Outdoors/Adventure

Outdoors digest

Rent ice fishing huts at Birch, Quartz lakes

Looking for something to do over Christmas break? Alaska State Parks is suggesting a weekend getaway to an Interior lake for ice fishing.

Alaska State Parks has 10 ice fishing huts, as well as public-use cabins, available for rent at Birch and Quartz lakes. Cabins go for $35 to $45 per night and ice fishing huts are available for $20 per day.

Five ice huts are at Birch Lake near Mile 305.5 Richardson Highway and five huts are located at Quartz Lake near Mile 277.8 Richardson Highway. The ice huts are constructed by the Department of Fish and Game and managed by the Division of Parks and Outdoor Recreation. They rent for $20 per day and can be reserved online at www.alaskastateparks.org. Those wishing to make reservations in person may do so at the DNR Public Information Office in Fairbanks, 3700 Airport Way in Fairbanks.

Ice fishing huts measure 8-by-12 feet. They have a wood-burning stove and four ice fishing holes. Other equipment and supplies must be provided by the angler. Suggested items include an ice auger or spud bar, stools or seats, a lantern or flashlight, a shovel, firewood (12-inch stove length), and matches.

For more information, call the DNR Public Information Center in Fairbanks at 451-2705 or go to www.alaskastateparks.org.

Visit state parks

Alaska State Parks is encouraging Alaskans to celebrate the New Year by enjoying the outdoors in their local state parks. State park staffers are hosting two free, guided hikes, in Delta Junction and Homer, as well as a guided paddling excursion in Kachemak Bay State Park. Events listed below are part of the First Day Hike Initiative sponsored by state park systems throughout the United States.

1.5-mile hike, ski or snowshoe, Quartz Lake State Recreation Area

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• Date/time: Jan. 1, noon

• Location: Meet at Glatfelder Trailhead. Quartz Lake State Recreation Area is 10 miles north of Delta Junction, reached by a 3-mile road at mile 277.8 of the Richardson Hwy. Follow the signs to the boat ramp to the parking lot adjacent to the GlatfelderTrailhead. Visitors will ski, hike, or snowshoe to the historic Glatfelder log cabin.

• Difficulty: Easy

• Minimum age: All ages

• Restrictions: None

• Things to bring: Water, a snack to share

• Cancellation information: 907-415-2698

3-mile hike, ski or snowshoe, Eveline State Recreation Area

• Date/time: Jan. 1, noon

• Location: Meet at Eveline State Recreation Area parking lot. Take East End Road 13.8 miles past McNeil Canyon School, take the left onto Alpine Meadow Drive and go 0.3 miles to the trailhead.

• Difficulty: Easy

• Minimum Age: All ages

• Restrictions: No dogs

• Cancellation Information: 907-235-7042

1-mile Kachemak Bay State Park: Water Trail

• Date/time: Jan. 2, 10 a.m.

• Location: Meet at the start of the Water Trail on the Homer Spit at "The Rock," next to the fishing pond.

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• Difficulty: Moderate

• Minimum Age: 15

• Restrictions: No dogs

• Things to bring: Kayak and paddle, life jacket, snacks, water, rain gear.

• Cancellation Information: 907-491-1355

Alaska Mining and Diving donates snowmachine

Alaska Mining and Diving Supply has donated a loaner mountain snowmachine to the Chugach National Forest Avalanche Information Center for the winter. The loaner snowmachine will give avalanche forecasters the ability to travel into remote areas and assess the snowpack and investigate recent avalanches.

Comments on Chugach National Forest sought

The U.S. Forest Service is in the second phase of revising the 2002 Chugach National Forest Land Management Plan. A 60-day public comment period on the plan runs through Feb. 19, 2016.

The proposed plan addresses social and economic sustainability, ecosystem services, and species diversity in light of changes in climate, land ownership, and recreational use patterns, and threats to ecosystem integrity from invasive species and pollution.

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To send comments:

• Follow instructions on the Forest Plan Revision webpage at http://go.usa.gov/cBWvQ.

• Send or deliver written comments to the Chugach National Forest's Supervisor's Office, Forest Plan Revision, 161 East 1st Street, Door 8, Anchorage, AK 99501.

The final forest plan is expected by next summer, with a draft record of decision to follow in April 2017. Information is available at Chugach National Forest website: www.fs.usda.gov/main/chugach

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