Above: Sunrise over Kachemak Bay off the Homer Spit.

We could have filled several issues of Alaska magazine with driving excursions in the Great Land. Instead, we decided to focus on a few tried-and-true road trips and will direct you to our sister publication The MILEPOST® as the definitive guide to making your way mile by mile throughout every region of the state, along with the places to stop for rest, food, lodging, and activities—as well as how to stay safe and be prepared in remote regions. On the following pages, you’ll find easily accessible journeys with manageable mileage and plenty to see and do enroute and upon arrival. Let’s hit the road!

KENAI PENINSULA

Welcome to the popular playground of southcentral Alaska. Easy access from Anchorage along with a bevy of activities make the Kenai a hot spot for local road-trippers and out-of-towners alike. Two highways lead to different endpoints of the peninsula with equally worthwhile destinations: Seward and Homer. You’ll do a little backtracking to hit both cities, but rest assured, the drive is never the same twice, and along the way are opportunities for hiking, fishing, rafting, dining, and even gold-panning.

1. SEWARD
127 miles from Anchorage

While it might technically be possible to do this route in under three hours, why rush it? Leaving Anchorage, you’ll encounter Potter Marsh, an excellent 564-acre birding spot with boardwalks for viewing and photography. Entering the first section of the Kenai along Turnagain Arm, you’ll escape into an otherworldly milieu and perhaps start to feel that true vacation vibe. Thankfully, the road engineers constructed multiple pullouts along the route, so drivers don’t get so distracted that they end up in the estuary. Turnagain Arm churns with waves and tidal bores fit for wind and kite surfers, as well as Beluga whales, whose ghostly forms can be seen with the naked eye or through telescopes installed at Beluga Point. On the opposite side of the highway, the rocky cliffs of the Chugach provide footing for nimble, gravity-defying Dall sheep and human rock climbers seeking adventure. Small and scenic towns and attractions deserve a detour, like Girdwood, the eclectic enclave near Alyeska Resort; Portage Glacier for cruising to the toe of the ice; the Alaska Wildlife Conservation Center, delighting kids with close encounters with muskox, bears, elk, wolves, and raptors; and Hope, a charming mountain community steeped in mining history.

Mid-summer, expansive swaths of neon fuchsia fireweed blooms demand attention, and the Lower Summit Lake parking area provides time and space for proper admiration. From there, you’ll traverse Moose Pass and drop down into Seward, known as the Gateway to Kenai Fjords National Park, a national gem that can be explored by land or water from the town. Boat tours depart daily from the Seward Boat Harbor in Resurrection Bay to expose visitors to a small portion of the park’s nearly 700,000 acres.

The small-vessel cruises afford sightings of whales, sea otters, puffins, Steller sea lions, and harbor seals, as well as a crash-course in ice calving in front of Holgate or Aialik glaciers. The other way to access the park is to drive to Exit Glacier, just a few miles from downtown. Gentle walking paths ascend through forested terrain to open vistas of the frozen, jagged terminus of the Harding Ice Field. Along the trail, markers denote the timeline of Exit Glacier’s melting retreat over decades and miles.

While in Seward, enjoy shoreline walks or paddle Resurrection Bay; visit the Alaska SeaLife Center; try dogsledding at Ididaride Kennels (Seavey-family owned); get coffee at Resurrect Art Coffee House, lunch at Zudy’s Café, and dinner at Chinooks.

After saying goodbye to Seward, back-track on the Seward Highway until you reach the cutoff for the Sterling Highway to Homer. There are some amazing places to stop along the Sterling, and you can—and should—spend days wandering the Kenai National Wildlife Refuge, fishing on the Russian River, visiting the Russian Orthodox churches in Kenai and Ninilchik, and bird watching at Anchor Point. That said, it’s the view that takes a starring role on this drive as you near Homer—which makes a person grateful for the midnight sun so you don’t miss it. Photo ops abound from pullouts over-looking the blustery waters of Cook Inlet with Mount Iliamna and Mount Redoubt, active snowcapped volcanoes, towering more than 10,000-feet above sea level. Cue the awe and wonder—better than any July 4th fireworks.

