Clearwater Creek Wayside MP 55.5

MILE 59—Clearwater Creek  (:17)

Probably the best free campsite along the Denali Highway. With a large parking area next to a maintained pit toilet on the southside of the highway, and an informal parking area on the north, you can install an RV or set up a tent in many locations with a bit of privacy and then be serenaded by the melody of rushing water all night long. Note: The presence of the toilet is a major plus. It all-but eliminates the telltale deposits of human waste and TP that sometimes litter pullouts next to some other streams along the highway.

This roadside creek bottom may be one of the most welcoming fishing and birding streams in the state—definitely in the ‘as good as it gets’ department. Birds flit through the brush and tundra, and work the riparian zone for insects and aquatic bugs—swallows, dippers, warblers, and sparrows. Grayling rise from deep pools, breaking the surface in a sudden splash. The crystal water sluices over multi-colored boulders, so clear it’s as though the bottom has been illuminated. Above the scrub shimmer the faces of distant mountains. With a single glance, you can take in the sparkling riffle at your feet and the 10-mile view of a 2,000-foot dome.

Amenities

Compacted gravel surface usable by wheelchairs
Campfires on gravel bars
Hiking on ATV trails
Outhouse
Fishing

Getting There

Coordinates
Latitude: 63.041483
Longitude: -146.881439
Driving Directions

Photos