The Accidental Olympian

AS IF WE HADN'T ALREADY HAD THE BEST DAY EVER, THERE WAS MORE

After a once in a lifetime kayaking experience you'd think my mom and I wouldn't have pushed it. We'd have crawled into our adorable cabins out in the woods next to a, I shit you not, babbling brook, and decided in the morning we'd head back to Anchorage. Where there was no threat of whales landing on us. 

But no. We hadn't had enough natural splendor, and we needed to try our hands with another Alaskan wonder. 

Saturday morning we geared up and took off on the Harding Icefield trail (shit you not, 12 steps in someone was standing paralyzed on the trail because someone had spotted a baby bear) that runs along the insanely amazing Exit Glacier. We had the ultimate goal of getting to the top and seeing the entire Harding Icefield spread out before us. Three hundred and fifty miles of ice. So much ice that mountain tops stick up and look like little nubbins. The Harding Icefield is in essence one giant glacier, and then 'little' glaciers like Exit Glacier (which we hiked along side) sort of become fingers that spill from the main field.

Basically? A whole lot of awesome that looks like this. 

(photo credit, rockpaperscissors)

Instead, we saw this. 

Doesn't have the same wow factor, you know? 

So sure, we were disappointed after the worlds most beautiful and quite difficult hike to reach the top and be fogged in, but the hike was still worth it. Soggy, but so worth it. 

All in all, even with the rain and the fact that we ate our lunch in a windowless 'storm shelter' that was absolutely the most freezing cold I've ever been, the hike was breathtaking.

I feel like that's my go-to explanation for the beauty of Alaska. It's breathtaking. Because it is. But it's so much more, so truly indescribable that when I sit down to tell you how these experiences moved me I find myself so completely void of explanation. 

I know people who live their whole lives in Alaska become numb to the mountains, to the glaciers, to the fact that living in this state is like living in a zoo without cages. They can stand on beaches looking off into the most beautiful sights and simply exist. I hope that if I lived here the rest of my life I'll never lose the feeling of awe that takes over me when I gaze at this wild state. Because as it stands, 9 times out of 10 I look upon things like Exit Glacier and I find myself so welled up with emotion and awe that I swear I don't know what to do with myself. 

I get it now why people fight so hard to keep this place wild. Before I moved here I was on the tree hugging "save Alaska!" side, because in general I'm a crunchy tree hugger, but now, now that I can see it and touch everything Alaskan I feel like a protective mother. I get it so fully why people are fighting to keep the salmon running, the caribou migrating, the polar bears living, whales breeding and glaciers existing. Because to not have them would take away everything that makes living here so undeniably, Alaskan. 

If you've ever found the wonders of nature to be interesting or even slightly powerful I suggest you get your ass to Alaska. You wont believe this place. 

I still don't. 

TWIN PEAKS HIKE, ALSO KNOWN AS THE TIME WE REALIZED ADAM IS A 12 YR OLD GIRL

This weekend Adam and I made a deal. 

He would come hiking with me, and I would watch the second Twilight movie with him afterward. 

Yes. You read that right. 

ADAM created these stipulations. 

He claims he wants to watch the Twilight movies for the same reason people see the Harry Potter movies, they're a cultural phenomenon. 

I think he just has a crush on Bella. 

Anyway, so I agreed to sit through that horrible horrible horrible trash that is Twilight (no seriously, can we talk about how much I hate those movies? Maybe another time? Oh the dialog how it irks me!) so that Adam would come with me on a hike near Eklutna Lake. This hike would give us an arial view of the lake we walked along on a couple months back our tester hike we took right after we moved here. 

I knew nothing about this hike except for where the trail started and that it was 2.6 miles one way. Turns out it was one of those hikes where you basically Stairmaster yourself up a mountain for two hours before you hit your goal. Which sure, is hard, but harder when you weren't expecting it. 

Sorry Adam, deal is a deal!

In the end Adam was a trooper. Even though his knee hurt so bad I contemplated fireman carrying him on the way down. It's always something, right? No matter the fact that I sprung a staight up hike on him, or the pain on the way down, he huffed his ass up and down that mountain.

And damn was it worth it. 

