Photo courtesy of Andy Morrison
A Girdwood woman peeks out from a snow cave.
A Girdwood woman peeks out from a snow cave.
By Brian Stoecker
Turnagain Times Correspondent
Potter Marsh to Turnagain Pass offers the gamut of outdoor activities, whether upon skis, skates, boots, boards, snowshoes or running shoes. (Power sports non-inclusive. Another story for another time.) None of the locations covered herein should be considered groomed or maintained in any way.
Trails often ice up, particularly in late winter or after a chinook, requiring studded shoes akin to snow tires. Skinny Raven in Anchorage carries such shoes, called Ice Bugs. The more frugal shopper may prefer “Yak Trax” (a rubber slip-on with cleats or coils, which fits around the shoe), available in various forms at REI, AMH, and elsewhere. Some hikers will simply incorporate screws in their shoe soles.
Hazards:
I am all too familiar with individuals severely imperiled or killed on these trails. Specific trail hazards will be noted, but every user needs a working knowledge of the Alaskan winter back-country, taking precautions before venturing into these locales.
The Potter, McHugh, and Bird Ridge trailheads require a parking fee of $5 or an Alaska State Parks parking sticker, once the park service opens the gates in early spring. Stickers are available at REI or the Potter section house (Mp. 116, Seward Hwy).
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Photo courtesy of Andy Morrison A Girdwood woman peeks out from a snow cave. |
Potter Marsh: Mp. 116, Seward Hwy
Difficulty: 1 (Skating and Nordic, not groomed) Though all natural, Potter Marsh is the trifecta product of nature, development and conservation. The Alaska Railroad (1915-1923) blocked the natural flow of water. Subsidence during the 1964 quake lowered the estuary. Then decades ago, school children saved the marsh from permanent ruin when their petitions prevented it from becoming an Anchorage landfill.
Early winter skating lasted a scant few days before the onslaught of November snow. However that does not spell the end of skating for the winter. Turnagain Arm winds can clear much of the snow, and impromptu volunteers often break out the shovels and clear rinks and trails throughout the south end of the marsh.
Hazards: If you don’t know ice, never be first on the ice, though the marsh is seldom over a few feet deep. Ice near any grass may be thin or less, causing you to fall and perhaps get a little wet. Count on that until you know the ice. Then continue to count on it.
Potter Trailhead: Mp. 115, Seward Hwy (across from the Potter Section House)
Difficulty: 2 (Hiking and Nordic) This triple-named trailhead (Potter, Johnson, and Turnagain Arm) was a supply route during construction of the railroad. Known for decades as the Old Johnson Trail, bureaucrats changed it to the Turnagain Arm Trail. In time it will join every trail in Alaska and be named for a 50-mile gold-rush spur to a ghost town in the Interior: Iditarod. Count on it.
The Old Johnson Trail is breathtaking, no matter the season. As the Anchorage bowl’s southernmost trail, it is hiked daily, thus the snow remains almost perpetually packed and passable to McHugh, over three miles away. The midsection receives far less traffic, thus becomes more difficult. The initial several hundred yards are improved (not maintained) for easier access, complete with info-signs. Don’t count on the restroom being open. Or any in the winter, from here to Hope.
Hazards: Moose are plentiful and usually tolerant, but... in spring-07 I surprised a moose and it attacked. From sight to flight, the encounter lasted nary two seconds. With its heavy traffic, OJT usually ices after some weeks without new snow.
McHugh Creek: Mp. 112, Seward Hwy
Difficulty: 2 (Hiking and Nordic) Though an improved recreational area, only the lower parking lot is open in the winter. Most users hike to the upper lot, then north. Few head south from a midlevel lot. Conditions and hazards are similar to the Potter trailhead.
Beluga Point: Mp. 110, Seward Hwy
Difficulty: 1 (Walking) Nice photo-op and a chance to stretch your legs.
