Origin
Butte, AK
Morning in Butte on Friday
Local time
6:00 AM
AKDT
Current temp
42°F
Unavailable
Live forecast
Trip from Butte, AK to Wasilla, AK
Compiled and reviewed by the Trip.ovh planning team at COD Solutions Oy · Last reviewed Apr 17, 2026 · Editorial standards
Drive Time
31m
Distance
18.5 mi
30 km
Drive Score
6/10
Good drive
Same Day?
Yes, doable
Fuel Cost
$4
one way
EV Charging
Good
6 stations
Best Time to Leave
4 AM
0h 29m
★
6 AM
0h 31m
8 AM
0h 37m
10 AM
0h 33m
12 PM
0h 33m
3 PM
0h 34m
5 PM
0h 37m
8 PM
0h 30m
Estimated drive times based on typical traffic patterns. Actual times may vary with weather, construction, and real-time conditions.
Butte, AK
Tima Miroshnichenko
Wasilla, AK
Wikimedia Commons
Trip Overview
The drive from Butte, AK to Wasilla, AK covers 18.5 miles and takes about 31m behind the wheel. This route is realistic as a one-day drive if you keep your stops efficient.
The route leans on East Palmer-Wasilla Highway, Old Glenn Highway, East Arctic Avenue for much of the mileage, and the overall profile is turn-heavy local drive. The longest uninterrupted segment is about 9.5 miles on East Palmer-Wasilla Highway. At current regular gas prices, budget about $4.01 one way before food or hotel costs.
Who Is This Route For?
Weekend Trip
Doable as a same-day drive at 31m. Total distance: 18.5 miles.
Family Friendly
Moderate complexity with 0 natural rest stops along the way.
Solo Traveler
31m drive, comfortable solo distance.
EV Driver
0 DC fast chargers along the route. Coverage: unknown.
First-Time Driver
Mostly highway driving (0%). Straightforward navigation.
Scenic Drive
Turn-heavy local drive route profile.
Drive Character
Expect a 31m drive with frequent turns across 18.5 miles of local and secondary roads.
This route has more turning and local-road decision points than a simple highway run.
There are about 9 navigation steps in the underlying route data, so the final approach matters more than the middle miles.
East Palmer-Wasilla Highway is the longest continuous segment at about 9.5 miles.
Elevation Profile
Mostly flat terrain
382 ft
99 ft
Total Climb
306 ft
Total Descent
64 ft
Highest Point
382 ft
~14.5 mi in
Elevation Range
283 ft
How Hard Is This Drive?
Expect a hands-on drive with frequent turns and local roads rather than long highway stretches. There are only a few real navigation decisions along the way. The trickiest moment comes around 0.1 miles in near Old Glenn Highway.
Driving Effort
4/10
Easy - simple navigation with a manageable amount of wheel time
Balances navigation complexity with total wheel time.
This is a straightforward 31m drive. You will face about 5 decision points, but nothing that requires special attention if you follow navigation.
Where does it get tricky?
The main spots that need attention: at 0.1 miles (Old Glenn Highway): Navigation decision point; at 6.9 miles (AK 1 / Glenn Highway): Lane positioning matters here; at 7.9 miles (East Palmer-Wasilla Highway): Lane positioning matters here.
Critical Maneuvers
5 of 5 key pointsThese are the spots where you need to pay the most attention. Preview them before you drive.
4
0.1 mi into trip
|
~0m in
|
Old Glenn Highway
Turn right onto Old Glenn Highway
Navigation decision point
5
6.9 mi into trip
|
~12m in
|
AK 1 / Glenn Highway
Turn left onto AK 1 / Glenn Highway
Lane positioning matters here
Use the straight lane.
3
7.9 mi into trip
|
~14m in
|
East Palmer-Wasilla Highway
Turn straight onto East Palmer-Wasilla Highway
Lane positioning matters here
Use the straight lane.
4
17.4 mi into trip
|
~29m in
|
AK 3 / East Parks Highway
Turn right onto AK 3 / East Parks Highway
Lane positioning matters here
Use the right lane.
6
18.5 mi into trip
|
~31m in
|
Main Street
Turn left onto Main Street
Lane positioning matters here
Use the left lane.
Main Roads
| Road | Distance | Duration |
|---|---|---|
| East Palmer-Wasilla Highway | 9.5 mi | 15m |
| Old Glenn Highway | 5.7 mi | 9m |
| East Arctic Avenue | 1.2 mi | 2m |
| East Parks Highway | 1.1 mi | 1m |
| Glenn Highway | 0.5 mi | <1m |
| East Palmer Wasilla Highway | 0.5 mi | 1m |
| East Plumley Road | <0.1 mi | <1m |
| Main Street | <0.1 mi | — |
Some road-level metrics are being recalculated.
