Wrangell - St. Elias National Park

MAPS: Yakutat, Alaska-Canada (1:250,000)

DISTANCE/TIME: 12 miles one-way on sandy beach. At least a two-day hike. (A one-day hike would not be recommended.)

ACCESS: Air Taxi (C-180 or C-185) to Sudden Stream beach airstrip at any tide. Or to Pt. Manby 2 hours on either side of low tide.

ROUTE: Twelve miles of coastal beach. Wide sandy beaches. Approximately 6 miles from either end is the beached and buried Japanese schooner, Satsu Maru. Two miles north of Pt. Manby is a beached and soon to be buried Navy barge. Good drinking water is available at Sudden Stream and Manby Stream. This is silty glacial water. Water in between is brackish. A pond about 1.25 miles north of Pt. Manby may be drinkable and has been in past visits. Bear, moose and coyote travel the beach. Local fishermen travel the beach on their three-wheelers between Sudden Stream, Manby Stream and Spoon River to set their nets. Some aircraft fly along the coast, especially when the weather is good. Campsites are available along the way. Advisable to carry your own water supply between Sudden and Manby Streams. Also, advisable to purify water. Keep a respectable distance form commercial fishing activities including cabins.

POTENTIAL HAZARDS: Drinkable water is scarce along route. Wildlife in area; do not camp on game trails.