[Glenallen, AK, Jul 29, 2025]
We were sad to leave our cute B&B in Seward, but we had a 5.5-hour drive to Glennallen without stops. We were headed to Wrangell-St Elias National Park, my 54th!
The towns of Glennallen, Copper Valley and Chitina are the gateways to the park. Copper valley is home to the visitor center, which we were hoping to make it to before it closed at 5 pm. Chitina, further south, is where the infamous McCarthy road begins. This 60 mile dirt road is one of only 2 leading into the park. Its reputation is such that most rental car companies do not allow their cars to be driven on it. The road sits atop old railroad tracks, and spikes from those tracks commonly cause flat tires. In many places, the road is narrow and rough. Although the state of Alaska is taking much better care of it now and the loose spikes are not that much of a problem any more, it still takes over 3 hours to cover the 60 miles. There is a shuttle option, but that didn’t sound appealing, either. We finally settled on flying out of Glennallen, which only takes 30 minutes.
The drive from Seward is on two very scenic highways. We had already driven the first one, which connects Seward to Anchorage. It was just as pretty driving the other way.
After Anchorage, we got on Glenn highway. We soon reached Chugach state park, where we stopped for a quick hike to stretch our legs. We were relieved that there were no bugs on the 2-mile trail to Thunderbird Falls. The waterfall was pretty but the views were a little obscured.
We had lunch in Palmer, home to Alaska’s state fair and the last bigger city we’d encounter. Our meal at Turkey Red was delicious! We shared the spanakopita and a cheese filled crepe, and I had the beef stew. A hot drink called a Hot Wooley hit the spot, too. It was a delicious mix of nettles, rose water, almond milk, dates, sugar and cinnamon.
After Palmer, we started the mountainous portion of our drive. The highway followed the Matanuska river for a while. Soon, we passed the Matanuska glacier, which feeds the river. It’s the biggest glacier accessible by car but sadly, the land between the road and the glacier is privately owned. Therefore, the glacier is only accessible if you pay $45 per person to park and $115 per person for a guided your. The Matanuska glacier state recreation site nearby is much cheaper to park and there is a short trail, but it doesn’t take you close to the glacier. We made do with the view from the road.
A quick stop for coffee at Grand View Campground allowed us to stretch our legs again.
As we continued driving east on Glenn Highway, we finally started to see the Wrangell and St Elias ranges. The mountains were huge!
Later at the visitor center, we learned that the park is 6 times the size of Yellowstone and contains 8 of the 16 highest peaks on the continent. We made it there a little after 4 pm – right on time! We tried to watch the park movie, but it didn’t seem like it had been updated since the 1970s, so we gave up on it.
Afterwards, we checked into our bed and breakfast in Glennallen. We had dinner at the only restaurant in town, the Caribou Grill. It was a long day of driving but the dramatic scenery more than made up for it.
