Today after Church my husband, boys and I went for a drive. Next week they will be at a Young Men’s campout and my husband wanted to check out the road and see if he could pull a trailer back where they wanted to go.

I live in Willow, and the Petersville road is about 1 hour north of me in a small town called Trapper Creek. From there it’s about 20 miles West. About 10 miles of the Petersville road is paved and the rest is gravel road. The initial parts of gravel road are well maintained, but the further you go, the more rough the road gets. I wouldn’t take a small car back there, but an SUV or truck will have no problem if you’re a good driver.

The location we were trying to find was about 5-8 miles past Petersville, so we continued on past the several buildings that made up the small town. The road definitely got narrower and rougher as we went up through a pass and down the other side to the river we had been searching for when we started. That’s where, or near where, the campsite will be in a week’s time.

It was not sunny, but it didn’t rain on us until we started home which made the lighting great for pictures and the air clear so we could see across the valleys. Everything was so green and beautiful, with a little snow in the shaded areas on the slopes at the tops of the mountains. It’s fun to get out and explore the world around you. I have been down Petersville Road many times, but only to Oil Well Road where I turned to go visit friends. My husband had never been that far out either, and he’s lived here his whole life.

Total travel time getting out there was almost exactly 3 hours to the campsite, 2 1/2 to the town of Petersville, the last 10 miles taking probably 1 1/2 hours because of how slow going it was. But I didn’t mind, it gave me time to snap lots of pictures and enjoy the changing views. If you’re ever in Alaska and feeling adventurous, this is a fun place to go and explore. Whether you’re planning on camping or just day tripping, the views are well worth the time and bumpy road. There were lots of people out there (it’s a weekend after all), so we didn’t worry about breaking down and being stuck with no one to help. Cell reception was spotty at best past the 10 mile mark on Petersville Road. But it did come in and out as we got texts periodically.