Some thoughts

I’ve been informed that I have been somewhat complacent on my blog posting lately so I apologize and will attempt to update more often.

Today I headed up buffalo mine road to check out a back country spot someone had mentioned to me. The road runs right along the Castle Mountain Fault, and then dead ends at someone’s private property. It was pretty amazing driving along the fault, which took the form of a 100 to 300 ft deep canyon with a creek running through it. Apparently many people kayak and fish this creek in Summer time, so I will have to check it out following the break up in April. It was a beautiful drive and at about 2/3 of the way to the private property the road turns to dirt, which by winter standards becomes sheer ice. The road had obviously dealt with a couple of tectonic interactions because some spots had major bumps and dips. Access to the backcountry is via snow machine and 4x4 trails off to the left of the road, all in all it was a pretty sweet experience. You could also see where people had come to cut firewood and Christmas trees (both legal in AK). It’s all good though because the site where cutting took place was within the sustainable yield provided by the Alaska Department of Forestry.

After my little scout trip, I decided to go for a short ski up archangel road, about halfway to the top of Hatcher pass. Cody was with me and the short ski turned into a mildly long one, but it was amazing so I lost track of time. The road up archangel valley starts in thick alder and gradually ascends up into archangel valley and then further upwards into the fork of fern and snowbird valleys. I’ve driven and mountain biked this road in summer time, so skiing allowed me a whole new perspective on the valley. The skies were clear and the sun was shining and it just turned out to be a beautiful day, with both the moon and sun visible for a short time around 10:30. As the road ascends you come under might Idaho Peak and the views just continue to get better and better. There’s a lot of old placer mines for gold, copper and coal up here, so there’s little trails leading every which way. I took a very old trail, not visible in summer time and headed upwards for about 1000 yards. The trail climbed slowly through thick alder thickets, 10 ft tall and with an archway of about 3 ft to ski through. It was a pretty cool experience, but being that I was alone except for cody and lacking my transceiver, I opted to head back down to the road and ski up to the reed lakes trailhead, about 3 miles in. I made it to reed lakes trail after crossing the strange bridge over archangel creek. The views up into the Talkeetnas were so awe inspiring, I felt I should drop down and pray to someone or something. I didn’t drop down, but I gave a thanks to whomever or whatever helped create this place and then went along my way. I could have gone further up the road to the old snowbird mining camp, and then to lane glacier, but I decided to head back to eat some lunch and do a little school work. The way down was pretty fun, and I finally saw that cody was learning some commands for skiing in the backcountry. He usually runs right beside or behind me, but when I tell him to “go-go” he gets in front of me. Then if I say it multiple times he picks up the pace to a quick trot or run (whatever it would be in dog terms). While you could say that this was because my speed was increasing, it’s not just that. When I was going slow and I said the same thing, he began to run and pick up the pace. Come February when I get back from Florida I think it may be time to start training him for skijoring, I’m pretty excited.

Just taking in the views from the trails, and reflecting on life, I really am glad I came up here. I know Erin loves it here as well and I can’t even imagine how much fun we will have together when she gets her in May. Being up here, in the mountains, with their grand vistas and indescribable views, really makes a person appreciate life, love, family and friends. There’s something, in fact a whole lot of things, that are bigger than us out there, and it’s good to be reminded of that everyday when I look out my window. That’s something I think you just can’t get in Florida or in many parts of the world anymore. Florida's natural setting used to be so abundant and widespread, but the state has effectively written most of it off for monetary and economic interests. I will and do miss the sunshine state, but life is too short to dwell on things beyond my control.

Double speak is

I began reading George Orwell’s Animal Farm yesterday. It truly is a great novel and I wish I could say I was rereading the book, but I’m not going to lie. For some reason I was assigned to read the book way back in 6^th grade. Why on earth would my teachers do this? Geo-political institutions is not a topic that most 11 year olds could discuss, much less grasp conceptually. I digress, the book can be interpreted in many ways, but there is no denying the indirect and very clear references to Marx, Trotsky, Lenin and Stalin.

