Accessible Trails in Alaska

 

 Not All Accessible Trails Found Below are ADA Complaint

1.        Roadside Bike Trail

  2.        The Trail of Blue Ice

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Roadside Bike Trail in Winter with a Rugged Mobility Chair

In late November 2016, our family arrived in Alaska after an unforgettable red-eye flight from Hawaii, trading tropical beaches and 80°F sunshine for the frozen wilderness of Denali National Park and a bone-chilling -21°F—a temperature swing of roughly 100 degrees in less than half a day. Alaska wasn't just another destination. It was the 50th and final U.S. state that Chris, Kellisa, and Egypt had visited together, completing a promise years in the making. 

Accessible Hiking Guide to the Trail of Blue Ice

 

This is a chapter summary from our hiking adventure in Alaska on the Trail of Blue Ice in Chugach National Forest, as part of our hiking a trail with Kellisa in all 50 states for Rugged Access for All. We start the chapter by recalling an earlier milestone: arriving in Alaska on November 23, 2016, in extreme cold, after a red-eye flight from Honolulu. Hawaii was our 49^th state visited and hiked in, and Alaska completed our 50-state goal, achieved six months before Kellisa’s 18th birthday and when Egypt was only seven. Despite limited daylight, icy roads, exhaustion, and temperatures around -21°F (exactly 100 degrees colder than Honolulu), we completed a short winter outing at Denali National Park, marking the emotional completion of a years-long promise.

From 80F to -20F in 11 Hours

Sometimes highlights just happen, they can't be planned because they can't be imagined. This was the case when we ended our stay in Hawaii with watching the sun set (top 3 pictures) from Waikiki Beach with hundreds of other tourists. We missed the sun setting the previous four nights for various reasons and didn't want to leave the island without watching this magical event.

After the sun set, we raced to the airport for a quick dinner before boarding a red eye flight to Anchorage. With little rest, we landed in our 50th state in the dark early morning hours. We loaded the rental car in the cold darkness and started driving to Denali National Park- the location for our hike in Alaska. I drove several hours while everyone rested with varying degrees of success. 

I was too excited to fall asleep while driving in complete darkness. I was busy picturing the end of our quest to hike in all 50 United States and how I couldn't think of a more epic way to finish than in winter in Alaska on a trail in Denali National Park. I was also flooded with memories of the other 49 states and the amazing times spent with my girls on the trails. 

Then it happened- the sun began illuminating the upper slopes of Denali, at 20,310 feet above sea level, it's the highest peak in North America. As the sun was working it's way down the mountainside, I drove by a viewing area (lower picture) to better observe Denali. After a quick u-turn, I pulled into the parking area. We were the only car in the lot that was covered by thick ice hidden under fresh snow. Everyone woke up to marvel at the beauty as I jumped out to snap a few pictures. 

It was and still is hard to comprehend that we watched the sunset from a beach in 80F weather and a mere 11 hours later, we were watching it rise 3,000 miles away in -20F weather. This might surprise some, but not me. If we could only go back to Alaska or Hawaii...we would all pick another trip to Alaska!

I'm not sure EPIC is a big enough word to describe our experience.

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Alyeska Resort

Girdwood, AK

November 24, 2016

We spent an amazing Thanksgiving evening at Alyeska Resort just outside of Anchorage, AK. The resort is a short drive down the beautiful Seward Highway. We didn't let the freezing cold prevent us from enjoying the scenery (mountains rising straight up from the frigid water) and riding the tramway for top of the world views. We saw a couple of moose grazing on the mountainside from inside the tram. Hot chocolate helped extend our visit along the walkways high on the mountain. 

We didn't plan ahead for Thanksgiving dinner and got lucky when there was a cancellation of a party of four at the 8pm sitting in the resort dining room. It was an all you can eat traditional Thanksgiving feast and after a few days of adventure in Alaska...we got our money's worth. We would have been OK with dinner from McDonald's (like we did for Thanksgiving 2010 in Las Vegas when we weren't willing to pay $65 for each kid when Laurel was a baby and Kellisa with her usual petite appetite), but it was nice to enjoy a fancy dinner for the holiday.