The Ascending Path
What Escorted Hiking & Climbing
  Right from Anchorage we can have you glacier hiking, rock and ice climbing or out enjoying Alaska on a spectacular guided hike. Whether you have an entire day or just a few hours, we have a variety of Alaska day tour adventures for you. All within an hour of Anchorage and Girdwood, Alaska! The Ascending Path's Alaska day tours give you a superb guided eco-adventure experience in the accessible and beautiful Chugach mountain range. No experience necessary!
 
  1. 3 HR. GLACIER HIKE - Learn about glaciers up close and personal on this 3 hour glacier excursion! You will hike in awe, overlooking breathtaking views of the Turnagain Arm and towering alpine peaks. Traveling on a glacier during the Alaskan Midnight Sun is an amazing and educational experience.
  2. 1 DAY SUMMER ICE CLIMBING- Climbers are fitted with plastic mountaineering boots, crampons, harness, helmet and ice tools. After a short drive to Portage Valley, our hike in follows an existing trail to year around avalanche debris. We then hike the glacial moraine (rugged loose rocks) where we hike onto the glacier itself. Another 500' of cramponing or roped travel gets us up to some steep ice faces, above which your guide will set the anchor. Then learn the ropes and practice your technique: "hips in, flick the wrist and trust your feet" The views from the Byron Glacier are fantastic. Come prepared with lunch, your raingear and camera. Expect a very memorable day!Up to 7 hr. package.
  3. 1 DAY WINTER ICE CLIMBING- Alaska is the best year-around place to learn Ice Climbing! Our 1 day of fun instructional climbing is for interested, fit people with little or no climbing experience. This trip is perfect for folks looking for a little more adventure than the usual. Up to 6 hr. package. Departs from Anchorage.
  4. 1/2 DAY RAINFOREST HIKE- This 5 mile "out and back" hike is a 3-4 hour excursion. Your naturalist guide will point out and discuss the flora and fauna of North America's northern-most temperate rainforest. You may even see a moose or a bear!
  5. 1/2 DAY CROW PASS HIKE- The trail is relatively snow-free by late June, though the Crystal Lake basin south of the pass and some of the gullies north of the pass may hold snow well into the summer.Glaciers, waterfalls, wildflowers, and mining ruins add some spice to the hike to Crow Pass, as if it needed any; the pass is the highest point on the historic Iditarod Trail and one of the finest day hikes in Southcentral Alaska. Arctic ground squirrels, marmots, and mountain goats inhabit the high country near Crow Pass, and bears, moose, and Dall sheep are frequently spotted too, especially on the Eagle River side of the pass.
  6. ROCK CLIMBING- This is a custom trip geared toward your interests. You can spend your days with intensive ice climbing instruction, working on beginner to advanced skills, focus on techniques for anchor placement for climbing on your own, or learn glacier safety and crevasse rescue skills. Camp nearby and make this a multi-day learning opportunity. You can gear your trip toward exploring the glacier or climbing the many different ice walls. No experience necessary. Tour duration - 6 hours
  7. GLACIER CLIMBING CLINIC- This intensive 8 hour clinic includes roping up for mountaineering glacier travel, extensive crevasse rescue (3:1, 5:1, 9:1 Pulley system evolution) and ascending and rappelling a fixed rope. Additional skills development include, ice axe and crampon use, route finding and rope management.
Where Girdwood, Alaska
When Daily during summer. Limited availability during winter.
Capacity Depending on tour, 2 person minimum, 10 person maximum.
Equipment Experienced guides, all required safety equipment, crampons, mountaineering boots (for ice climbing trips), hiking boots, all technical gear as required for ice climbing and glacier travel.
Price
Tour   Your
Price
  1. 3 hr. Glacier Hike
  2. 1 Day Summer Ice Climbing
  3. 1 Day Winter Ice Climbing
  4. 1/2 Day Rainforest Hike
  5. 1/2 Day Crow Pass Hike
  6. Rock Climbing
  7. Glacier Climbing Clinic
 Transportation from Anchorage available. Most trips depart from Girdwood unless otherwise noted.
  1. $139
  2. $220
  3. $220
  4. $79
  5. $89
  6. $129
  7. $249
Call the Alaska Visitors Center & Activities toll free
RESERVATIONS CALL TOLL FREE: 1-888-655-4020
VISITORS INFORMATION CALL: 1-907-929-2822
E-MAIL TO: avc@alaska.net

Alaska Visitors Center
733 West 4th Avenue, Anchorage, Alaska 99501
 
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