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Sterling Highway: Kenai River, Kenai Peninsula, Alaska
Photo: calliopejen · CC BY-SA 2.5

Drives Alaska Anchorage, the Kenai and Southcentral Alaska

Sterling Highway: Kenai River

Sterling Highway, AK 1 · Tern Lake → Kenai National Wildlife Refuge

Leisurely19 mi25 min900 ft climbHigh point ≈ 700 ftOne way
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The drive

The Sterling Highway starts at the Tern Lake junction on the Seward Highway, about 90 miles south of Anchorage, and heads west along the Kenai River. The drive covers 19 miles of it, through Cooper Landing, ending in the Kenai National Wildlife Refuge.

The highway serves the fishing and recreation areas on the Kenai and Russian rivers and the Kenai National Wildlife Refuge. It is the only highway in the western and central Kenai Peninsula.

Along the way

  1. Tern Lake
  2. Cooper Landing
  3. Kenai National Wildlife Refuge
Elevation
900 ft of climbing · high point ≈ 700 ft
Tern LakeKenai National Wildlife Refuge
Curves
Mostly gentle curves
Tern LakeKenai National Wildlife Refuge
GentleHairpins

Good to know

  • The Cooper Landing bypass project covers mileposts 45 to 60. Reporting in 2022 described flaggers and single-lane closures between mileposts 56 and 58.
  • Check Alaska 511 for current construction.

Open all year, weather permitting. Roads close for snow, fire, storms and repairs: before you set off, check Alaska 511 road conditions.

Questions about this drive

How long does the Sterling Highway along the Kenai River take?

The Sterling Highway from Tern Lake to the Kenai National Wildlife Refuge is 19.0 miles and takes about 25 minutes.

Is there construction on the Sterling Highway at Cooper Landing?

A bypass project has covered mileposts 45 to 60 around Cooper Landing, with single-lane closures and flaggers in the past. Check 511 before you go.

What you get in the app

Turn by turn, on this roadSpoken directions along the exact route. Carve never reroutes you onto a faster one.
Preview it in 3DFly the whole drive over satellite and terrain before you go.
Drive it with no signalAPEXDownload the map and every turn before you go.
Live Group TrackingAPEXEveryone on the route, on the map, by name.
Road conditionsAPEXWet or dry, ice, fog and wind along the road before you go.
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More drives near here

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Distance, time, elevation, curves and intensity are from Carve's route. Checked 2026-10-28.

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Map of Sterling Highway: Kenai River, from Tern Lake to Kenai National Wildlife Refuge