Teetering Rock

This is backcountry Alaska at its most elemental. You'll start behind Dick Proenneke's famous hand-built cabin on Upper Twin Lake — yes, that cabin from 'Alone in the Wilderness' — and follow an unmaintained route through boreal forest and tundra toward a massive glacial erratic balanced improbably on a ridge. The trail is rough and unmarked in places, requiring some route-finding skills and a willingness to push through brush. But the payoff is extraordinary: a perch above the turquoise waters of Twin Lakes with views stretching across the Chigmit Mountains that make you feel like the last person on earth. Because you might be — Lake Clark sees fewer visitors in an entire year than Yellowstone gets before lunch. This is a trail for self-reliant hikers who want wilderness that hasn't been smoothed down for anyone's comfort.