Denali Highway (AK8)

I took two days to drive the 133 miles from Paxson to Cantwell.  It has only been open for a couple of days. This is BLM land so I was able to camp anywhere I chose and took advantage of that.  Parts of the road were decent enough to get up to 30mph, but most of it was 10-15mph potholes, ruts, and washboard.  The first 30 miles are paved; the rest is gravel/dirt.

 

 

Every brochure I read said the max speed limit on the Denali Hwy was 35mph ... and then I passed these signs

 

The Alaska Range – Several peaks in view have elevations greater than 12,000 feet.  This range extends in a great arc from Cook Inlet through the Mount Denali massif and on to the Canada border, a distance of 650 miles.

The Gulkana Glacier, seen from this point, was formed from the buildup of snowfields high in the Alaska Range.  Glacial erosion contributed to the rugged, jagged appearance of the Alaska Range and created the long U-shaped valley seen from the road.

 

The first night I stopped at Milepost 37, near Maclaren Summit (4,086 feet), the second highest summit in Alaska.

 MP 42 – Maclaren Glacier (about 16 miles)

MP 49 – Waterfowl Lakes

The only part of the Caribou I seem to capture on film

MP 79.5 – Susitna River – The Susitna River is a major drainage system in the Denali region.  The river flows south from the Susitna Glacier and the Alaska Range, eventually turning west through the Talkeetna Mountain and then south to Cook Inlet.

 

The second night I spent at a section of the road with excellent views of Denali, North America’s highest peak.  It was a great place to stop; even the tour buses stopped here for pictures.

This is a picture of the 3am “sunset”

By coming early I had hoped to see a lot more wildlife but that hasn’t been the case so far.  I did see a moose with her baby, a couple of black bear cubs playing in the road, a fox and a lynx (not at the same time), tons of Artic ground squirrels and rabbits, and birds, but that’s about it.