Gold Cord Lake

 Nice short little hike up to Gold Cord Lake.  It was kind of windy and overcast but I just needed to get out and get a little exercise.  It's been raining and I've been tied up with the busywork of life. So I went with my friend Mark and we hiked with Baby up to the lake.  It was so beautiful and serene, except for a few noisy little kids initially.  But when they moved on, it was a beautiful silence. There is still substantial ice on the lake, even though it is almost July.  The surrounding countryside is a gorgeous bright green though.  I've always loved this little lake and he gentle climbing trail that leads to it.

 

Butte Hike

 I was looking for a short hike to do with my two friends, Mark and Alice.  I know it's a little more challenging than some, but at least it has a gorgeous view and is an excellent workout.  So I suggested we hike up the Butte.  They found it to be quite steep but at least it isn't very long.  It was perfect conditions, not too hot but not too cold and windy either.  I love this steep little hike that is mostly nice wooden stairs. It was very busy today with so many people, little kids and so many dogs. Baby, my chihuahua tried to pick a fight with every dog we passed.  I have to wonder why she thinks it makes sense to bark and growl at dogs 4 times her size. I find it's usually best if I snatch her up and carry her past them to avoid a catastrophe.  We all survived beautifully.

Me and Alice on the top

The Butte

This week has been kind of stressful with appliances breaking down, and visits from a plumber.  My legs are still a little sore but I had to get out and get some exercise. Baby and I hiked up the Butte.  It's a short hike and a nice steep little climb.  It felt so good and helped me clear my mind of all the clutter. The view was gorgeous as usual. Even the descent down all the stairs felt good to my tired legs.  I think it was just what I needed to loosen up my sore stiff muscles. 

  

Anchorage Mayor's Midnight Sun Marathon

 First big city marathon since last year in March when I ran the LA Marathon. I have run several other local ones, and a couple of virtual ones.  But this was a regular in person marathon.  I haven't been training or even running much, just lots of hiking.  But I felt pretty happy today, even though I was certainly slow.  There was an 8.5 hour time limit for my wave, and I beat that by a lot with my 7:10:22 time.  Not a time to be really proud of, but it was my first marathon since turning 75.  I did get first in my age group, of course I was the only one in that group.  The last 5 miles were hard for me, and my stomach was bothering me.  It rained most of the entire day. In a way that was kind of good because it kept things cool. I love the medal, it's really beautiful.

Landmark Gap Hike

 While driving the Denali Highway with Mark Simpson, we stopped at the trailhead to Landmark Gap Lake.  We didn't think we would hike the whole way, but once we got started, we just couldn't stop.  It was such a beautiful day and the trail is in really good condition.  I tried letting Baby off the leash for a while.  But when she took off running at full speed, I made the decision to put her back on the leash.  She gets a little too excited when she has freedom from her leash.  I wouldn't mind if she would immediately return when I call her.  But in this case, she just ran faster when I called her.  The lake is beautiful and well worth the hike.  It might even be worth pulling a kayak or canoe and exploring this wilderness lake. But the trail is almost 3 miles, and that's a long way to drag a boat.  My GPS only recorded 5.14 round trip.  So maybe the folks who gave 3 miles as the distance on the trailhead sign, didn't actually measure the distance. I've looked at this trail every time I've driven the Denali Highway.  It was great to actually hike it.

Gull Rock Hike

I went with the Walkabouts to Hope and we hiked the Gull Rock Trail.  Pam was the leader.  We had as many dogs as people.  There were a number of other hikers and bikers on the trail and everyone had a dog or two. It was challenging for Baby because she gets crazy when she sees other dogs.  She was totally reconciled to the other 5 dogs in our group.  I did keep her on her leash except when we got to Gull Rock and sat down to eat our lunch.  She seemed quite content to sit right by me an guard her food and water from the other dogs.  This is a nice easy hike along the inlet, with views of the water peeking through the trees.  It's very lush with gigantic ferns and Devil's Club.  It looked like some prehistoric rainforest. 

 

Palmer-Moose Creek Railroad Trail

 I started out just going 2 miles in from the Palmer side of the trail.  4 miles on this trail is the June Course for the Aktive Valley Virtual Trail Races. But once I terrified myself crossing the three steep scary landslides, I hated to go back through them.  I've always wanted to hike the trail all the way to Moose Creek.  But that is 6 miles, and it would be best to have a car at each end. Otherwise it means a 12 mile hike.  I had no water or food or even insect repellent with me.  I was prepared for a quick 4 mile out and back.  But I really wanted to push on.  I called my friend Mark, and asked if he'd want to drive to Moose Creek and start hiking towards Palmer, and probably meet up around mile 5. He liked the idea, and we did meet at mile 5.  I finally got to hike the whole thing.  Other than the three main slide areas and a couple of steep boulder fields, the trail is quite nice.  I did slip on the scree through one of the boulder fields, but only landed on one knee, and didn't slide down into the Matanuska River.  That trail is in great need of repair.  But I love it and was happy to finally get to hike the whole thing.

Palmer Happy Run

 Ran the usual Monday night Palmer Happy Run.  It had been so hot during the day that I worried about being too hot.  But in town it was very overcast, cold and windy. I tossed on my my raincoat because it even looked like rain.  That was a good idea because as we started up the bike trail towards Wolverine Road, it started to rain.  Baby ran along the whole 5 miles, but once the rain started she was definitely not happy.  She kept trying to go back.  But she finally realized we weren't going back until the turn around point, so she gave up and ran along.  Fortunately the rain stopped and we didn't get very wet.  Baby just isn't a water dog.  But she's a great running dog. 

I love this route along the Matanuska River.

Matanuska Lake Long Lake Loop

 Taking a break from tons of yard work, I hiked the Long Lake Loop on the Matanuska Lake trail system with Pam and our dogs.  It was surprisingly quiet for a beautiful Sunday. For the most part, we had the whole trail to ourselves.  I felt safe letting Baby be off her leash for most of the way.  I was happy that she stayed right with me.  It's almost as if she feels safer on the leash because she seemed to cling to my heels.  I think she is still not totally comfortable with the other two dogs.  But at least she's not barking at them or growling like she does with unknown dogs.  They seem to be becoming friends.  Pam took us down to Long Lake so she could toss sticks for her big lab, Abby.  Abby loves the water and Dhala even jumped in a few times herself.  Baby, looked at me with horror because she has no interest in even getting her feet wet.  That's always a great place for a 5 mile hike.

Peter's Creek Valley Trail

A beautiful sunny hike along the Peter's Creek Trail with several of the ladies from the Walkabouts and our dogs. We did the loop trail and took a little side trip down to the creek to have our lunch.  The dogs enjoyed a nice drink in the creek and a swim for a couple of them.  I'm hoping one day soon I will take the branch of this trail that climbs Mt Eklutna. This trail is lovely through the trees with occasional glimpses of the mountains.  I can tell it leads to many magical places.