Granite Tors

Quick Facts:

• Drive time from Fairbanks: 1 hour

• Distance: 10 miles roundtrip

• Elevation gain: 2,250 ft

• Activity: Climbing/Backpacking

• Disclaimer: We only hiked to the first set of tors and came down the same way. The distance and elevation gain will change if you choose to do the full loop. Description can be found here.

This hike was perfect for a short, fall weekend. Some of our group opted to do the full 15-mile loop, while the other half stayed to climb longer and did the trail as an out-and-back. We started at the Granite Tors Campground & Trailhead at Mile 39.5 of Chena Hot Springs Road. You have to cross the road to start hiking up the West trail (counterclockwise on the loop), and the trail starts with some easy boardwalks and beautiful views of the river. Eventually, you start climbing up into the forest and lose the river, but there are plenty of viewpoints to look at the colorful trees. The trail felt really steep at times, with very minimal scrambling.

We arrived at the first set of tors after about 5 miles. The tors offer climbing routes ranging from 5.5 to 5.11, so they were perfect for a group of people with varying abilities. We set up base camp near the tors and spent the evening and following morning climbing. I highly recommend buying the Fairbanks Area Rock Climbing Guide by Frank Olive and Stan Justice for detailed beta on the climbing routes. We lucked out with a glimpse of the northern lights, and we could see Fairbanks from our tent!

Although we didn’t keep hiking, I do know there is a public use shelter that’s first-come-first serve at approximately mile 8 of the trail, just past the final set of tors.