Kennecott Mines National Historic Landmark

The National Park Service has done an outstanding job preserving and restoring this historical mining town. There are a handful of buildings you can enter that each offers an abundance of information on the town's history, mining logistics, and eventual revival as a tourist destination There's quite a few original documents and equipment from the 20s/30s which really immerses you in the idea that you're standing in a century-old mining town. Expect to spent about 3-4 hours exploring, more than enough to see and read it all with some space for lunch. There's a couple shuttle services that run from the footbridge in McCarthy to Kennecott (5 miles). Recommend buying a day pass, or multi-day, from the general store for $15/$20

It was very interesting to see this mine 💣 town in the middle of nowhere. The red 🧱 colors on the buildings were really unique. The area is nice but there isn't that much to do. Note: you can't bring your car 🚗 here because of the foot bridge 🌉 In the summer 🌞 months, they have shuttle 🚐 services, but this is not the case in other seasons, so be prepared to walk from the parking lot to the mines (~4.5 miles each way on a flat road)

Absolutely worth a trip! Can be reached either by walking from MC carthy (allow 1.5-2 hrs, slightly uphill) or by shuttle bus. It's a jump back in time. The site is in good shape and being further restored. In a few buildings there are interesting exhibits, displays and movies. Definitely worth the trim. Can be combined with a trip to the glacier, worth a visit as well. A few options for food are available as well in Kennecott.

If I could suggest go visit the Kennecott Mines in Wrangell -St Elias National Park . Keep your motorhome in a campground here in Chitina and drive your car .. do your research ( from what I’m told the road is better😳)McCarthy road is mostly unpaved and rough is an understatement, ITS ROUGH ! 60 miles one way .. 2 hours doing 40 mph!! Can I suggest if you have a mouth guard? Wear it , it’ll help your jaw from clenching and help you not yell out unpleasant words to your driver !! A good time for those kegel exercises since your butt will be tight the whole way ! Once you park .. $6 and you cross the foot bridge a shuttle will drive you into town $5 each way ( another 6 mile bumpy ride) The 2 hour mine tour is $34 a person and the hike to the Glacier is 4 miles. Even if you choose neither , it’s like walking back in time , beautiful, great history and good food !! Enjoy your day and know it’s the same ride home !! OMG 😳😳🤣 — at Wrangell-St Elias National Park.

Amazing tour. The NPS is doing a great job restoring this old mine. Tour was great and very informative. Definitely would recommend to others.

It is work get on the tour and going inside. The tour is a little long (2 hours) but what you see inside is neat and different. Most of the matches are intact and you can see how everything works together. The guid was well informed and injected a. Little humor into the tour.

Incredible mining ruins that have been somewhat preserved with some exhibits. There are tours you can take of the 14-story mill, but we didn’t do that this time with the kids in tow. The history here is awesome to learn about, and the NPS is actively restoring and supporting things to last a long time. You can follow the road further up to the glacier hiking trails as well. The shuttle goes from Kennicott back down to McCarthy every hour, at the top of the hour. The latest one leaves at 7:00 PM, as of July 2024. You have to take the shuttle from McCarthy up to Kennicott. The shuttle company people were all 10/10 friendly and helpful.

Kennecott, Alaska is such a special place. It is one of the best-preserved mining towns from an older time in Alaskan history! It is a must-visit for anyone who is trying to experience the “real” Alaska, and it has so much to explore! Kennecott has an intriguing history. It was a booming town long ago, and one day the train came and ordered everyone to leave…only giving them a short notice to pack whatever they could until they would permanently leave, never to return. It is in remarkably good condition all things considered - this part of Alaska is brutal in winter months so the fact any buildings still stand at all is a feat in and of itself! You can explore all around the town and see how it was when it was left such a long time ago - it’s a bit eerie seeing things stood exactly as they were whenever people finally left! I recommend spending at least a few days in Kennecott. First off, it takes a LONG time to get here. If you’re coming from Anchorage, prepare for a full-day trip. It’ll take hours on long, lonely (and beautiful) highways until you get to the town of Chitina, and once you’re there, you’ll need to drive hours more on a gravel road with no internet until you get to the tiny town of McCarthy. Once you’re in McCarthy, you’ll need to find a tour agency that can then finally take you to Kennecott. Do spend a few nights at the Kennecott Glacier Lodge! It’s nothing spectacular (or fancy), but it allows for you to explore during morning or evening hours when there are far fewer people around. Food is pretty good, staff is warm and welcoming, cell data and WiFi internet is…pretty bad honestly (but you have to expect it in this remote of a place). It has a beautiful view of the glacier as well. Yes, I did say glacier! The most incredible thing about Kennecott is it’s precariously perched on the edge of a massive glacier that stretches for miles in both directions. It is truly a sight to behold - the glacial morain is so cool! You can hike to the glacier on a half day or full day trip and explore the beautiful ice, drink crystal-clear glacier water that’s the cleanest on Earth, and even climb into massive holes carved into the glacier! Do keep in mind, I highly recommend booking with a tour agency to hike to the glacier! They will keep you safe! The tours of the ghost town itself go inside many of the old, abandoned buildings (of course, there are some you can’t enter purely for safety reasons), and they do a great job explaining all of the old history of the town! Also, be sure to hike a bit outside of the town on the marked hiking trails. Some of them go to beautiful waterfalls and amazing viewpoints of the valley! All in all, I absolutely love this place. I’ve visited multiple times, and I will continue to return. Visit Kennecott while you still can, while the buildings are still standing, and enrich yourself in the rich mining history of Alaska’s past!

