Page 261 - Vacation Country Travel Guide

travelers often catch the first exciting the Historical Society Museum also hosts drive north toward Denali on George
glimpses of Mount Denali. There are free ranger talks. Denali flightseeing Parks Highway #3 takes you to the town
plenty of outdoor opportunities and and glacier landing tours depart from of TRAPPER CREEK, offering year-round
campgrounds for visitors looking to the airport, located within walking lodging, dining, services and a museum.
break up the drive north to Fairbanks. distance from downtown. Talkeetna is For the explorer, the 40-mile gravel
Fish the salmon run with guides, right on also an excellent winter destination, as PETERSVILLE ROAD enters the rugged
Willow Creek yourself, or at Willow Creek restaurants, shops and the Don Sheldon mining backcountry of the Dutch Hills
State Recreation Area off Willow Parkway Community Arts Hangar stay open year- amid spectacular views of Denali and the
Road, where a large public campground round. entire Alaska Range. In summer, 4-wheel
gives anglers access to the confluence drive vehicles are recommended
of the creek and the Susitna River. At Located at the confluence of three after the first 10 miles, and the entire
the Nancy Lake State Recreation Area, major rivers, Talkeetna keeps its mining length is ideal for mountain biking or
there is a series of 130 lakes and ponds history alive with renovated miners’ snowmobiling on groomed trails. There
to paddle through. Iditarod mushers cabins used as lodging, shops and are hundreds of private recreational
who call Willow home offer tours in the restaurants. Take your pick of several cabins accessible only by snowmobile
summer months, when you can visit their eateries offering fine dining to lunch at and several roadhouses for meals and
kennels and take a cart ride pulled by a the local microbrewery. Enjoy guided lodging, as well as snowmobile guides
team of eager huskies. river rafting, jet boat tours and sport and rentals.
fishing, a guided hiking or ATV tour. Local
Approximately 2 hours north of artisans sell their wares at a summertime Adjacent to Denali National Park
Anchorage on George Parks Highway #3 outdoor market, galleries filled with and forming the southeast corner of
and 45-minutes from Willow, at Mile 98.7 unique Alaska gifts line historic Main the roughly square-shaped wilderness,
take the Talkeetna Spur Road for 14 miles Street and live music is a staple of the 325,000-acre DENALI STATE PARK is a
to the don’t-miss town of TALKEETNA. downtown scene. A whole spectrum of hub of recreational opportunities from
Climbers from around the world come accommodations is available in the area camping and canoeing to wilderness
here every spring to begin their ascent of for those wanting to get an early morning exploration. The landscape varies from
Denali. Visitors can find out what it takes jump start on their trip to Fairbanks. meandering lowland streams to alpine
to climb this marvel by stopping at the tundra while Byers Lake is a paddler’s
Ranger Station, open daily in the summer; After leaving Talkeetna, a 30-minute paradise. Walk-in and RV camping and

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Alaska Southcentral

Drive Alaska 259