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    West Butte Trail

    5.0 (2 reviews)

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    5 years ago

    Helpful 4
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    Love this 3
    Oh no 0

    2 years ago

    We got engaged here! Loved it. Challenging vertical at times but overall a manageable hike for anyone relatively active.

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    Lazy Mountain Trail Head

    Lazy Mountain Trail Head

    5.0(4 reviews)
    4.5 mi

    Warning: This is NOT an easy or "lazy" hike. There is one area that flattens out for a little…read morereprieve after about a mile and a half and another somewhat flat area around 2 miles in. There are several false summits. Which is a challenging mental battle after the first 2.0 miles of going consistently UP! The first false summit comes somewhere around the time you exit from the trees and shrubs about 1.2 miles in. Around this point you will arrive at a picnic table. The natural instinct on your first trip up is to look up and see rocks and think "I'm almost there!" You're not. You're only about halfway there. But keep going because. This segment is above the tree line and affords some spectacular views of Pioneer and Matanuska Peaks. This is a superb trail to hike year round. It receives a great deal of foot traffic even through the winter which means the trail is easy to follow and the snow is packed down. Note: If you see a smooth surface of snow on part of the trail in the winter, this is from people sliding down the trail on their butt! Fun times! Enjoy that! Note: Moose frequent this area and are far more prevalent in the winter. Keep and eye out! Note: This parking lot has a good deal of crime. I'd suggest not leaving no anything valuable. I often leave a window down or a sign saying it's unlocked so my windows don't get broke.

    You wanna get high in Palmer?…read more This is a safe bet. Fantastic views of Pioneer Peak and Palmer. This trail is actually pretty steep, don't be fooled by the "lazy" moniker! Don't be too intimidated though, this trail is pure hiking. It's got a 'Merikan flag at the top, like many AK hikes. Like many AK summits, this flag is also usually frayed.

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    Lazy Mountain Trail Head
    Lazy Mountain Trail Head
    Lazy Mountain Trail Head

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    Fern Mine at Archangel Valley

    Fern Mine at Archangel Valley

    4.0(2 reviews)
    3.9 mi

    Archangel Valley is incredible…read more Fern Mine? Just alright. It's classic Alaska: Step 1: mine leaves rusty equipment and questionable shafts. Step 2: instead of cleaning up/restoring area, make it a "historic" mining area. Step 3: Profit? The "other" mine in the area is much more interesting. If you've made it down to this mine, feel free to hike the trails through lush foliage or set up a tent at the perfect spot. Don't waste too much time at the mine though. NOTE: a high-clearance vehicle is REQUIRED to get here. If you don't know if you have a high-clearance vehicle or not: you don't. Stay away or your car will get TRASHED.

    At the terminus of Archangel Road in Hatcher Pass country lies a very cool abandoned mining route…read morethat leads to Fern Mine. Fern Mine was actively mined from 1922 to 1951 and produced about 44,000 ounces of gold. Mining relics are scattered all over the property, including a Caterpillar generator and cooking utensils. It really is a cool site and if you keep going, there are winding paths that line Archangel Creek. About a mile past the mine there is a free-use cabin with bunks, even a (yucky) working outhouse. I actually intended to do the Reed Lakes Trail, as its trailhead is on Archangel Road. However we passed the trailhead to see what was at the end, and low and behold, you get to Fern Mine. A website that provides more info: http://www.alaskahikesearch.com/hikes/Archangel.htm

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    Fern Mine at Archangel Valley
    Fern Mine at Archangel Valley
    Fern Mine at Archangel Valley

