Alaska feels like a different country and that’s the beauty of the United States. There’s so much to see without a passport, and so many states make you feel like sometimes you’ve left the planet. Alaska did not disappoint in our two-week adventure. I’ll give you a quick run-down of our itinerary, my impressions, and some other tips to consider if you have more time and/or other interests!

June 30	Flight to Anchorage	1 day
July 1-4	Palmer	2.5 days
July 5-7	Talkeetna	3 days
July 8	Travel Talkeetna to Seward	1 day
July 9-12	Seward	4 days
July 13	Flight out of Anchorage	1 day

Our first stop was Palmer, Alaska, where we planned several amazing days that ended up including several highlights of our two weeks in Alaska.

Hiking up Skyscraper Mountain

Spencer and I snuck in a few extra days on our trip before we met up with some friends. With that time, we decided to visit the surrounding Palmer area, including Hatcher Pass and Matanuska Glacier. We rented our car from Anchorage and drove 1.5 hours to Palmer, heading straight for Hatcher Pass. There are several shorter hiking trails in the area, and we opted for Skyscraper Mountain (1.9 miles, 990 ft elevation). This trail gave us incredible views of the area, and we got to witness the dozen or so paraglider we saw enjoying the day alongside us.

Exploring Independence Mine State Historical Park

After our little hike, we opted to visit the Independence Mine preservation site, where we explored the mine through a self-guided tour by foot. This area was once home to two gold mines until mining was deprioritized due to World War II. At its peak, the area was home to more than 200 workers and their families to produce about 34,000 ounces of gold, today worth almost $18 million. Spencer and I also noted a few boulders in the area actively being climbed! The glacier-carved valley made for a beautiful area, but we both acknowledged how cold and harsh life would have been for the community throughout the winter.

Hiking up to Reed Lakes

After extensive research, I found the Reed Lakes trail (8.7 miles, 2,200′ gain) to be rated as a top hike in Alaska. So naturally, this was the hike that we built our time in Palmer around! We started after a casual morning breakfast, knowing that we had sunlight until 10 pm. The trail was stunning from the start, as we meandered through a gentle trail up a valley to some fun boulder fields that led us to be surrounded by mountain peaks and crystal clear waters. We pushed further to reach lower Reed Lake, where we spotted some gleaming climbing hardware on the distant side of the lake and speculated about coming back with some backpacking and climbing gear and spending a few days in the area. Continuing further, we encountered a not-insignificant amount of snow for our trail runners. I may or may not have post-holed down to my waist until Spencer kindly dug my leg out! It was all worth it for the beautiful view of the snow-covered frozen upper lake. The trail continues onward, up and over a saddle and back down to Bomber Glacier and the remains of a tragic plane wreck from 1957. While it’s possible to do it in snowy conditions, you need the right gear (which we did not). Most people attempt the remainder of the trail in September, after most of the snow has melted.

A private guided tour of Matanuska Glacier

Our last day in the Palmer area was something we were most looking forward to: a private guided tour of Matanuska Glacier through Nova Alaska Guides. We were incredibly lucky to explore the glacier with David, who has been guiding at the glacier for six seasons. He’s seen the glacier shift and change over the years, so he knew it well and gave us his unique perspective on how it’s changed. We opted to do some ice climbing on our tour and we were able to get deeper into the glacier, thanks to our small group size and climbing experience. I was psyched to learn from an ice climbing and glacier expert to better understand how he navigates glaciers and what he’s looking for to stay safe. Spencer and I even got to practice building some V-threads for anchors and ended up climbing four different areas of the glacier, each one a unique feature that we got to learn about. From moulins to fixotropic rock to cryoconites, we learned so much about how glaciers are alive and shape the areas around them.

All in all, if you’re planning a trip to Alaska, I could not more highly recommend visiting the surrounding area of Palmer and using the town as a home base. There’s so much to explore in the wilderness and it’ll keep you busy and filled with wonder the entire time!