Background:

"A wilderness, in contrast with those areas where man and his own works dominate the landscape, is hereby recognized as an area where the earth and its community of life are untrammeled by man, where man himself is a visitor who does not remain." With these words, the Congress of the United States defined the general characteristics of a wilderness area. The Kenai Canoe Trails is one of only two wilderness canoe systems established in the United States (the other being Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness in northeastern Minnesota). These trails are located within the northwestern section of the Kenai National Wildlife Refuge, an area of 1.3 million acres, established by the Alaska National Interest Lands Conservation Act of 1980 for its outstanding wildlife and recreational values.

The Kenai Canoe Trails are divided into two systems, the Swan Lake and Swanson River Canoe Routes. The Swan Lake System is perhaps the most visited of the two systems and contains 30 lakes linked with the main branch and the West Fork of the Moose River in an interconnecting system of waterways and portages. This forms a canoe route of about 60 miles, though many shorter excursions are possible and even likely. The Swanson River Canoe Route lies north of the Swan Lake System and connects 40 lakes with 46 miles of the Swanson River. In total, the Swanson River Canoe Route forms a trail system of just over 80 miles in length.

Besides the lakes directly connected by portages and waterways, this area contains thousands of other lakes which are seldom explored or even seen. The contour of this wilderness is not particularly rugged, but is generally a flat to gently undulating topography of ancient glacial deposits. Surrounding the lakes that are scattered throughout the area are rounded hills and ridges rising up to a maximum of 295 feet in elevation. But the lakes are the most noticeable feature. They drain either directly or indirectly into two systems, the Moose and Swanson Rivers. These are both shallow streams, following meandering paths through poorly-drained swamps and muskeg flats. Both the Moose and the Swanson River also offer interesting floating possibilities.

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Area's Climate:

The climate in this area would be described as subarctic. The temperatures seldom rise above 80°F in the summer months or fall below -30°F in the winter. Winds in the area rarely exceed 70 m.p.h. and average around 11 m.p.h. in the lowlands. Annual precipitation averages about 19 inches. The months of July, August, and September often are rainy and cool, with August probably the wettest of the three. Stretches of a week or two of warm, sunny weather are likely, but who can say when. In late September the temperatures drop and bring on the colors of fall. By late October the lakes freeze and remain frozen until April or May.

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Wildlife:

There are at least 199 species of amphibians, birds, and mammals that reside in, use the area seasonally, or visit the Canoe Systems from time to time. Several of these species are fish-eating birds and mammals. Fish-eating birds include several species of gulls and terns, cormorants, three species of loons, mergansers, grebes, kingfishers, osprey, and bald eagles. Scavengers which eat fish also include ravens, magpies, and Canada jays. Fish-eating mammals include mink, river otter, and black and brown bears. Though bears can be found throughout the area, and appropriate precautions should be taken, they are rarely seen or rarely cause a problem. The returning salmon of the Swanson River and Moose River play the most important role in their distribution. More commonly seen are Moose, and a wise visitor will avoid crowding these animals, particularly in the early weeks of spring when the calves are born. They seldom cause a problem but can be unpredictable. Other wildlife found in and around the lakes include ducks, yellow legs, swans, snipes, owls, lynx, wolves, coyotes, fox, muskrats, beavers, various rodents, and bats.

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Fishery Resources:

The waters of the Kenai Canoe Systems are in near-pristine condition. These aquatic habitats are quite fragile because of the subarctic region in which they occur, so it is a must that those who use the area exercise great care. The productivity of these lakes and streams depends on high water quality, proper water temperature, clean stream gravels, and nutrient-exchange cycles. The welfare of the fish populations depends upon maintaining genetic variability, protection of critical rearing and spawning habitats, and in the case of salmon, escapement of sufficient spawning stocks. The salmon stock are primarily contained in the Swanson River or Moose River, though some salmon do enter some of the lakes and in other cases landlocked salmon can be found. For the most part, the lakes support a fish population containing rainbows and char as sport fish along with a population of longnose suckers.

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