Two Week Itinerary: Anchorage and Alaska National Parks
It's weird how time and growth work together. Last year, I was planning a vacation to Glacier National Park... but when my brother took a temporary job in Anchorage, Alaska, Glacier flew right out the window. Looking back, my trip to Alaska unintentionally put me on a path; it taught me how to better research for a bigger trip, pushed me very far out of my comfort zone, and ultimately showed me AGAIN that I'm the thing holding me back. Since Alaska, I have been planning more ambitious trips and hiking farther than I thought I could!
This itinerary is an overview of exactly how I spent my two-ish weeks in Alaska, and is by no means perfect. Since Matt and Fiona had an apartment in Anchorage, I based myself there and slept on their futon for most of the trip.
From Anchorage, I took short trips to some of the surrounding national parks while Matt and Fiona were at work during the week. I wanted them to come with me to Denali National Park, so we fit that trip into their two-day weekend. If you're able to spare the time, I would plan to spend AT LEAST three or four days in Denali. But then again, this trip was my first time really hiking in big mountains, and the time that I had was perfect for testing the water, and also testing my own abilities.
This is the first in a series of posts about my first trip to Alaska! But for now...
DAY ONE: Travel Day
I flew from Atlanta to Seattle to Anchorage, and then picked up my rental car and drove to Matt's apartment. I arrived sometime after midnight, and Matt and Fiona had waited up to show me around the apartment on arrival (but let's be real, they really just wanted the Chick-Fil-A I brought them from Atlanta).
EAT: your choice of travel snacks
STAY: with Matt and Fiona (Anchorage)
DAY TWO: Kenai Fjords National Park
I got up early and drove about 2.5 hours from Anchorage to the Exit Glacier section of Kenai Fjords National Park, just outside of Seward.
There's a system of trails here to entice any level of hiker. I chose to hike the Harding Icefield trail, which was a "bucket list" hiking trail for me. It did not disappoint!
After the hike, I drove the rest of the way into Seward to eat and camp for the night.
EAT: Seward Brewing Co.
STAY: your choice of any campground along the bay in Seward. The sites are first come first serve, around $10/night and have $2 showers.
DAY THREE: Kenai Fjords National Park
Most of Kenai Fjords National Park is accessible by water, so I got on a boat for my second day in the park! I reserved a spot on the Grand Day Tour with Sunny Cove Sea Kayaking. The tour included a morning of kayaking among glaciers in the heart of Kenai Fjords, followed by an afternoon boat tour for whale watching and wildlife sightings.
I had considered staying an additional night in Seward, but ended up driving back to Anchorage in the evening after my day on the water.
EAT: lunch provided on the tour
STAY: with Matt and Fiona (Anchorage)
DAY FOUR: Anchorage, AK
I hung out in Anchorage for most of the day while Matt and Fiona were at work. I picked up some groceries and packed the car for our weekend excursion.
After work, the three of us headed north toward Denali National Park! We made plenty of stops for views and wildlife (including moose and porcupine sightings), and stopped at an overlook at Denali State Park.
EAT: we got Subway sandwiches to eat in the car on the drive.
STAY: Riley Creek Campground in Denali National Park
DAY FIVE: Denali National Park
We got on the Camper Transit Bus at 7:00am and took it all the way to Wonder Lake. The bus ride took the entire morning into the afternoon.
After taking an afternoon nap, we went exploring on the McKinley Bar Trail, about 4.6 miles.
EAT: camp food
STAY: Wonder Lake Campground
DAY SIX: Denali National Park
We took the morning bus back to the entrance of the park. That afternoon, we wandered through the visitor center and attended a ranger program and dog sled demonstration!
Later, we drove back to Anchorage from Denali.
EAT: camp food
STAY: with Matt and Fiona
DAY SEVEN: Anchorage, AK
I took a rest day after a busy first week in Alaska. I did laundry, ran some errands, and repacked my bag for my next adventure.
