The Aniakchak River is a stream, long, in
Lake and Peninsula Borough
Lake and Peninsula Borough (russian: Лейк-энд-Пенинсула, ''Leyk-end-Peninsula'') is a Borough (United States)#Alaska, borough in the U.S. state, state of Alaska. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population wa ...
on the
Alaska Peninsula
The Alaska Peninsula (also called Aleut Peninsula or Aleutian Peninsula, ale, Alasxix̂; Sugpiaq: ''Aluuwiq'', ''Al'uwiq'') is a peninsula extending about to the southwest from the mainland of Alaska and ending in the Aleutian Islands. The ...
in the United States.
It arises in
Surprise Lake in the crater of
Mount Aniakchak
Mount Aniakchak (russian: Аниакчак) is a 3,700-year-old volcanic caldera approximately in diameter, located in the Aleutian Range of Alaska, United States. Although a stratovolcano by composition, the pre-existing mountain collapsed in ...
, a volcano in the
Aleutian Range
The Aleutian Range is a major mountain range located in southwest Alaska. It extends from Chakachamna Lake (80 miles/130 km southwest of Anchorage) to Unimak Island, which is at the tip of the Alaska Peninsula. It includes all of the mountain ...
.
It flows eastward from
Aniakchak National Monument and Preserve into
Aniakchak Bay and the
Pacific Ocean
The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean (or, depending on definition, to Antarctica) in the south, and is bounded by the continen ...
.
In 1980, a total of of streams, including the
main stem
In hydrology, a mainstem (or trunk) is "the primary downstream segment of a river, as contrasted to its tributaries". Water enters the mainstem from the river's drainage basin, the land area through which the mainstem and its tributaries flow.. A ...
Aniakchak and several tributaries, all within Aniakchak National Monument and Preserve, were designated "wild" and added to the
National Wild and Scenic Rivers System
The National Wild and Scenic Rivers System was created by the Wild and Scenic Rivers Act of 1968 (Public Law 90-542), enacted by the U.S. Congress to preserve certain rivers with outstanding natural, cultural, and recreational values in a free- ...
.
The "wild" tributaries are Hidden, Mystery, and Albert Johnson creeks and the North Fork Aniakchak River.
Boating
The Aniakchak River is floatable in small to medium rafts and other watercraft. However, ''The Alaska River Guide'' advises against trying it "unless you are an expert paddler, extremely self-reliant in Alaska wilderness camping, and ready for severe weather and self-rescue."
From a put-in at Surprise Lake, the river begins quietly, but downstream of the Aniakchak Crater wall it plunges through of rocky rapids rated between Class II (medium) to IV (very difficult) on the
International Scale of River Difficulty. Below the rapids, the rest of the river is rated Class I (easy).
In addition to rapids and low temperatures, hazards include winds up to that can damage tents and other equipment and prevent airplanes from landing at the lake or on the bay.
Brown bear
The brown bear (''Ursus arctos'') is a large bear species found across Eurasia and North America. In North America, the populations of brown bears are called grizzly bears, while the subspecies that inhabits the Kodiak Islands of Alaska is kno ...
s frequent the area.
Sharp rocks in the river may tear holes in inflatable boats.
These and other limits reduce the number of parties floating this river to only a few each year, mainly in July.
See also
*
List of rivers of Alaska
This is a List of rivers in Alaska, which are at least fifth-order according to the Strahler method of stream classification, and an incomplete list of otherwise-notable rivers and streams. Alaska has more than 12,000 rivers, and thousands more st ...
References
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Rivers of Lake and Peninsula Borough, Alaska
Rivers of Alaska
Wild and Scenic Rivers of the United States