Fifteen recreation cabins are already scattered across the Kodiak archipelago’s backcountry – and soon, two more will join their ranks. The cabins are set to open this month. And unlike many of Kodiak’s existing public use cabins, which are reached only by boat or floatplane, these cabins should be a little more accessible to everyone.
Ben Shryock is the park superintendent for Alaska State Parks’s southwest region. He says one of the cabins will open on Woody Island – about a mile across the water from the city of Kodiak.
“And so that cabin is going to be on a spit of land between Long Lake and an ocean beach that has boat access,” he said. “And then another public use cabin is at Pasagshak River State Recreation site.”
The Pasagshak cabin is located just off the road and will be handicap accessible. Both cabins can sleep up to 8 people, according to Shryock. They’re each accessible year-round and come equipped with a woodstove, meat cache and outhouse – and they’re dog friendly, too.
Unlike many of Alaska’s backcountry cabins that areowned by the U.S. Forest Service, the new cabins are run by Alaska State Parks. The nonprofit fundraising group Friends of Kodiak State Parks helped purchase the materials to build the cabins back in the spring of 2020. Each cabin kit cost $15,000, not including labor and other associated construction costs.
Brian Himelbloom is the board chair of the group. He said the pandemic held up the project, and he’s excited they’re finally about to open.
“They’re beautiful cabins and it’s just a real nice addition to what we have here on the archipelago,” said Himelbloom.
Shryock says his office has been fielding calls for the last couple months asking how to reserve the two new cabins. He anticipates both cabins will be up on the Alaska State Parks site – and available to book – as soon as next week.