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DESDE EL VISITOR CENTER - HORSESHOE LAKE TRAIL - DENALI NATIONAL PARK - ALASKA

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Photo ofDESDE EL VISITOR CENTER - HORSESHOE LAKE TRAIL - DENALI NATIONAL PARK - ALASKA Photo ofDESDE EL VISITOR CENTER - HORSESHOE LAKE TRAIL - DENALI NATIONAL PARK - ALASKA Photo ofDESDE EL VISITOR CENTER - HORSESHOE LAKE TRAIL - DENALI NATIONAL PARK - ALASKA

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Trail stats

Distance
3.3 mi
Elevation gain
377 ft
Technical difficulty
Easy
Elevation loss
377 ft
Max elevation
1,693 ft
TrailRank 
57
Min elevation
1,693 ft
Trail type
Loop
Time
2 hours 30 minutes
Coordinates
369
Uploaded
August 22, 2015
Recorded
August 2015
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near McKinley Park, Alaska (United States)

Viewed 2048 times, downloaded 69 times

Trail photos

Photo ofDESDE EL VISITOR CENTER - HORSESHOE LAKE TRAIL - DENALI NATIONAL PARK - ALASKA Photo ofDESDE EL VISITOR CENTER - HORSESHOE LAKE TRAIL - DENALI NATIONAL PARK - ALASKA Photo ofDESDE EL VISITOR CENTER - HORSESHOE LAKE TRAIL - DENALI NATIONAL PARK - ALASKA

Itinerary description

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March held on Sunday, August 2, 2015
NOTICE: It is understood that anyone who wants to do this same route assumes the responsibility that an activity entails that is not exempt from possible risks or incidents, in an environment in which common sense and circumstances can make the difference between having a good day or the opposite.
This easy and comfortable tour is one of many that leave from the Denali Visitor Center; although this time instead of ascending Mount Healy, as we did in the morning, it goes down all the time until it reaches the edge of Horseshoe Lake itself. Note that those who do not dare or are not in physical condition to climb the Healy, choose this other trek as a very good option to get to know the beautiful corners that Denali offers, and as expected, we find many more people doing this trek. than that of Mt. Healy. It should be clarified that the first part of almost a kilometer, until shortly before the Healy wooden bridge, coincides with said route, except that at this point instead of taking the left, you have to take the right, to go down to the deep depression in which the lake is located. A long way before, you will have to cross the tracks of a train, which, as in so many other parts of Alaska, is usually very picturesque in the purest American style. As was said, it is a very comfortable walk, with several viewpoints and even the occasional wooden bench. The little less than three kilometers that there are to the very edge of the Horseshoe are done without you realizing it, since the way out is downhill; and although we did the return by the same route, because we were short of time, it is advisable to continue along the edge of the lake, up to some stone walls where the path narrows even more, so that once we have passed this area, we end up linking with another little path that connects with the one that goes up to the visitor center. This option, although it lengthens what we did by almost two kilometers, nevertheless allows us to have a more panoramic view of the different angles of vision over the lake, and convert a walk like the one we did, back and forth, into another almost circular with a greater attraction to go through different sites. With this walk, we said goodbye to the possibility of walking around Denali Park, waiting for the next day (at six in the morning!) to take the shuttle bus from the park itself, which would introduce us for more than a hundred miles in heart of Denali, until you can contemplate in all its magnitude and with the luck of having a clear day, McKinley himself.

Waypoints

PictographIntersection Altitude 1,600 ft
Photo ofd. cruce con el Rock Creek Trail Photo ofd. cruce con el Rock Creek Trail Photo ofd. cruce con el Rock Creek Trail

d. cruce con el Rock Creek Trail

02-AGO-15 19:25:08

PictographIntersection Altitude 1,608 ft

g. primer cruce con camino circular de vuelta de la laguna

03-AGO-15 1:40:25

PictographPhoto Altitude 1,442 ft
Photo ofl. ardilla sobre tronco de madera

l. ardilla sobre tronco de madera

03-AGO-15 1:59:49

PictographLake Altitude 1,382 ft
Photo ofm. orilla del lago Photo ofm. orilla del lago

m. orilla del lago

03-AGO-15 2:09:36

PictographIntersection Altitude 1,604 ft

c. cruce de la Denali Rd.

02-AGO-15 23:45:25

PictographInformation point Altitude 1,586 ft

i. segundo panel informativo

03-AGO-15 1:42:48

PictographPhoto Altitude 1,566 ft
Photo ofj. primer mirador al lago

j. primer mirador al lago

03-AGO-15 1:51:39

PictographPhoto Altitude 1,476 ft
Photo ofk. segundo mirador a laguna y banco de madera

k. segundo mirador a laguna y banco de madera

03-AGO-15 1:57:25

PictographInformation point Altitude 1,597 ft
Photo ofb. panel informativo

b. panel informativo

02-AGO-15 23:47:25

PictographBridge Altitude 1,652 ft

f. puente de madera

03-AGO-15 1:24:42

PictographInformation point Altitude 1,675 ft
Photo ofe. segundo panel informativo Taiga trail Photo ofe. segundo panel informativo Taiga trail

e. segundo panel informativo Taiga trail

02-AGO-15 23:32:42

PictographRisk Altitude 1,587 ft
Photo ofh. cruce con las vías del tren

h. cruce con las vías del tren

03-AGO-15 1:42:06

PictographInformation point Altitude 1,584 ft
Photo ofa. Visitor Center Denali

a. Visitor Center Denali

02-AGO-15 19:07:25

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