Flattop is Alaska's most frequently climbed mountain
3-mile round-trip hike
Elevation gain: 1,350'
Elevation: 3,350'
Great views
A scenic, safe, affordable, independent outdoor afternoon excursion. We drive you 16-miles (37 minutes) from downtown Anchorage (sea level) on the longer more scenic route through the university to the Glen Alps. (Elevation 2,200') Van remains parked for about 3 hours while you HIKE by yourself. Click here for How to Hike Flattop direction sheet.
Great views reward each footstep. On average it takes one hour and fifteen minutes to HIKE from the parking lot to the summit. This allows most people ample time to walk around the mountain's flat top. It takes about 45 minutes to descend. Because there is no guide you can hike as far and as fast or as slow and as little as you like. A slow or tired hiker can turn around wherever and whenever they want. Fast, fit hikers can get to the top in about 40 minutes so they sometimes run up to the second or even the third peak behind Flattop. Up there you can run along a ridge line and unlike on the Flattop trail, up there you will likely be completely alone. Hikers must begin their descent between 2:45 and 3 pm so that they are back in the parking lot at or before 4 pm which is when the van departs. We take a different, faster, more direct route back to downtown arriving back at 4:30. If you want to rent a bike and take it to Flattop on the back of our van HIKE/BIKE COMBO, you won't be on a schedule because you can ride downhill back into the city whenever you want.
Shuttle van parked in front of Downtown Bicycle Rental.
Building where bike rental is located.
Membership/supporter