Alaska D16: Long Road to Kenai

July 23 2024
Alaska D16: Long Road to Kenai
Waking up in McCarthy Alaska in Wrangell-St.Elias National Park to fog and clouds, I set up for what may be a wet road back down towards Anchorage. Some portions of the road are barely visible with giant potholes looming, giving little warning time to avoid. I make it down the treacherous road unscathed but am alerted to a short construction section; the pilot driver is nice enough to single me out and offer to take the lead or follow behind so that I am away from other drivers. I take her offer to lead just behind her and make it out right side up. Smooth roads await on the road to Anchorage, which holds some of the best twisty road riding of the whole trip along the Matanusja Glacier. A quick oil change and windshield swap pit stop with a side of Bison burger and I’m en route to the Kenai Peninsula and Anchor Point. Along the way I stop at Potter Marsh wildlife sanctuary where I don’t see much wildlife, but am able to see a few groups of salmon taking a rest from their journey upstream. A few more moose sightings and I find myself at the Airbnb just before dark, completing the longest riding day of the whole trip - 10.5 hrs and 520 miles!