Alaska Lake

Trek for miles up the long, gently sloping valley under the towering wall of Rampart Ridge before the route turns steep and you slog upward to increasingly picturesque views to reach a deep, steep lake cirque. The valley approach, though fairly flat itself, is an avalanche danger zone, with several avalanche-chute runouts reaching the valley bottom. Don’t trek up this valley unless the avalanche risk is low. But when the snow is stable, this can be a stunning place to visit, even though the first few miles are within hearing of Interstate 90 to the south. In addition to the vertical wall of Rampart Ridge to the east, there is the high summit of Alaska Mountain at the head of the valley, and the rocky spires of Kendall Peak to the west.