By Car in Kodiak, Nome, and the Bush

By Car

The James W. Dalton Highway -- formerly the construction road for the trans-Alaska pipeline -- is Alaska's only highway to the high Arctic. Popularly known as the Haul Road, this 414-mi, all-gravel road begins about 73 mi north of Fairbanks, connecting with the Steese and Elliott highways to points south. Private vehicles may travel the entire length of the highway to Deadhorse. However, access to oil-company facilities and the shore of the Arctic Ocean is limited to commercial operators.

Vehicle services are limited along the highway. There are plans to add new facilities, but currently only three places have fuel, repairs, food, and lodging: the Yukon River crossing (Mile 56), Coldfoot (Mile 175), and Deadhorse (Mile 414). Motorists are cautioned not to expect assistance from truckers shuttling between Prudhoe Bay and Fairbanks. For Dalton Highway information, contact the Fairbanks office of the Alaska Public Lands Information Center.

Neither the Arctic and near-Arctic communities of Nome, Kotzebue, and Barrow nor Bethel, the Aleutian chain, nor the Pribilof Islands have highway connections to the rest of Alaska.

Contacts

Alaska Public Lands Information Center (250 Cushman St., Suite 1A, Fairbanks, 99701. 866/869-6887 or 907/456-0527. www.nps.gov/aplic).