Togiak Wilderness

At 4.2 million acres, Togiak National Wildlife Refuge covers about the same amount of land as Connecticut and Rhode Island combined, a region important to Eskimo and Native American hunter-gatherers for more than 5,000 years. Over half of the refuge, the northern section, has been designated Wilderness. To the north stretches the vast Yukon Delta National Wildlife Refuge. Three major river systems — the Togiak, Kanektok, and Goodnews — comprising over 1,500 miles of water, lie within the Wilderness. More than one million salmon return to these waters each year to spawn, and fishing draws many visitors to the Togiak region, both human and brown bear. Floaters often run the rivers, fishing along the way for salmon, trout, char, grayling, and pike. The Togiak River flows wide and easily; the Kanektok and Goodnews are faster, more twisted rivers with a greater variety of fish. None of the rivers contain whitewater. The Ahklun Mountains encompass about 80 percent of the area and give way to tundra and coastal plains at lower elevations. The mountains hide many large lakes. Sea cliffs provide nesting places for approximately one million marine birds, including murres, puffins, auklets, kittiwakes, and cormorants. Beaches provide haul-outs for walrus, sea lions, and harbor seals, and seven species of whales have been identified cruising the coastline during migratory seasons. You'll find no trails, just millions of mosquitoes in summer, severe winters, few trees, and fewer fellow humans.