Chelatna Lake (Anchorage: house, buying, camp)

[tiyoo]

Just wondering if anyone has been over there before. I am looking at land to buy and I feel like that would be a really good area to invest in right now.

There are trails that go about 10 miles from it right now...at least back in 2005 they did...I am not sure about now. I will be up there next month to take a look at things and buy some land but wanted to do some research ahead of time. Since its off the beaten path I am sure that I can get it for pretty inexpensive. Then all I need is my Argo and I am good to go haha. This is a project that should last me at least 4 years (I am only 25 right now) and I realize that its not going to be sprinkles and rainbows the whole time too. Just wondering if the Chelatna Lake area is any good considering its got like 3 glaciers that surround it.

PS...I know this has nothing to do with what I was talking about before, but I found plane tickets from Austin to Anchorage for $278 each way and thought I would let people know...Jet Blue is a pretty decent airline...

[starlite9]

Well just stand on the property before you buy it, much of the land will require a snorkel when you stand in one place very long.

[tiyoo]

Originally Posted by starlite9

Well just stand on the property before you buy it, much of the land will require a snorkel when you stand in one place very long.

What do you mean? What are the good areas to look in? Is it because of the large glaciers or what? Is it not buildable land?

[Marty Van Diest]

Looks to me like your best bet is to fly in via float plane with an inflatable canoe/kayak and explore the lake that way. Forget getting there with an argo unless someone else has already done it. Snowmachine...no problem.

You will have to cross the Klutina River. That could be a problem. Maybe when it's down? I saw it once when hunting there and wouldn't have wanted to try it. That was in August.

[Marty Van Diest]

Wait...that's not the Klutina. I forgot the name of that glacier and river

[Dakster]

Shouldn't you be able to drag a bus there and live in it until your house is built? (j/k)

I wish you luck - and being able to start out at 25 is great!

[starlite9]

Originally Posted by tiyoo

What do you mean? What are the good areas to look in? Is it because of the large glaciers or what? Is it not buildable land?

Much of the land the state sells is bog, or boarders on it and some not. But you need to see in person what you are buying.

Like Marty said, fly in and camp a few days with an inflatable boat and a gps so you can mark the spots you like or want to buy, or stand on the property that you wanted to buy.

Nothing worse than someone buying a piece of land you have to build a floating cabin on!

[Mobius69]

I used to work at a resort/fish camp on Chelatna Lake in the late 1980s. No roads, so we flew in/out on a float plane. I heard that guys would snowmachine from the nearest town in the winter.

I really loved the area, and the unearthly, almost magical light blue color of the lake, and have many fond memories of the summer I spent there. The lake is just south of Denali National Park, so you can imagine the natural splendor.

At the time, there were many little cabins all around the lake (but some larger, and very plush ones too). I recall that there were plenty of boggy areas with no cabins. The lake is incredibly huge, so we traveled by boat, and it rained pretty often.

One winter we went ptarmigan hunting on the lake. Imagine seeing thousands of white birds on one tree. It was the easiest bird hunting you can imagine. You'd drive up on your snowmobile, and shoot with a little 4-10. The bird mass would then fly to the next closest tree. The meat is delicious and has a spruce after-taste.

The fishing was amazing and the water was icy cold in the summer (great to jump into after a sauna). I heard that there's really rich placer gold in the area, but back then, I was not interested. Lots of black bears though, which were a nuisance. I saw some pretty pictures of the area on google, which tugs at my heart a bit. The area definitely has a bit of 'magic.' The winters are harsh, but what do you expect being in the middle of the state?

[alaskaman55]

Hunted it mos my life,no u can get there by Argo u have to cross the kahiltna glaciers drainage only by float planes or snowmachine u will find some of the people not to friendly the think they own the lake ...