Hazards: Mind your footing and the usual winter hazards. Turnagain Arm ice, whether landlocked or resting on the mud, should always be considered dangerous. It’s consistency can be anywhere from brittle to glare. Jumbles of landlocked ice floes conceal myriad pit falls akin to tiger traps, which will drop you a dozen feet into standing water. The deadly renegade pastime of “iceberg surfing” is not recommended. (Do as I say, not as I do.)
Rainbow Trailhead: Mp. 108.5, Seward Hwy
Difficulty: 1-4 (Hiking) Just south of Rainbow Creek, this switchback trail (OJT) climbs 700 feet before leveling off en route to McHugh. There, an over-glorified game trail branches right to the Rainbow Peak summit. With its southern face and exposure to wind, Rainbow is among the first peaks to open up for relatively uncomplicated climbing. The southbound trail is seldom used in the winter.
Hazards: An ornery bull moose has staked the area as his own. One Alaska Mountain Runner can attest to its willingness defend his turf.
Windy Point: Mp. 107, Seward Hwy
Difficulty: 1-2 (Photo-op.) Possible Dall sheep viewing. An obscure trail rises to the Old Johnson Trail, though this leg is seldom used in winter.
Falls Creek: Mp. 105.5, Seward Hwy
Difficulty: 2-4 (Hiking) A relatively steep trail paralleling Falls Creek. It receives limited winter use due to its pitch and propensity for icing up. Studded shoes (Ice Bugs, Yak Trax or screws) are recommended or required.
Hazards: Busting your tailbone in a fall.
Indian to Arctic Valley: Mp. 104, Seward Hwy
Difficulty: 5 (Nordic) This 20 mile wilderness traverse requires advanced planning. It’s regularly traveled but not necessarily marked. Certain “trails” are simply routes. If you don’t know how to access the trail, there is a reason for that. Powerline Pass is a similar but shorter traverse with more traffic.
Brown Bear Saloon: Mp. 103, Seward Hwy
Difficulty: 0 (Recovery) Burgers, brew, billiards, and local flavor after an invigorating day. Aaaah.
Hazards: Beer.
Bird Ridge: Mp. 100, Seward Hwy
Difficulty: 4 (Hiking, snow-ride) Bird Ridge has two trailheads. The winter access is just north of Bird Creek, with the trail at the north end of the lot. Bird Ridge is the most climbed mountain south of Anchorage, with a well traveled winter trail. Alaska Mountain Runners and others ascend the ridge weekly. The trail is steep, difficult, and often icy. Ski poles and cleated shoes are recommended for stability and to assist climbing. The summit is accessible to the physically fit. Alternate descents include the delightful butt-slide method, with the “Brown Bear Express” depositing you a mile from its namesake saloon.
Hazards: Glare ice on the trail. Inclement weather. A mild day on Turnagain Arm may become a blistering gale coupled with sandblasting ice on the ridge. Butt-slide routes harbor avalanche dangers.
Bird to Gird pullouts: Mp. 92-96, Seward Hwy
Difficulty: 0 (Photo-ops.) North Turnagain Arm’s best locale for bore tide viewing. The bore arrives roughly 2.5 hours after the predicted Anchorage low tide. Maximum bores require an imminent high tide of 30 feet or better. Tide books are available at various gas stations and Wal-Mart.
Girdwood (Alyeska Highway): Mp. 90, Seward Hwy
Perhaps the best way to enjoy Girdwood’s surroundings is to arrive with your gear at Chair-5, the Bake Shop, or The Hotel Alyeska (formerly Alyeska Prince) and ask directions. Or you can visit the ranger’s station, 1/2 mile up the Alyeska Highway on the left. They have trail maps for the area.
California Creek and Beaver Pond: Mp. 1, Crow Creek Road
Difficulty: 1 (Hiking, Nordic) The trail and pullout are on the left (north) side of the road, just before the California Creek bridge. After a short hike, the Beaver Pond Trail (a preferred winter route) veers left, eventually crossing frozen wetlands and beaver ponds, which are not accessible in the summer.
Winner Creek and the cat-track: The Hotel Alyeska, north end.
