Eklutna Lakeside Trail

It was raining off and on in town, but it looked the least rainy towards Eklutna Lake so I drove up there hoping to go for a short hike along the Lakeside Trail. It was quite nice there. Baby and I walked on the lower trail and were able to avoid most of the mud. We didn't even find any rain. There was quite a nice rainbow as I turned onto the road to drive up though. I was hoping to still see it on the trail, but we were completely out of the rain there. We turned around at the Yuditnu Creek Bridge, and took the upper trail most of the way back.

 

Gold Cord Lake

 The road up to Independence Mine is now closed so you can no longer drive to the Gold Cord Lake Trailhead. But today was such a spectacular day that I decided it was worth the 2 mile roundtrip up and down the road so I could hike the trail to the lake. There are now several inches of snow along the road and on the trail, so I brought my trekking poles and ice grippers. But even though some of the rocks were a little slippery, I was able to climb up and down without grippers. I was surprised at how happy Baby seemed to be walking on the snow. I was afraid she would not like it and want to be carried. But she couldn't seem to get enough of it. She was racing back and forth to either side of the trail, chasing ground squirrels and marmots, completely oblivious of the snow. There had been some other people on the trail since the snow the other day, so the correct path was easy to find. I'm not so sure I'd have found it without those tracks though. Even on dry ground it does tend to disappear when you get to the rocky part. On the way down we ran into a hiker we had seen yesterday on the Gold Mint Trail. Baby got to bark her head off once again to the same dog from yesterday. It was a great winter hike in September!

Gold Mint Trail

 I got a late start today so didn't plan for a big hike. I just wanted to get out and walk a little. It was cloudy and cool but had stopped raining. The fall colors are starting to fade along the Gold Mint Trail but there were still some golden leaves here and there. The creek is running very full and there is quite a lot of water and mud on the trail. I was hiking with Baby and she was being kind of obstinate, not wanting to get her feet wet or muddy. I lifted her over a few of the worst spots. I was wearing my winter Gortex boots so wasn't too worried about getting my feet wet. About a mile and a half from the trailhead we encountered some really deep mud. I picked up the dog to help her through. Then put her down in a fairly dry spot. But I had to negotiate another very muddy place, and as I stepped into it, my right foot sank up to my ankle. I lost my balance and landed in the mud, smacking my right knee on a rock. It hurt so badly that it took a couple of minutes before I felt I could keep walking. But I soon realized it was nothing serious. I expect to feel it for a while though. We went a little farther and the conditions of the trail were getting worse and worse. So we turned back. I just trudged straight through that mud this time and didn't fall. Baby was happy to be on the way back and was leaping over all of the wet spots. It was a short and sweet hike, but not as spectacular as some of my recent ones have been. It's always nice just to get out in nature.

Beautiful Snowbird Mine Climb

 Spectacular little climb up to Snowbird. I've wanted to go up there for years but never could find the trail. Today when I hiked the Reed Lakes Trail I finally found what looked like a trail heading in that direction. There is a fork in the trail with a sign pointing to the right to Reed Lakes. But no indication of where the other smally trail may lead. Since it looked like it went in the correct direction, I gave it a try. It's narrow and steep but obviously a trail. When I started seeing old metal cables, I knew for sure it was the trail to a mine. It was a little steep and rocky but not difficult. It was mostly sunny and the trail was dry, while the Reed Lakes approach trail had a lot of water running across it. Baby, wasn't too crazy about the wetness, but once we started up the Snowbird Trail, she was so happy and ran out ahead happy to lead the way. I wondered if I would see anyone on this lonely little trail. I didn't see anyone until I reached the old mine itself. There, a group of hikers carrying skis where heading down from their camp up by Snowbird Glacier. I didn't have time to go all the way to the glacier, but was happy to reach the snow covered bowl where the mine once stood. It was getting late, dark clouds were rolling in, plus at this point the trail was covered with snow. I knew it was best to call it a day and head back down. I was so happy to finally find my way to Snowbird. Someday when I have more time, I hope to get to the glacier and the Snowbird hut. But today, the fall colors were wonderful. It started to rain the instant I got back to my car!

Twin Peaks Trail

Beautiful day to hike the Twin Peaks Trail up to the high ridge above Eklutna Lake. There is some snow on the ridge and lots of snow farther up on Twin Peaks. After nothing but rain for the last month, it was a pleasant surprise to have such nice weather. It was a little muddy on the section above the second bench and there was some snow on the trail. But it wasn't too slippery. It was pretty windy on the ridge too, but worth the gorgeous view.

