On an overcast morning, my friends and I decided to hike the trail. It wasn't very crowded which…read morewas nice and it was well maintained. The hardest part of this trail is the seemingly endless amount of stairs that pop up halfway through. But overcome that, and you will be left with an amazing view from the top of the butte. There were plenty of dogs on this trail if you wanted to bring your pet as well. Round-trip from the parking lot, this trail is 2.4 miles with an elevation gain of 819 feet.

If you're looking for a short hike to pass a couple hours, this is a good one…read more There are two entrances to the trail. One goes up a steep dirt path while the other contains stairs. It's a challenging up hill climb, but it's less than a mile to the top, so you're not exerting yourself long. The downhill is super fast. You're back in a blink, especially if you let gravity take over and you have a four legged friend on a leash pulling you... you may even end up face first in the dirt path (I, of course, wouldn't know anything about that). Bring your Eno since there are trees up top to hook them on. Bring binocular to check out the eagles flying by. Beautiful views of Lazy, Matanuska, and Pioneer, not to mention the Knik River Valley.

Beautiful escape to nature with endless flat trails just outside of Anchorage, Eagle River Nature…read moreCenter is a family staple with lots of wildlife.

Eagle River Nature Center is highly worth it for about a 30 minute drive from Anchorage. As you…read moremake your way along the road in to the area, you're greeted with scenic views of the Chugach mountains. There are pullouts to take pictures of those and the river. The nature center is literally at the end of the road with a large lot ($5 parking fee) and the area trails & outside space open even when the building itself is closed. Sadly, we did go on a Tuesday (they're open Wednesday-Sunday) but we still enjoyed the scenery and a short trail. I had hoped to do the 3 mile Albert loop but it was closed due to bear activity feeding on salmon. That was expected since it's a normal closure for August. Still enjoyed the shorter Rodak trail which brings you to a deck and amazingly scenic overlook. There are longer trails but I had other plans for the day. We saw a beaver dam and some salmon from the viewing deck, no bears on our trail, but did carry bear spray as they are active and regular seen in the area. What a beautiful peaceful place. A must do when visiting Anchorage.

This park/ campground was amazing with epic views and there were play areas for the children or…read morepavilions for parties. Many campgrounds sites were available, but we were just there for a walk and taking some photos. Planes were flying above as it's near the Palmer airport and I got some great shots of the airplanes flying above. This airport is predominantly single engine planes. Trails were marked well, but keep track of where you are, as we were not sure on the way back, but you have cell service to look at where you are exactly to find your way back. It's next to a cemetery, which was a great spot for photography also. Overall a great choice for an easy stretch out your legs hike, with marked options for longer hikes/ mountain biking trails.

One of the nicest, most modern campgrounds in Alaska. To start, they have on site hot showers…read more Thats unprecedented in Alaska. They also have a volleyball court, playground, children's bike course, and beautifully landscaped facility. This is much more on par with what you would expect in the lower 48. They also have a nice set of short trails (not safe for children who are incapable of following directions due to shear cliffs), but other than that they are fairly easy with nice views and not terribly difficult.

This is a solid trail that no one apparently knows about…read more If you're tired of crowds on Chugach trails, look no further than here! There are stunning views of Denali from atop Bear Mountain/Peak/whatever its called. It's also really flat on top, great for pitching a tent and watching the northern lights. The trail goes on forever, but I hear the quality deteriorates around mile 12 or so.

Nice easy to moderate hike. The view was nice on the top. It wasn't the best one out of all the…read morehikes that we did but it was pretty nice. Alaska is beautiful no mater where you hike in general. And of course, it wouldn't be called Bear Point without a bear. We were a bit disappointed that we didn't spot any bear on our hike. As we were heading back about 5 to 10 minute walk to our car, we heard a loud noise and a huge black shadow about 15 feet in front of us on the trail. Our dog reacted and started barking. The bear saw us and climbed on the tree near by. We had a staring contest for a good 5-10 minutes before we decided that it was safe to walk under him to be on our way. It was quite an experience to have a bear on the tree right above your head staring at you at you walked by. Pretty awesome! That bear was more afraid of us than we are at him. However, bring your bear spray and gun just in case on any hike in AK because you never know who/what you might run into.

