Deepest Snow Ever!

Sunday March 1, 2009
Granite Creek Trail

It was another amazingly beautiful day in Juneau. Barely a cloud in the sky for the City everyone was telling me has among the worst weather in Alaska. My goal today was to get as far up Mount Juneau as possible.

I started up Perseverance Trail at around 1:30pm. The trail head is located at the end of Basin Road right behind downtown Juneau. It is only a 12 minute walk from where I work.

It is a popular trail with locals and a good trail had been established in the snow with a cross country ski trail next to it for most of the way. The trail starts off following an access road for Juneau's main water supply and an abandoned gold mine now turned into a museum for a quarter mile. The trail then hangs a right and climbs up, skirting around the mountain with steep cliffs on right, and a sheer rock face on the left. Many small snow slides crossed the trail making the footing very precarious. A slip in here would take a person hundreds of feet down to the valley bottom.

As the trail curves around the mountain a nice set of falls emerge down below. With the falls, more of the valley is revealed behind. After hiking 30 minutes, I reach the beginning of the Mount Juneau trail veering off to the left. Even though the sign pointed to the left and the main trail I was on was well packed down, I saw only the faint tracks of one person attempting to go up the trail. I tried following the faint tracks for 10 minutes straight up a snowslide but thought better. If it slid once it can slide again, especially since I almost got caught in an avalanche near Anchorage the winter before.

So instead of risking the hike up the mount Juneau trail I continued on to what turns into the Granite Creek trail. This trail winds up as far as the valley goes ,judging from the map I had, and dead ends in front of steep mountains on all sides just short of the massive Juneau Ice Field. I was eager to get as close to it as possible.

A short distance later, I ran into 3 back country skiers and one snowboarder who were coming back from Sheep Mountain. They did it as a loop trip starting up the Mount Roberts trail, skiing down Sheep Mountain and hiking back out this trail. They said the snow was wind blown and hard in spots.

The trail led to a look-out shelter where I stopped and had a snack. From there, the trail continued winding down the valley and the snow kept getting deeper. The nicely packed down trail from the start of the hike was now just a cross-country ski trial. The snow was so deep in parts it covered up an entire bridge with four-foot railings easily.

The trail eventually disapeared completely and I was lucky to find wind blown snow drifts that were solid enough for good hiking. My stopping point was at the valley's end next to some old mining ruins. It was a very beautiful spot. I imagined going over the high mountain pass onto the Juneau Icefield. I was however already sore from yesterday's hike and decided to head back now while their was still daylight.

On the way back I say a huge porcupine. It scampered up a tree and startled me as I walked pass. I was only able to get a picture with the animal behind the branches of the trees.

Even though I heard this trail was muddy in the summer, it is a place I would love to spend some more time exploring.

Blackerby Ridge Trail

Smokin' Crackerby on Blackerby

Saturday February 22, 2009

Blackerby Ridge Trail

"What am I smokin'?" I asked myself as I started up this steep trail in the middle of winter on a late Saturday afternoon. From the view out of the Capital Transit bus window, it seemed impossible a trail could penetrate the sheer cliffs and near-vertical hills of the ridge coated in dense green Sitka Spruce.

I pulled the cord and the bus stopped right at Wire Street off of Glacier Highway. It was convenient as the trail head is only a short walk up Wire Street and a left at Greenwood Avenue. From there it is only a little way down on the right marked by a small sign.

I walked a couple feet on the trail and I knew I would need my gaiters. The snow was deep in places with only one other person's tracks to follow. The weather was good though. Only high overcast and nice and cold. I knew I had to hike fast so as not to get caught descending the steep slippery mountain in darkness (I left my head lamp at home along with the camera).

The trail steeply wound through the dense forest, straight up at times. I had to pull myself up often with the foliage but had to be careful not to crab on to the devils club! There was even a section of the trail that was near vertical and had a rope tied to a tree above for hikers to hoist themselves up.

The tracks I was following soon ended and I was breaking trail for a good mile. The snow was only 3-4 inches thick under the dense tree canopy but I still found myself post-holing in places. At 5pm I decided to stop and enjoy the view through a clearing in the trees along a frozen stream bed that meandered down the mountain.

I ate a Cliff bar, drank some water and then started sliding back down the mountain. And slide I did. I must have looked like a pinball bouncing off the trees. I admit it was much faster and easier but a lot more dangerous. I almost slid off the cliff next to the fixed rope but luckily grabbed a small tree in time.

I made it down to the bottom at about 5:45pm, just as it was getting dark.

I'll save this hike for the summer and when I have more time!

Mt. Bradley (Jumbo) Hike

Mount Bradley Round Two!

Sunday February 22, 2009
Mount Bradley (Jumbo) Trail

I took a hike up the Mount Bradley (Jumbo) trail around noon Sunday. It is a convenient hike for me since the trail head is only a 15 minute walk from where I live on Douglas Island, Juneau. The trail head is located on the 300 part of 5th Avenue in Douglas between two houses. (It is marked with a sign).
















The wind was howling at the lower elevations but once on the trail it was calm. The trail was well used and nicely packed down making for easy walking. The trail also had a nice thick snow pack and I saw a skier and two snowshoers out as well.

After 10 minutes of hiking up, the trail veers left and traverses across the hillside to a very nice falls. The mostly frozen creek continues down into a deep ravine before emptying out into the "Glory Hole", the giant open pit mine built in the early 1900s.















20 minutes more of hiking up the trial leads to a large meadow with beautiful views of the surrounding mountains and the water south of Gastineau Channel. This was my second time hiking this trail and the second time I failed to find the trail past the meadow!

The snow was very deep at the meadow. Luckily (depending on your perspective) a few snowmachine trails bisected the meadow and allowed for a stable surface to hike on.



I still made the most of my time outside. I layed down for almost an hour in the snow and soaked in the sun before it went behind the snowy ridge line of Mt. Bradley. Clouds started rolling in the later it got afternoon and I descended back down stopping again at the falls. I also hiked down to the edge of the Gloryhole to get a better view. (One can usually spy it through the trees from the trail up above).

Even though I didn't get past the meadow again it was still a great hike. I'll have plenty of chances to reach the summit this spring anyway. The trail head is only 15 minutes away!

Welcome to the Alaskan Trails Blog!

This is my blog about trails I've hiked in Alaska. I will include trail conditions and other details about the hike so you can better plan your own (including pics!).

Feel free to post hikes you have done as well. I have hiked hundreds of miles of trials all over Alaska but am in Juneau right now so will focus on hikes in this area. If you have any questions about other hikes ask. I could post a trip report if it is one I've done.

Enjoy!

-AlaskanHiker