Nancy Lake State Recreation Area
(Mat-Su Valley)
(Printer
version Nancy Lake State Recreation Area)
Nancy Lake State Recreation Area is different from most Alaskan park areas. It is one of the few flat, lake-studded landscapes in Alaska preserved for recreation purposes. The recreation area’s clear waters are ringed with unspoiled forests, and provide tranquil settings for canoeing, fishing, hiking and camping. In winter, the rolling topography is ideal for cross-country skiing, dog mushing and snowmachining.
Nancy Lake State Recreation Area is
a ninety-minute drive north of Anchorage along the Parks Highway. To enter the
recreation area, turn west onto Nancy Lake Parkway at Mile 67.3 of the Parks
Highway. From there, the Nancy Lake Parkway travels 6.5 miles southwest to South
Rolly Lake Campground; in winter the parkway is not plowed beyond the Winter
Trailhead at mile 2.2. The community of Willow lies two miles north of this
junction, and has a full range of services for the traveler.
History
The broad Susitna river Valley, including what is now the recreation area, was
scoured by massive glaciers, which once covered it. When the ice retreated some
9,000 years ago, it left a rolling landscape of elongated glacial deposits,
called drumlins, dotted with hundreds of lakes and ponds.
State archaeologists believe that people lived in the region soon after the
glaciers receded. It is believed that this region was heavily used by the
Tanaina Indians, and possibly Pacific Eskimos and earlier man before that. Two
prehistoric village sites have been identified just outside the recreation area.
The inhabitants of these villages lived from subsistence fishing, hunting and
trapping.
The Alaska Railroad was built along the east side of the lower Susitna Valley in
1917. Fires caused by sparks from passing trains occasionally burned in this
area. The nearby towns of Wasilla, Houston and Willow grew as more homesteaders
settled on the lands opened up by rail access.
Through the years, most of the Nancy Lake area has remained wild and natural.
The area is too wet for ideal cultivation and is not mineral-rich, so it has
escaped large-scale settlement by humans. Today, those assets make it a prime
place for recreation and enjoyment of nature.
Climate
The weather in the park is tempered by the relatively warm ocean waters to the
south and the Alaska Range to the north, which protects it from the very cold
temperatures common to interior Alaska.
Summer temperatures rise into the 70s, with occasional highs in the 80s.
Nighttime readings, even in July, may dip into the 40s. Winter temperatures may
fall to 40 degrees below zero, and seldom rise above freezing until mid-March.
The first snow usually arrives by late October, about the same time the lakes
freeze over. Snow depth in late winter averages three to four feet. Lakes are
usually free of ice by late May.
Public Use Cabins
There are several rustic cabins that are available for rent on a nightly basis
throughout the Nancy Lake State Recreation Area. Cabins are located on Red
Shirt, Lynx, Nancy, James and Bald lakes. The cabins are insulated and equipped
with wooden bunks, counters and wood-burning stoves. Each cabin has an outhouse
and an outdoor fire ring.
Occupants need to bring all personal items, including drinking water, and leave
the site neat and clean when they leave. It is best to bring firewood, as
finding firewood my be difficult. Only wood that is down and dead may be
gathered. Use of the cabins is by reservation only.
Plant Life
Vegetation within the recreation area is dominated on drier sites by white
spruce and paper birch, with some aspen interspersed. Wetter forests support
stands of the smaller black spruce. Wetter still are the low brush bogs and
muskeg swamps, sometimes highlighted by cotton grass plumes.
Large parts of the area have been burned by forest fires in the past 100 years,
resulting in thick stands of birch, which precede the older forests of white
spruce. Wildflowers abound, from the earliest violets and bluebells, through the
last flower on the tip of the tall fireweed. Water-loving plants, such as bog
rosemary and wild iris, are found in wet areas throughout the park. Water lilies
decorate many of the lake surfaces.
Beginning in late July, the first wild berries begin to ripen. Currants,
highbush and lowbush cranberries, and blueberries frequently provide a bountiful
harvest. Varieties of raspberry, crowberry and other berries can also be found.
Pickers should learn to identify baneberry, which looks edible, but is very
poisonous.
In recent years, spruce bark beetles have moved into the recreation area, and
the effects of the beetle larvae feeding under the bark can be seen. Mature
white spruce are dying, and can be identified by looking for the bore holes of
the beetles through the bark on tree trunks. After a few years, the infested
trees will die, and will stand until wind, snow load, or decomposition topple
them to the forest floor.
