GREAT LAKES

MAT-SU — The Nancy Lake State Recreation Area is one of the Valley’s hidden treasures, and with summer right around the corner, now is the time to start making plans to visit this outdoor paradise.

Nancy Lake State Recreation Area — accessible at Mile 66.5 Parks Highway — includes a network or more than 130 ponds and lakes and offers nearly 40 miles of trails. For kayakers and canoeists in the summer, the series of lakes make portaging relatively easy, allowing you to get deep in the backcountry with a little effort.

The Alaska State Parks maintains 13 public-use cabins in the recreation area, ranging from a short hike from the roadway to those that require several portages of canoes and are approximately four hours off the road system. The 13 cabins are on four of the larger lakes – Bald, Nancy, Lynx and Red Shirt.

The cabins are immensely popular, and often book up to six months advance. If you are considering renting one of the public-use cabins, you may want to do it sooner rather than later.

The cabins are rustic — most are insulated frame buildings equipped with wooden sleeping platforms, a wood-burning stove, a table and benches or chairs. You might want to bring in an extra load of wood because the cabins don’t come equipped with firewood.

Another option for overnights is the Nancy Lake Campground, which offers 30 sites and sells firewood for visitors.

For anglers, the lakes contain rainbow and lake trout, whitefish, northern pike (particularly at Red Shirt Lake) and Dolly Varden. Birdwatchers will also find the area appealing, as loons, grebes and terns call the recreation area their home during the summer months. Also, keep an eye out for beaver, moose and bear.

Canoes are available for rent through Tippecanoe Rentals in Willow.

They can have a canoe waiting for you at the trailheads or lakes by calling 495-6688.

For more information about the Nancy Lake State Recreation Area, interested people can call the Alaska State Parks Mat-Su office at 745-3975 or visit dnr.alaska.gov/parks.

Casey Ressler (casey@alaskavisit.com) is the marketing and communications manager at the Mat-Su CVB.