I’m only 20 pages in and the future depictions of “doublespeak” and “big brother” are already beginning to make their appearances. Orwell was a pure genius and I wish I could have shaken his hand or had him sign a copy of his work before he passed; oh well, such things are not to be. In reading Animal Farm, it has become so abundantly clear to me that education is paramount to a free society. Now, I’m not talking about higher education. Not every person needs or should go to college or university. Humanity just doesn’t work that way whether George Bush wants it to or not. We need architects, builders, electricians, mechanics, farmers and every other job in the market and they don’t all come from a formal higher educational background. This education we need is provided from the very beginning of life and on through the formal education system until graduation. People need to be able to distinguish between political rhetoric and real issues. I’m not angry, but saddened at the state of ignorance our government has allowed people to reach. It’s not their own fault, we’ve built a system geared towards consumerism and needs, and the only way to perpetuate this system is to socialize it in schools. In so many words we teach students to sit idly by, obey authority, don’t question what anyone tells you and always follow the rules no matter what.

Fortunately, I was able to break that cast along with so many others. All around me, everyday I see people beginning to question the world that is presented before them, rejecting their preplanned future lives revolving around a 4x5’ cubicle and opting out for something better, a more fulfilling life. Free markets aren’t all evil, some consumerism is needed to drive the economy and I’m fine with that, but we must always be willing to question with some skepticism what is presented to us. If we don’t learn to question and rebel against unwanted authority then we fail to be any different than the individuals who capitulated to totalitarian rule in the past, we become the Animal Farm. It may not be the Nazi’s or the Soviets, or China or even Fundamentalists, it could be the politician you voted for, or even the business manufacturer two blocks over from your house. In this globalized modern society totalitarian rule may have a new meaning, a new definition and a new face. Knowledge is the key to power…only then will our eyes be open.

That was quite a diatribe but it just goes to show that there’s nothing like a thought provoking book. It’s easy to criticize the society you’ve grown up and been socialized through, but is what I’m doing any different than Galileo or Copernicus questioning the written fact about astronomy; Or post modern theorists creating theories about social construction; or even Karl Marx denigrating the disparities between social classes during the industrial revolution? It’s good to think outside the box, and it’s nice to be able to do so, without Big Brother (or so I hope).

I begin teaching sustainability to high school seniors tomorrow. I’m a bit nervous, but so far the kids up here have been extremely intelligent and open minded. Wish me luck.

Picture re-update

I’ve been doing a lot of school work so I don’t have too much to update on except that I started substitute teaching and that Erin is coming up in a few days to celebrate the wonderful holiday of Thanksgiving. I feel compelled to just post a long list of picture I have taken. I’m not quite sure why, but I really love some of these and they are kind of my ultimate mental vision of being in AK so far. All I need now are pictures including Erin and my set will be complete.

Little Su on Gold Mint Trail

Hermit's Cabin over Independence Mine

Enjoying a rainy ride on Gold Chord trail

The boys at Summit Lake

Dwarf Fireweed in bloom near Summit Lake

Dwarf Fireweed over creek

Matanuska River Valley

Fall at Hatcher Pass

Independence Mine with early season snow

Cody and I atop the Butte

Cody looking out towards Knik Glacier

Building the deck for the wall tents

Late summer at Spring Creek Farm

Grillin Halibut at the MSOEE BBQ!

Early morning call for farm work!

A slight chance of snow

I just drove home through what could only be described as a TON of snow. Thank goodness for my Subaru and studded tires because the road conditions were less than ideal. I’m not sure if the plows had been through yet, but if they had it made no difference. The snow is literally DUMPING!!! It was a very gloomy day earlier with high winds and general blustery conditions. I don’t think there was supposed to be a whole lot of snow in the forecast, but wow have we been bombarded with quite a storm. We were all hoping for snow to end the madness and I guess we were answered.

The snow began to fall around 2:30 and it hasn’t stopped since. It’s now past 11:00 at night and there’s no sign of letting up. When I pulled into the driveway, no that’s wrong, when I turned onto farm loop there was over a foot of snow on the road. A FRICKIN FOOT!! WOO HOOOOO! I’m most definitely in Alaska, and winter is here!! Even with all wheel drive and studs I was slipping a little bit. The craziest thing was attempting to drive on Lossing road (the road down the middle of the farm). There hadn’t been anyone on the road for a couple of hours and there were no tire tracks to follow. It was like attempting to drive on a white canvas, not fully knowing where the road fell away and the fields began. Driving in the heavy snow was like watching a scene in Star Wars with stars and lights racing by, only live action. The snow was coming down so hard that visibility was down to a few hundred feet (maybe), and 35 mph was the top speed once on the Palmer-Fishook Road.

