We are back in Anchorage so it must be time to hike another mountain. We had a little trouble finding this trailhead. It was located in a residential area at the base of the mountain. My destination was Bear Point, hovering over Alaska Highway 1, just past the Joint Base Elmendorf/Richardson.
Once I went through a gate, I turned uphill in about a block, leaving a well groomed trail for this slippery and rock-strewn single track.
There were bright colored mushrooms all along the trail. If they were left alone, they could get up to about six inches in diameter.
The trail to the top was pretty steep, but the views were amazing. At one point there was a black animal running in my direction, up the single-track trail. Due to the height of the fireweed and other tall grasses, I just knew it was big and black. It wasn’t until he got to me that I saw it was a very large black dog, with it’s owner halfway down the mountain. When he reached me he was very apologetic but I was already in the grass playing with the dog. He had a lot of energy and probably would have scared a lot of people because you really didn’t know what it was until he was on you! He was the only person I saw on the trail all afternoon.
This is a view looking down towards Mirror Lake and the Glenn Highway going through the town of Peters. In the distance is the Knik Arm of Cook Inlet. The Knik Glacier (to the far right) feeds the river (shown here at low tide).
This is the view, overlooking the Mat-Su Valley, including the towns of Palmer and Wasilla. The mountains in the background are in the Denali Range. The green area is the Palmer Flats and is a prime bird and moose watching area. There are some marked trails and picnic areas, all within hiking distance to the parking area. I would assume you have to be tidal aware as the fluctuations in tide can exceed 34 feet here.
This is Bear Point. I saw no one else on the mountain at this time. As you can see, the tree-line is much lower the further north you get. Bear Point is a little over 3,100 feet vertical and 1.5 miles from the trailhead, a steep but rewarding endeavor.
This is the view from Bear Point looking south, towards Chugach State Park and Lake Eklutna. I expected see wildlife, but alas, not even a squirrel.
This is one of the many wild mushrooms of different colors and shapes found alongside the trail.
There were places the streams descended into ice-holes (no pun intended). This is a very unique environment.
Travelling with the Schinglers 