Bertha Creek is a lovely little wooded campground nestled between Girdwood and Hope in the middle…read moreof nowhere Alaska. It's funny because it's only 3ish miles away from its sister campground Granite Creek, but somehow Bertha feels just right. Most of the sites are cozily shaded amongst the ample spruce trees and nicely spaced apart. There are a few sites on the south side of the campground that get sun in the afternoon and have a stunning view of the surrounding mountains. Bertha Creek wraps very closely around the perimeter of the campground, but none of the sites have a creek view due to undergrowth. I'm guessing the creek is a class 3 rapids, so it makes sense that the sites would be a little distance in the event the creek floods or changes paths over the years. There is a darling waterfall just a few hundred feet from the nearest campsite and I've decided that I'm DEFINITELY camping here next year so we can spend the day frolicking in the water. I'm packing my waders and gonna try to see if it's scalable. The waterfall is blissfully moss covered a la Fern Gully, so I'm probably fooling myself, but I can dream... at the very least I plan to spend a few years sunning myself along the banks of this beauty. OK, details: No campsite host. He's down the road a Granite Creek. So if you need firewood, it's about a 3 mile trek. One bear box for the whole campground. Clean, "modern" pit toilets. No running water, but there are water pumps. $14 per night, no reservations. I highly doubt this campground ever fills up due to its remoteness. Sites are large enough for Small RVs. There aren't any pullthroughs, so ginormous RVS might have trouble, but it's doable if you're a good driver. This is an ideal site for tents, but I do believe bears are a real concern, so be prepared. Open Memorial Day through Labor Day. Johnson Pass Trail is the nearest attraction. This is really the middle of nowhere. Six Mile Creek and Hope are the next nearest things to do. Girdwood, about 40 minutes away is the next nearest gas station, grocery store and Rv dump station. One aside, it looks like the Forest Service is working on some improvements here... they built a heavy duty bridge to nowhere over the creek so maybe there is an awesome trail in the works? Bertha Creek is really gorgeous so I'm excited to see what the finished product will be!

Do not be confused, this isn't access to Potter Marsh!…read more This is the western start of the 10 mile Turnagain Arm trail. The great thing about this trail is that it's very moderate and almost immediately gives decent views. The not-so great: - It can get VERY crowded, especially in the summer. - There often isn't good parking here in the spring. Everyone wants to get on one of the firs trails to melt out and the parking lot isn't quite fully open yet - You are almost constantly bathed in LOUD highway noise, which can almost make it feel more like a city trail than a hiking trail

This is the start of a one-way ~9 mile trek along Turnagain Arm. First 3 miles are to McHugh Creek,…read morewhich has an easy walk with stops along the way. There are benches and side trails to pop out and rest, or just view the arm and the surrounding mountains. At the start of the trailhead it's not well advertised, but there is an interactive walk with stops to read about the flora and fauna, and another trail that is straight on through along the trail. Will recommend to the outdoor walking enthusiast.

So, it's kind of hard to find information on this trail, so I'll help ya'll out…read more GETTING HERE: From the Seward Highway, go north (a right if you're heading towards Anchorage, a left if you're heading away from Anchorage) on Boretide Rd (right next to the new Turnagain Arm Pit BBQ location). Where the marker is for this Yelp listing, is where the paved road ends. Just keep going straight! The road can be a little bumpy but nothing that would require high-clearance or 4WD/AWD. Eventually, after what seems like a long time (but isn't), you'll end up at the trailhead. Officially, this trailhead is called "Indian Valley Trailhead". Chugach State Park's website is horrible (they have some great .pdf's for some of their trails, but good luck finding them anywhere on their website...), so I was only able to find most of this information from: googling, using summitpost (a climbing website), and browsing blogs. Hopefully, this consolidated source of information will be helpful to some! From this trailhead, you can access two trails: Powerline Pass: which has its other end at the Glen Alps area (Flattop) Indian Valley Trail: a trail of controversial quality (I have never done it) that goes NE from this trailhead and eventually meets the Ship Creek Trail. (About 1/4 of a mile up the trail you'll come to a junction: if you go straight you'll be on Indian Valley Trail, if you take a left, and go over a footbridge, you'll be on Powerline Pass trail) I'll be mainly speaking of Powerline Pass. Most folks start Powerline Pass up near Glen Alps. Most folks mountain bike* it, rather than hike it. Most folks would need a bike with a good suspension to do this. I do not have such a faithful, two-wheeled steed, so I hike. Why hike it from this side? A couple reasons: 1) This is the approach hike to climb Homicide Peak: this is how I originally found the trail. Homicide Peak is a fun scramble with awesome views of the Suicide Peaks. More info on climbing Homicide can be found here: http://www.summitpost.org/homicide-peak/815642 2) Crowds: there aren't many. This trail isn't as well-known or popular as many others in the area. 3) Feasting options: Froth and Forage (https://www.yelp.com/biz/froth-and-forage-coffeehouse-and-eatery-anchorage) is open till 10 pm, and located very close to this trailhead. Hiking early in the morning? Stop in for a coffee. Hiking late in the evening? Stop in for a burger! 4) Get out of your usual rut: expand your mind, hike some new stuff! Reasons you might want to be a bit leery of this trail: 1) I've heard the Indian Valley Trail can be miserable and overgrown in spots. I hope you like bushwhacking. Or 'schwacking, for short. 2) There can be lots of bear activity in this area. Carry your spray, take your dog, hike in a group. 3) If there's been recent rain, it can get pretty muddy. Definitely, give this trail a shot! *for info on mountain biking Powerline Pass, check out this slick website: https://www.mtbproject.com/trail/6452974/powerline-pass

This is a great, less well-known spot to see the sunset or walk the "beach"…read more I accidentally ended up here after a long walk south from Kincaide Park proper. But, you can also drive right here. (it's right next to a dirt bike track) Bring a telephoto lens, the views of the Aleutians, Tordrillos, and Fire Island (and its windmills) are pretty incredible!

