Scenic hike in Anchorage or Girdwood

I %26#39;m trying to decide which hike would be the most scenic and least crowded on Sunday. We are skipping Kenai Peninsula this year but love a very early morning drive on Seward Highway hence would like to find something new in that area. My husband and I already hike parts of Iditarod trail, Bird Ridge and Winner Creek trails with Bird Ridge being our favorite as views were amazing and we could hike as far as we wanted on this trail.

I%26#39;m thinking about two trails, Crow Pass and Indian Valley to Arctic Vally. We would do only first few miles. Which trail would your recommend for scenery? Any ideas whether they are well maintained? How hard is to find headtrails for them?

I would like also recommendation for an afternoon hike and not longer than 3-4 hours in Anchorage. Of course, Flattop is out because we are going to be there on weekend and we already hiked this popular trail several times.

Another thing, is it possible to rent a canoe on Goose Lake in Anchorage?

Thanks for your help

Scenic hike in Anchorage or Girdwood

Not being a hiker, I can%26#39;t help with your hiking but canoes are sometimes available on some area lakes - the lake by my home has a private fellow who comes once in awhile and he told me a couple of years ago that he visits other lakes here in town. If you%26#39;re coming tomorrow (you say Sunday), the weather is not going to lend itself to good views - it%26#39;s chilly and rainy. Hope you have a great time anyway!

Scenic hike in Anchorage or Girdwood

Haven%26#39;t done this one but sounds less used than the others. Falls Creek, RT 5-1/4 mi., hiking time, 4-7 hrs, 3000%26#39;. I%26#39;ll quote right from the guide book. Climb a narrow, stream-cut valley, unusual for the Chugach Mtns from the seaside to an alpine lakeshore. Less well known than other valleys near Anchorage, the Falls Creek valley leads quickly to alpine country, nicely framed views of the Cook Inlet and impressive rock outcrops and cliffs that rise above the lake.

Drive to mi 105.6 of the Seward Hwy about 12.1 mi south of the Rabbiit Creek Rd interchange of the edge of Anchorage. Says there are some minor informal trails near the beginning that present some confusion. The Falls Ck Tr starts to the right of the creek and stays to the right of it until near the end of the hike. Follow the main trail, roughly paralleling the creek, as it heads into the mtns. Don%26#39;t cross the creek or parallel the hwy.

Don%26#39;t know if you have the book so I won%26#39;t write more, but if you don%26#39;t and you want further explanation of this trail, let me know.

kileysmom, we are going be in Anchorage next weekend and hope the weather is going to cooperate with our itinerary, if not we just have to adjust our activities. After many visit to Alaska we are prepared for any weather. As to canoes, we have to wait and see if they are available once we get to Goose Lake. We%26#39;ll be staying not far away from it..

inluvwithAK, you gave me a new idea and we%26#39;ll definitely use it if not this trip then on the next one. I have two books on hikes in Alaska and none of them included Falls Creek. I would be very interesting in more details. I%26#39;m more than certain we would love this trail since it leads quickly to alpine tundra, views, rock outcrops, cliffs and a lake. That sounds just wonderful.

Thank you both.

Ok then, continuing on...

About 10-12 min after starting, the main route will leave the bluff just above Falls Ck and make a switchback to the right at a rock outcropping. Follow this, and continue steeply uphill thru the forest, now away from the creek. Eventually, the path pops into a small, level open area lying between the lowland forest and the alder zone. Here, at a large rock, is a natural spot to catch your breath and take in a bit of view. There is an old fork in the trail here. Follow a trail sign directing hikers to the left and slightly downhill. The old right fork climbs directly and very steeply thru alder to the rock face visible above and peters out.

The L fork is cut thru thick brush as it works its way back to the creek. At open spots, scan the cliffs above for sheep. The trail soon leaves the alders in favor of grass and wildflowers, which in turn give way to tundra. The trail is less steep than it was near the beginning, and the valley is less V cut.

