Sound Eco Adventures presents

A Virtual Drive from Anchorage to Whittier

Part I: Anchorage to Bird Point

[ Jump to Part II: Girdwood to the Whittier Tunnel ]
[ Jump to Part III: Whittier ]

The trip from Anchorage to Whittier is one of the most beautiful drives in the United States, by reputation and by official government edict (Seward Highway is a National Scenic Byway). The virtual drive on these pages focuses on getting you from Anchorage to Whittier with as few surprises as possible. The views are from the driver's point of view.

The weather along the route is not usually as beautiful as what you see in these pictures. Frequently it will be partly cloudy in Anchorage, blustry in Bird and Girdwood, and raining steadily at Portage Lake and Whittier.

  This virtual drive is courtesy Sound Eco Adventures, a biologist-led tour operator located in Whittier. Sound Eco Adventures does various kinds of tours but specializes in whale watching.

Click the thumbnails to see enlargements. Look beneath the map, and on the enlargement pages, for captions.

Stretch of three-lane road just before Girdwood, Alaska Cutoff to Bird Point rest area, Seward Highway, Alaska A straightaway just before Bird Point, Alaska Mileage sign, Bird, Alaska--improved by adding mileage to Whittier! Gas station and cafe, Bird, Alaska Indian Creek, Indian, Alaska Indian Road cutoff, Indian, Alaska The Seward Highway, winding around just before Indian, Alaska One of many pullouts, this one between McHugh Creek and Indian, Alaska Moose Point and the cutoff to the Johnson Trail trailhead, Anchorage, Alaska Potter Valley Road cutoff, Anchorage, Alaska Potter Marsh, Anchorage, Alaska Turnoff to Potter Marsh, Anchorage, Alaska

Anchorage to Bird Point

1. North end of Potter Marsh. We begin our drive on the Seward Highway at the southern edge of Anchorage, about a half-mile south of Rabbit Creek Road. The turnoff to the left leads to a parking area and boardwalk over Potter Marsh, to the right a gun range. At this point the road narrows from four lanes to two.
2. Potter Marsh. A boardwalk, accessible from the previous turnoff, allows visitors to walk over a small area of the marsh. On the right is the Alaska Railroad.
3. Potter Valley Road cutoff. To the left is the last road that is part of Anchorage proper, Potter Valley Road. This is at the southern edge of the Potter Marsh.
4. Moose Point and the cutoff to the Johnson Trail trailhead. This is just past a state park office on the right side of the road. Look for moose grazing in the marsh just off to the left of this picture. The road that winds up to the left leads in a few hundred yards to the Old Johnson Trail trailhead, which is one of the nicer places to hike near the Anchorage area. A weigh station is just around the next bend.
5. One of the many pullouts between McHugh Creek and Indian. This is a busy two-lane road, and since it is frequently difficult to pass safely, a sign on the southern route instructs slow drivers to use pullouts such as this one. In a few places you can look for dall sheep on the cliffs above these pullouts.
6. The Seward Highway, winding around just before Indian. Especially between Potter Marsh and Indian, the road makes many twists and turns, running alongside cliffs and the water (or mudflats at low tide).
7. Indian Road cutoff, Indian, Alaska. This is where a road leads up the Indian valley and marks the beginning of the little town of Indian. Just before this point there are some "tourist mining" activities on the left. Around the next few bends are some restaurants and other shops.
8. Indian Creek. A small creek; as you can see in the picture, there's a hiking trail off to the right, and some local businesses ahead to the left. After that, as of summer 2003 (and for many months to come) you can expect to see road construction for a few miles between Indian and Bird. 		  9. Gas station and cafe, Bird, Alaska. Not much past Indian you'll come to Bird, another valley town with more amenities--a gas station and cafe, here. There are many cafes and restaurants scattered about Indian, Bird, and (a little further down) Girdwood.
10. Mileage sign, Bird, Alaska--improved by adding mileage to Whittier! Just a few hundred yards after the cafe in the previous picture you'll see this sign giving mileages to Girdwood, Seward, and Homer. Not listed on the actual sign is the closest small boat harbor to Anchorage: Whittier, which is 32 miles on from this sign. So we took the liberty to add it to the sign (in this picture, at least).
11. A straightaway just before Bird Point. Here is one of a few long straightaways (sometimes) permitting the faster vehicles to get around the slower ones. There's often no opportunity on busy weekends, when long lines of traffic travel in both directions. Sound Eco Adventures recommends patience--the scenery is nice, after all. Alaskans tend to drive slower than folks in the lower 48. (This particular stretch of road will be changing due to the construction.)
12. Cutoff to Bird Point rest area. There is a well-developed boardwalk (wheelchair-accessible) at Bird Point, offering panoramic views of Turnagain Arm and surrounding mountains. Look for signs as the highway takes a broad sweep to the left. You can reach the area by taking a right just after the Bird Point sign, as you can see in the picture; this is about a quarter mile before the area itself.
13. Stretch of three-lane road just before Girdwood. Just past the Bird Point rest area the road widens into a three-lane highway, offering drivers a chance to pass and be passed. The speed limit also increases to 65 MPH here. Look for the ski trails on the side of Mt. Alyeska (above Girdwood), pretty much straight ahead from the road widening.


Go to Part II: Girdwood to the Whittier Tunnel
Go to Part III: Whittier

Photos, text, HTML, and Perl scripts made by Larry Sanger and Rita Sanger. Images and text copyright © 2003 by Sound Eco Adventures. All rights reserved.