I had to shovel the porch and steps so that I can get out of the house in the morning and hopefully I can get some pictures for you guys. I’m loving the snow and tomorrow I’m going to get up early and hit up the mile 16 run in Hatcher or do some cross country skiing before class. I’m going to give the snow a day to settle and then head up to the backcountry to burn some very serious powder runs! Woo Hoo!

The nightly forecast, I'd say they were a bit off:

TONIGHT...SNOW WITH AREAS OF VERY LIGHT FREEZING RAIN...TAPERING
OFF AFTER MIDNIGHT. TOTAL SNOW ACCUMULATION OF 2 TO 8 INCHES
OVERNIGHT. HIGHEST AMOUNTS WILL OCCUR OVER THE HIGHER ELEVATIONS
TOWARD HATCHER PASS. LOWS IN THE MID 20S TO LOWER 30S. EAST WIND 10
TO 20 MPH.

Damn Hippies

I headed into Anchorage early today. We left around 8:30 this morning, well before the sun had made even the slightest appearance. It was snowing lightly when we left the valley, creating a dense mist and effectively turning the drive into a guessing game. As soon as I pulled into the lot at APU the rain had transformed to light snow and within the hour it became a hefty snow storm, the first of the year for Anchorage. It snowed for about 3-4 hours straight at a steady pace, but it was still warm enough to only keep the slightest layer of snow on the ground.

I had to go into town to attend the Leading Green event at APU, a forum designed to open dialogue and set goals for APU’s sustainability and green policy. It’s one thing to say APU is a green school, but now we are really making a start. In my eyes it was a successfully day, and probably the coolest part was that the president of the university, Dr. Doug North, hung out with us all day. I say hung out because this is exactly what he did; no separation of power or delegations. Dr. North participated in round table discussions, scavenger hunts, tossing of ideas and general mingling among the crowd. He is a great man and I am very proud that he is the president of our university. The most touching and inspiring moment of the day was when Dr. North, during his quick closing speech, thanked all of us for giving him a kick in the behind and influencing him to actually make changes. Money and success can blind one’s goals, and Dr. North, after getting a little choked up, seemed sincere when he thanked us for reminding him of what was and still is important to him. It’s good to be reminded of what a real leader is. To top off this already special event, the coordinators provided us with a student blues/funk band, some ridiculously tasty local pizza from The Moose’s Tooth and a veritable cornucopia of beer choices….all for free.

I drove home in a great mood, carpooling with Steve T., and hung out at the farm house for a bit. The snow was beginning to build up on the farm, and when I walked home around 11 the snow had really begun to pile up and fall liberally. It’s both amazing and beautiful how bright the night gets when you have snow on the ground and a little bit of light in the sky. I love this place and I can’t wait to share it with Erin. Gotta get up early to volunteer with the NAOI Avalanche class and then maybe get some afternoon powder runs in. So, I bid you adieu…

Moose O-Clock

Just doing a little studying and happened to look up and find a family of moose checking out the trees in my yard. The male was quite a jerk.

ED

Dawn Patrol at 9:18...Count me in!

Cody woke me up early this morning just before 8:00, so I decided to take the opportunity to head up to Hatcher and watch the sunrise, tentatively scheduled for 9:18. It’s pretty cool that you can watch the sunrise without having to get up at an ungodly hour. It may be dark here for a bit longer, but the sunrises are beautiful and the alpenglow of pinks on the mountain with yellows in the sky make for a very memorable and enjoyable experience. The sunsets are equally gorgeous, and from my bedroom window I can watch the sun cast an amber and red glow across the whole southwestern sky, illuminating everything from the Chugach, across the Inlet and over towards Willow. It’s quite amazing.

This video is a mish mash of clips I’ve taken over the past week. I was a little disappointed this morning because the Knik arm had a lot of cloud cover, therefore making for a less than perfect sunrise. The colors were still cool, and it was very clear at Hatcher, so the morning was not a waste, in fact I don’t know how a morning ski in clear beautiful conditions would ever be a waste. The moving shots were taken while I was skiing down the groomed road from the mine. I ate it pretty bad, but after I finished filming. Of course, I would only fall when I'm NOT doing something difficult, go figure. At least you guys didn't see me fall, although that would have been pretty funny to watch. Anyways, when I transfer my footage to the computer it really ruins the colors. Everything on the film is so bright until I bring it over to the CPU, oh well.

