Why Should Your Teen Visit Alaska?
The top reasons to visit Alaska include the state's incredible scenery, wildlife, and the opportunity to see Mount Denali, the tallest mountain in the United States. From gliding past icy glaciers and epic mountain peaks to spotting humpback whales and bears, Alaska is home to some of the world's wildest landscapes.
Another great reason to travel to Alaska is to take time away from the stress of everyday life and social media to embrace nature and see God’s wonderful creations. Alaska is a great place for your teen to gain a closer relationship with God and a personal connection with nature. With 425.8 million acres of land, small cities, towns, and beautiful landscapes, Alaska is a great place to visit and explore!
The Weather in Alaska
The weather in Alaska during the summertime is perfect for outdoor activity. It does not get much better than Alaska in the summer, when the sun is up almost 24 hours a day. Average daily summer temperatures are around 50-60 degrees with low humidity. May is generally the driest month across the state, even in the temperate rainforest of the Inside Passage.
By July, daytime temperatures in the Interior can average in the 70° F range—although it has been known to reach well into the 90s—while temperatures in the coastal areas and higher elevations rarely get above 65° F. The warmer weather and long days make this a particularly pleasant time of year, with temperatures in the cool-but-comfortable range of 60 to 67°F.
Temperatures across the state start cooling in August and September, triggering a riotous display of fall colors across Alaska’s tundra and forest landscapes. Winter in Alaska is roughly October through March, although temperatures and daylight vary from region to region.
Coastal areas are definitely more temperate and rarely fall below 20° F. Snow usually covers much of Southcentral during the winter months, perfect for winter activities like skiing, snowmobiling, and dog mushing!
The Wildlife in Alaska
In Alaska, you’ll be able to see some of the most amazing animals our country has to offer! Alaska is where the wild things are, and the state’s incredible wildlife is as diverse as its landscapes. People travel from around the world to view Alaska’s bear, moose, Dall, sheep, wolf, and caribou, along with impressive marine mammals like humpback whales, orcas, and gray whales.
Alaska's broad, uninterrupted swaths of wilderness are home to animals like lynx and wolves that are usually so shy even locals are thrilled to catch a quick glimpse. Did you know that over 1,000 vertebrate species are found in the state? More than 900,000 caribou roam in 32 herds across vast tundra landscapes. Alaska is also a great place to fish.
Alaska has been described as the best place for a non-fisherman to fish. This is because if you are in the right spot, it is amazingly easy to catch fish. The wildlife is so diverse, but at the top of the food chain are the bears.
Did you know that Alaska contains about 70% of the total North American brown bear population and the majority of the grizzly bears?
Also, Alaska is home to the largest population of bald eagles in the world. Wildlife is all over the state, but Denali National Park is home to most of the state’s wildlife, like black bears, grizzly bears, moose, wolves, and myriad bird species.
Although Alaska is home to a diverse group of wildlife, there are nearly zero reptiles. There are no lizards, freshwater turtles, or snakes here. The only reptiles in Alaska are rare sightings of sea turtles. So if you’re afraid of snakes, you’re in luck!
The History of Alaska
Alaska is the second youngest state we have in the United States. Did you know that Russia controlled most of the area that is now Alaska? This was from the late 1700s until 1867, when it was purchased by the U.S. Secretary of State William Seward for $7.2 million, or about two cents an acre. After losing the Crimean War to Great Britain in 1856, the Russian government didn’t want to sell Alaska to the British, so they turned to the United States, and the Louisiana Purchase was created.
This was an amazing deal and benefited the country's control over Pacific power, but many people who were critics of the purchase believed that the land had nothing to offer. However, the discovery of gold in the 1890s created a stampede of prospectors and settlers.
Alaska officially became a state on January 3rd, 1959. It’s estimated that Alaska has over 2 million visitors per year.
The Culture of Alaska
Many people may not know that Alaska has a vibrant native culture. Today, Alaska still has the highest population of American Indians and Alaska Natives of any state in the United States; around sixteen percent of 730,000 residents are Alaska Natives, with twenty distinct cultures and 300 different dialects.
