Alaska Trails

Connecting the outside world to Denali National Park for over a decade, the Denali Highway provides spectacular views of Alaska's interior. Stretching from the Wrangell-St. Elias Mountains to North America's tallest summit, Denali, at 20,310' is surrounded by the Alaska Range. This historic route is guaranteed not to disappoint. Sprawling over three different river drainages to include: Susitna, Tanana/Yukon, and Copper, this dirt road provides spectacular views and river crossings of narrow wooden-decked single-lane bridges. This route really is special with its scenery and guaranteed to carve a special place in your heart that only Alaska can fill. Several different lodges are found along the way and are worth grabbing a warm meal and friendly company along your journey. Wildlife Viewing is a common attraction along the 135-mile stretch, so keep an eager eye, and you may find some of Alaska's wildlife looking back at you!

The Knik trails offer picturesque Alaskan scenery! You have sand dunes, a beautiful glacial river, the chance to touch the Knik glacier, and this is all at the base of a beautiful set of mountain ranges on these 4x4 trails! These trails are probably the most popular offroad destinations in south-central Alaska. They are often filmed by out of state crews when they offroad in Alaska; parts of Expedition Overland (Season 1, Episode 5), Dirt Every Day (Episode 57), and Nitto's 2016 JK-Experience all have been filmed along these 4x4 trails. Viewing the Knik Glacier, gazing into a display of the northern lights in the darker months, and salmon fishing are all highly recommended activities of the area.

The Knik trails offer beautiful Alaskan scenery! You have sand dunes, a beautiful river and views of the Knik glacier all at the base of Pioneer Peak. These trails are probably the most popular offroad destinations in south-central Alaska. They are often filmed by out of state crews when they offroad in Alaska; parts of Expedition Overland (Season 1, Episode 5), Dirt Every Day (Episode 57), and Nitto's 2016 JK-Experience all have been filmed along these 4x4 trails. Viewing the Knik Glacier, gazing into a display of the northern lights in the winter months, and salmon fishing are all highly recommended activities of the area. Often small planes fly overhead and occasionally land on gravel bars. Great place for a quick picnic or an overnight stay. Northern lights viewing is best further away from the dunes as the aurora often appears low on the horizon in the darker months.

Arctic Valley provides a quick jaunt into the wilderness of Alaska tucked in between Anchorage and Eagle River adjacent to JBER (Joint Base Elmendorf Richardson). Near the bottom of the road is a great sledding hill that starts at Waypoint 3 and goes down to Waypoint 2, although a JBER Recreation Pass is required if you want to explore beyond the road, sledding included. Bears and wolves along with other wildlife frequent the area, so keep an eye open and see what may be looking back at you! Along the way, there are great views of the greater Anchorage area, Denali, and the northern lights (aurora borealis) on a clear night sky. At the top of Arctic Valley Road (pay to park) you can pick blueberries, hike up and see an old Nike Missile site, site "Summit" (fenced off) that is still used today as a communications site for various government agencies, or go explore the backcountry. During winter the Arctic Valley Ski Area is a great place to ski, it is run by volunteers and is only open on the weekends. In the winter, 4WD (4x4, 4 wheel drive) or good working AWD (all wheel drive) is a necessity as the road is infrequently maintained and is often snow covered and icy from overflow, especially near the top.

Meandering along the banks of the Kings River and then traversing up the hills to pristine Ruby Lake, this off-road trail is certainly recommended for the adventurous soul. While not proving too difficult during the drier summer months, the muddy sections and hills can prove to be a challenge to less capable rigs in inclement weather. Fishing is supposed to be good at Ruby Lake (license required) and it is stocked. The views of Ruby Lake and the surroundings are spectacular and well worth the gas burned on enjoying this corner of Alaska's wilderness.

Hatcher Pass is considered to be one of the top ten scenic drives in Alaska. Situated in the Talkeetna Mountains there is a tremendous amount of mining history that includes the Independence Mine and dozens of other mines, some still active today. If you are looking for a gnarly offroad trail this is not what you are looking for but it might get you to Purches Trail, Craigie Creek Road, a winter snowmachine playground, a summer hiking trail, an off-grid camping spot (more details in camping section), ski, snowboard, biking, sledding, or other adventure. This road is very tame and a scenic route. If you are just visiting Alaska and left your rig at home, this road is suitable for any rental car.

Bald Mountain Trail keeps testing you and your rig until you make it or give up along the way. As you and your rig are pushed to the limits you witness spectacular panoramic views of the entire Matanuska-Susitna Valley making this one of the best off-road trails in Alaska. You can also see the wreckage of a B-29 on the side of the mountain. This trail was featured on Episode 57 of Dirt Every Day - Alaskan Army Truck Adventure as well as Nitto's 2016 JK Experience, clearly it is worth the visit! Breathtaking views abound on this one! Come prepared and bring a camera!

Climbing from sea level in Hope, Alaska up through a narrow forested road, passing by a small campground, and culminating at the end of an alpine valley is Palmer Creek Road. This trail is rich with a history of gold mining with old mine ruins to explore. There were three primary mines that operated in the valley. The Downey mine is to the east of the wooden bridge around the 2500' level. The Hershey/Hirshey mine is around 2900' to the east of the gated end of the road. The Swetman Mill, a 0.6-mile hike, and Swetman/Lucky Strike Mine, a 1.75-mile hike, still have mining artifacts and ruins south of the road's end. Most of these hiking trails have shallow water crossings. These mines were active from 1911 to 1939 but have not been reopened since. In recent years, mining claims have still been active in the valley at a smaller scale.

A narrow canyon trail with views of glaciers, rugged mountains surrounding you, and mining efforts throughout the years (historical as well as current) are all present along this short sojourn into the Alaskan wilderness. Anyone looking for historic goldmines will be well rewarded along Mineral Creek Road and hiking the area. At the end of the drivable trail (where this trail guide ends and marked with a gate), a hiking trail continues to the historic Smith Mill about 1 mile further up the canyon. (At the time of mapping this guide, a landslide prevented safe hiking to the Smith Mill, proceed at your own risk.)