Valdez, AK

This past summer my family and I took a trip to Valdez! The drive took us about five and a half hours. This was in part due to delays by road construction. From Anchorage, the drive to Valdez is 299 miles (481 km).

The drive from Palmer to Valdez is very pretty and on a clear day you can see the mountains near the road and those far off in the distance. If you are visiting Alaska and want to drive a long and beautiful scenic route, then I would highly recommend driving to Valdez. An interesting fact is that Valdez is known to be one of the snowiest towns in the U.S. with an average of 279 inches per year!

On the way to & from Valdez

Thirty miles before you enter the town of Valdez, you will drive through Thompson Pass, which is at an elevation of 2,800 feet. One fun thing to do while you drive through is to stop and hike to the Worthington Glacier. There is a short paved walk you can take to a viewing platform. From here, you have the option to continue (on an unpaved path) all the way up to the glacier itself. This walk is uphill on a rockfield, but definitely worth the hike. Even in the middle of summer as you approach the glacier the temperature drops quite a bit. We had a lot of fun standing next to the glacier with our faces turned into the spray of ice cold water rushing downhill. (Don’t stand too close unless you want to be drenched with the spray) In 1968 this glacier was officially named a National Natural Landmark.

As you drive down the other side of the pass, you will enter Keystone Canyon. There are two beautiful waterfalls that you can stop and see along the way; Bridal Veil Falls and Horsetail Falls.

On the same side of this pass, you can also see the remnants of the old railroad tunnel that was started in 1905. After a gun battle, construction on the tunnel stopped and most of the entrances of the various parts were filled in; however, there are a few along the highway which you can stop and go into.

If you do decide to drive, (as opposed to taking the ferry), a neat place to stop along the way is Wrangell-St. Elias National Park. Located 110 miles outside of Valdez, this national park is the largest park & preserve in the United States.

To see & do in Valdez

Valdez is not a huge town and has a population of just under 4,000 people. Due to this, there is no huge town center; Valdez has a few main streets with shops. As you walk through the town of Valdez you may come across numerous rabbits. Valdez is populated with feral rabbits that are the descendants of domesticated rabbits that were turned loose by their owners years back.

If you get a chance, it is really worth it to drive to Solomon Gulch Hatchery if you happen to be there in July/August. We just happened to chance driving by it when we were looking for a campsite. The hatchery releases fish into the sea nearby and so when spawning time comes the fish return to where they were released. Not only are you able to see the hundreds of fish all crowded together trying to get back up the river but also the predators that are attracted to this mass gathering. We saw probably close to 25 Sea Lions hanging out in the area catching and eating fish. In addition, we also saw a few sea otters and seals. This is the closest I have ever been to a Sea Lion in the wild and this experience definitely tops going on a boat tour to see them.

If you keep driving down the same road you will glimpse the area where the Alyeska pipeline deposits crude oil. There is a blockade set up across the road with all kinds of “no trespassing” signs, including one from the FBI. Behind all the fortification is where the Alyeska Pipeline brings crude oil down from the North Slope. From here it is funneled into ships and storage tanks.

Old Valdez & Cemeteries

In 1964 when the 9.2 earthquake occurred and ensuing tsunami, Old Valdez was severely damaged. A new town was constructed farther down along the coast and residents moved there. There is not much that remains of Old Valdez as the remnants were destroyed as a deterrent to keep people away. However, it is possible to drive down to the beach where the town was located. The road is hard to find and you definitely need to have four-wheel drive if you plan on attempting to visit.

Valdez has two cemeteries: Valdez Memorial Cemetery, which takes in the current deceased & the Pioneer Cemetery which is home to graves from before the 1964 earthquake. The Pioneer cemetery is neat to visit and is located at the end of Walter Day Memorial Drive. The earliest graves here date back to the early 1800s.

Museums

If you are interested in learning more about the history of Valdez, then I would recommend visiting the Valdez Museum & Historical Archive. For the price of $9 you can get a ticket that encompasses entry to both locations. Neat items to see at the museum on Egan Drive includes two late 17thc. & early 18thc. fire engines, artifacts from the gold rush era, and many other interesting things. The museum on Hazelet Avenue contains models pertaining to the 1964 and a documentary film about the testimonies & consequences of the earthquake.

The third museum in Valdez is the Maxine & Jesse Whitney Museum and while we did not get a chance to visit this museum it does seem quite interesting. This museum houses the largest collections of Native Alaskan artifacts and art in the world. Right across the street from the museum on Hazelet Avenue, you can see the ferry dock. This is where ferries from Cordova & Whittier dock in Valdez and is how many tourists travel to this town.

Accommodations

We had intended to camp at “Blueberry Lake campground” run by the State Park, but unfortunately all the spots were reserved by the time we had gotten there. This campground, located in Thompson Pass, is about 24 miles outside of Valdez. There were only around 10 campsites at this campground, so making a reservation ahead of time is advisable. In the end we decided to continue towards Valdez, hoping to find someplace to stay along the way.

There are several nice large pullouts in Keystone Canyon that in a pinch can work for overnight camping in a van or camper.

Next we tried our luck at Alison Point Campground which was just a long pull out right next to the water toward the end of Dayville road. We decided not to stay here because of the interesting folk that were already camped out here. There were however, restrooms and actual camping sites to pull into but there were no picnic tables or fire pits.

We ended up staying at the KOA about 6 miles outside of Valdez. The KOA was $60 per night per spot without a membership of any sort. They have a bathhouse as well as a playground for kids.

Overall, I really enjoyed visiting Valdez and would definitely like to go back in the future!