Chugach State Park
Alaska State Park · Anchorage, Alaska
A state park of about 495,000 acres rising directly behind Anchorage, one of the four largest state parks in the United States and one of very few places where a big city backs onto true mountain wilderness. Its trails start in the suburbs: Flattop Mountain from the Glen Alps trailhead is billed as Alaska's most climbed peak, with views over Anchorage, Cook Inlet and, on clear days, Denali. Beyond lie alpine valleys with lakes such as Rabbit Lake and Williwaw Lakes, the long Powerline Pass route, glacier-fed Eklutna Lake with its campground and bike trail, and the Eagle River Nature Center at the start of the historic Crow Pass route. Brown and black bears and moose are common, even near trailheads. In 2026 parking at Glen Alps cost $5 a day, or $60 for an annual Alaska State Parks pass.
Glen Alps Trailhead, Toilsome Hill Drive, Anchorage, Alaska, 99516, United States
Open year-round; trailhead parking hours vary (check dnr.alaska.gov/parks). Eagle River Nature Center keeps its own seasonal hours.
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