17-664: The George Parks Highway (numbered Interstate A-4 and signed Alaska Route 3 ), usually called simply the Parks Highway , runs 323 miles (520 km) from the Glenn Highway 35 miles (56 km) north of Anchorage to Fairbanks in the Alaska Interior . The highway, originally known as the Anchorage-Fairbanks Highway, was completed in 1971, and given its current name in 1975. The highway, which mostly parallels
34-551: A popular destination for outdoor activities. The Richardson Highway , Seward Highway , Portage Glacier Highway , and the Glenn Highway run through the Chugach Mountains. The Anton Anderson Memorial Tunnel of the Portage Glacier Highway provides railroad and automobile access underneath Maynard Mountain between Portage Lake and the city of Whittier on Prince William Sound . On Mount Gordon Lyon, at about
51-538: A total length of 328 miles (528 km). The longest stretch of freeway in Alaska runs mostly along the Glenn Highway, beginning in north Anchorage , continuing onto the Parks Highway at the interchange of the two roads, and ending in the city limits of Wasilla , for a total of approximately 38 miles (61 km). This 38-mile (61 km) portion of the Glenn Highway is the only road access to Anchorage for most of
68-679: Is Mount Marcus Baker , at 13,094 feet (3,991 m), but with an average elevation of 4,006 feet (1,221 m), most of its summits are not especially high. Even so, its position along the Gulf of Alaska ensures more snowfall in the Chugach than anywhere else in the world, an annual average of over 1500 cm (800 in). The mountains are protected in the Chugach State Park and the Chugach National Forest . Near to Anchorage , they are
85-581: Is a common misconception that the name "Parks Highway" comes from the road's proximity to the Denali state and national parks; it is in fact in honor of George Alexander Parks , governor of the Territory of Alaska from 1925 to 1933. However, the aptness of the name was recognized when it was chosen. Mileposts along the Parks Highway do not begin with 0 (zero). Instead, they begin with Mile 35 (km 56), continuing
102-589: The Alaska Railroad , is one of the most important roads in Alaska. It is the main route between Anchorage and Fairbanks (Alaska's two largest metropolitan areas ), the principal access to Denali National Park and Preserve and Denali State Park , and the main highway in the Matanuska-Susitna Valley . The route's Interstate designation is not signed; rather, its entire length is signed as Alaska Route 3. It
119-451: The Klondike gold fields (the eventual Richardson Highway ). The highway was paved in the 1950s. The " Talkeetna Mountains Hadrosaur " specimen was discovered in 1994 in a quarry being excavated for road material. That fall, excavation began, and was resumed in the summer of 1996 . The quarry is near the Glenn Highway, approximately 150 miles northeast of Anchorage . This specimen was
136-727: The Pacific Coast Ranges of the western edge of North America . The range is about 250 miles (402 km) long and 60 miles (97 km) wide, and extends from the Knik and Turnagain Arms of the Cook Inlet on the west to Bering Glacier , Tana Glacier , and the Tana River on the east. It is bounded on the north by the Matanuska , Copper , and Chitina rivers. The highest point of the Chugach Mountains
153-654: The US Army having been near the former Army ( Nike missile Site Summit ) in the mountains. The name "Chugach" comes from Chugach Sugpiaq "Cuungaaciiq," Alaska Natives inhabiting the Kenai Peninsula and Prince William Sound on the south coast of Alaska. The Chugach people are an Alutiiq (Pacific Eskimo) people who speak the Chugach dialect of the Alutiiq language. In 1898 United States Army Captain William R. Abercrombie spelled
170-512: The 1930s, to reach the agricultural colony at Palmer . During World War II it was completed to Glennallen as part of a massive program of military road and base building that also resulted in the Alaska Highway , and connected Anchorage to the continental highway system. It is named for Captain Edwin Glenn (1857–1926), leader of an 1898 U.S. Army expedition to find an Alaska route to
187-496: The 4,000 feet (1,200 m) level, is a 300 feet (91 m) five-pointed star using around 350 light globes. This faces Anchorage to be visible from the city at night. It is illuminated to commemorate Christmas , being lit from Thanksgiving until Christmas Day ; and, on 9/11 . Maintenance is undertaken by the US Air Force ’s Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson , although it was established in around 1960 and formerly maintained by
SECTION 10
#1732844902930204-467: The first associated skeleton of an individual dinosaur discovered in all of Alaska. Glenn Highway is part of the unsigned part of the Interstate Highway System as Interstate A-1. [REDACTED] Media related to Glenn Highway at Wikimedia Commons Chugach Mountains The Chugach Mountains of southern Alaska are the northernmost of the several mountain ranges that make up
221-611: The highway's intersection with the Glenn Highway in Palmer and a stretch known as the Robert J. Mitchell Expressway in Fairbanks leading to the highway's junction with the Richardson Highway ( AK 2 ). George Parks Highway is part of the unsigned part of the Interstate Highway System as Interstate A-4. In the "Mile" column, the first number is the actual mileage of the Parks Highway, and
238-470: The milepost numbering of the Glenn Highway where the two highways intersect near Palmer . The 0 (zero) mile marker for the Glenn Highway is at its terminus in downtown Anchorage at the intersection of East 5th Avenue and Gambell Street. Thus mileposts along the Parks Highway reflect distance from Anchorage , which is not actually on the Parks Highway. There are two sections of the highway that are built to freeway standards. These include an area near
255-585: The name "Chugatch" and applied it to the mountains. It is possible that the Koniagmiut (Sugpiat or Alutiit of the Kodiak Archipelago and the Alaska Peninsula) may also have called these northern Sugpiat "Cuungaaciirmiut" in ancient times but it is also possible that this was a neologism during Russian times . The twelve highest peaks in the Chugach Mountains are listed below: Other important peaks in
272-403: The second mile is based on the mileposts along the highway itself. All exits are unnumbered. Glenn Highway The Glenn Highway (part of Alaska Route 1 ) is a highway in the U.S. state of Alaska , extending 179 miles (288 km) from Anchorage near Merrill Field to Glennallen on the Richardson Highway . The Tok Cut-Off is often considered part of the Glenn Highway, for
289-625: The state (with the exception of the Kenai Peninsula on the Seward Highway ), and as such is the main traffic corridor for Anchorage's suburbs in the Chugiak-Eagle River and Mat-Su areas. The highest point on the highway is 3,332 feet (1,016 m) at Eureka Summit , which sits on the divide between the Chugach and Talkeetna mountain ranges. The highway originated as the Palmer Road in
#929070