Blueberry Knoll

If you've only got time to do a few things when in Alaska, make sure you visit Independence Mine State Historical Park in Hatcher Pass. It is open year round, and beautiful no matter the season. You can easily spend the entire day exploring the mine and surrounding area.The winter months fill the pass with snow making it ideal for backcountry skiing, snowshoeing, cross country skiing, and sledd...

Hiking through this valley really shows off the amazing landscape of Alaska.The trailhead starts at mile 13.7 on Hatcher Pass Rd. There is a big parking lot ($5 for a day pass). The trail has mile markers for the first 5 miles and is fairly well groomed, although you do have to do a little bushwhacking because the beautiful bushes and fireweed are very overgrown.The trail winds through the vall...

Start your adventure by driving 1.5 hours north of Anchorage to the Gold Mint Trailhead about 20 mins away from the town of Palmer. Pay for parking, there is a day fee and a camping (choose either depending on your ambitions).  This trail can be broken down in four (unequal) sections.  The easy section (up until mile 4)The bush wacky section (the part where you'll be spending most of your tim...

For the hike along the Reed Lakes Trail, the first two miles are flat and then you gain the elevation pretty quickly in the next 2.5 miles. It's a great choice for an overnight adventure, or day hike. Some of the highlights include 2 glacier lakes, rocky granite mountain peaks, beautiful valley and alpine tundra landscape. The trail head starts at the small unpaved parking lot which is free, (...

Cooling temps and changing colors often prompt us to squeeze in one more trip. And in the mountains of Alaska, it really is a squeeze. The time from peak fall colors to the first snow cover can be as short as a week. This autumn we chose to expand on a popular trek in the Talkeetna Mountains north of our home in Anchorage. Adding an unknown start and an extended ending to the popular Bomber Tra...

My sister and I with her dog did this great adventure after completing a Star Wars marathon and being pretty lazy on the couch. We wanted to get up and move our bodies, so we decided to check out this summit hike that ironically was named Lazy Mountain. This is a great hike for those that want a challenge. While it might be called Lazy Mountain, it is not for the those who want just a leisure w...