Day 29 – Denali, AK to Seward, AK – 364 Miles along the Parks Hwy

Wednesday - July 28th

The Parks Highway, completed in 1971, was originally called the Anchorage-Fairbanks Highway. In 1975 it was renamed the “Parks Highway”, not for its proximity to Denali National Park, but to honor George Alexander Parks, governor of the Territory of Alaska from 1925 – 1933.

The long day’s drive had few stops! The most impressive was Hurricane Gulch. There weren’t any stats to support the dramatic view but it was striking.

Hurrincae Gulch-view 2

Another camper pulled off while we were stopped. These folks were from Minnesota too. The SOP (standard operating procedure) is to chat a bit (especially if people are from your home state) so we found out they have a daughter that works as a nurse at Mayo in Rochester, MN.

For those of you who don't know us personally but are reading this blog, Peter and I (Phyllis) retired from Mayo having worked there for over 30-years.

On the southern boundary of Denali State Park, this signage shows where we were suppose to see Mt. Denali. Use your imagination – we had to!

At a gas stop along the way, Wm saw this Swiss camper showing their travels in South America. We were surprised to find out that some European’s transport their campers to other countries and travel around. We saw a German camper with a map that showed they’d been to Australia and South America.

Turnagain Arm
A 50-mile long Fjord partially visible along the 120-mile Seward Hwy.

The views along this Hwy were stunning with nearby mountains on both sides.

Goat’s-beard

Classified as a shrub and plentiful in most areas, along the roads.

(Not a true shrub as its stems re-grow each year.)