Wrangell–St. Elias: America's Largest National Park

Wrangell–St. Elias National Park and Preserve in Alaska is the largest national park in the United States—and the largest single protected area in the National Park System.

• Size: 13.2 million acres (20,587 sq mi / 53,321 km²)—larger than Switzerland, 6× Yellowstone.
• Established: 1980 (Alaska National Interest Lands Conservation Act).
• Location: South-central Alaska; meets Canada's Kluane National Park (together: UNESCO World Heritage Site, 24.3M acres).

Superlative Geography

• Mountains: Wrangell, St. Elias, Chugach ranges converge; 9 of 16 highest US peaks (incl. Mt. St. Elias 18,008 ft, Mt. Bona 16,550 ft).
• Glaciers: Malaspina (largest piedmont glacier in NA), Hubbard, Nabesna; 35% of park glaciated.
• Volcanoes: Mt. Wrangell (active shield volcano, 14,163 ft), Mt. Churchill.
• Rivers: Copper, Nabesna, Chitina—glacial, braided, salmon-rich.

Wildlife & Access

Grizzlies, Dall sheep, caribou, moose, wolves, mountain goats. Two gravel roads (Nabesna, McCarthy) provide limited access; most wilderness reached by bush plane. Visitation: ~70K/year (low density, high solitude).

It's a park of superlatives: biggest, wildest, most vertical—a living Ice Age landscape.