Very icy hike up Bodenburg Butte today. It was so icy I almost turned around as soon as I reached the gate to the trailhead. I was wearing my micro spikes on my shoes and they seemed to be keeping me from slipping, so I decided to continue on. The trail had been hard packed snow but it had since melted due to a week of warm temperatures. But now it was cold again and it had turned to nearly glare ice. Bella and I continued on. I figured I would make my go or no go decision once we reached the long series of wooden steps that climb the steepest part of the trail. Without spikes, they would have been impossible, but by gripping the ropes and handrails I was able to climb the stairs safely. There were a couple of places where I had to lift the dog up because she couldn't climb on the clear ice. But the rest of the way up was pretty good. Right at the top, I found the snow was rough and potholed, although still ice. It was kind of tricky footing, but we made it up into the rocks on the summit. It had been calm at the start but on top the wind was extreme and we quickly found shelter behind a big rock outcropping. We didn't stay long, took my photos and we quickly started our descent. Bella thought it would be nice to run down the whole way. I spent most of the way down the stairs shouting, slow down slow down, because I didn't dare take her off the leash on that trail. It is heavily used by people hiking with dogs. We only encountered two women about halfway down the stairs. Bella tried to run to them, and I had to do some tricky maneuvering to get past them still standing. Once we were past the stairs, we were both able to run all the way down. Near the bottom we did run into a woman with a dog, but I picked up Bella and we passed them quickly. She does like to start something with every dog we meet. All in all, it was a fun little hike and a nice run down. Thank goodness for micro spikes.
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| Pioneer Peak from the summit |
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| Twin Peaks from the summit |
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| Knik Glacier from the summit |
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| Mountains to the north from the summit |
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