Last Summer, Eryn and Jason took a trip from Girdwood, South to Homer, Alaska. From Homer they flew by float plane to Taylor Bay and during the next 3 days the two of them hiked a little over 30 miles along The Tutka Backdoor Trail.
When they reached the end of the trail, they were picked up in Tutka Bay by boat and returned to Homer.
The below photos will give you a good idea where The Tutka Backdoor Trail is located.
A closer look at The Tutka Backdoor Trail.
The route begins at the Taylor Bay trailhead and follows the Tutka Backdoor Trail, Tutka Falls Trail, and Tutka Lagoon Trail to finish at Jakolof Bay. Total distance is 50k+ or 31 miles, with around 9,000 feet of elevation gain spread across four major climbs. This is a trail for those who want an epic experience. There is one major river crossing and three minor ones, as well as several creeks to cross, and a tidal lagoon to skirt. Parts of the route are marked only by cairns, and the trail is both steep and rugged. Most of the distance is in alpine tundra, rocks, and subalpine meadows, with lower elevation sections in old-growth spruce forest. The views are amazing. The trail is longer than any other trail in Kachemak Bay State Park.
Below are a few photos from their trip.Yes it was in a remote location up here in Alaska.
Nice views.
Their campsite with their dog Vigo guarding the tent!
Smiles and thanks so very much, Eryn and Jason.
Cap and Patti
Eryn responded :
Hi Cap! It's a great synopsis and it brings back all the memories from that trip, thank you for writing about it! We called the miles we hiked on that trip "hard earned miles" because the trail was very rugged and the miles took longer than most of the trails we hike. We enjoyed every moment though, even when we got off course a few times and had to use the GPS to find the trail. I noticed the photos look a little pixelated. Maybe the ones we sent you were reduced in size.
We did some hiking today and harvested Devil's club buds and fiddleheads. We are still finishing up the cleaning and processing of them now, it's a bit of work!