They’ve begun to groom the off road ski trails and they are pretty fun. I might give alpine skiing a go. I know it’s bad for your knees, but I’m healthy and I just need to keep them strong. If I can stop and turn on my huge cross country skis then I should be able to at least learn pretty quickly on the downhill skis.

You can say I told you so when I call complaining of knee pain.

Sleep PLEASE!

Hello Everyone. You may be wondering why I am up at 2 in the morning writing a mass email. Well, I was lying in my bed, pleasantly sleep until about 20 minutes ago when the farmer's 2 dogs began to go crazy. They just would not shut up, barking non stop for what seemed like hours. I figured they had spotted a moose somewhere in the woods, but surely they would have stopped barking by now.

I finally got up and went to look out my window, and not more than 30 ft. from my house were two moose. A cow and her calf. They were waiting there, not sure what to do about the dogs, and then made their way right underneath my window. Of course, at this point Cody began to howl like crazy, but I managed to calm him down. I spotted this pair a few weeks back, so I will assume they have taken up residence on the farm for an undisclosed amount of time.

Underneath my window are two crabapple trees and the moose were browsing what was left of the frozen and dead fruits. I opened my window and not 10 ft from me were these two massive animals, chomping away on their early morning snack. I attempted to get some video footage but I just couldn't get enough light. The moose stood out so well against the brand new snow that has fallen tonight and I am more than a little bummed that I could not get a picture for everyone to see. I'm going to try to get some sleep now, but I just thought I'd share my evening, or I guess morning.
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King of the mountain mountain mountain...

This video was shot from the ridge running up to Hatcher Peak. It was ridiculously crowded today, but the weather was beautiful and the snowpack was in great shape. What made the crowd bearable was the fact that the weather was cooperating. It's just been a beautiful day today, with temperatures starting in the 20's, and well into the 40's by the time we left to go home.

A little snow

Sorry it has taken me so long to update. Again, lots of things due each week and it takes me a while to get all the work done. I took the day off -well at least the morning- and headed up to Hatcher Pass with Sierra, Rob and Devine. I woke up this morning not having any inclination as to the surprise outside my window. I slept with the window open and the blinds shut, and I was not cold at all. This morning I got up, walked to the window of my small room and opened the blind to a world covered in white. We had gotten about a ¼ of snow in the valley; first snow of the season!!!

I started some school work and was promptly called to head up to meet up at Hatcher for some powder runs. The farm looks beautiful covered in snow and I can’t wait to be able to cross country ski right out my door. Driving up the Palmer Fish-hook rd. I had a pretty exciting wake up call. I nearly slid into the little-su (the river running along the road up to the top of Hatcher Pass). My car handled the snow fine thanks to the AWD but the ice was a bit sketchy. I don’t know who keeps telling people they don’t need studded tires but I’ve decided for myself…I’m getting them. Maybe…if you don’t do anything but drive on cleared roads in anchorage or the highway, but it’s totally required out here and up at all the recreation areas. I took a picture of the car so you could see the 5+ inches of new snow lying on the road. Behind the car is Skycraper mountain, with most of it's snow blown off and loaded on to the adjacent peaks.

Hiking up the pass today I was sweating my gnards off. I ended up taking off almost everything. It was snowing and I was hiking only in a base layer top, ski pants and boots. I had my gloves, beanie and outer shell all removed. I donned my gear as we neared the top as the wind began to increase. There was a bit of wind loading but all the signs showed the snow was still pretty safe. Hatcher was busy today. We saw so many people, did some runs with people we didn’t know and just general had a good time with what seemed like everyone and their mother. We hike all the way to the top of the peak today and the view from the top down was amazing! It was a little scary, because we missed perfect visibility by about twenty minutes and were socked in with snow and clouds. Nothing goggles and a pre-run observation couldn’t take care of.

At some points, the powder was waist deep (not the whole snow pack). They must have gotten just gotten dumped on last night! This made for some ridiculous spills but still allowed you to bomb slopes well over 45 degrees. It was a great day overall. I bought some telescoping traverse poles and a snow shovel at REI two days ago. The poles make it way easier to get to the top, plus they double as avalanche probes and allow me to test the snow constantly all the way up the ridges. The picture with me came out quite strange but it doesn’t matter. Rob is not that tall and I am not that short, but I guess me being slightly behind him and about 2 lower in elevation made for a hilarious picture. If you look closely you can see I am quite drenched in sweat. Who’d a thunk…sweating in Alaska! I wanted to take many more pictures but unfortunately my battery died. Until next time!