The view was spectacular, the hike was hard, there was ice cream on the way home, and it turns out that Stella, as stupid as she might be, is a fantastic trail dog. 

Thankfully she's got one thing going for her besides her looks. Can't rely on those forever!

THANKS MOTHER NATURE, MIND SUFFICIENTLY BLOWN

This weekend I got to view two spectacular natural phenomenons? forces? beings? entities? I don't know how you'd exactly categorize what I marveled at this weekend, but all I know is that each was more breathtaking than I expected, they both left me in awe of our planet, and one caused an involuntary burst of tears that I was most definitely not expecting. 

Saturday I was lucky enough to see a wild orca pod flick their tails, swim protectively around their new babies, and flash their dorsal fins. 

I knew when I stepped on board the glacier/wildlife cruise that if I saw orcas I was going to be ECSTATIC. Whales in general, and orcas specifically (let's be honest, this most likely stems from a deep and all encompassing love for Free Willy as a child) have always fasinated me. I am an animal lover to the fullest, and seeing how viewing orca whales in the wild isn't something just anyone is able to do on their Saturday night I was prepped and ready for this cruise. 

What I didn't expect was that the moment I glimpsed this pod of whales that I would instantly find myself tearing up and unable to speak. I stood on the bow of the boat, surrounded by 100+ other people wielding cameras and yet I didn't see or hear them. The whales flapped their tails, babies came to the surface closely protected by their mothers, and the pod slowly moved towards our boat as a unit and I was flooded with emotions more powerful than I ever could have anticipated. 

I still can't exactly articulate why looking at these images a day later, or even thinking back on these amazing 5 minutes makes me tear up. Maybe it's the vast beauty of the ocean that gets me. The reality that these intelligent animals live in an inhospitable world that we still know so little about that tears my heart apart. 

For myself, the wild orca represents everything truly amazing about this planet. And in that fleeting moment I wanted to quit my job and devote my entire life to protecting their world. It was a truly magical moment that I know I'll never forget. 

So, after having my mind explode after seeing a wild orca pod, the next morning I stood a handful of feet away from a glacier and worried my little brain couldn't handle all this natural splendour coming at me all in a single weekend. 

Each time I think Alaska has gone and shown me her best, she goes off and tops herself. What's next Alaska? Are you going to let me help a mother otter give birth to pups? Let me raise a moose calf? Show me Northern Lights in the middle of the summer? Help me win the Iditarod? HOW DO YOU KEEP TOPPING YOURSELF? 

IMAGINE THAT! WE WEREN'T EATEN BY BEARS!

As you can see, Adam, Stella, Oly and I went backpacking this weekend and returned with all our limbs, and our lives. I mean, we didn't even see a single bear, so I call it a success! 

The trail was breathtaking. Absolutely amazing and insane and our campsite location instantly hooked me on backpacking in a way I didn't think would happen. 

Sure, it was hard as shit. There were some steep sections of the trail that were made even harder by the fact that they were nothing more than slick mud. Going up seemed hard, but going down? Let's just say that there was one spill I took where I landed head first in the brush and after a head over feet tumble or two I finally stopped rolling and sat up clutching ferns and wildflowers (which turns out will not keep you from tumbling down a hill) both in my hands and my mouth.

There also was a boulder field that we had to cross which Stella was NOT HAVING. She simply lacked the part mountain goat gene that Oly seems to have making her fearless enough to jump from wet rock to wet rock with a river roaring underneath. So what do you do when your 8 month old puppy refuses to follow you? You carry her. Under your arms, strung across your neck like a wet sack of potatoes, anything to get her across. And when you finish, you'll be covered in so much dirt you'll forget what color your clothes were before you started hiking. 

I wont sugarcoat it, the hike was hard. Harder than I expected it to be for me. The extra weight seriously slowed me down, Adam even more so (next time Adam don't bring the GLASS full bottle of jagermeister), but the scenery, the campsite, and the overall experience was truly amazing. 

 

 

So I ask you, can you spot the human below?

Helps with the whole size of items around us doesn't it?

I have bruises on my hips from where the backpack weight rested. Scrapes on my legs and arms from boulder traversing and missteps. I have a mosquito bite on my ankle that could have its own zip code. Adam is so sore he took today off. The dogs look like they ran 12 marathons. 

