s and, in 1936, the company was sold to Fred Hanford who in turn deeded the ledge to the Boy Scouts of Wrangell in 1962. The only stipulation was that the land must be used for the sole purposes of the Boy Scouts and that the children of Wrangell be allowed to take garnets from the ledge. If an adult wants to go there, a child must accompany him/her. The local Presbyterian Church now has oversight of the Ledge for the children’s benefit. To this day, the children have free use and go by boat  7 miles up the Stikine (Stik EEN) River to the Garnet Ledge to mine for garnets. Some are still in the stone when they sell them. This young lady told us how it is difficult to get them out in one piece without them falling apart. The children save their money and some have used it towards college tuition.  Yes, of course, we purchased a small garnet..how could we not?

Wrangell Harbor

We explored the harbor as well as the Petroglyph Beach where we say a few markings on the rocks. The majority have been worn away with the ocean motion. The petroglyphs we had seen in the west two years ago were very pronounced and these were hard to see.

Pats Lake

We also went to Pats Lake and even tried the strait where the used and abused ships have been left to rot to check out fishing opportunities to no avail. No fish in those waters!

Wrangell Harbor

We drove the Nemo Loop partially around on gravel roads through the Three Sisters Campground/Overlook, the Anita Bay Overlook, the Highline and the Turn Island Beach and decided the entire loop would have been too much in our little Fit. The views, once again, were wonderful.

Sunset on the Harbor  Waiting for 11:30pm Ferry

Once again we have squeezed a lot of sightseeing into a small window of opportunity. Wrangell is a lovely Island. We’re glad we made this one of our stops along the way.