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    Fishhook Trailhead

    Fishhook Trailhead

    3.5(2 reviews)
    5.8 mi

    A few notes: 1. The…read moremap location on this is wrong. Here is a link to Google Maps. https://goo.gl/maps/2tCGimSECBKfwTj48 2. The trail is called Fishhook on the sign and on Google Maps, but I've also heard of it referred to as Marmot. 3. This trail is rated a variety of ways. It isn't long at 1.3 miles (one way), but it is steep. My Garmin registered 2000 feet of elevation change. I would rate the trail as moderate for distance and technical skills. There are some moments where the trail is pretty narrow. I would rate it as hard for exertion level. Locals will see it as a short and little difficult. Out of towners may view it as hard to expert. 4. Bring sunscreen on sunny days and bug spray if it is not windy. I saw a mosquito the size of a quarter on several occasions. Luckily, it was a bit windy. It is roughly .7 miles to the top of the first rise. Nothing is as steep after the first .7 miles, but the trails does meander up along a ridge until it reaches the top. It took me about 80 minutes to make the summit. I stopped along the way for pictures and taking in the views. Going down was faster, but tough on the toes and the bottoms of my feet. Hiking poles would have made the descent a lot easier on my toes. When I hiked in late June, it was very dusty and sandy. It was easy to lose footing on the ascent and descent if you are not careful. Nearly the whole hike rewards the traveler with 360 degree views of Hatcher and even down in to the Valley to Pioneer. There's a black tube at the top with a journal and pens. Sign your name, write a note. See who has been there before. The last .6 miles included lots of ground squirrels . If you stop and sit for a while, you will almost certainly see them running about, munching on vegetation, or licking rocks.

    We hiked this in late October. It is absolutely gorgeous, but it's a rigorous hike with very steep…read moreparts. There was lots of ice and mud, so we were slipping a LOT. We could not make it to the top. Made it about 3/4 of the way. It was the first hike we haven't finished.

    Photos
    Fishhook Trailhead - Can you see the ground squirrel?

    Can you see the ground squirrel?

    Fishhook Trailhead - Summit views and Hatcher Pass road

    Summit views and Hatcher Pass road

    Fishhook Trailhead - The starting point. Bathrooms located to the right.

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    The starting point. Bathrooms located to the right.

    Matanuska Peak Trail - Terminus views

    Matanuska Peak Trail

    4.5(2 reviews)
    4.6 mi

    Starting at the trailhead on Smith Road you'll head in on a relatively flat trail…read more It becomes mostly uphill at the moment that you take a slight left off the ATV trail. Don't worry, it's clearly labeled here and you'll know you're on the right trail because there will be a marker. Around 4600 you'll start to hear rushing water off to your left. Around 5400-5600 you'll hit your first view of Palmer and the Butte/Pioneer off to your left. Mostly uphill until 9800. Then it smooths out in the McRoberts Basin for about two miles. You Lazy Creek at 10800 After you cross the gulch around mile 4, it gets steep and strenuous. The top is just shy of 6 miles. The last marker I saw was 29700. In the future I might mountain bike in 4-5 miles. Or backpack in four miles, set up camp and hike to the summit with a couple water bottles. Certainly worth the views, but the books don't lie. It's a strenuous trail.

    Only on Alaska Yelp can you be first to review a very popular hike!…read more Even if you don't know this peak, you know this peak. It's the "other" prominent peak (besides Pioneer) that looms over Palmer. This is the "big boy" corollary to the neighboring Lazy Mountain trail: https://www.yelp.com/biz/lazy-mountain-trail-head-palmer The trail starts out on a 4x4 road. It's pretty wide with hard packed gravel. Eventually it narrows and gets VERY brushy. Seriously, practice your "HEY BEAR"'s, because the vegetation really overtakes the middle part of this trail. Eventually you'll emerge from the brush and out onto alpine tundra. The trail is the obvious dirty path running through the hills of alpine prairie. Lots of grounds squirrels here. Now you're at the base of Matanuska Peak. Don't be like me. Take a trekking pole. The final 1,000 ft of gain to the summit would be WAY easier with a pole to balance on! Some rock is white and sticky, but lose. Some rock is solid, but covered in black lichen and therefore slippery. Choose your poison! (trail markers guide you up the entire trail, even up through the scree and rock, keep an eye out) The summit is pretty small, you'll definitely get to know the other people on the top. (can get crowded in the summer) Great views of the Chugach: Ice Cream Cone peak, Knik Glacier, Pioneer Peak, Twin Peaks, and the Palmer valley. I found the hike down from the summit to be much easier/faster, but my knees are feeling stronger these days. If you have bad knees...again, get yourself a pole. Stats for this trail: Miles R/T: 8 Elevation gain: 5,670 ft

    Photos
    Matanuska Peak Trail - Terminus views

    Terminus views

    Matanuska Peak Trail - Took this for Mom, and now I share it with ya'll

    Took this for Mom, and now I share it with ya'll

    Matanuska Peak Trail - Beginning of the scree/rock section to the summit

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    Beginning of the scree/rock section to the summit

    West Butte Trail - hiking - Updated May 2026

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