Review with an asterisk …read more.. Nice little locals-only secret. The trailhead is ambiguous and not well-marked, but there is no fee or parking charge as it's informal as trailheads go. It's straight up and can be a little brutal at times depending on the weather - but the views once you start hitting the false peaks get very good. And the views on the summit on a clear day are spectacular and panoramic. Summit for most of 2-4 hours depending on shape, pace, and weather. Highly recommend as a short but vigorous hike for those who are healthy and ballsy. Straight instead of going up will also lead to a game trail that offers XC skiing Asterisk - I am the guy whose driveway intersects with the trailhead. Thank you to Andrew H for his plea to be nice to the locals. Please be nice. I don't like being a meany when you block the street, or play in my driveway. But I will be - I live here

This is a trail that's really grown on me…read more If you're looking to get really high afterwork, it's impossible to beat! At 5,001 ft, this is the easiest way to get above 5k in the Anchorage bowl! In the winter, the mountain is frequently used by backcountry skiers but it's also used by gumby post-holers such as myself! The trailhead is at the end of Hiland road, please be respectful of all the private property in the area. It would be horrible to ruin relations with the neighbors here who are sharing their area with us! Don't part where signs say not to park and, for fucks sake, don't litter! The trail is a little hard to find at first, you'll go east for a hundred feet or so, then quickly turn left (north) and start up the mountain proper. Harp ain't technical, just keep putting one foot in front of the other and follow the ridge up. The views on the way up are good, but not great. But the views from the summit proper, are a sight to behold. The view of frightening Yukla Peak is one of the best! The views of Anchorage, the Sleeping Lady, and the Tordrillos behind them are from an angle rarely seen. We went up on the last day of January for the sunset, and it was brutally cold. We skipped summit beers, but we did get some stunning summit photos!

This falls under the "great trail if you live nearby, A-OK trail if you don't" category of trails…read more The views it leads to are just OK. It kind of fizzles out at the foot of the mountains, but doesn't really lead to the summits of them. You can keep going and climb the mountains, but you will be very much off trail. The first few miles are in the trees, eventually it opens up into an A-OK valley. I had no idea this trail was here, and I'm glad we tried it, just not sure I'll be back. It's very close to the the outstanding Chugiak cafe: https://www.yelp.com/biz/chugiak-cafe-chugiak So you could make a morning of it :)

First off, credit to John Tyson and his book, "Best Hikes Near Anchorage" for outlining this trail…read moreand giving all the pertinent details needed! If you're from out of town and looking for a good introduction to backcountry hiking, this is a trail for you. The first two miles are at a moderate uphill pace and then it levels out. If your from in town and looking for a versatile trail with backpacking options, also for you. Excited to hike beyond the four mile point next time. Start your GPS at the trail sign (where you'll find some general trail notes and any notices you need to know). and not at the parking lot. There are some really nice views of the inlet and Sleeping Lady. At about the 1.6-1.9 mile mark you'll come across a perfectly situated log on the right of the trail which provides for a nice seat and a beautiful view. Take this in as you'll be headed inland from this point. If you're a little tired at this point, the harder climbing is almost done. Make sure to follow the sign for "Summer Trail." It is the smaller of the two paths, but the correct one. Around mile 4, you'll cross a bridge with a decent stream. It's a great stopping point for pictures and maybe your turning around spot I'd recommend going on about another half mile. At that point the trail opens up into a flatter area with some nice peaks to your left. Throw out a blanket and make yourself a cup of coffee! The trip back is much quicker as it is all downhill. John Tyson says 4-6 hours. Pretty accurate I would say. My wife and I did it in just under 4 hours with a 30 minute break. Didn't see much wildlife. Saw some moose prints and moose droppings. Maybe one ptarmigan. The views are still worth it to me.

To get here, you have to first get on the Eklutna Lakeside Trail:…read morehttps://www.yelp.com/biz/eklutna-lakeside-trail-eklutna Once on the trail, it's about 8.5 miles to this campground. There aren't a lot of amenities (no bathrooms) but there are very nice picnic tables and some fire rings! You can also camp down by the lake. The views are much better but the wind can be insane! This is located right next to Bold Airstrip a historical "airport" that is still occasionally used. I wouldn't worry about airplane noise keeping you up though. ;) This is a great place to camp the night before (and after, depending on your time) a big climb up Bold Peak(https://www.yelp.com/biz/bold-peak-anchorage) or Bashful Peak(https://www.yelp.com/biz/bashful-peak-anchorage).

This is a great hike near Eagle River that I was surprised I hadn't heard much about…read more You start at a trailhead on a winding road (see my photo for exact Google Maps location), you switchback up through the trees and eventually make your way to a ridge line. You ride the ridge line, up and down, until you finally reach the proper summit of Mt Magnificent. Be advised, there are many false summits on the way. You'll think you're about to summit the mountain numerous times, then reach the "top" only to see a larger summit in front of you, in the distance. (it can be rather heart-breaking) I'd imagine this hike can go quicker in the summer/fall (the website I read said it was casually done in less than 3 hours, RT), but it takes a decent amount of time to do in the winter/spring (microspikes and a pole are a must). I think it took us maybe 4.5 hrs. There was a bit of route finding and some side-hilling you have to do because it's difficult to scramble on the rocks when they are covered in slippery snow. There are event some flat spots on here that would be great for camping in the summer. I look forward to exploring the Eagle River hiking scene. This one is a pretty big step up from Mt Baldy. Give it a shot!