Trail
Flattop Mountain Trail
Alaska's most-climbed peak: a steep 1.7-mile climb from Glen Alps with a rocky scramble to 360-degree views.
Chugach State Park · Alaska State Parks
- Distance
- 1.7 mi[1]
- Elevation gain
- 1300 ft
- High point
- 3510 ft
- Difficulty
- Strenuous
- Route type
- Out and back
- Access modes
- Road · Hike
- Dogs allowed
- Yes
- Bikes allowed
- No
- Stock allowed
- No
- Motorized allowed
- No
- Water sources
- None on the trail.
- Hazards
- Steep scrambling near the summit, rockfall from hikers above, wind and cold on top, winter avalanche terrain.
Starts at the Glen Alps Trailhead (stairs), climbs through mountain hemlock to timberline, crosses Blueberry Hill to a saddle and then steepens through talus to the summit, where the route is marked with paint on the rocks. Expect about 1,300 feet of gain. Near the top you scramble on loose rock; falls have caused injuries and deaths, and hikers above can knock rocks down. The summit is often cold and windy and there is no water on the trail. Views take in the Alaska Range, Cook Inlet, Turnagain Arm and Anchorage. The area is avalanche-prone in winter. Pets must be leashed at the trailhead and under control on the trail.
- [1]Distance: 1.7 miles one way (Alaska State Parks, Guide to Flattop Mountain Trail and Hillside Trail System brochure); also reported as 1.5 miles (Alaska State Parks, Chugach State Park Recreational Opportunities). All footnotes
In pictures
Hiking · Photography
Sources
- Chugach State Park: Recreational OpportunitiesAlaska Department of Natural Resources, Division of Parks and Outdoor Recreation · Accessed 2026-11-13
- Hillside Trail System brochure (Chugach State Park)Alaska Department of Natural Resources, Division of Parks and Outdoor Recreation · Accessed 2026-11-13
- Guide to Flattop Mountain TrailAlaska Department of Natural Resources, Division of Parks and Outdoor Recreation · Accessed 2026-11-13
- Flattop Mountain (Anchorage, Alaska)Wikipedia · Accessed 2026-11-13
Last updated 2026-11-13