If you want a trail that's a step up from your usual Flattop, this is a good candidate…read more Stats: Mileage: ~2 miles Gain: ~3,500 ft For comparison, here is flattop: Mileage: 1.5 miles Gain: 1,350 The trail is only slightly longer but packs ~2.5X as much gain! It's located between the McHugh Creek (https://www.yelp.com/biz/mchugh-creek-chugach-state-park-anchorage) and Falls Creek trailheads (https://www.yelp.com/biz/falls-creek-trail-anchorage). It's poorly-signed so you gotta be on the lookout! (mile marker is between 108 and 109). Like just about every trailhead on the Seward Highway, it connects with the moderate and uncreatively-named "Turnagain Arm Trail" (https://www.yelp.com/biz/turnagain-arm-trail-anchorage). The main attraction here is summiting Rainbow Peak. To do this: - From the parking lot, walk West (towards Anchorage) till you find the trail. - This short unnamed trail feeds into the Turnagain Arm trail, you'll quickly come to a sign at the junction with TA trail. You'll want to, again, go towards Anchorage. (e.g. NOT towards "Windy Corner") - Look for where the trail crosses a gravel service road (warning: do not go up this, weird private property section!) Once you cross this, start being on the lookout for a scree covered "trail" to our right. It's very close to where the TA trail crests up on a ridge, it'll be on your right. It'll look sewwwper steep, but, don't be scared (I recommend grabbing trees, in the amateur alpinst world, we call this a "veggie belay"). It lets up. After a while, you'll gain the ridge proper and it'll be pretty obvious where to go (up!) The views from the summit are pretty good, you can see the neighboring trails (McHugh and Falls Creek), the Suicides, and a panoramic view of the arm. A word of caution: be on the lookout for bears and always carry spray and/or hike in groups. I saw a grizzly bear on a neighboring slope (he was far away, he just chilled in the bushes the whole time) and some hikers coming down told me they saw a black bear chasing a sheep on the ridge. I then started hiking with my spray-drawn. I thought I looked like Special Forces team, but I probably more closely resembled The Orkin Man. (is that still a thing? Do people still know who he is?) Definitely, try this one out, it can also be done as an after-work hike if you don't mind coming in a little tired the next day!

I can't believe this park hasn't been rated yet. I find…read moremyself here more often than I'd like to admit. Hmmm...how do you get here.... I usually take Huffman road all the way back till it wraps around. Then you'll notice yourself driving uphill for a while. There's a right hand turn and then all you see are unobstructed mountain views, open field, and look...a little playground, you've made it! They have bleachers, a full field area wide enough for various sports activities. This park has a gazebo with seating, trash receptacles and a few porta-potties. Lots of bench seating surrounding the playground. Lots of open field grassy areas to lay out/picnic. Highly recommend.

I can't comment on the quality of the salmon fishing at Resurrection Creek since I don't fish, but…read moreI've been visiting Homer for years and enjoy watching the fisherman here immensely. I like this location because the tidal flat is huge but typically not squishy, so there's plenty of room to catch some rays while watching the fishermen. It's also right at the edge if town near a restroom, restaurant, coffeeshop and other amenities. It's an incredibly beautiful location at any time of day, so even when the fish aren't biting, it's a rewarding place to be.

You may not know the name of this mountain but, she knows you…read more.. if you've driven through the Arm more than a couple times, you've definitely seen it. If you're driving back into Anchorage, it's visible as you're approaching the small village of "Indian" (home to one of the best restaurants in the state: Froth & Forage, https://www.yelp.com/biz/froth-and-forage-coffeehouse-and-eatery-anchorage) It's flanked by two official trails: Falls Creek Trail: on the "Anchorage side" (west) https://www.yelp.com/biz/falls-creek-trail-anchorage Indian Valley Trail: on the "Indian, AK side" (east) https://www.yelp.com/biz/indian-valley-trail-anchorage The trail that goes up to Indianhouse is not an "official trail". Because of this, I was always leery about climbing Indianhouse Mountain. I'm not super-thrilled about bushwhacking, and I thought getting to the mountain proper would require a ton of it. Oh, how wrong I was! The trail that goes up here is actually shockingly well maintained. No 'schwacking at all! It is, however, incredibly steep. Probably steepest trail I've been on in the Chugach State Park area (maybe that's why it's not "official"). Anyway, for the first (steep) mile, it's a very steep hike. You'll eventually top out on nice, wide prairie-like area. From here, casual hikers should probably turn around. You'll know you're at the turnaround point because the trail will start to become faint and eventually disappear into a ridge that leads to the much larger ridge of Indianhouse Mountain. To summit Indianhouse, DO NOT ride this ridge up to ridge of Indianhouse and then try to take that to the summit! This is a tempting move to make but the rock that lies ahead for you is of very poor quality and the moves are very much 5th-class! (e.g. you'll need a rope) Go partially up the ridge, but, before you connect with the summit ridge traverse right. And keep traversing right. This...can be kinda bushwhacky, but you're largely on tundra (and/or garbage snow). I'd say this is probably the crux of the hike/climb. You're looking for a large couloir (narrow gully) that leads up to the summit. It usually has snow in it until later in the summer. You might want to bring an ice axe and crampons or, at the very least, a trekking pole and some microspikes. The summit is exposed and complex, with incredible views in all directions. Views of the nearby Suicide Peaks are one-of-a-kind!