Fifteen Miles of Arctic Grass and Rocks
by Emma Corby
Emma’s Rating: 😎😎😎😎
June, in Alaska, is the best and the worst time to go hiking all year; after months and months of snow, it’s finally melted and hiking is a great cure for winter-long cabin fever. However, warmer weather also brings Alaska’s summer “state bird”: mosquitoes. When I hiked Granite Tors in June, I should’ve brought my mosquito net for my face… pants and long sleeves weren’t enough.
Granite Tors is an hour east of Fairbanks, about forty miles down Chena Hot Springs Road. If you plan on doing this hike, make sure to give yourself the entire day! It’s a 15 mile loop with about 3,300 feet of elevation gain – AllTrails recommends giving yourself about eight hours to do it. Ben and I are quick hikers, and it took us just under six hours.
The first four miles of this hike are easy elevation-wise, but the trail is not very well maintained. In fact, it was the worst-maintained trail I have ever been on. For the entire first hour, there wasn’t a view any further than five feet away; the trees were so thick and overgrown into the trail that I didn’t take my arms down a single time. I was constantly protecting my face from branches. After those first four miles, the trees do start to thin out as the trail gets a bit higher, opening up for at least a little bit of a view. It was right around here that Ben and I had a bear encounter; it was far enough away that we didn’t have to use our bear spray, but we were certainly glad we had it. We always hike with our keys jingling on our belt loops so that we have a constant noise if we’re not talking, which, if a bear is nearby, keeps them from getting surprised. You do not want to meet with a surprised bear. Especially five miles away from the trailhead.
After continuing at our normal pace, remaining calm, we grew the distance between ourselves and the bear, starting to get to some elevation and thinner trees. The trail improved so much, about seven or eight miles in… we began to feel like the only people on the planet (especially because, for the whole fifteen mile hike, we only saw two other groups of people). From mile seven through twelve, we were up above so many views; it was one of the most beautiful places I have ever been, and so remote. There were portions of this hike with no trail and just open space filled with arctic grass and rocks.
The second half of this hike is what makes the first half worth it all; once we pushed past the beginning, especially the first four miles with all the brush, Granite Tors was so serene. I have never felt so wonderfully removed from society, and I can’t recommend this hike enough. And if you’re hiking in June, by the time you get down to the last two miles, you may find yourself running back to the trailhead to get away from all the mosquitoes. That’s what Ben and I did.