Starting July 26th, Permits Will Be Available For Federal Subsistence In Wrangell-St. Elias

Information From The Park Service On How To Apply For Subsistence Permits 

Copper Center NPS building. (Photo, Mike Townsend, NPS) 

The National Park Service at Wrangell-St. Elias sent the following information about federal subsistence permits in the park and preserve:
 

COPPER CENTER, AK – Federal subsistence registration permits for permit hunts in Wrangell-St. Elias National Park and Preserve will be available starting Monday, July 26. Permits will be available for moose hunts in Unit 11 and a portion of Unit 12, a goat hunt in Unit 11, and sheep hunts for people 60 years of age or older in Units 11 and 12.  

Due to ongoing public health advisories and staffing delays related to Covid-19, the permitting process has been adapted to ensure the safety of permit applicants and park staff. Modifications to the permitting process vary by location.  
 
For the Copper Center Visitor Center and in the Kennecott-McCarthy area, permit applicants must call ahead to reserve their permits.  

• For permits in Copper Center and general information, call 822-7250.  

• For permits in the Kennecott-McCarthy area, call 205-7631.  

• When you call, please have your current hunting license number available.  

 
Permits are also available at the NPS Ranger Stations in Slana and Chitina.  

• Applicants do not need to call head for these locations.  

The Copper Center Visitor Center has window services seven days a week from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. through September 19. The Slana Ranger Station has window services seven days a week from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. through September 25. Permits will also be available at the Chitina Ranger Station, which has window services seven days a week from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., through Labor Day. Permits in the Kennecott-McCarthy area are available by appointment only. For permits after these dates, call the main park number, 822-5234. 
 
When you come to pick up your permit(s), please bring your State of Alaska resident hunting license, a photo ID (such as a driver’s license), and proof of local physical address. Examples of documentation of physical address include a voter registration card, an electric or other utility bill listing your physical address, or current rental or lease agreement.  
 
There is no federal registration permit for the general sheep hunts in Units 11 and 12. Federally qualified hunters wishing to harvest sheep in Units 11 and 12 during the regular season may do so under the federal harvest limit, but must obtain a state harvest ticket and comply with the state’s reporting and horn sealing requirements. The state sealing requirement for Unit 11 applies to all rams, even rams with less than full-curl horns. Sealing is not required for sheep harvested under a federal registration permit during the elder hunts.  
 
This year the joint state/federal permit (RM291) for the moose hunt in the portion of Unit 11 draining into the east bank of the Copper River upstream from and including the Slana River drainage and Unit 12 within the Nabesna River drainage west of the east bank of the Nabesna River upstream from the southern boundary of Tetlin National Wildlife Refuge is also available on-line at https://secure.wildlife.alaska.gov/ePermit. Hunters with access to a computer and printer are encouraged to obtain this permit on-line. 
 
Permit applicants must be federally qualified subsistence users and meet special eligibility requirements for lands managed by the National Park Service. They must have their primary permanent residence in rural Alaska, and their community must be listed in the “Species/ Customary & Traditional Use Determination” (C&T) column of the Federal Subsistence Management Regulations Booklet for Wildlife for the intended species and location. The regulation booklet can be obtained at https://www.doi.gov/subsistence/wildlife. Individuals wanting to hunt on National Park lands (as opposed to in the National Preserve) must additionally have their primary residence in one of the park’s 23 resident zone communities. 
 
Hunters are reminded that airplanes may be used to access the National Preserve, but not the National Park, for the purposes of subsistence harvest of fish and wildlife. Special rules apply to the use of off-road vehicles in the Black Mountain area and at the end of the Tanada Lake Trail. If you plan to hunt in those areas, please ask when you pick up your permit or see the park website for more information:https://www.nps.gov/wrst/learn/management/subsistence-access.htm.  
 
For more information, contact the park Visitor Center in Copper Center at (907) 822-7250.