Early Map Showing the Path up the Valdez Glacier: The "All-American Route"
The 45 mile route up the Valdez Glacier required ascending the Chugach Summit at nearly 5,000 feet, then ascending another glacier before reaching the enormous Klutina Lake. Travel on the glacier was only safe during winter when snow cover over the glacier was packed and hard, but it also meant the traveler was subject to frequent storms and the occasional avalanche. Additionally, those ever-present exceedingly deep crevices meant certain death for any who fell through. Three thousand five hundred attempted the trip. Less than a tenth of that number actually made it all the way through to Copper Center, and many of those died of survey. The bulk of those who attempted the glacial crossing turned back and were able to safely return to the states. (Click for larger image).
| Main Page | KMR intro | related links | railroad links | Cicely Project |
| Kennecott Mines | CRNW Railway | Copper Rail Depot | Kennecott models | Legacy of the Chief |