Wildlife
The recreation area’s combination of lakes, wetlands and forests create ideal
habitat for many mammals and birds. Perhaps most noticeable to the summer
visitor are water dwellers, especially beaver and waterfowl. Beavers are active
in lakes and ponds throughout the park, and visitors can see evidence of their
work. These animals are vital to maintaining critical water levels in the
ecosystem; their dams and lodges must not be disturbed.
One of the real delights of canoeing in the recreation area is to be closely
approached by a curious common loon. These black-headed master divers with their
eerie, laughing call are one of the trademarks of the area. Their smaller,
grey-headed relative, the Pacific loon is sometimes seen. Loons sitting on the
shore should always be given a wide berth. They come ashore only to nest, and
will often desert their nests when disturbed.
Arctic terns are summer residents, returning to nest in the wetlands after
wintering some 12,000 miles away in the antarctic. Unlike the loons, these birds
are graceful fliers as well as tenacious nest defenders. The canoer or hiker
unlucky enough to stumble into a nest site is likely to be repeatedly
dive-bombed by screeching terns.
Moose are the most common large mammal in the park, although their numbers are
dependent on an adequate food supply. They prefer brushy areas or shallow ponds
with tender aquatic plants, as browse in mature forests is beyond even their
reach.
Black bears are common throughout the park, but grizzly and brown bears are
occasionally sighted. Adverse encounters with bears are unlikely if proper
precautions are taken. Sighting a bear in its natural environment is one of the
thrills of the back country. Please report any sightings to the park rangers.
Help Protect the Park
All litter should be removed or placed in litter containers provided. Please
pack out what you pack in, and leave your campsite as you found it. Practice
"low impact" camping.
Protection of natural features and park facilities is everyone’s responsibility.
Don’t pick wildflowers or strip bark from trees. All park areas are closed to
cutting of live trees. To protect ground cover, open fires are permitted only in
fireplaces provided.
Discharge of firearms is prohibited in the entire recreation area. However, the
use and discharge of a bow and arrow or trap for the purpose of lawfully hunting
or trapping, is allowed in the Nancy Lake State Recreation Area, except within
one-quarter mile of a cabin or developed facility.
Pets must be on leashes at developed facilities, such as campgrounds and picnic
areas, and under control in other areas at all times.
Motorized vehicles cause lasting damage to vegetation and trails; they are
restricted to maintained roads and parking areas.
Use of motorized snow vehicles is permitted throughout the recreation area,
except for the closed area north of the Parkway, when there is sufficient snow
cover to protect vegetation. Snow machine registration is required to operate on
public land.
Campfires are permitted only in the developed fireplaces provided
Outboard motors are allowed on Nancy, Lynx, Butterfly and Red Shirt lakes. Only
electric trolling motors are allowed on South Rolly. All other lakes within the
recreation area are closed to motorized use.
Aircraft landings are restricted to Nancy, Butterfly, Lynx and Red Shirt lakes.
Please respect private property.
Source: Alaska State Parks.
For more information on Alaska State Parks, visit the Alaska State Parks web site.
Alaska
National Parks
Denali National Park,
Kenai Fjords National Park,
Lake Clark National Park,
Wrangell-St. Elias National Park
Alaska State
Parks by Region
Anchorage,
Interior Alaska,
Kenai Peninsula,
Kodiak,
Mat-Su
Valley,
Prince William Sound,
Southeast Alaska,
Southwest Alaska
Alaska State Parks by Name
Anchor River State Recreation Area and Stariski SRS,
Birch Lake
State Recreation Site,
Caines Head State Recreation Area and Resurrection Bay State Marine Parks,
Captain
Cook State Recreation Area,
Chena
River State Recreation Area,
Chena
River State Recreation Site,
Chilkat Bald
Eagle Preserve,
Chugach State Park,
Clam Gulch
State Recreation Area,
Deep Creek
State Recreation Area,
Delta
Junction Area State Parks,
Denali State Park,
Haines Area State
Parks,
Harding
Lake State Recreation Area,
Independence Mine State Historical Park,
Kachemak Bay State Park and State Wilderness Park,
Kasilof Area State
Parks,
Kenai
River Special Management Area,
Kodiak Area State
Parks,
Nancy Lake State Recreation Area,
Ninilchik
State Recreation Area,
Point Bridget
State Park,
Salcha
River State Recreation Site,
Sitka Area State Parks,
State Marine Parks in Prince William Sound and Resurrection Bay,
Summit Lake
State Recreation Site, Tok
Area Parks,
Totem Bight
State Historical Park,
Upper Chatanika State Recreation Site,
Wickersham State Historic Site,
Wood-Tikchik
State Park