Many Alaska Native people live in villages scattered along the coastline and rivers of the state, where they still practice traditional subsistence hunting and fishing lifestyles. In general, there are five groups of Alaska Native people identified by region – Iñupiat & St. Lawrence Island Yup'ik in the Arctic; Athabascan in Southcentral and Interior Alaska; Yup’ik & Cup’ik, Unangax̂ and Sugpiaq (Alutiiq) in Southwest Alaska; and Eyak, Haida, Tsimshian, and Tlingit in the Inside Passage.
There are many different ways you can learn about Alaska’s Native culture when you visit! You can attend one of many Native festivals, visit a Cultural Center, and so much more.
The Landscape of Alaska
By area, Alaska holds more than half of America's national park lands. With seventeen national park units and sixteen national wildlife refuges, there are so many options when it comes to seeing the beautiful landscape! Alaska is home to some of the most stunning glaciers in the United States.
Not only can you view them from a distance, but the state also has some unique opportunities to see them up close relatively easily. Glaciers are one of the main reasons to go to Alaska. Alaska is one of the few places in the world where you really can have close-up access to a glacier.
If you’re visiting in the summer, you can also look forward to experiencing Alaska’s midnight sun.
If you’re visiting in the fall or spring, you’ll probably have a better chance of getting to see the amazing Northern Lights. While many places in the north have far longer days in the summer, in Alaska, the sun doesn’t even fully set in the summer. Alaska is also home to the tallest mountain range in North America, with Denali Mountain (formerly known as Mt. McKinley) coming in at 20,310 feet.
The Alaska Range is a 600-mile-long arc of mountains that stretches from the Alaska-Canada border all the way to the Alaska Peninsula. The range is highest at its mid-section, a vast region of towering peaks and massive glaciers that lies within Denali National Park and Preserve.
The Alaskan mountains are one of the most popular places to hike in the country and have some of the most beautiful views in the country.
The Experience of Alaska
Alaska might not sound like everyone’s dream vacation, but once you visit, you’ll fall in love with it. With over 322 million acres of public lands (that’s over three times the size of the state of California!), 46,600 miles of shoreline, and more miles of urban and wilderness trails than we can even begin to count, Alaska is truly a wonderland for the outdoors.
Alaska is unlike any other state in the United States, and there are so many different opportunities to see the state’s beautiful land. You can hike in one of the many National Parks, go fishing, see marine life on a whale-watching tour, eat amazing seafood, go rafting, and so much more.
Our Alaska Adventure Camp
Here at Created for Adventure, we offer an exciting adventure camp to Alaska that is packed full of fun and adventure. Alaska is an amazing place with beautiful, chilly coastlines, mountains, rivers, glaciers, wildlife, and more. Alaska isn’t like your typical vacation spot; there are so many outdoor activities you can do and so many opportunities to explore!
The Alaska Adventure Camp that we offer is perfect for your teen! This ninth-twelfth grade, 14-day adventure will include tent camping in some of the most beautiful campsites in Alaska, including Denali National Park. Your teen will get to experience new adventures with friends while hiking and exploring glaciers, ice climbing & white water rafting.
Your teen will visit the Kenai Fjords National Park by boat to view orcas, humpback whales, seals, and more. This experience offers opportunities for all skill levels. Your teen will learn technical skills, including backcountry cooking, orienteering, wildlife safety, and more.
"Alaska is beautiful. It is hard to describe how beautiful some of the views were! There is no greater feeling than being at the top of a mountain and being able to see for miles without laying eyes on anything man-made." -Lindsay Hall, a camper from Alaska, 2021.
“At first, we were a little nervous about sending our teenage son off to Alaska all alone. He had never flown alone or been in a different state without us. When he left on his adventure with Created for Adventure, he was a very timid and shy teenage boy. He returned a more confident God-seeking young man!! We are so incredibly thankful for the opportunities Created for Adventure gave our son to grow physically, mentally, and, most importantly, spiritually. He is so excited about his next summer's adventure trip, and so are we!!” Jerrilyn, a parent from Estes Park, Colorado.
If you’re interested in one of our Alaska adventures for your teenager, we would love to answer your questions about Created for Adventure. Contact us for more information, or read a student’s blog regarding her experience for yourself.