Alaska

This was my very first afternoon in Alaska. By myself just meandering around the state by car with a map in my lap. Alaska - what a limitless place of adventure. For those who end up following me, I have a things for places with bodies of water surrounded by towering peaks - so off I was to find ...

If you’ve never been to the park, Wrangell is 13.2 million acres, the largest national park in the United States, roughly the size of Switzerland. Access is limited. There is only one main road into the center of the park, which dead ends in the town of Kennecott, a historic copper mining area. I...

Starting at less than 200ft above sea level, the trail starts off steep and never lets up. It climbs through forest until you are at about 2000ft. The trail gets muddy as the ground thaws and becomes very slick. The vegetation thins out as the elevation increases and the trail begins to cut back ...

Follow the signs south of Seward to Lowell Point. This is the trailhead. The first mile of the trail is about a mile long. You descend a well-maintained trail from the trailhead about 500 feet to the coast. Many people just hike this portion for a short trip to enjoy the beach.Once you reach the ...

Starting in the town of Kennicott you'll hike on the trail leading north outside of the town for a mile and a half.The trail will end at the edge of the glacier and this is where you put on your crampons. I would also suggest putting on your crampons at the edge of the glacier and not while on it...

Ever wanted to sleep beside a calving glacier? Wake up with a humpback whale feeding along the shoreline of your private beach? Watch the sunset for hours until midnight?Witness bears foraging in the tidal zones or watch a moose go for a swim? This, and more, is possible in Glacier Bay.Starting a...

Kesugi Ridge is a 27.4 mile point-to-point trail from Little Coal Creek to Byer's Lake in Alaska's Denali State Park. To get to the trailhead from Anchorage, take the Park's Highway north to the parking area at Little Coal Creek Trailhead at milepost 163.9. The trail quickly climbs about 1,750 f...

This hike must be done in the deep of winter! Around February, Portage Lake is often frozen solid-solid enough to make walking safe.  Hikers, bikers, skiers, skijourers, and snowshoers will form a 3 mile trail out to Portage Glacier.  This trail is appropriate for children. For younger children, ...

The Byers Lake Loop Trail begins in the Byers Lake Campground. If you're not planning on camping, you can park in the day use area (the first right hand turn, off of the campground entrance), pay the $5 fee, and walk towards the campground loops. At the bottom of B loop, there is a sign which sim...

Probably one of the best bang-for-your buck hikes I've ever been on. Starting from the trailhead, which is just on the Whittier side of the Portage tunnel, you'll hike up 800ft in one mile on a mostly wide, rocky trail. In what seems like no time at all, you'll be at Portage Pass, with views of t...

If you have already stepped foot into Wrangell-St. Elias, you probably arrived via bush plane or by heroically navigating the relentlessly brutal, pothole smothered McCarthy Road. Once across the Kennecott River footbridge, you must take the shuttle from the river's edge to Kennecott (NB: the shu...

The Dewey Lake trail system leads visitors to Skagway on adventures to multiple remarkable destinations, including Lower Dewey Lake, Sturgill's Landing, Icy Lake, Upper Reid Falls, Upper Dewey Lake and Devil's Punch Bowl. Each trail extends from a single trail head located closest to the cruise ...

The Alpine Trail is only accessible via the Caines Head Trail System, located at Lowell Point. (Distance and elevation listed are for the Alpine trail itself, not for the coastal trail leading up to it. More info on those can be found here: http://dnr.alaska.gov/Assets/u... )From parking at Lowel...

The campground has limited cell reception and no wifi. Open fires are permitted at the campground. There are three group campsites available, which facilitate 9-20 people. Normal campsites host a maximum of 8 people.  A free bus service is available, the Savage River Shuttle, to travel from this ...

This adventure begins long before you start climbing the mountain. First you need to make your way to Brooks Camp in Katmai National Park on the Alaska Peninsula. The Alaska Peninsula is not connected to the road system of Alaska so all travelers must arrive by either boat or plane. Fly to the sm...

The first part of the trail involves a series of switchbacks through gorgeous forests of Sitka spruce. About a half mile in, you will come to the first bowl/overlook, which will provide a taste of the view to come. Another 1.25 miles from here you will begin to clear the forested area onto the pe...