Alaska

K'esugi Ridge Trail

22 mi long · in Alaska

K'esugi Ridge Trail is a 22-mile hiking trail in Alaska. This page summarises what we have from public sources (OpenStreetMap and trail-association data); always verify current conditions and trail status with the maintaining organisation before heading out.

States: Alaska
Length: 22 mi
Network: Local (lwn)
Centroid nearest city: Anchorage, AK · 109 mi · ~3.2 hr drive
Centroid coords: 62.8004°, -149.8726°
OSM relation: 13256954

From Wikipedia: Kesugi Ridge Trail is a through hike in Denali State Park, Alaska, United States. Under favorable conditions visitors can see Denali, the tallest mountain in North America. The trail is 22 miles (35 km) long, but does not connect directly to a roadway. The Upper Troublesome Creek trail, Cascade trail, Ermine Hill trail and Little Coal Creek trail provide access to it from Parks Highway between mile 137.6 and mile 163.9. It starts below the tree line and works it way up to the alpine tundra along the ridge, crossing hills and valleys with cairns marking the way in rocky areas. This hike can be considered difficult because of the elevation gain, exposure to sudden changes in weather and of bear activity. At times the presence of bear forces the closure of the trail. Other times it is closed because of flooding. Excerpt from the Wikipedia article on Kesugi Ridge Trail, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.

Plan your hike

Practical notes

Maps + permits: long-distance trails like this often require permits for through-hiking, backcountry camping, or specific sections (especially in National Parks). Check with the maintaining organisation listed above and the relevant land manager before booking travel.

Water + supplies: water sources vary seasonally on most U.S. trails. Carry a filter and consult current trail-condition reports — through-hiker journals (PCT-L, AT Reddit, etc.) and the maintaining organisation publish regular updates.

When to go: hiking seasons vary widely with elevation, latitude, and snowpack. Through-hikers traditionally start the AT in March-April (Springer northbound) and the PCT in late April (Campo northbound). High-elevation western trails (CDT, JMT, Wonderland) generally aren't passable until July.

If you've hiked K'esugi Ridge Trail and have current notes (water sources, trail closures, permit changes), tell us at /contact — we update pages as we learn.

Sources

Public data + curation

Trail data on this page is compiled from OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL), the maintaining organisation's public-facing materials, and Wikipedia (CC BY-SA where excerpts are quoted). Distance, terminus, and descriptive text for nationally-designated trails are hand-curated from federal land-manager websites and trail-association sources. We do not modify the underlying data; this page presents what is already publicly recorded. To suggest corrections, see our methodology page.