Shralp snacks anyone?

Today I experienced my first back country snowboarding session. It was amazing…plain and simple. I went with Sierra, one of the other students in my program. We parked at the lodge and had a mile and a half hike up to the pass. From there we had to climb a ridge and follow it to the bowl and surrounding slopes. Snowboarding this way is such a different ball game than going to a resort. I had my beacon strapped to my chest, my extra clothes in my bag and my snow shows strapped to the back of my pack. When we started to climb the ridge I had the snowshoes on, but because I borrowed them they were totally wrong for me. I began to sink instead of float on the snow. I took them off and hiked up the packed boot trail. This was actually easier and used way less energy.

View North into Hatcher

Up the hill to the top

Powder run anyone?

When I got to the top the view was amazing. The Alaska Range could be seen to the southwest and it was absolutely breathtaking. I’ve never seen the peaks of the Alaska Range from Hatcher, and it blew me away. When I got to the top of the ridge, my phone rang and it turned out to be Dustin. I felt bad but I had to inform him of where I was and what I was doing…he got quiet and not so happy. You guys have surf and I have powder. I’d say its fair game. Once at the top I relaxed for a bit, drank some water and checked out the conditions, angles and slope options. There’s a lot to take account of up there but safety (i.e. not getting hurt) is always worth my time. I found my drop in point. It was about 100 yards along the ridge above a small cirque (apparently the top of the bowl). I went to the ridge and dropped in to some of the best powder I’ve ever been in. The snow pack up there was not necessarily the deepest but it was still so perfect. There was about a foot and a half of powder on top of about 2-3 foot of soft fluffy snowpack.

Skiers Climbing the upper ridge (with dogs)
Alaska Range across Susitna Valley

Dropped in at the rocky outcropping

I made it down to the ridge, rode down the face of the ridge we climbed up and sat down in the snow, smiling with exhaustion and joy. Sierra and I decided to climb it once more and make the run again. This time was better. I found deeper powder and a wide open face. It was beautiful. I S-turned the whole way down and could think nothing more than a desire to head up to the top again. But it was not to be, it time for school. I’ll be back. Something tells me there’s going to be a little more snow.

Sierra is the speck in the middle of the shot

Tired and ready for lunch

Starry Starry Night

What a crazy week it has been. We’ve had so much going on with school, environmental education workshops and preparing for winter. I took a break this morning to head up to Hatcher for some XC skiing. There was a little more snow this time and hopefully the pictures do the place justice. Erin sent me an awesome care package and it had a ton of stuff for Cody too. Cody is trying out his new reflective collar and I’m enjoying my new t-shirt and organic coffee. With the new collar Cody will be easier to spot in winter time when we go cross country skiing. For now, it just looks awesome.

Now remember, there is not this much snow down in the valley. Actually, until last night it was still moderately warm in the valley. When I head up to the pass today the dusting of snow had reached to the foot of the mountains. It’s pretty cool that I can drive 15 minutes and be in a completely different climate range. The temperature wasn’t that big of a change due to the strong sunlight, but man oh man was there a ton of snow. Cody came along and had fun running in front of me and trying to make me fall. I saw a couple of people up there hiking in the snow and was even able to make it part of the way up the Gold Cord Trail. I stopped about 15 minutes into the side trail and decided to save some energy.

While participating in a Project Wild workshop on Saturday morning, we got a chance to see the local moose family. While standing in the back field, discussing lessons and info about project wild, a Mama moose and her doe ran into the middle of the field. They stopped, as did we and then stared for a minute or so. We stared as well. The moose figured us for dummies standing in the cold and went about their way. Moose are no big deal up here but I am still getting used to this whole wildlife things. It may just be a moose but its right in our backyard, literally. For me, that is awesome. It’s 10pm, 28 degrees outside and a clear starry night. I’m getting up early to head to April Bowl and catch some runs, but for now….STUDY.

Is anybody out there?

Hello all! It’s been a really busy week. We started the session this week and I have 3 classes, lots of reading and many papers to come my way. The puddles in front of the house have been freezing the last 3 nights and I’m almost positive it will snow before the weekend is out. I tried my hand at cross country skiing this week and I must say it was pretty fun.

