2023 Map of Gulkana D-3 NW

About this map

Paxson serves as the primary landmark in this interior Alaskan landscape, situated where critical infrastructure meets the high-elevation terrain of the Copper River Census Area. The Alaska Pipeline and the Richardson Highway run roughly parallel along the western edge of the quadrangle, illustrating the concentration of modern transport and energy corridors through the mountain passes. To the east, the Gakona River and its tributary Gakona River Tri weave through a network of wetlands and braided channels, highlighting the region's complex glacial drainage patterns. This 2023 survey documents a remote junction where human engineering interacts with a vast watershed, preserving the spatial relationship between the historic highway route and the essential petroleum infrastructure that defines the modern Alaskan interior.