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Lost Lake Tr Mountain Bike Trail
Seward, Alaska
MTB TRAIL STATS
Avg Rating:  |
1 trail review |
|
Status: updated 8/8/08 by AK_Dan |
Difficulty:  Intermediate |
| Length: 7 miles | Global Rank: #205 |
| Tread: Singletrack | Configuration: Out & Back |
| Ridden: 5 | Wishlist: 2 |
Directions:
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Description: This trail does get easier the farther up it you go. I give it a fairly high technical rating due mainly to some rough/rocky sections, sections with lots of roots, some sections with both, that and 1800 ft of climbing in 6 miles is not really a beginner type ride. Immediately upon starting up the trail take a right and follow this route for the first mile, the two join back up at that point. Shortly after that you come to another Y dividing the summer & winter routes, stay left. The trail climbs steadily through densely forested canyons hugging hillsides and crossing a couple small streams. At 2 miles and about 1000 ft you will have just about reached treeline and the forest gives way to thick alder, tall grass and raspberry bushes. The first 3 miles are definitely the roughest and the trail flattens out and gets considerably smoother at 3.5 miles, here there is a Y and the upper end of the ‘winter route’, stay left. The thick alder have given way to classic tundra and a few scattered stands of spruce trees here & there. Although still a healthy climb the smoother trail conditions make the next 2.5 miles to the summit go much easier, make sure to look over your shoulder now & then at the views of the Kenai Range to the W, Resurrection Bay and Seward to the S and the many glaciers of the Harding Icefield to the E. The sound of a hundred waterfalls in the distance has been your soundtrack for the last few miles. At 6 miles you reach the summit of the trail and can see Lost Lake sitting in a mountain bowl another mile down the trail and a couple hundred ft lower. The trip back down the mountain can of course be a blast, although the roughness on the lower half can really work out any suspension. *** This is bear country! Please ride with a group and make noise or use a ‘bear bell’, most bears will avoid human confrontation as long as they hear you coming.***
Description: This trail does get easier the farther up it you go. I give it a fairly high technical rating due mainly to some rough/rocky sections, sections with lots of roots, some sections with both, that and 1800 ft of climbing in 6 miles is not really a beginner type ride. Immediately upon starting up the trail take a right and follow this route for the first mile, the two join back up at that point. Shortly after that you come to another Y dividing the summer & winter routes, stay left. The trail climbs steadily through densely forested canyons hugging hillsides and crossing a couple small streams. At 2 miles and about 1000 ft you will have just about reached treeline and the forest gives way to thick alder, tall grass and raspberry bushes. The first 3 miles are definitely the roughest and the trail flattens out and gets considerably smoother at 3.5 miles, here there is a Y and the upper end of the ‘winter route’, stay left. The thick alder have given way to classic tundra and a few scattered stands of spruce trees here & there. Although still a healthy climb the smoother trail conditions make the next 2.5 miles to the summit go much easier, make sure to look over your shoulder now & then at the views of the Kenai Range to the W, Resurrection Bay and Seward to the S and the many glaciers of the Harding Icefield to the E. The sound of a hundred waterfalls in the distance has been your soundtrack for the last few miles. At 6 miles you reach the summit of the trail and can see Lost Lake sitting in a mountain bowl another mile down the trail and a couple hundred ft lower. The trip back down the mountain can of course be a blast, although the roughness on the lower half can really work out any suspension. *** This is bear country! Please ride with a group and make noise or use a ‘bear bell’, most bears will avoid human confrontation as long as they hear you coming.***
added on August 8, 2008 by 
TRAIL REVIEWS review this trail
reviewed by summitconcierge on April 30, 2009
If Lost Lake isn't an epic ride, I'm not sure what is. The scenery includes everything from temperate rain forest to glaciers to meadows chock full of wildflowers mid-summer (think Sound of Music). It's mind-blowing. The upper portion of this trail is home to some of the flowiest single track I've ever ridden and the many obstacles along the way are scattered enough that you can easily recover between challenging stretches. I used to work in Seward during the summer months while going to school and this trail never disappointed me one bit. While there might be better rides in AK (not sure), I haven't ridden one trail in the lower 48 that even comes close.
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