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Brian Stoecker/Turnagain Times A runner cools her heels in Rainbow Creek after completing the Turnagain Arm Trail Race from Potter to Rainbow. The eight mile section of trail gains and loses over 1,500 feet in elevation. |
Brian Stoecker
Turnagain Times Correspondent
Rule Number One when hiking Turnagain Arm trails or any trails in Alaska: know your surroundings and limitations. Many people have been compromised or killed on local trails on Turnagain Arm, so you need a working knowledge of the Alaskan backcountry and must take precautions before venturing forth. Alaska is as unforgiving as it is beautiful.
Turnagain Arm’s access to Chugach State Park and National Forest is a day-hiker’s paradise, but it’s also perilous. Dangers abound from the wildlife, to the footing and cliffs, to the drainages, mud flats and inclement weather.
Having perhaps deterred the faint of heart, I’ll recommend four highly used trails where help is frequently nearby—Turnagain Arm Trail (aka the Old Johnson Trail and Potter Trailhead), Rainbow, Falls Creek, and Bird Ridge. There you’re seldom alone, which you may confirm in advance by noting the vehicles at the access points. Remaining on or near the well-worn trails makes it down right difficult to get lost. Cellular service also works throughout the area, though there are likely dead zones.
Employing common sense will alleviate most hazards for any lucid traveler. For example, if you’re unfamiliar with the footing or flow of a creek, don’t ford it. Never dive into Turnagain Arm, for unseen rocks lurk inches beneath the opaque surface. For the same reason, never jump from a cornice to the unsuspecting snow below. Carry a splint if you can’t fashion one of alders and bark. Avoid cubs and calves, and therefore their protective mothers. Pack water until thoroughly familiar with the name, Giardia lamblia. Never sample the flora, for three species will kill you in hours and others will try. And the tidal flats will kill you in two more ways than you can imagine. And... And... And... Get it?
Turnagain Arm and Chugach aficionados know where to bend the rules. But always respect rule number one.
The Potter, McHugh, Bird Ridge, and Bird Point trailheads are improved, complete with information signs and over glorified outhouses, thus require a parking fee of $5 or an annual Alaska State Parks sticker for $40, available at REI, the Potter Section House (milepost 115, Seward Highway, next to the snow-blower locomotive engine) and elsewhere.
Potter Trailhead: Mp. 115, Seward Highway, across from Potter Section House
This multi-named trailhead (Potter, Johnson, and Turnagain Arm) served as a supply route between Anchorage and Seward during construction of the Alaska Railroad. Known for decades as the Old Johnson Trail, from Potter to Indian it has since been renamed Turnagain Arm Trail. Potter is now “mile zero”, though historically, that distinction belonged to Moose Pass where it branched off from the Resurrection Trail system.
The Anchorage bowl’s southernmost trail is breathtaking, and a favorite to many in the city. The segment from Potter to McHugh is over three miles long with nearly am 1,000 feet of cumulative gain. It traverses the southern exposure of the Chugach Range, often overlooking Turnagain Arm. The first quarter mile is improved for easier access. The remainder is natural, save the mile markers and boardwalks over the swamps. It may be too natural for some, having several small water crossings, the occasional mini mud bog, and is often rife with roots. At about .7 miles, a bench overlooks the arm. Though out of view, its access from the south (water) side of the trail is well traveled. Explore a bit to find it and be rewarded.
Moose here are plentiful and usually tolerant, but it’s also where I was last attacked. That occurred at mile-3. It seems the further you get from mile-0, the less tolerant the moose become. Be alert.
McHugh Creek: Mp. 112, Seward Highway
McHugh is a vastly improved trailhead, with several parking lots and a dramatic vista overlooking the falls. It’s popular among families for picnics, interwoven by several short and easy trails. From McHugh you can hike north toward Potter from the upper lot. This is the easiest access to the McHugh Lake Trail (also accessing Rabbit Lake) and McHugh Peak (4311 feet), near mile three, marked with a post. Mind you, a grizzly took two lives in past years on this trail. Be alert.
Fewer people head south toward Rainbow from a midlevel lot. Conditions and hazards on that four-mile stretch are similar to Potter, though more stringent. The trail is steeper and narrower, with more elevation gain.
