Five years ago today, I finally made it to the least visited national park unit in the country, Aniakchak National Monument, a collapsed volcanic caldera in the Aleutian Range in Alaska. I really need to blog about the whole story about this.

A vast, barren landscape with a winding river flowing towards a turquoise lake, surrounded by snow-capped mountains under a partly cloudy sky.

This park is very remote, requiring a bush flight to access, and the unpredictability of the weather means you might be waiting many days for even a short flight window. It took six days of nervous waiting for us to make it there, constantly checking the weather and in contact with the pilot every couple hours. Many folks get skunked; a fellow park quester had waited ten days just prior to our arrival and never got an opportunity. We got ours on the very last day we had committed to the endeavor. This might be the best text message I’ve ever received, sent by the pilot.

A text conversation shows one person requesting to meet at 2:30 for a shot at Aniakchak, and the other person responding enthusiastically that they will be there.

I’ll write and post more about this on rscottjones.com, but for now, here are some photos of our time there.

A snow-covered volcanic mountain is surrounded by rugged peaks under a partly cloudy sky. A volcanic mountain with patches of snow stands under a cloudy sky, surrounded by a rugged landscape with sparse vegetation. Aerial view of a lake with turquoise water surrounded by mountainous terrain and patches of green and brown land, seen from underneath an aircraft wing. A man wearing a blue jacket stands on a sandy riverbank holding a sign with the number 417, with mountains and a lake in the background. A small white seaplane is docked on the edge of a calm lake surrounded by rocky terrain, green grass, and distant mountains under a partly cloudy sky. A barren volcanic landscape features a snow-capped mountain under a cloudy sky. A tranquil lake is surrounded by snow-capped mountains and a grassy hillside dotted with purple wildflowers under a partly cloudy sky. Four people wearing sunglasses are smiling for a selfie with a seaplane and snowy mountains in the background.

Visiting Aniakchak was the lynchpin for me completing my quest to visit all 400+ national park units, which happened a few days later in Glacier Bay National Park.