Chugach Mountains

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Chugach Mountains (chōō´găch), one of the Pacific coastal ranges, S Alaska, extending from the St. Elias Mts., on the Alaska-Yukon border, NW to the Manuska River. Mt. Marcus Baker, 13,176 ft (4,016 m), is the highest peak. Rugged, with forested lower slopes (the southern slope is a national forest) and glacier-covered summits, the Chugach are a barrier for movement inland from the coast. The Richardson Highway, a north-south road running from the coast to Fairbanks, Alaska, and the Copper River are the only corridors through the range.

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