Rainbow Trailhead: Mp. 108.5, Seward Highway
Just south of Rainbow Creek, the switchback trail to the north climbs 700 feet in 1.1 miles before leveling off en route to McHugh. On May 25, a familiar and generally cranky cow moose gave birth. She has since become overtly hostile. Beware.
At the summit of “Rainbow Hill”, an unmarked trail branches right for the difficult ascent of Rainbow Peak (3543). A sometimes-ornery bull moose claims the area near tree line as his own, with a reputation for defending his turf.
The southbound trail progresses to Windy Point with limited difficulty. At Windy, watch for Dall sheep, but don’t lose sight of the trail. It traverses a cliff and eventually disappears into an eroded slide. Beyond the slide, the trail becomes overgrown and difficult. A cable handrail from the early days remains on a cliffside portion of the trail, high above. Sheep trails give access to the summit of the mountain loosely known as Pig (3960), named for a cookie drawn from a box of animal crackers.
Windy Point: Mp. 107, Seward Highway
Possible sheep viewing, with a marked access path to the Old Johnson Trail.
Falls Creek: Mp. 105.5, Seward Highway
This relatively steep trail paralleling Falls Creek takes you to alpine tundra and Falls Lake, granting access to the summit of Indian house Mountain (roughly 4,300 feet) and South Suicide Peak (5,015 feet). Look for the nearly nonexistent remains of an old railroad camp.
Powerline Pass: Mp. 104, Seward Highway, Ocean View Road access, Indian
This 3.5 mile dirt road turned trail offers a somewhat strenuous rolling hike or bike, climbing through beautiful old growth forest, culminating in an 1,800 foot pitch to the summit (3,000 feet). After the plateau and a steep-ish drop, seven gradually descending miles take you to Anchorage’s Glen Alps trailhead near Flattop Mountain.
Brown Bear Saloon: Mp. 103, Seward Highway
Burgers, brew and family fare, at any trail’s end. Duh.
Bird Ridge: Mp. 101, Seward Highway
Bird Ridge (3,505) has two trailheads: The new lot, just north of Bird Creek with the trail at the north end of the lot; and the traditional access, a half mile further north. Bird Ridge is the most climbed mountain on Turnagain Arm. The trail is steep and difficult, but well traveled with ample company and spectacular views.
On Sunday, June 21 (9:30 a.m.), the Alaska Mountain Runners will host the annual Bob Spurr Memorial Hill Climb from the north lot to the summit, over three miles and a “vertical-K” away. The record time is under 39 minutes. For more information, go to www.alaskamountainrunners.org, or show up and cheer our local novices to Olympians as they grind it out.
Indian to Girdwood bike trail, Mp. 90-103, Seward Highway to Alyeska
This is a road cyclist’s dream, with most of its length in Girdwood or beyond noticeable earshot of the Seward Highway. Primary access points are at the Indian ball field (Mp. 103), Bird Point (Mp. 96), the Girdwood rail depot, and throughout Alyeska Resort. With its views and information signs, the most compelling section climbs several hundred feet along the side of Penguin Ridge between Bird Point and Girdwood. It’s a must see for any cyclist. As it is paved, it’s also wheelchair accessible.
Portage Pass (honorable mention), Whittier, Alaska
From Portage Lake, take the Whittier tunnel to the road beyond the staging area. Proceed toward Whittier and take the first right onto a pothole-infested road. The next right will dead-end at the trailhead. Enter bear country. Isn’t it all?
Portage Pass is (my unabashedly biased pick as) Alaska’s most rewarding short hike. Natives originally used this historic route for centuries or more, traveling between Prince William Sound and the Cook Inlet basin, later to be used by prospectors and settlers. It rises 700 feet in a mile, offering visual rewards you should discover rather than read. From the summit, the more visible trail continues forth to a pristine vista, ending there. The surrounding kettle ponds become comfortably warm after several days of sun. To access Portage Lake, veer left beyond “Summit Puddle”. (You’ll know it when you see it.) Eventually you will lose the trail, at least in the vicinity of the drainage from the mid-pass pond to Portage Lake. Only perseverance will afford the further rewards of reaching the lake.
Enjoy Turnagain Arm and the Chugach. And again, be alert and observe rule number one.