Mount Baldy Has a Full Head of Hair - The Tribulations of Early Winter Hiking

By Emma Corby

Emma’s Rating: 😎😎😎😎

Now that I’m officially moved into Eagle River, one of the first things I did (after moving a couch inside through my second-floor balcony since it wouldn’t pivot up the stairs), was find the nearest hike. To AllTrails I went. Ben (my partner) and I were exhausted from moving –we had driven from Fairbanks to Eagle River separately in my car and a U-Haul, put all of our belongings in a storage unit, took a 1:55 AM flight to Hawaii for a week (not complaining about that part), and then, a week later, took nine separate trips to and from the storage unit and our new home. A Nissan Rogue can only do so much.

And so, we wanted a short hike, an easy hike. Nothing too difficult –we just wanted something to get us outside and enjoy the beautiful sun and views we are now surrounded by. Mount Baldy Loop was the first thing to pop up. It’s just five miles away from my home, there’s only about 1,200 feet of elevation gain, and the loop is only about three miles long. Jackpot!

Ben and Emma on the snowy trail near the top of Mount Baldy.

Little did I know, the first 1,000 feet of elevation gain were all packed into the very first mile, and there was one other small detail I had forgotten about: the snow. It hadn’t snowed yet below the mountains, and it was still about 35 degrees Fahrenheit, so I just put on a jacket and laced my hiking boots before I was ready to go. The first mile, even though it was entirely uphill, was completely doable. There was a thin layer of snow, but nothing too slippery or steep. Ben and I were a little out of breath, but we were enjoying the views, the outside air, and the occasional hiker in a Halloween costume (I guess we missed the memo).

After about a mile, I started wishing I had spikes. The trail became slippery and slightly unclear, which is usually when I have Ben go first so I know where to step. What was planned to be a lowkey hike turned into me, on all fours, trying not to slip down the mountain where I thought the trail was supposed to be. Usually, I would have been up for the challenge, but after an entire day of unpacking straight off of eighteen hours of travel, my body begged to differ. So, we took it slow, and it was beautiful. Once we got to the top, it was hard to believe it only took a mile and a half to get there; we were totally surrounded by mountains on all sides. It felt like we were in a snow globe, especially since, down below, there was yet to be any snow on the ground.

Mr. Moose laying down by the trail.

Photo by Emma Corby

It was like waking up one morning to a full foot of snow, but in broad daylight, and on top of a mountain. After hanging out at the top for a while (and throwing a few snowballs, obviously), we started our way down. On the way down, because some of the snow was fresh, the trail became even more unclear. I’m still not sure if we were on the trail at all when we came across a huge bull moose laying down, but we took a detour and found another trail that could have been the right one. Maybe I’ll find out which trail was right next time, when I remember spikes.

Mount Baldy’s views are so full – we could hardly believe that anywhere we turned, there was a mountain, either right in front of us, or in the distance. If you do find yourself here, remember that no matter how crowded the trails may be, stay on the lookout for moose! We hadn’t even noticed this guy until we were a little too close for comfort.