Visited this place in the late 70's, I remember pulling myself across the river in a cart and walking through the "Ghost Town". Back then things had not been closed that long and were still "fresh". I hear it is still pretty impressive. Now a days it is a National Park, which is good. Back then you could just sneak in and see whatever you wanted to see. As a kid I don't think I truly appreciated the impact and depth of the visit to the mines. But, it must have made an impression on me because I remember it very clear. It was awesome having parents like mine. that took the time to take me to strange and awesome places and then explain what I was seeing and how it was important to me.

This is the old historic Kennicott, Alaska Mill and Mine. What makes the retired landmark so famous is it sort of ushered in the mining era bringing hard-working blue-collar jobs to this very remote section of Alaska. Mining started back in the 1900's, 10's and 20's (or around then I'm not sure, tbh, lol) for gold, silver, copper and precious metals. So...from being a completely secluded part of Alaska to all of a sudden having booming times, I believe what made this Kennicott Mill and Mine so interesting was that it was built and used along the side of a mountain! Conditions were difficult. Winters were harsh to say the least. It was a rugged landscape to work with. Eventually the mine was retired, and folks moved away from Kennicott back to more accessible places in Alaska and the USA. But they preserved this mill and mine leaving intact what's now a historical attraction and one of the main highlights for exploring not just here in McCarthy/Kennicott, but also this area leading to the heart of wondrous Root Glacier and Wrangell St. Elias National Park. While I was here visiting, I signed up for a 1 hour and 30-minute tour. I was able to book it online at my own convenience. They offer multiple tours each day during summer seasons. I believe the tour cost anywhere from $25 - $30 per person and you can tip the tour guide online ahead of time. The tour is really detailed. They take you very high atop the mine and literally right through every important section of the mill explaining just how life was back in the day and how drilling went from a successful venture to ultimately closing down and miners moving away from Kennicott. The tour guide I had was ultra-knowledgeable and informed. He was passionate about this place, for sure. It's just unbelievable how back in olden times they achieved mining the grounds here. It was not easy and walking around through the mill was a real throwback in time. They will provide you with a hard-hat to wear but unfortunately, they don't let you keep it, lol. Overall, to really understand the essence for what makes Kennicott, Alaska special...you should really do the mill tour here. Plus, with an extraordinary day tour of iconic Root Glacier and hiking around Wrangell St. Elias National Park it's absolutely a terrific and worthwhile getaway for 3 days which is the amount of time I used to explore. So...you'll get a real feel opportunity to understand mining life from back in the day while getting to check another national park off your To-Do List which was the primary reason I came to McCarthy/Kennicott, Alaska.

Absolutely incredible area and a must-see/must-do if you're in the McCarthy/Kennecott area. The Kennecott Mines National Historic Landmark preserves and protects the old Kennecott Mine. I was able to go into the 14-story mine building with St. Elias Alpine Guides. It was fascinating to see what was still there and try to imagine what life was like actually working in the mine years ago. The National Park Service also has exhibits in several of the other buildings that are really well done. Stop by the Visitor Center for a map and to get a schedule of all the different Ranger Programs that happen in the summer months. You can even buy a souvenir from the gift shop. There are also a few other options for shopping, dining, and even sleeping. There are trails in the area to get to glaciers and more. I'm a fan and am so glad I finally got to see this part of Wrangell-St. Elias National Park and Preserve!

Awesome and unique piece of history in Wrangall-St. Elias National Park. There are a number of tours you can take from various local guides or you can participate in a range led program. There are a number of exhibits and numerous local trails to mining areas. Enjoy a bite to eat at the local food truck or hotel restaurant. Reservations recommended. This site is about 5 miles from McCarthy down a very bumpy road accessible by shuttle bus. Really cool site.

If you're going to McCarthy, you are probably going here. As you well should. Great, re-created/restored mining town with fabulous glacial views. You can watch a video about the insane history of the copper mining boom in this area in the historic Post Office. If you keep walking past "town" you can access a trail that takes you all the way to the glacier! There are even some decent places to eat and sleep in this area, surprisingly. If you want, you can even do a guided ice climbing lesson.

I'm not sure how to write this review. I've been to Kennecott Mill a couple of times and perused the mill and surrounding buildings, and I've been to Bonanza mine another smaller mine near where I camped off trail. The whole place is full of awesome. When the mine closed in 1938 and it was last call for the train everyone just got up and left. If you didn't get on that train you were left behind so everyone just stopped what they were doing to get on it. The first time I was here it was during slight renovations and there was still a lot of memorabilia in the buildings. Now there are exhibits and it's cleaned up. I like that the less able bodied can come here too, just not on the paid mill tour though. If you want to go on the tour but can't make the 14 stories you can watch the video of the mill in one of the buildings that describes each portion of the mill process. It's all free. Well, getting to McCarthy is a trip and paying for the shuttle to get here 5 miles away is $5, so that's something... But, all in all it's a fun place to visit and a great way to look at how mining was accomplished in the early 1900s. A huge plus is how nice the road to McCarthy is now. It used to take at least 6 hours one way and now it takes 2. It's pretty nice for an unpaved, old train track, road. Next time I would like to go to Erie mine near root glacier...