Cross-Country Ski To Albert Loop Bridge

A beautiful cross-country ski trip out and back to the Albert Loop bridges. The ski out was really fun however all but one of us had taken our skis off by the time we got back to the Nature Center (guess which way is mostly uphill haha!). The trails are so well-used that underneath the snow is ice, not really anything bad it just affects how well you can use your poles.

A Snowy Hike On Albert Loop Trail

With little legs sometimes its more fun to walk straight out and back to the boardwalk on the Albert Loop trail.

Albert Loop Trail

 Another beautiful day on one of our favorite close-to-home hikes. We are so lucky.

Rodak Trail Eagle River Nature Center

The Eagle River Nature Center is a favorite of ours. So much scenery! There's a lot of trails to choose from the 5/8 mile Rodak to the 21 mile Crow Pass. When we just need to get the kids out of the house   it's usually Rodak with a stop by the hollow tree. The fairly short trail has two viewing decks. You'll see a lot of Instagrammers take photos from these spots, with some inferring that they're deep in Alaska backcountry (one popular 'grammer even brought their camp stove and enamel mugs to set up a camping scene just feet from one of the decks. I'm glad their followers liked it but it made me LOL). Anyways don't be fooled! I tell everyone that they should absolutely make a little time to go to the Nature Center - it's one of the fastest ways for us to immerse ourselves in Alaska without having to load up a pack (if you don't want). 

Rodak Trail After First Snow

Early snows are so magical here. Well, okay, any snow any time but when the sun comes high up in the sky and lights up everything around you it's pretty special.

Eagle River Nature Center: Albert Loop Trail

The girls and I did Albert Loop trail, NOT using the bypass trail. It was extremely muddy but doable. Bears have been seen near trails at the Nature Center so, as always, be bear aware. There is little to no elevation gain but due to the unimproved trail it is not stroller-friendly. 

ERNC Iditarod Trail to the River Access Trail

 Hello, sorry for the absence. I'm ready to be back but going forward there'll be some differences; I'll be sharing more of our corner of Alaska on and off the trail.

On to the hike. Our intention was to hike the Iditarod Trail (or Crow Pass Trail) to Echo Bend but we got distracted by the bonfire, hot cocoa and s'mores at the Paradise Haven open house. We hiked just to the River Access Trail (I can't find any info on it but it's a well-marked intersection on the Iditarod Trail. The River Access Trail is very short and - you guessed it - leads you down to the Eagle River). It's a fairly kid-friendly trail, it probably would have been too much walking for our 2-year-old but she did hike almost the whole way out and napped in the sled on the way back. I'm guessing it was about 4 miles out and back.

For more information on Eagle River Nature Center trails click here.

Eagle River Nature Center - Dew Mound Trail

I can't believe I hadn't heard much about the Dew Mound trail before. It's a new favorite for sure! A 7-mile loop takes you through so many different landscapes - cottonwood and birch groves, lush greenery, wildflower meadows, Tolkien-esqe mossy boulder-strewn paths, Dew Mound Lake, incredible views of Hurdy-Gurdy, Eagle Peak, and Glacier Peak, steep ravines, glacial erratics, Eagle River, black spruce forests - all without a ton of elevation gain (under 500 ft).

The trail goes back and forth from single track to wide and well-maintained. It's very rocky and has a lot of tree roots in places so choose your footwear accordingly. We chose to start the loop by taking the first left from the main trail (starting from the Nature Center). It's probably the way we'd choose again since it seems the elevation gain is more gradual that way. We stopped at Dew Mound Lake for a picnic lunch and to cool our feet off in the water. We stopped again at Echo Bend to play in the water and enjoy the views. You could turn around and return using the Dew Mound trail but we chose to make it a loop and continued down the Iditarod Trail back to the Center.

We did see a mama bear and her three cubs near the Rodak trail so if you're headed out to the Nature Center soon be extra bear aware (they took off as soon as they heard us, so making lots of noise continues to be the best plan)!

For more information on Dew Mound Trail click here.
For more information on the Eagle River Nature Center click here.
For more information on bear safety in Alaska click here.

Eagle River Nature Center - Rodak Trail

It's a gorgeous time of year to visit the Nature Center. There are tons of colorful wildflowers blooming! I recommend going in the evening, it won't be as crowded - although there's still a fair amount of people in the parking lot - and the colors just really pop. The Rodak is a very short, mostly flat trail packed with scenery.

For more information on the Eagle River Nature Center click here.

Eagle River Nature Center - Rodak Trail

We needed to get out of the house and luckily the Eagle River Nature Center is just a few minutes away. We weren't super prepared (no sneakers or bear spray) so we stuck to the popular and short Rodak trail. The trail was bare and dry. There were already some wildflowers blooming which was a nice surprise! After the walk we went into the Nature Center where the girls colored pictures of Alaska wildlife and flowers and played with wooden blocks.

There's been improvements made to Eagle River Rd (and they're still improving - construction has a portion of the road down to one lane) and included in that are pullouts so you can stop and take photos as you go. The top picture is from one of those pullouts.

For more information on the Eagle River Nature Center click here.