But I'd do it again next weekend if I could. 

All trip I just keep looking around and thinking, "I can't believe I fucking live here." 

 

MEMORIAL WEEKEND, ALASKA STYLE

The hardest part about moving to Alaska right as the summer was starting is that we had to spend the first couple weekends we lived here unpacking, buying things for the house, cleaning, and other equally not interesting things INSTEAD of running around exploring this amazing new place we live in. 

We knew though that this long weekend meant we were going to finally do some "Alaskan" things. We were committed to exploring as much as we could, and checking off some things on our "Must Do In Alaska List." 

First things first? Catch a salmon. 

Man did we look the part! We spent Saturday running errands. Picking up a king salmon fishing pole for me (these fish are beasts! None of our small poles would work), picking up those boots I said I needed, line, do-dads, you name it we had it. 

On Sunday we got up, packed the dogs and our gear in the truck and headed south to the Kenai Peninsula; the land where the king salmon run. 

The drive was nothing short of spectacular of course. Mountains, mountains, and more mountains. Rivers and wildlife, stunning beauty every place we looked. I saw about 24 hikes I want to try, 12 campgrounds I need to check out, and a tiny river town that is BEGGING for me to come spend some time in. 

Sadly, even with the gear, the books, the recommendations and the drive, we came home salmonless. We also spent a good 1-2 hours driving around Soldotna, AK with a map yelling at one another. Which is a highly reccomended way to begin a day of fishing. 

"WHERE THE HELL ARE WE GOING?"

"I DON'T KNOW I NEED TO GET THE LAY OF THE LAND."

'WHAT THE HELL DOES THAT EVEN MEAN? ARE YOU FUCKING LUIS AND CLARK? PICK A SPOT AND FISH GOD DAMN IT!"

Ahhhh we're so sweet to one another when we're lost. 

 

 

After all that, driving, yelling, checking about 4 access points that were suddenly for no reason CLOSED, we finally found a spot. A great spot. A spot I'd like to return to and do a little camping. So after all the nonsense we gave that river hell I tell you. Fished like we meant it. But, turns out the salmon are running ESPECIALLY slow this year and have barely made it into the rivers yet. 

THANKS ANCHORAGE FISHING BLOG FOR TELLING US TO HEAD TO THE KENAI FOR "EXCELLENT" KING SALMON FISHING. 

Oh well.

Watch yourselves salmon. We'll be back. 

Now that I can officially say I've fished (fished, not caught. There's a difference!) in Alaska, on Monday I wanted to tackle another item on my list. Hike in Alaska. 

I picked up a great book on hikes in our area, checked out some websites, and found about 700 trails I wanted to checkout. But you see, we own Stella. The worlds most high needs pup in America. I can't predict how she'll do with something new, and I had this vision of being four miles in on some hike in the middle of nowhere and Stella just laying down and refusing to walk any further. 

So, fearing the worst we decided to take it slow and pick the easiest hike in the book, closest to home that still guaranteed we'd have an amazing view if we only actually made it 1/4 mile in. 

I give you, Eklutna Lake. 

The hike is up to 26 miles walking directly next to this AMAZING lake. Plus, the trailhead was 25 minutes from our door! Delightful really.

The hike was basically like walking on a dirt road along a lake, which doesn't exactly give you the feel that you're "hiking," but it was a good starter for Stella. 

Granted, on the walk back she did lay down twice and had to be coaxed into standing up and finishing our walk, and at one point she started swerving on the trail like a drunk, BUT she did it. I have a feeling Stella wont be reaching the summit of any mountains here soon, but I'm hoping we can build up to it throughout the summer so that soon she's tromping along after 8 miles like it's nothing. Either that or we'll send her to the pound. 

Cards are in your hands, Stella. 

 

 

After all the driving, the fishing, the hiking, and the picture snapping I finally felt like I lived in Alaska and I was so excited about what the rest of the summer might look like. 

So, I went to the store and made it official. 

Hiking, salmon, gardening. 

Yep, I live here. 

Now for the good part.

Come visit. This place is as amazing as "they" say it is. 

I have a guest room. Now use it. 

(not joking. Please come visit me. Especially YOU blog friends!)