Volcano grounds Sen. Murkowski

WASILLA — A volcanic eruption blew up U.S. Sen. Lisa Murkowski's plans to visit the Mat-Su Valley on Tuesday, instead forcing her to take an unscheduled road trip.

A Murkowski spokeswoman said Murkowski and her staff had to drive to Anchorage from Fairbanks Tuesday instead of fly, after the Republican senator's flight was one of more than two dozen grounded due to ash from Pavlof Volcano near the end of the Alaska Peninsula about 600 miles southwest of Anchorage.

Murkowski had been scheduled to speak at a joint meeting of the Palmer and Wasilla chambers of commerce. She eventually did pass through the Mat-Su, but only on her way to Anchorage several hours after the noon chamber meeting wrapped up.

The delay caused a significant rescheduling of Murkowski's travel plans during her Alaska visit. A flight from Fairbanks to Anchorage takes about an hour; driving the 360 miles along the Parks Highway is typically a 6- to 7-hour affair.

Driving the highway was reportedly difficult Tuesday, with the Alaska Department of Transportation warning of rain, snow and icy conditions along portions of the roadway in a series of advisories issued Tuesday morning.

Murkowski tweeted out several pictures of her journey taken during her impromptu road trip after she arrived back in Southcentral Alaska around 6 p.m.

"We made it! Might not have been the quickest way to get back to Anchorage, but we sure saw some beautiful views," Murkowski tweeted.

The senator's tweets included photos of an abandoned igloo hotel, snow-covered Alaska roads, mountain peaks and even one of Murkowski pumping her own gas.

"Last road trip like this Verne and I ran out of gas before we hit Wasilla. Not this time!" she tweeted.

Pavlof Volcano is an 8,264-foot volcano that is one of the most active in the United States. It began erupting over the weekend and has sent ash clouds drifting across the state. According to an update by the Alaska Volcano Observatory Tuesday, the eruption had diminished Tuesday morning. However, it could fire back up again at any time.

"Although the intensity of the eruption has diminished, it is possible for conditions to change at any time and more significant ash emissions may resume with little to no warning. AVO will continue to monitor the volcano closely," the observatory wrote in a 1:41 p.m. update.