Gold Cord Peak

 This was a fabulous hike. There was only one disappointment, it was so cloudy that we never did get to see most of the amazing view that we should have had up there. But in spite of the clouds and fog, it was still awesome. Even more so because Dan, who owns Gold Cord Mine gave us a lovely intro talk telling us much of the fascinating history and his life growing up there at the mine in its early days. When we finished our climb to the summit, he also took us on a tour of the mill building, which still has most of the equipment they used to extract the gold from the ore. The climb itself was quite steep. The higher we got the rougher the route became too. The peak is really mostly a giant pile of granite boulders. It was often a bit challenging to pick our way from rock to rock on our way to the summit. I was getting really short of breath from the step ascent. But I managed to find my way to the high point and join the others up there for a snack. We lingered for a while, all hoping the clouds would clear and give us the amazing panoramic view of the Talkeetna Mountains that we had all hoped for. But we never got our wish. Although we did get occasional patches of blue sky and nice glimpses of the surrounding peaks and the valley below. The descent was easier for me than the climb had been, mainly because I wasn't constantly trying to catch my breath. I'm still not in the shape that I really would like, or I wouldn't have so much trouble on these steep climbs. I'm sure I will have many bruises on my legs from bumping into the rocks. I twisted my ankles a few times, but nothing serious and with no lingering pain. By the time we were down to the parking lot, I felt pretty stiff. I could tell I got a good workout. The company was great with a nice group of 12 Valley Wanderers and Biscuit, our token canine hiking buddy.