Longest stretch:
East Palmer-Wasilla Highway
— 9.5 mi, about 15m
Turn-by-Turn Driving Directions
Step-by-step road directions between Butte, AK and Wasilla, AK.
1
Start on East Plumley Road
369 ft
·
15 sec
·
East Plumley Road
2
Turn right onto Old Glenn Highway
5.7 mi
·
9 min
·
Old Glenn Highway
3
Continue on East Arctic Avenue
1.2 mi
·
2 min
·
East Arctic Avenue
Use the left / straight / right lanes.
4
Turn left onto AK 1
0.5 mi
·
50 sec
·
Glenn Highway
Use the straight lane.
5
Turn right onto East Palmer Wasilla Highway
0.5 mi
·
1 min
·
East Palmer Wasilla Highway
6
Turn straight onto East Palmer-Wasilla Highway
9.5 mi
·
15 min
·
East Palmer-Wasilla Highway
Use the straight lane.
7
Turn right onto AK 3
1.1 mi
·
1 min
·
East Parks Highway
Use the right lane.
8
Turn left onto Main Street
26 ft
·
0 sec
·
Main Street
Use the left lane.
9
Arrive at destination
Main Street
Fuel & Cost
Regular Gas
$4.01 one way
$8.02 round trip
$5.51/gal
25.4 MPG avg
7 kg CO2
| Fuel Type | $/gal | One Way | Round Trip |
|---|---|---|---|
| midgrade | $5.79 | $4.22 | $8.43 |
| premium | $5.98 | $4.36 | $8.71 |
| diesel | $5.61 | $4.08 | $8.17 |
No toll roads detected on this route.
Drive Cost (one way)
Fuel
$4
Estimated CO2 emission: 6.5 kg one way. Prices: EIA weekly data, 2026-04-13.
Driving Electric?
About $2 in charging · 0 stops · 67% less CO2
| Vehicle Type | kWh | Stops | DC Fast | Home Charge |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Average EV | 5.6 | 0 | $1.94 | $0.89 |
| Efficient EV | 4.6 | 0 | $1.62 | $0.74 |
| EV Truck/SUV | 7.4 | 0 | $2.59 | $1.18 |
Gas CO2
6 kg
EV CO2
2 kg (67% less)
This trip is well within single-charge range for most EVs. No charging stops needed if you start fully charged.
DC fast charging avg $0.35/kWh. Home charging avg $0.16/kWh. US grid CO2: 0.39 kg/kWh.
Travel Intel
Current conditions at both ends of the drive.
Destination
Wasilla, AK
Morning in Wasilla on Friday
Local time
6:00 AM
AKDT
Current temp
34°F
Chance Light Snow
NE 5 mph
48% chance
Live forecast
Winter Weather Advisory
Winter Weather Advisory issued April 16 at 2:39PM AKDT until April 18 at 4:00PM AKDT by NWS Fairbanks AK
Time zone
Same local time
Origin and destination are on the same clock, so arrival timing is easier to judge at a glance.
Temperature spread
8 degrees cooler at arrival
A meaningful temperature swing is a good cue to rethink layers, water, and how soon you want to arrive.
Road read
31m on the road
The weather snapshot is not static. If you are leaving later, give both cities one more quick forecast check before departure.
Weather data from the National Weather Service. Conditions may change; check closer to your travel date.
Frequently Asked Questions
The drive from Butte, AK to Wasilla, AK covers 18.5 miles and takes about 31m without stops. Add 15-30 minutes for a fuel or rest stop on longer drives.
The main roads are East Palmer-Wasilla Highway, Old Glenn Highway, East Arctic Avenue. Expect a mix of highway and local road driving.
This is a comfortable same-day trip.
The midpoint is about 9.2 miles from Butte, AK. Look for rest areas, gas stations, or food options near the halfway mark.
At current regular gas prices, expect to spend about $4.01 one way. This estimate uses 25.4 MPG — your actual cost will vary with your vehicle's fuel efficiency and current gas prices.
Leave by 9 AM and you'll arrive before lunch. Even a 4 PM departure gets you there before dark in summer.
This is a straightforward 31m drive. You will face about 5 decision points, but nothing that requires special attention if you follow navigation.
The main spots that need attention: at 0.1 miles (Old Glenn Highway): Navigation decision point; at 6.9 miles (AK 1 / Glenn Highway): Lane positioning matters here; at 7.9 miles (East Palmer-Wasilla Highway): Lane positioning matters here.
The route from Butte, AK to Wasilla, AK does not surface many named destination signs beyond the main corridor.
Mostly flat terrain. The route ranges from 99 ft to 382 ft elevation with about 306 ft of total climbing.
How this page is built
Compiled by the Trip.ovh planning team at COD Solutions Oy from open government datasets — OSRM over OpenStreetMap for geometry, EIA for fuel prices, and USGS 3DEP for elevation. See our methodology for refresh cadence and limitations.
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