Difficulty: 1-2 (Hiking, Nordic, quasi groomed) Winner Creek is a scenic trail to and beyond a gorge. The popular hand tram, which was disabled by recreants in 2007, has since been repaired.
The cat track parallels Winner Creek for a spell. It’s packed enough for hiking and even skate-skiing, though is described as “washboardy”. The resort occasionally grooms a trail in this vicinity, and Moose Meadows about half way back to the Alyeska Highway.
Not recommended: The Bird Point to Girdwood bike trail, Crow Pass, and the slopes north of the valley. Though people engage these treks, all are very susceptible to avalanches. (Note: Any snow laden slope presents avalanche dangers.)
Portage Glacier area: Mp. 5(+) Portage Glacier Road
Difficulty: 1-5 (Hiking, skating, Nordic) Portage Lake: Depending on conditions, skiing or skating to Portage Glacier is the favored winter activity in the valley. (With the recent snows, this year it’s limited to skiing.) There exists a severe hazard. The glacier’s movement pushes against the lake ice, creating open leads up to several yards wide, hundreds of yards from the glacier. When the leads freeze, the ice is clear and the water black, making it extremely difficult to discern its thickness when approaching at any speed. The danger diminishes when skiing over a layer of snow, for leads are more easily seen and your skis will displace your weight over a wide area of thin ice, thus it likely will not break.
Portage Pass:
Skiers of old maintained a tradition of skiing from Portage to Whittier, watching the Super Bowl at the Anchor Inn, then riding the Whittier Shuttle back to the Portage depot. The tradition seems to be retired for now. With the demise of the shuttle, a car would have to meet you in Whittier, or you’d have to ski back over the temperamental Portage Pass in the dark, possibly under the influence of libations.
Byron Glacier:
Snowshoes or skis are recommended for this scenic and relatively gentle trek to the south end of Portage Valley.
Whittier
Difficulty: 2-4 (Snow-riding) For an extra $12, you can drive through the Anton Anderson Tunnel and into a winterscape of unparalleled beauty. Proximate mountains and trails are used almost exclusively by locals, primarily snowboarders, who share the routes with snowmachines riding Portage Pass, the Waterfall Trail up Salmon Run, and highmarking to Whittier Glacier. All the users I’ve encountered have been polite to a fault.
Turnagain Pass: Mp. 67, 68, and 70, Seward Hwy
Difficulty: 1-4 (Hiking, snow-riding) The Seward Highway draws the line between the snowmachiners on the west side, and the foot-traffic to the east.
Tincan Mountain (mile 70) and Sunburst (mile 67) are the favorite destinations of back-country riders who want piles of champaign snow and big air. The two mountains also provide options in the type of ride. Sunburst presents a vast consistent slope, devoid of trees. Tincan has a similar upper mountain. Its rolling foothills, punctuated with stands of hemlock, provide a challenging terrain where riders can find more jumps then dance their way through the trees.
The mile-68 pullout offers the most direct route for snowshoers and skiers to access the valley between Tincan and Sunburst.
Hazards: Avalanches and bursting your lumbar-1.
Johnson Pass Trail: Mp. 63, Seward Hwy
Difficulty: 4 (Hiking, Nordic) This 20 mile segment of the Johnson Trail, its loneliest stretch, again meets the highway at Mile 33, three miles north of Moose Pass. Of course in winter, you have the option of skiing the lake directly to town.
Resurrection Trail: Cooper Landing to Hope
Difficulty: 5 (Hiking, Nordic) This 40-50 mile trek is no day-hike but worthy of mention. The broad pass offers days of tranquility and spectacular views. By planning ahead, you can reserve any of the many U.S. Forest Service cabins along the way, taking shorter hikes while camped.
Numerous other trails weave their way through these notorious mountains and valleys. They’re marked on the Chugach State Park map and others. And those places where there are no trails may offer the greatest path of all. Feel free to pack your gear and common sense, then improvise. Enjoy the journey.