2. HOMER
179 miles from Seward

Homer is the big sister of Seward, a bit more spread out and populated, with more amenities and activities for throngs of tourists. Sportfishing and whale-watching charters abound, taking anglers and cetacean-lovers on water-borne adventures in Kachemak Bay. Everywhere you look, whether in a boat or on land in and around Homer, you’ll find a big, jaw-dropping cliché of a view. The best one, the 360-degree mother-of-all vistas can be found at the end of the Homer Spit, on the deck of The Chart Room Restaurant at Land’s End Resort. The spit juts out into the bay, where sea otters, bald eagles, and spouting whales cruise on by. On the spit and in town, shops, galleries, bars, attrac- tions, and eateries fill every inch of space. A few favorites: Salty Dawg Saloon, Seafarer’s Memorial, Fat Olives, Two Sisters Bakery, Alaska Salt Co., Salmon Sisters Fish Shop and Flagship Shop, and La Baleine Café. Homer is also a jumping off point for day trips to coastal Katmai bear viewing.

GULF OF ALASKA

While the Kodiak Island Archipelago lies smack dab in the Gulf of Alaska, you can still take an epic road trip there. After all, it’s the second largest U.S. island next to Hawaii’s Big Island. Alaska Airlines flies to Kodiak from Anchorage three times daily, and a handful of rental car companies offer vehicles to explore the roughly 90 miles of pavement. (You also can bring your own vehicle from Homer on a nine-hour ferry.)

3. KODIAK
90 miles from road system

The nice thing about downtown Kodiak is that it doesn’t feel like a tourist trap. One reason for this is that Kodiak reverberates with Alutiiq culture, making a stop at the Alutiiq Museum a must. The museum cares for more than 250,000 items dating back thousands of years providing visitors a glimpse into the rich Indigenous history of the land, language, archeology, and art of its people. In the downtown area, you’ll also find the boat harbor with its resident sea lions, otters, and the occasional orca whale pod, along with a brewery, cidery, a handful of restaurants and a couple hotels, a convention center, bookstore, and the amenities necessary for 5,500 people living on an island (grocery stores, car repair shops, home furnishings, hardware store, hospital, schools).

Getting out of downtown heading north on Monashka Bay Road leads to Fort Abercrombie State Historical Park, an abandoned WWII coastal defense post that never saw enemy fire and provides exceptional whale viewing into the Pacific from the tops of the rugged cliffs at Miller Point. Puffins and bald eagles use the area for fishing and several gentle trails lead through lush green Sitka spruce forests heavy with moss and lichen. Driving farther north, spectacular rolling verdant mountains rise from glacier-blue waters until the road ends at White Sands Beach in Monashka Bay. The white sand here, fine, soft, and pure, is actually petrified ash from Katmai’s Novarupta volcano eruption of 1912. Stroll the beach or picnic, but also watch for Kodiak brown bears, known to frequent the area.

South of downtown Kodiak, take the cutoff road to Anton Larsen Bay. Several salmon streams rife with fish await anglers and much of the trip is above tree line with dramatic, panoramic photo opportunities and hiking trails. The road ends at Anton Larson Bay, a perfect destination for sea kayaking, beachcombing, tide pooling, and fishing. Hikes lead to white gran- ite cliffs, a beaver pond, and a cascading waterfall.

Back on the main road, another turn-off leads to Buskin River State Recreation area. Though it’s next to the airport, the Buskin River is one of the hottest spots for sockeye, pink, and coho fishing, as well as bear viewing off the road system. Bald eagles nest and ermine dart in and out of rock outcroppings. Campsites and two picnic shelters invite folks to stay awhile.

After the Buskin and continuing south on Chiniak Highway, you’ll find yourself stopping just to take in the scenery. There’s a reason the place is called the Emerald Isle because it’s got 20 shades of green on display, courtesy of a lot of precipitation and a maritime environment. Kodiak doesn’t have a ton of road signs or designated parking, which means take care when the sight of a fox or bear stops you in  your tracks. Watch for “no parking” or “private road” or “no trespassing signs.” If you see a pullout that’s not marked with a warning, you’re probably safe to park and gawk at the flora, fauna, and all things fur, fin, and feathered—or wet your line at Russian Creek, Salonie Creek, or American River.

A great lunch spot for clam chowder or a beer, if it’s open, is The Rendezvous. Continuing out the road, it forks: Left goes to a tiny community with access to stunning beaches and sea birds galore: Chiniak. The right fork leads to Pasagshak State Recreation Area, with perfect silver salmon conditions and farther on, a chance to witness an Alaskan rarity, surf- ing. Just past Surfer’s Beach, there’s a fossil beach, and an odd rocket launch facility. The main thing to know about Kodiak: it is as picturesque as it gets with surprises around every turn.