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| Chitna
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The Chitina River is class II remote wilderness run. Access is a minor problem in the Chitina. Paddlers must fly in to the upper reaches, a situation not uncommon in Alaska; however, this does limit use to those who can afford to charter a plane. Being a glacial river, the Chitina is cold during all seasons. The turbidity, common in glacial streams, adds to this problem as you cannot estimate depths readily and must constantly read the water surface to stay out of trouble. Small rapids may present a problem to the novice but for an experienced paddler they can be easily negotiated or, in some instances, avoided entirely.
Gravel bars are frequent and camping areas easily located. While on the river you may encounter peregrine falcons, eagles, moose, sheep and grizzly bear.
Views from the river are excellent. Fireweed Mountain, MacColl Ridge and several unnamed mountains on the north and Nelson Mountain and other unnamed ridges on the south are visible for miles from the river. The riverbanks are forested with birch, alder, willows and black spruce. In some areas the forests screen out the distant vistas but generally this is not the case.
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Chitina
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| | Put-In
Flying to one of several gravel bar airstrips (at the top of the West Fork, at the Chisna Creek/West Fork confluence, possibly at the Slate Creek/West Fork confluence. | | | Take-Out
Take-out at the highway bridge on the Tok Cutoff. |
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