Glenn Highway
135 miles from Anchorage up the Matanuska River valley past Palmer's colony farms and the Matanuska Glacier to Eureka Summit.
Also known as Glenn Highway National Scenic Byway
Photo: U.S. Department of Transportation, America's Byways collection (National Archives), Public domain, source
- Length135 miles[1]
- Drive timeAbout 2.5 hours of driving, or eight hours with stops[1]FHWA's "time to allow"
- RoadsNot verified
- Start and endAnchorage to Eureka Summit[2]
- Fees and passesNone for the highway[1]State recreation sites along the way may charge parking fees.
- Best seasonNot verified
- SurfaceNot verified
- Vehicle notesNot verified
- Seasonal closuresNot verified
Before you go
Road status and weather can change quickly. Check the official road-conditions link before you go.
Facts last checked against the sources on October 22, 2026.
About the drive
The Glenn Highway leaves Anchorage with the Chugach Mountains alongside and follows the braided Matanuska River for more than half its length. It passes Eklutna, with its Athabascan heritage park, and Palmer, a farm town settled as a 1935 Depression-era colony.
Beyond Palmer the road enters the glacier-carved Matanuska River canyon. The state recreation site near the Matanuska Glacier has viewing platforms for the largest glacier in Alaska you can reach by road; the site itself doesn't give access onto the ice.
The byway ends at Eureka Summit, where the Alaska DOT says you can see four major ranges: the Alaska Range and the Chugach, Talkeetna and Wrangell-St. Elias mountains.
Stops along the way
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Eklutna
Eklutna Village Historical Park and its Athabascan heritage.
Official information · 61.45806, -149.36225 · about 0.1 mi from the route line
-
Palmer
Colony farm town from 1935 and home of the Alaska State Fair.
Official information · 61.59972, -149.1128 · about 0.3 mi from the route line
-
Sutton
Early-1900s coal mining community.
Official information · 61.71139, -148.89419 · about 0.1 mi from the route line
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Matanuska Glacier State Recreation Site
Viewing platforms for Alaska's largest road-accessible glacier.
Official information · 61.79881, -147.81413 · about 0.1 mi from the route line
-
Eureka Summit
End of the byway, with views of four mountain ranges.
Official information · 61.93762, -147.17295 · about 0.0 mi from the route line
Stops are listed in order along the route; the numbers match the map. Stop locations come from the National Park Service, the U.S. Geological Survey place-names database, the stop's own official page or, where noted in the data, OpenStreetMap (© OpenStreetMap contributors).
Food along the way
Farmers markets within about 25 miles
- Eagle River Farmers MarketEagle River, AK · about 0.0 mi from the route
- Pena Park MarketAnchorage, AK · about 0.0 mi from the route
- Northway Mall Wednesday MarketAnchorage, AK · about 0.1 mi from the route
- Saturday Art and Farm MarketSutton, AK · about 0.1 mi from the route
- Kenney Lake Farmers MarketPalmer, AK · about 0.2 mi from the route
Markets keep their own seasons and hours, so check with the market before you go. Find more in the Farmers Market Finder.
Sources
- America's Byways: Glenn Highway (FHWA) (checked 2026-10-22)
- Glenn Highway, Alaska's Scenic Byways (Alaska DOT&PF) (checked 2026-10-22)
- Matanuska Glacier State Recreation Site (Alaska State Parks) (checked 2026-10-22)
- Route line: U.S. DOT scenic byways map service (geo.dot.gov), retrieved 2026-10-22.
Written by VanillaGoods from the cited official sources. This is a drive to know, not a ranking. Road status and weather can change quickly; check the official road-conditions link before you go.
Spot something out of date? Email help@vanillagoods.com (help@vanillagoods.com).