I left the house at about 9 in the morning and took Cody with me. We headed up to Hatcher Pass and it man was it a beautiful day. There was about 6 inches of snow on the ground and more the higher we went in the pass. Since this was my first cross country skiing experience I stayed out of the backcountry. I parked at Hatcher Pass Lodge, got on my gear and skied the 2 miles uphill to the old Independence Mine. Cody loved it, running through the snow, biting at chunks of snow slab. At one point a Snow Ptarmigan popped up out of his snowy enclave and then proceeded to be chased by Cody up the side of a large embankment and into deep powder. It was amazing to watch Cody have as much fun in the snow as I was. On the way to the mine, the park caretaker drove by on the way down to town. He said I was the first skier of the season and he wished he didn’t have to go to Palmer today. I never get over how nice people are up here. I skied around the old mine for about half an hour, stopping to take in the sights and revel in the beauty of this place.

I fell a couple of time, which was expected but it didn’t hamper my experience. While heading uphill for 2 miles I put on my Ipod and the beanie Erin bought me last year. The music made the ski session flow smoothly. I thought it would be cold but I quickly had to shed gear. After 10 minutes my gloves were off and I no longer needed my heavy jacket. Fleece was all it took. On the way down I laughed and smiled as I quickly realized I had to learn to snowplow and slow down or else I would severely injure myself. It wasn’t steep, but 2 miles of gradual downhill on skis is quite fast. After about 5 minutes I got the hang of it and was on my way. Cody ran beside me, jumping through the snow and wagging his tail the whole time. It was a really fun time.

I’m reading a book for class called “The Tipping Point.” Sometimes books seem to portray facts and skew statistics that most people are not aware of. In other words, I haven’t yet decided what I think of it, but I will get back to you. I’m going to try to ski in the early morning tomorrow, but it depends on how quick I get up, make some coffee and get going. It’s funny; no matter what you do there is always the element of the classic “Dawn Patrol.” It was driving to the beach at 5:30 to surf, getting up at 6 to drive to Ocala or Alafia and ride some trails and now it’s getting up early to ski or snowboard. The only major change is I don’t have my best friends to ride with. But hey, at least the sun will come up later, making for a wonderful 9:30 dawn patrol. Erin will love that!!!

Snow...in Alaska??? No way!

I put these clips together real quickly so that you could get an idea about the snow up at Hatcher. I was just here the day before and it looked nothing like this whatsoever, much of the snow had melted away. But as we climbed the road today, the snow was everywhere, the lowest it has been on the mountains since I’ve been here. We saw 4 snowboarders, 2 skiers and their accompaniment of dogs (I was quite jealous) hiking their way into the backcountry. I don’t know why I said it was cold on the end of the clip. My hands were cold, not me in general. It was about 35 degrees up there and I was fine, I just decided it would be fun to throw snowballs without gloves…that always catch up with you. Nothing a warm cup of hot chocolate couldn’t cure at Hatcher Pass lodge.

The road to willow had almost a foot of snow on it, and this was for sure the last weekend it will be open. CLOSED FOR THE SEASON she will say. Bad for cars, good for snowshoeing, boarding, snow machining, and skiing. I was told by the skiers and boarders that I saw that there was up to 3 ft of powder over the pass at April Bowl. This all sounds great but I am a bit weary of early season snowpack. There is never too little snowpack to avalanche, and in going home after our little hike and doing some research, I discovered that 3 people have died in or around April Bowl since 1998. Now this is a little scary but as I read all the reports, every incident had visual clues that the terrain was a “NO GO.” So while I am respectful of avalanches, the research has helped out in showing me that all of these avalanches were caused by overconfident, peer pressured or ignorant people. It’s so obvious when you shouldn’t go, it’s just not worth it. April Bowl is supposed to be awesome but the slope aspect and leeward loading makes it a pretty high risk area. Not sure if I’m going to go there yet. If I can hook up with some people who have their shit together I will probably head up there. Before I do though, I need to get a shovel and probe.

As of now I think I’m going to rent a pair of snowshoes, hike the ridges, check out the wind loading, factor in the slope angle, slope aspect and then GPS the coordinates of spots that look good to go. I can’t wait for the first big dump on Government peak, because that is where Erin and I will go.

The Butte (notice the e!!)

Well after a weird couple of days I’m back on track. I’m sorry for anyone who read that post I put up the other night. I was just in a real bad mood. Anywho, today is a different story. My friend Kristen and I took the dogs up to a real cool little place called “The Butte.” I’m not quite sure what to call it, it’s not a mountain and it’s too large to be a hill. The rock is composed of what looks like granite and other forms of very hard bedrock. This “Butte” stands alone in the middle of the valley, and when you hike to the top you can see 360 degrees around the whole valley.

