Rainbow Peak (Hike)

Sometimes you have weeks, and sometimes you have a few hours to get outside. Most of us spend more time relatively close to town, whether on skate skis, fat bikes, on foot, or in packrafts. Rainbow Peak is a good choice if you have limited time and have already done other close-to-home trips like Bird Ridge.

Rainbow is a rocky promontory wedged in between McHugh and the Suicides. Many people stroll or run the Turnagain Arm Trail that runs beneath it, but the inconspicuous and unmarked trail up Rainbow’s ridge keeps traffic lower on the mountain.

To get to Rainbow, park in the large lot near Mile 109 on the Seward Highway. Walk onto the large trail that heads west out of the parking lot, which is part of the popular Turnagain Arm Trail. The path winds through pastoral woodlands whose canopy stipples the sunlight that filters down to a fern understory. After crossing a small creek and a gravel road, the trail ascends to a ridgeline with a small overlook above Turnagain Arm. The elevation is still just a few hundred feet above sea level. At this point, a slide of grey rocks comes straight down the ridge through a dense forest. This is the ridgeline trail up to Rainbow Peak.

The trail climbs steeply, quickly leaving treeline to emerge on a long and rocky ridge. There are broad views of Turnagain Arm from the knoll just above treeline. From the knoll, Rainbow Peak is visible directly to the north. Though the ridgeline looks like a jumbled pile of rocks, it continues to be passable for a half mile or so toward the summit. If you choose to take the ridge route, you’ll eventually arrive at a much steeper section of ridge that would require exposed climbing on crumbling rocks. Traverse right (east) on a fairly well-used informal trail for a quarter mile or so before ascending one of the many ravines that heads up toward Rainbow’s summit ridge.  

If you don’t feel like scrambling straight up the ridge where it steepens above treeline, traverse northeast across a bowl of rock and grass toward Rainbow’s east ridge. After traversing for about ¾ of a mile, it is a several hundred yard walk up one of many chossy chutes to the summit ridge.

Rainbow’s ridgeline has several rocky pinnacles, with the southeastern one being slightly taller than the others. Whichever chute you use to climb to the ridge, it is an easy walk along the ridgeline to get to the summit. McHugh’s long ridgeline and diminutive summit pinnacle is nearby, to the northwest. The best views are looking south across Turnagain Arm, to Alpenglow, the Palmer Lakes area, and the peaks around Hope.

Rainbow is one of several less-commonly hiked peaks near Anchorage. Blacktail Rocks, Mount Magnificent, McHugh, and Penguin Peak all are good choices if you have a half day but want to get into the alpine, and they’re all within 30-45 minutes of downtown. With the arrival of solstice season, these nearby local hikes are fine choices for weekend afternoon or after work rambles.