Gull Rock Trail, located in the Chugach National Forest, is a really excellent, moderately difficult trail that has a lot to see and explore. Able bodied adults, children and seniors will enjoy this trail as long as they go prepared for some terrain changes and the misty rain that enevitably descends on hikers in this part of Alaska. To access Gull Rock Trail, take Hope Highway to the end and the entrance and parking lot are on the left. If you are camping at Porcupine Campground, you can access the trail from a 2ndary trail head there as well(which carves .5 miles off the one way distance of the hike.) There is no public parking in the Porcupine Campground to access the trail, so hikers are best off parking at the main trailhead(or camping at Porcupine… make reservations online or you’ll NEVER get spot !) Unfortunately I jacked up my knee right before my vacation(argh!) so I was only able to hike about half the trail but it was very enjoyable but not terribly challenging. There’s some elevation changes, but not more than about 500 feet elevation gain total. The terrain, however changes a lot. There’s rainforest, birch forest, pine forests, talus(rockslidy areas), views of the inlet and the mountains. It’s a nice bit of everything. There’s some minimal berry picking as well, but nothing particularly exciting. There are some water sources about, so if you bring a water purifier along with you you’ll stay well hydrated. There’s also, unfortunately ample mosquitos. It’s DEFINITELY a trail you want to be prepared for wildlife encounters(bear spray/gun), injuries(first aid pack), and basic survival stuff(a way to purify water, start a fire and a space blanket). Most of the trail has cell service since across the inlet is Seward Highway(which you can see in some spots). But there are dead spots and if you get hurt, no one’s gonna find you for a while, so be prepared to hunker down. We had a bear scare on the trail because in some places the brush and shrubbery is flush with the trail. That always makes me a little squirrley. Especially if you take kids with you, be prepared for large animal encounters. There’s not a lot of traffic on this trail past mile 2, so it’s pretty secluded for some nice quiet time with nature. Enjoy!