The ecosystem around the base reminded me somewhat of Utah. There was lots of evidence of erosion, but the closer you got to the top the less soil there was. Instead the top of the Butte is dominated by bedrock outcroppings surrounded by loose soil. This “island of rock” look was exacerbated by the freezing and thawing of water on top, slowing eroding the soil and rock. This really is a cool place, especially because there is no where else like it in the valley.

The valley is known for its great farming, which owes much of its success to the many rivers and creeks that deposit silt over the years. The Knik and Matanuska glaciers have fed the two
main rivers and over hundreds of thousands of years have crushed rock, deposited soil and reshaped the whole valley. That is what makes this area so cool. While most of the valley floor is dominated by loam soil or soil covering glacial moraine (crushed rock that resembles gravel), the “Butte” stands alone as a natural wall, not giving in to the glaciers or their rivers. Also, it’s just a really cool place to hike.

As a side note, let’s ignore the fact that I look like Chuck Norris in these pictures. I lost my beanie on the way up, and also forgot that I had a sleeveless shirt on under my sweater. It got too hot on the way up so I had to remove clothing. I may not have been trying to look like a bad ass, but look at me….I’m frickin Chuck Norris! One more thing as well; Cody is a great dog, he loves to hike and run beside me while I bike. I really lucked out with him and it’s good to have a canine companion like Mr. Cody.

PS: It's fall and the colors are gorgeous! Check out the video!

A tirade Anyone??

I am writing today in utter disgust. This is not my usual disgust of commercialization or over development; this is a disgust of filthy, squalid living conditions. Within the last 20 minutes I have killed at least 15 flies. This did not happen anywhere near the kitchen, but instead in my bathroom and in my freaking room. I am so tired of this crappy house; I don’t know how much longer I can stand it. If I can somehow manage to make some money I might say screw it and move out. I thought this would be a good way to save some money, but the decrepit and insulting condition this house is in leaves a bad taste in my mouth.

As a university student, I would never ever in my wildest dreams imagine that this place would even be a housing option. Now, do not get me wrong, I am not displeased because my house is old or has small rooms. This is a rustic house; it is old and was obviously not designed for college student. The thing that really gets me is the lack of general maintenance to the property. We don’t have furniture, but this is of no matter because our carpet and its resident “funk” would probably cause it to spontaneously combust. Our walls are yellowed and dirtier than a pig in a mud pit. The basement has multiple leaks stemming from god knows where, and this becomes a bit more dangerous by the fact that the leak spreads underneath the solar unit and its battery cell.

Whoops, there go 2 more flies. Oh yeah, the solar panel. Let me explain this doozy to you. Well, we have a solar panel, great for renewable energy clout and “sustainable living.” Hooked directly to this unit are the essentials of life here in AK. That would be our water heater, heating unit for the house, our phone lines and our refrigerator. The university has stated that this has been done just in case the power goes out in winter time. Well, gee that’s great except for this minor fact: IT’S DARK HERE IN WINTER TIME!!!! It rained for a couple days and the solar couldn’t even keep a charge. I wonder what the hell is going to happen when we get 6 hours of light on a good day, without clouds or snow. I would probably have left these things on the power grid; I mean why would I need a fridge if the power went out? It’s going to be 20 degrees outside and I doubt the food will go bad. This perhaps would not be a big deal except for the fact that no one, not even the damn university knows how to work the stupid solar system. Their suggestion you ask? Here it is: “You guys figure it out, and then right it down and we’ll make a manual.” What the hell? I’m not here for electrician school; I’m here for graduate environmental studies.

Now, do not confuse my anger with an Anger of Alaska. Everyone who doesn’t live in this POS house has an amazing place, with nice warm heat, plumbing that works, clean living areas, and a general lack of smell, flies and random garbage in the basement. I am embarrassed and angered to call this place home. I don’t even want to bring Erin in this house. Her and I worked our asses off to keep the house in Orlando in good shape and I know that there is no way we will ever live like this. This place sucks….

Can we snowboard yet?

