This summer has not been what I hoped it would be, on so many levels. The obvious reason is the rainy weather we’ve been having for two months, but really that’s only a small part what’s been going on for me. I’m still dealing w...
For years I’ve wanted to crust ski up Summit Creek, which is just west of Summit Lake in the Kenai Mountains. My hope was that once I got up there, I could make some cool loops with Resurrection Pass and Devil’s Pass. Two years ago, Tim, Tim, Benji and I tried going up Summit Creek, [...]
April was pretty much a dud for crust skiing, which was fine by me because I couldn’t have gone anyway. Fortunately, the crust improved just when I was ready to go again. But now it’s May, which means snow is going fast. Gotta get it while it lasts! Tim, Benji and I explored the South Fork [...]
One of my rules in life is this: If you have ski trails only a mile from your house, and they are still groomed in May, you need to give them a try. For reasons that aren’t really relevant here, I haven’t skied in a couple of weeks. But when I heard that Hillside was [...]
My brother is in town this week. Today we headed up Rabbit Creek valley for some touring and low-angle turns in the new snow. Perfect conditions: a very firm, smooth base with a few inches of cold, dry powder on top. We had the entire valley to ourselves. Skiing on extra blue on April 15th. [...]
Wow, this little tool could become very addictive.
Is there some place I can live where it is March year-round? March here in south central Alaska was damn-near perfect this year. The first half of the month was cool and snowy, then the second half was warm and sunny. And with the long days stretching daylight until after 8 PM – it’s simply [...]
We spent last weekend at a cabin on Benka Lake near Talkeetna. It’s always a great family get-away. When we were up there this past summer, we hiked a little way out the Montana Creek South Fork trail, which is nearby. It was a family hike, so we didn’t make it very far. [...]
If you read my last post about being laid low for a couple of months, I am sure you understand how badly I have been needing to get out for a good, long ski. My first bright idea was that I would do the Susitna 100. Not race it, just ski easy, enjoy [...]
It’s been quiet around this blog for a couple of months. That’s never a good thing. It’s been a tough winter for me because I’ve been dealing with some mysterious health issues. In December I started feeling light-headed and I had a slight ache in my chest. After a week or [...]
I had a free day to do a long ski this weekend, so I rounded up some friends for a trip to the Susitna Valley. Bill, Rachel, JT, Scott are all either doing, or thinking about doing, the White Mountains 100 race in March, so they were eager to get out of town and ski some snowmachine trails.
Today, Tim and I explored the Duck Flats area at the head of Knik Arm. I'd heard that the skating there last year was phenomenal. Since it hasn't been very cold this fall, we were concerned that we might be a little too early. But since nordic skating has such a short window of time, we decided to give it a go anyway.
My favorite run is not long. It clocks in at a modest one hour and twenty minutes. My favorite run does not climb big mountains. The elevation gain is less than one thousand feet. My favorite run does not have lots of expansive views. It only has two viewpoints. Obviously, based on what I’ve said so far, my [...]
It was rainy all day, but the clouds were just high enough to see the mountains. It was a great time, and I was happy to be in my boat, hanging out with great company. A great finish to a less-than-great summer of adventure.
I spent the Labor Day weekend camping with family and friends at Caines Head State Recreation Area, on Resurrection Bay south of Seward. On Sunday, we did a really cool hike up the Alpine Trail. Despite rave reviews in guidebooks and online trail guides, this hike is still relatively unknown. I think it ranks among [...]
As I sat at home last night feeling battered, bruised and exhausted from this year's Mountain Orienteering event, I started thinking that this little-known event can hold its own when compared to some of the most infamous mountain running races in Alaska. More than anything, I was just trying to justify the fact that the event had left me completely wasted.
Last month we introduced the kiddo to the wonderful world of packrafting. And last week, we had three generations out in the rafts, paddling among the ‘bergs.
Aaaahhhhh. That noise you hear is me letting out a loud, contented sigh. Finally, after five long months, I made it back into the mountains of Alaska. My main goal as I was rehabbing my Achilles tendon was to heal well enough and quickly enough to do some peak-bagging before summer was over. [...]
I was probably a little too excited for this week's orienteering meet. I was merely going to run around in the woods for a hour or two by myself. At the end, I would compare my time to a few other people. Not exactly a big deal. I really should not have been so nervous before the start.