Alaska Public Use Cabins

I was feeling pretty good about myself because I have been to a few more Alaska Public Use Cabins (PUC) than my years on this earth, but then I realized my four year old has already been to 20, and my one year old has been to 12, now I’m just jealous of their cabin to age ratio.

My husband and I have been exploring Alaska PUCs since 2008, two years before we moved to the state. In fact, when we took our vacation to Juneau in 2008 we had no idea we would be living in Alaska in just a few short years. Now, with a decade under our belt we still have so much to see in this massive playground of a state called Alaska.

I was first drawn to PUC mostly because of my fear of bears. I loved to backpack and tent camp in the lower 48, but the thought of an Alaskan grizzly nuzzling next to me as I slept wasn’t very comforting. I had been exposed to public use cabins growing up in Idaho and stayed in a few fire towers in Oregon. Little did I know how expansive the public use cabin network was in Alaska.

When we first stated exploring the cabins I thought little of backpacking seven plus miles into a location. Now, with two kids in tow, our adventures have changed slightly; but nonetheless continue.

Explore the map below that marks each of the PUCs and yurts we have stayed at in Alaska.