Beluga Point Fresh Water Spring

Water flows from the sticker covered pipe. Lankysteve (Atlas Obscura User)

For water aficionados or just regular folks, tasting the fresh, cool underground spring water that flows from this rock face offers an experience unlike drinking any tap or bottled water.

While taking in the gorgeous sights along the scenic Seward Anchorage Highway, it can be easy to overlook a two-foot metal pipe covered in stickers that emerges unannounced from the roadside rock face. Known as the Beluga Point Fresh Water Spring, out of this pipe spurts cool, clean water from an underground spring.

The pipe was reportedly installed years ago by the Alaska Department of Transportation to relieve pressure from the spring that passes beneath the highway. Today, it hearkens back to a time when people gathered water from natural springs, as locals and travelers alike now stop along this portion of the road to fill jugs and water bottles.

Quenching your thirst shouldn’t be your only reason to visit this stretch of road. Often ranked among the top scenic drives in the world, the Seward Anchorage Highway winds along Turnigan Arm, a narrow waterway that features the second highest tides in North America. The mountains of Chugach State Park rise on either side, some upwards of 3,000 feet.

Update June 2019: The pipe has been removed, and there is now a sign discouraging drivers from stopping along the road.

Know Before You Go

The pipe is very easy to miss, as it is not marked in any way and there are no formal signs marking its location. Look for it coming from the rock face on the north side of the road between mile marker 109 and 109.5. There is a pull-off on the south side of the road, along the water, directly across from the pipe. You can park here to access the spring, but be very careful crossing the busy road. Bring a refillable water container and take as much as you like, since it flows non-stop.