Archangel Road

 Once again, I'm back on Archangel Road trying my best to learn how to skate ski properly. Today was a ski hike with the Valley Wanderers. There were only 4 of us, plus Bella my dog. Judith and Jane were using classic cross-country skis while Meg and I were on skate skis. Meg actually teaches skate skiing, so she gave me some very valuable tips. I was still very slow and lagged behind the others most of the time, especially on the uphill parts. But it was still really nice to be out there once again, in the sunshine. Bella was racing back and forth and likely ran twice the distance of the rest of us. I probably got a better workout than the others because I was working so hard, due to my still lack of ability. We encountered a skier with a couple of big dogs and Bella let them know that she is clearly tougher and bigger than either of them, even though both were at least 5 times her size. She put them in their place, but they didn't seem to mind her antics. The snow was really hard packed and extra icy and slippery. The conditions really contributed to my difficulties. It was clearly not the best skate skiing conditions. But it was still fun and a beautiful day to be out there. We covered about 4 miles.

Lazy Mountain Climb

 I usually hike on Fridays with Pam and her dog, Dahla. She asked for suggestions, so I suggested climbing Lazy Mountain. The weather has been so nice, and I'd heard others had been climbing there. So, I figured the trail would be well boot packed. We didn't meet until 11 am because she was tired from a long work week. It was very icy going up the steep Lazy Mountain Trail. We both had on very new Kahtoola Micro Spikes, so it wasn't too difficult to negotiate the ice. But higher up the trail gets ridiculously steep and at one point, I heard Pam call out to me from farther down the trail. She had fallen and was stuck somehow and couldn't get back up. I climbed back down to help her, but she was able to get up on her own. It was a bit treacherous descending down to where she was, on that nasty ice. Once she was moving upwards again, we jointly decided not to return on the same trail. At least for sure, I knew she would have no parts of it. I wasn't too excited about picking my way back down through that ice either. 

We took a break at the first picnic table and had a few snacks. The rest of the way up was perfect hiking conditions. There was just enough snow to cover any icy spots, and the snow was well packed down, making the trail easy to navigate. Bella was forging ahead so I moved ahead to keep her in my sights. Bella ran right to the highest point of the summit and waited for me. It's a little sketchy to climb up those last few rocks, but I always like to go all the way up and have a nice seat in the rocks to admire the view. Pam was moving a little slower, but I waited at the top for her. She doesn't like the last little rock scramble so didn't come all the way to where I was sitting. I took lots of pictures on top plus a 360-degree video looking in all directions. Bella wanted to continue on down the other side and would probably have been willing to walk along the ridges until she finally dropped from exhaustion. But I put a stop to that, and we hiked down and joined Pam. Her dog did come up to our spot but wasn't able to convince her to come up with us. It was a little scary up there with ice patches here and there among the rocks. But we had no trouble. 

The trip down was lovely on the hard packed snow to the picnic table where we took another nice break. From there we took the longer Lazy Moose Trail. It was still mostly frozen with some snow and ice. But easy to negotiate. Once we got about halfway down though, it got quite miserable with black gooey slippery mud. I almost fell once but one of the trail markers caught me before I landed headfirst on a fallen log. I'm glad I avoided doing that. It took us a long time to get down, and the longer trail turned a 4-mile hike into a 6-mile one. But at least we didn't need to negotiate the ice. Although I imagine the lower part of the main trail had also turned to steeper gooey slippery black mud. My dog was so muddy that I put in in my shopping bag and plopped her into the car seat to avoid getting my new car filthy. At my house, I carried her in that same bag directly to my kitchen sink for a much-needed bath. It was one of the most beautiful Lazy Mountain climbs I have ever done, and well worth the little hardships. Such a perfect day!

Bella on the summit

Ptarmigan along the trail

Matanuska Peak

Summit Video

Nancy Lake Parkway Ski Loop

 Bella and I hiked a pleasant 3 miles on the snow machine packed Nancy Lake Parkway Ski Loop today. It is a ski trail, but the conditions were not very conducive to skiing. It was packed by a single snow machine and was pretty rough. It's fairly hilly too. So, I didn't even attempt to ski it. I just hiked the 3-mile loop in my winter snow boots. It was fun exploring since I had only done part of the loop in the past. I was glad I had my phone with the AllTrails app to help me stay on the correct trail and have a good idea of where I was headed. There are a couple of places where a person could turn off and visit some of the lakes in the area. It was a nice change of scene instead of always going to the same few local trails.

Archangel Road Ski

 Once again, I came up to Archangel Road to practice my skate skiing. I'm not sure I'm getting any better at it, but at least I'm getting a good workout. Plus, it's so gorgeous there. I just like being out there enjoying the sunshine and the snow. The ski conditions are still really good there, but not so much anywhere else unless you climb very high in the mountains, and risk avalanche conditions. Bella enjoyed running along with me.

Archangel Road Ski

 This is just about the only place to cross country ski right now because there has been so little snow this winter. It's also been so warm that even when there is precipitation, it's mostly been rain. So, I came up here to ski with Pam and our dogs to try to get in some skate ski practice. I need all the practice I can get. We skied to the bridge and back for about 4.5 miles round trip. Bella loves running along up and back, getting about twice the mileage that I get. I wish I had her energy!

Twin Peaks Trail

 I hiked the Twin Peaks Trail with a small group of the Valley Wanderers today. It was very icy all the way up to the first overlook with the bench. Spikes were essential. Chris was far ahead of us all, and Dan had left early to not be left behind. He's our amazing 86-year-old hiker who really puts us all to shame, if only with his determination and stamina. But like me, not always the first one to the top. Chris usually holds that distinction. Although, unless I spend a lot of time calling her back, Bella frequently reaches our destination either right with or just behind the official human leader. Once past the first bench, the conditions were much more favorable. It was no longer icy but well boot-packed snow. I was really dragging on my way up to the first bench, but once I ate a granola bar and drank half a bottle of water, I felt much better. It was cold and windy down in town but stayed in the low 30's and calm all the way to our turnaround point at the second bench. I had hoped we could climb up to the upper overlook, but it was not packed at all, and snowshoes would be needed. So, we turned back at that point. The lower part of the trail had done some melting and was not nearly as icy as on the way up. It was a beautiful day and as always, a great workout. Bella is now snoring on my bed after a hard day of hiking.

Archangel Road Ski

 I usually ski or hike with my friend, Pam every Friday. But today she was busy taking care of her granddaughter, so I was on my own. I drove up to Archangel Road and went skate skiing with Bella. She would have nothing to do with being on her leash, so I let her run free. She was quite well behaved and didn't get too far ahead of me. There is about 4 inches of new snow that fell last night, so conditions were pretty good. It was a bit slower with the new snow, but at least the trail was nicely groomed. That road is a nice place to practice skate skiing because it's mostly flat with only gentle hills. Skate skiing is more difficult than classic cross country, but I like the way it feels and once it's mastered, a person can move a lot faster than on classic skis. But I am certainly no master and I still struggle on even the slightest uphills. But I am starting to get the rhythm. I had hoped to have more good days to practice but this winter has been very disappointing in the snow department. I still have a long way to go to perfect the art of skate skiing. But it was a beautiful day and Bella and I both enjoyed ourselves.  \