Alaska's Don Sheldon Ampitheatre Was Just Voted Among The 7 Wonders Of The World For 2020
By Megan McDonald|Published April 14, 2020
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Megan McDonald
Author
Megan McDonald is a writer, photographer, and owner of humu media, an Alaska-based digital media agency. She spends her free time traveling with her husband and daughter around the US and the world.
Alaska is filled with an unbelievable amount of breathtaking natural features. The Don Sheldon Amphitheater is so awe-inspiring that Condé Nast Traveler has named it one of the Seven Wonders Of The World For 2020. Offering jagged mountain peaks, and a sky so big you can’t take it all in at once, this natural wonder deserves a number one spot on your Alaska bucket list.
Located deep inside Denali National Park, the Don Sheldon Amphitheater is a stunning natural amphitheater surrounding Ruth Glacier.
Ruth Glacier is a 40-mile long glacier that starts almost 5 vertical kilometers below the summit of Denali. It spills out from the mountain range in a wondrous feature called "The Great Gorge."
Don Sheldon Amphitheater is named for the pilot who pioneered glacial landings in Alaska, particularly on nearby Denali.
He, and now his family, owns a 4.9-acre rock in the gorgeous amphitheater. This area is located in the Alaska Range and showcases some of the most incredible beauty that Alaska has to offer.
The 5,800-foot rock outcropping that it sits on is called a nunatak. It is a rock outcropping above a surface of snow or ice, and this one sits right in the center of this stunning natural feature.
The Chalet offers adventurers luxury accommodations while they explore the wilderness outside their front door.
You can hike the amphitheater with a guide, ski untouched backcountry terrain, and enjoy world-class food in the middle of some of the most wild terrain in Alaska.
You can visit the Don Sheldon Amphitheater in a number of ways.
You can book a room at the Sheldon Chalet, reserve a stay at the Mountain House, or fly with Sheldon Air Service to explore the area. While the first two options require a large amount of funds and plenty of advance notice (sometimes up to two years in advance,) the flight into the amphitheater is incredible and accessible to all groups.
If you have the ability to ever fly out to visit this wonderful landscape, don't pass up the opportunity!
This natural wonder is even more impressive up close and personal. A flight to this hard-to-reach place is worth every penny.
Have you ever had the chance to see the Don Sheldon Amphitheater in person? What was it like? Did you stay in the Mountain House or Chalet? Let us know in the comments below!
