Maynard Mountain is a 4,137-foot (1,261 m) mountain summit located in the Chugach Mountains, in the U.S. state of Alaska. The peak is situated in Chugach National Forest, 3 mi (5 km) northwest of Whittier, Alaska, at the isthmus of the Kenai Peninsula, where the Chugach Mountains meet the Kenai Mountains. Nearby peaks include Bard Peak, 4.14 mi (7 km) to the south, and Begich Peak, 3.1 mi (5 km) to the west-northwest. Although modest in elevation, relief is significant since the eastern aspect of the mountain rises up from the tidewater of Prince William Sound's Passage Canal in approximately one mile. Maynard Mountain is often seen and photographed in the background behind Portage Lake, a popular tourist and recreation destination. The Anton Anderson Memorial Tunnel, often called the Whittier Tunnel, is a dual-use highway and railroad tunnel that passes through Maynard Mountain. With a length of 13,300 feet, it is the second-longest highway tunnel and longest combined rail and highway tunnel in North America.
Maynard Mountain seen from Portage Lake
Maynard Mountain
Maynard Mountain and Portage Lake
The Chugach Mountains of southern Alaska are the northernmost of the several mountain ranges that make up the Pacific Coast Ranges of the western edge of North America. The range is about 250 miles (402 km) long and 60 miles (97 km) wide, and extends from the Knik and Turnagain Arms of the Cook Inlet on the west to Bering Glacier, Tana Glacier, and the Tana River on the east. It is bounded on the north by the Matanuska, Copper, and Chitina rivers. The highest point of the Chugach Mountains is Mount Marcus Baker, at 13,094 feet (3,991 m), but with an average elevation of 4,006 feet (1,221 m), most of its summits are not especially high. Even so, its position along the Gulf of Alaska ensures more snowfall in the Chugach than anywhere else in the world, an annual average of over 1500 cm (800 in).
View of the Chugach Mountains from the Glenn Highway, north of Anchorage
Alpine lakes in the Chugach Mountains
A peak in the Chugach Mountains
Bold Peak