Ahead the valley divides. The mtn tarn destination is in a higher valley to the left. The lower right hand valley leads to the base of Indianhouse Mtn (4350%26#39;, ) the blocky cliffs are obvious as you walk up the valley. Between the forks, a ridge leads upward. Mount a short steep knob at the base of the dividing ridge. This knob, where the trail begins to peter out, makes a nice destination in itself. To continue, hike left (north) over tundra into a small side valley. Flat areas in this side valley invite camping, , although for most, this trip will be just a day hike. Follow this side valley about 2/3 mi until the valley dead ends at a cirque and the lake. If you are alone, let go a yodel; the cliff faces all around will answer. Kick back and enjoy the best of the Chugach Mtns.

The dividing ridge leads, with minor scrambling, to apoint 3920 and far-reaching views offrom on hight. Vua the left hand skyline, it also leads to the summit of South Suicide Peak (5005%26#39;). There is a steep stretch of talus slope on the way to the tope, and no trail, but this ascent is just long, not complicated.

I am going to check this out myself. Sounds great, and not many people hiking it. Hope we can get you some good weather for your visit. Safe journey.

Meant to say this hike is in the book, ';55 Ways to the Wilderness, Southcentral Alaska';

Thank yo for taking your time and posting all details. It sounds very appealing doesn%26#39;t it?

When you wrote you got this information from 55 Ways, I couldn%26#39;t believe and felt so guilty. I have this book so how possibly could I missed description of this hike? Well, here it is my story. I have a third revised edition from 1989 which I bought it in 1994. As soon as I read your message I checked on amazon. com and bn.com and learned now the fifth revised edition is available. There are many new side routes and hikes added. It is time to get a new edition because of additions.

Can you recommend the best bookstore in Anchorage with many books on Alaska and outdoor activities?

I greatly appreciate your tremendous help and for inspiring me to get a new book. Another thing, I trust you can arrange some decent weather for our visit. Maybe we%26#39;ll see you on a trail somewhere.

This rainy period is normal for August at least here in SouthCentral AK. I am hoping these low pressure areas get lost soon. I cancelled a sailing trip out of Seward yesterday myself. So, ok, we will order up some better weather for your trip. It probably will happen because I have to leave for Minneapolis on Saturday. Go figure.

There are the well known bookstores such as Borders and Barnes and Noble. I get many gift certificates from family so these places are easy and convenient. Title Wave Books offers something a little different and also has what you are looking for - www.wavebooks.com. They have not only new books, but used and rare books too. They are located in the Northern Lights Mall on Northern Lights. Ask anyone where it is.

Hope this helps, and safe journey for your trip.

ILWA

ILWA, have fun in Minneapolis.

Thanks for recommending the Title Wave Books.

Well, we are back and were not able to hike to Crow Pass because of a mud slide a few days earlier to the access road. From what I read there were about 30 hikers and berry pickers cut off from their cars and had to be lifted by helicopters but without cars. The mud slide happened about a half mile from the Crow Pass trailhead and covered a 50 foot of Crow Creek Road.

ILWA, thank you again for your help. We took your suggestion and decided to hike to Falls Creek instead. This is a steep trail and difficult to follow. Besides I had this vision of a mud slide right there where we were hiking so we turned back after about 1 mile. It was a gorgeous clear day with blue sky and we decided to drive farther south to Girdwood and hike from Alyeska hotel to the upper tram all the way to the top, then continue to and beyond the glacier. Because it was Sunday it seems everyone who lives in the area or visited Girdwood that day took a tram to the top. We been told it was the first perfect day after two weeks of rain. As always we were so lucky with the weather while visiting Alaska.

Anyway, because we hiked to the top as a reward were able to take the tram down for free. There were plenty of blueberries along the way but I found them too sour to enjoy. A young local woman told us because of so much rain all berries this year are not as sweet as usually are. I don%26#39;t know whether this is true or false staement but this is what she thought. We were able to see all glaciers from the top.

Crow Creek has to wait until next year.

kileysmom, thank you for being concerned. We were so lucky and had a great weather. During a whole trip we got caught in a rain once while in Kennecott, then had a rainy half day in Valdez. We had many gorgeous days with blue sky and sunshine. Now we hope for a not too cold weather in March when we return for our first winter visit.