 

Equinox Marathon

 What a gorgeous day to run a marathon! Rain was forecast but it never came. This marathon climbs Ester Dome in Fairbanks, Alaska. It's a very tough race up the mountain, across the top, down partway on the other side, back up to the top then down to the start/finish line again. It has interesting features, like "The Tunnel", which is a tunnel of trees, "The Chute", which is straight down the power line, and "The Zipper", which is a zigzag bunch of switchbacks up the steep trail.  The fall colors on the entire route were absolutely amazing. I was a little slower than last year. I think I intentionally took my time because the race has a 10 hour time limit, plus last year I had a bad fall. The trail can be very narrow in places, with big loose rocks and tree roots. I really didn't want to have another fall and damage myself like last year.  I was slow but arrived in one piece at the finish line! I also stopped often to take photos. It was pretty windy near the top but never uncomfortably cold. Thank goodness for no rain. I did wear my raincoat just in case though. This was marathon number 163 for me. Last year I was first in my division, but this year a 75 year old woman beat me by quite a bit, pushing me to second place.  She was really fast! Not much chance of me ever catching her if she continues to run this race. I'm a slowpoke, but I really enjoyed this gorgeous race.  It's always one of my favorites. I'm sure I'll be back next year for more.

Gold Cord Lake

 They closed the gate to the road over Hatcher Pass yesterday. That means it won't be long before they close the road up to Independence Mine. It was sunny at home and looked pretty cloudy up at Hatcher Pass, but I wanted to take a chance and get in a hike up to Gold Cord Lake before the gate gets closed for the winter. It was misting and drizzling a little but Baby and I decided to give it a try. At least I did.  She didn't really have much to say about it. But I didn't hear any protests from her either. She loves that hike because there are so many little ground squirrels and marmots running around. She delights in chasing them, even though I keep her on a leash and it's all in vain. Most of the way up it was raining so lightly that my raincoat kept me completely dry.  Baby got a little wet but not too badly. There were very few other hikers so we basically had the trail and the lake to ourselves. The fall colors were gorgeous, especially on the drive up with the golden trees. The trail to the lake is all above tree line but the tundra vegetation had all turned to various degrees of gold and red. I hope we get another chance to hike up there before the road closes. But at least I'm glad we got this chance. 

Portage Pass Trail

 I camped at Williwaw Campground in Portage last night, and had hoped to spend some time in Portage Lake with my kayak. But the wind was at least 40-50 mph, so putting in at the lake was out of the question. I did do a short 2 mile hike on the Byron Glacier Trail, in the rain, while I waited for my friend, Diane to arrive.

Byron Glacier Trail

Byron Glacier

It rained off and on through the night, but looked much better this morning. So after we broke camp we drove through the tunnel to Whittier and hiked the Portage Pass Trail. We were worried at first because the road to the trailhead was closed. But a quick phone call to the Portage Visitor's Center confirmed that we could park on the road and the trail itself was not closed. Sadly, the nice weather on the Portage side was not what we found on the Whittier side of the pass. We hiked to the top of the pass and on up the peak that offers the normally amazing view of Portage Glacier and Lake. But it was so foggy and raining lightly that we didn't get much of a view. With a little straining, we were able to pick out the glacier and lake through the clouds.

Portage Lake from the Portage side after our hike

View from Portage Pass

View down to Whittier from the trail

The official Portage Pass marker

Tern Lake Kayaking

 I wanted to get farther out of town with my kayak so headed towards Kenai. I've always loved beautiful Tern Lake at the junction of the Seward and Sterling Highways, so decided to see if I could find a good launch spot. The regular vehicle turnout didn't seem like the best place, but I discovered the picnic area nearby. I found a short muddy trail there and was able easily to launch my kayak there. I took Baby, the dog with me of course. As usual, she seemed worried, but after a while she seemed to settle down and enjoyed looking around. We paddled through many fingers of the lake and found quite a few birds. There were a number of loons, but one seemed quite disturbed at our presence and shouted her displeasure until we were far away from her. I love the call of the loon. I was happy to be able to catch her on video with my phone. I didn't realize just how big Tern Lake is. A person could spend a few hours exploring this lake with all of its many little inlets. We meandered for 2 hours among the grasses. We saw a few salmon and a few ducks. By the time I decided to turn back, I worried that I may never find my way back to that launch spot. I tried several incorrect routes at first, but did finally see the salmon viewing platform where we had launched. It was a beautiful little kayak trip. It started to rain as soon as I got the boat back on the roof of my car. 

Bodenburg Butte

It's been raining off and on most of the day.  But when the sun finally came out for a few minutes, Baby and I took a nice little steep hike up the Butte. It was really nice up there, just a little breeze and bright sunshine.  The trail is a little muddy in spots but I was able to avoid getting my brand new Solomon hiking shoes all covered with mud. Baby really hates getting her feet muddy so is an expert at avoiding it at all costs. It's amazing how far she can travel in a single bound, just to avoid mud! We had several dog encounters and I had to hold her back from attacking dogs three times her size. As usual, she managed to make a fool out of me, but no one got hurt. As soon as we got back to the car, it started to rain again.  We timed it perfectly.