We finished the Wall Tent today and I'm glad that it's over. We started this morning at 8:30, and this also happened to be our first hard frost in the valley. Kelly's friends Jim and Denise came into town so I took everyone up to Hatcher pass for some hiking and scenery. Wow! It turned out to be an awesome day, especially because the sun was out for the first time in a couple of days. During the whole work week it was rainy and dreary, but as of yesterday the sun was shining, a crisp sense of fall was in the air, and the contrasting colors of mountains, snow and autumn leaves made for one of the most beautiful days since I've been here.

Everyone and their mother were out doing some type of outdoor activity, leaving almost all of the parking lots and trail heads full at Hatcher Pass. People were everywhere, whether it was paragliding, hiking, mountain biking, or just going for a nice walk. Perhaps it was the last hurrah of the season before it all goes downhill (Downhill being the time between snow and warmth…i.e. cold, but not enough to snow a whole bunch). We drove up to Summit Lake and made our way around the lake and surrounding ridges. The elevation of 4,000 ft. left us with 45 to 50 degree air temps, but the sun’s angle and intensity made for quite a warm and pleasant hike. The snow melt was pushing up the water levels of all the creeks, causing them to flow more rapidly and urgently than during the long lazy days of summer.

We ended the day by picking some of the remaining blueberries just on the southeast side of the pass. The bushes have since turned bright red as their leaves begin to die off in the ever descending temperatures. They were still extremely tasty, but definitely not as good as 3 weeks ago. It’s snowed up here for almost a week now, and I’m sure everything is on its way out. Overall it was a gorgeous day and I was sad to leave the park. You can see the beauty of a place, and experience it at that moment, but to fully comprehend the beauty of Alaska, Utah, Florida (anywhere in the world I guess) you need to be able to spend TIME there. To go somewhere for a day or two, see it and then leave feeling as if you know it is like saying you know the outcome of a book after reading only one page. But alas, I guess it is better to experience these places for even a short, minute amount of time than none at all.

Paying the rent

I had to get up early this morning to help Steve build the new deck for one of our "wall shelters." These shelters are made of a canvas material, and are around 9 by 6 ft. We've constructed the frame of dead spruce trees, cleaned and turned into support beams. The look is that of a shelter used by miners during the gold rush of days past, or at least this is the image I see in my mind's eye.

The deck we started on this morning is being constructed using solid 2x4's made of Douglas fir and tongue and groove slats from local wood. The construction is not difficult, but definitely time consuming. We are trying to minimize use of electric tools as much as possible. Hand tools a tape measurer, a steady hand and lots of patience has been the key for todays work.

Steve had the idea to orient the deck in a fashion so as to be protected from the wind and still achieve a beautiful view. So, essentially you step out of the shelter door, onto the wood porch and into your day, framed by beautiful Pioneer Peak and Twin Peaks.

These pictures were taken before we put the actually deck planks on but the frame is complete, along with the cement piers. You can tell from the pictures the orientation and direction of the tent. It will be amazing once we get everything done. We're protected from the winter winds, and highly exposed to sunlight from multiple directions. I'll update tomorrow with the finished product.

Blog = simplicity

After seeing Jesse's blog I have come to the realization that it would be much easier to just create a blog and update everyone through this instead of sending out mass emails, which seem to jam up everyone's computers because of all the pictures I send as well. I hate to copy Jesse, but a good idea is a good idea. But, I've given credit where credit is due so I don't want to hear anything else on the subject. Jesse just left for Washington to begin working for Americorps so please check out his posts here.


In AK news, we began our Snow-Smart training today and I must say that I have been humbled by the awesomeness of avalanches. That isn't a cool awesomeness but rather the awesome one uses to describe power and "wet your pants" inducing fear. We learned a lot today and I hope to be able to put that knowledge to use this winter, in as safe a manner as possible. The group that ran the symposium is called NAOI (North American Outdoor Institute). This a group of guides and professionals who want to spread avalanche education and "know before you go" knowledge all over Alaska. The other students and I have the opportunity to possibly become educators with them and one of their lead instructors has some great ideas for the future.

NAOI needs people all over the state to help teach the basic SNOWSMART course, so along with our own snow training, we take along knowledge to teach the basics as well. It was really cool to meet the creators of the program, especially those who I have seen on fuel TV or in backcountry skiing movies (If anyone wants to know more head to www.avalanche.org to check out some info).

As kind of an intro to Snow training, our professor took us up to Hatcher Pass on Tuesday and surprise, it was snowing. This was somewhat of a wakeup call that...Holy crap I'm from Florida!

BRING IT...