The Trek Details
The Trek in a snapshot
Girdwood, Alaska
Unknown
Allowed
None
None
Not allowed
Good visible dirt trail.
Virgin Creek Falls, Girdwood
Bring a bottle of water if needed
All
About 1/4 mile roundtrip
30 minutes
267 ft
368 ft
100 ft
Trailhead: 60.94833, -149.12525
Virgin Creek Falls: 60.94764, -149.12327
The Trail
Follow along on our adventure then go out on your own!
Not knowing anything beforehand about this hike besides its location, I packed a full backpack and drove to the trailhead. After about five minutes of hiking I arrived at the waterfall. You can hardly call this trail a hike but it is still worth a visit! The trail, of course, continues on above the waterfall and follows Virgin Creek.
The trailhead is at the end of a residential road; just park on the side of the street and you will see the trailhead sign on the east side.
The falls are situated in a beautiful narrow gorge. Even if you are hiking in early winter you will be surprised by how much green there is!
The “main” waterfall isn’t large but it is still impressive to see.
Hike above the waterfall to see even more.
I hiked to the north of the waterfall up the side of the mountain for a good ways and got some better views of the amazing forest. I took the photos below in January 2018 and it looks more like spring than winter!
Winter Hiking
Keep in mind that you are near the Alyeska Ski Resort and they do use canons to try and manage avalanches. So if you plan to hike up the creek in winter be careful.
Also in the colder months the area can be extremely slippery. I about broke my back as I slipped and fell hard while hiking just from the parking lot.
Personal Thoughts
After living almost 10 years in Alaska I have only recently heard about this hike. I asked a few Anchorage locals if they have heard about the Virgin Creek Falls and they said they didn't know about it either. On the way up I saw several people and on the way down from the falls I saw a large group of people and a photographer setting up a family photo or something. I can see that it could get even more crowded in the warmer months. Driving the 50 minutes it takes to get here from Anchorage is worth it!
If anyone is reading this, it is a nice little hike, however, many come to do this hike and drive way too fast through a RESIDENTIAL NEIGHBORHOOD where the speed limit is 20 MILES AN HOUR. I have lived for 20+ years and love this neighborhood, however I now have to worry so much more about my dogs (many have to worry about their children playing outside) and can’t enjoy being outside without getting smothered in a cloud of dust. So if you choose to do this hike, please just be respectful to the people in the neighborhood and SLOW… Read more »