Anchorage Hillside Ski

I was really excited because my friend Diane and I decided last night to go ski on Portage Lake.  That is an amazing place at any time of year.  But in winter you can often ski all the way to the glacier.
But when we got to Portage our hopes were quickly dashed.  They haven't plowed out the parking area by the Visitor's Center. There was a narrow road to a side door but it was impossible to get past the giant snow berms to reach the lake.  We also tried checking out the parking lot by the tunnel entrance.  It was slightly plowed but it seems to be a very steep cliff to get to the lake from there.  In addition the wind was howling and it was starting to snow.  We abandoned that idea and turned back towards Anchorage. 

On the way we stopped in Girdwood and tried to find the Winner Trailhead.  I think we found it, but parking was a different story.  It was pretty confusing,  So we just continued back to Anchorage and skied the Nordic Ski Trails by Hilltop Ski Area.  The snow there was perfectly groomed and great skiing.  We were happy to finally find a place to ski.  Diane's dog Tobi was the happiest of all.  She howled, barked and whined the entire trip, knowing we were heading somewhere fun.  But I think she was beginning to give up since it took us such a long time to finally get out of the car..

Tobi & Me

Tobi & Diane