EAT: Tommy's Burger Stop
STAY: with Matt and Fiona
DAY EIGHT: Wrangell-St. Elias National Park
I woke up early again in order to drive about five hours from Anchorage to Chitina. From Chitina, it's possible to drive onto McCarthy Road into Wrangell-St. Elias National Park, but I didn't feel comfortable taking my rental car down the road (they recommend packing a full-size spare).
Instead, I hopped on a bush plane with Wrangell Mountain Air and took a 20-minute ride into McCarthy.
After securing a campsite, I walked into town that afternoon.
EAT: ice cream at the general store
STAY: Root Glacier Base Camp, which is essentially a giant parking lot for car camping at the end of McCarthy Road, but they also have walk-in sites.
DAY NINE: Wrangell-St. Elias National Park
I went for a full day hike on Root Glacier with St. Elias Alpine Guides. After looking through multiple options (including doing it myself), hiking on the glacier with a guide seemed like the safest option for this Georgia peach.
After my hike, I got dinner in McCarthy with some new friends!
EAT: The Potato
STAY: Root Glacier Base Camp
DAY TEN: Wrangell-St. Elias National Park
I took the shuttle into Kennicott to poke around the abandoned mine town. I took the mine tour offered by St. Elias Alpine Guides that afternoon, because it's the only way to take the hard hat tour inside the actual mine!
Later that evening, I hung out at the community softball game in McCarthy. This is NOT a tourist activity. Most of the residents in McCarthy are seasonal, and they organize weekly softball games for the summer! If you go, go because you want to make friends...otherwise it's super awkward.
EAT: camp food
STAY: Root Glacier Base Camp
DAY ELEVEN: Drive back to Anchorage
I flew out of McCarthy and back to Chitina around 8:30am (my flight got delayed because it was super foggy that morning, so I spent a little while hanging out with some pilots at the airstrip).
I had much better weather for the drive back to Anchorage than I had going the opposite way, so I stopped at some overlooks for the views!
EAT: your choice of road snacks
STAY: with Matt and Fiona (Anchorage)
DAY TWELVE: Anchorage, AK
Matt and Fiona were excellent tour guides, and took me to the Anchorage Market in the morning.
We went out for lunch, and then went for a hike up the backside of Flattop Mountain (1.9 miles) after taking an afternoon nap.
EAT: Bear Tooth
STAY: with Matt and Fiona (Anchorage)
DAY THIRTEEN: Anchorage, AK
After spending the morning running errands, we spent the afternoon at the Alaska Wildlife Conservation Center. Totally worth a stop!
On the way back into town, we stopped to ramble around at Beluga Point. We took some donuts and hot tea out for a picnic with a beautiful view.
EAT: Dipper Donuts (has since closed permanently)
STAY: with Matt and Fiona
DAY FOURTEEN: Whittier and Anchorage, AK
After dropping Matt and Fiona at work in the morning, I drove to Whittier to hike the Portage Pass Trail, about 5.4 miles.
In the evening, Matt and Fiona showed me around the Anchorage Coastal Trail and Kincaid Park.
EAT: Williwaw Social
STAY: with Matt and Fiona (Anchorage)
DAY FIFTEEN: Anchorage, AK
I had planned to hike to Symphony Lakes, but changed my plan after learning that a bear that had caused a death earlier that year was still at large in the area. Thanks, but no thanks.
Instead, I checked out the Alaska Native Heritage Center to do some learning about the area's history.
EAT: fresh-caught salmon, cooked at home by Matt and Fiona
STAY: with Matt and Fiona
DAY SIXTEEN: Girdwood, AK
For my last day in Alaska, I drove to Girdwood to hike some of the Winner Creek Trail. I really wanted to use a hand tram! Since I was alone, I only hiked out to the hand tram and back, because I have weak arms and didn't want to pull myself all the way across the gorge!
After my hike, I had a final meal with my family and then took a red-eye flight back home!
EAT: Moose's Tooth
I hope this helps inspire you for your own Alaska adventure; I've got more details coming at ya soon!
