Alaska – Denali State Park

After our successful, albeit super wet, sea kayak adventures in Prince William Sound, we packed all our stuff up again and headed north, making a one night stop in Anchorage to do some additional shopping, most importantly a real rain jacket for Jen.

Our destination was Denali State Park, not to be confused with Denali National Park. Denali State Park is located adjacent and just South East from Denali National Park, and is probably one of the best places to actually see Denali (Mt McKinley) and all of its surrounding mountains from.

The hiking plans had a logistical element to it that I was hoping wouldn’t be a problem. Basically we wanted to do a point to point hike which mandated that we had to get our rental car or ourselves moved from one end of the hike to the other. We opted to drop my Dad and all our backpacks off at the start of the hike, while Jen and I drove down to where we would end our hike. We parked the car here and walked back out to the road hoping that somebody would be kind enough to drive us back to where my Dad was waiting. The THIRD car we saw picked us up! It was that easy. We were back with my Dad in no time.

The hike we did follows the Kesugi Ridge Trail from the Little Coal Creek trail head to Byers Lake where we had parked the car. The profile is simplistically a climb up to the ridge, then along the ridge until it drops back down; the hike along and on top of the ridge offering great views into the big mountains within Denali National Park. That is, if the weather had cooperated. The clouds still hang low obscuring any views of the mountains.

As promised, the trail started climbing right off the bat, and we quickly gained altitude. After a while we actually climbed OUT of some of the clouds that were hovering just above the valley floor below us. Getting out of the clouds provided for more pleasant conditions and somewhat of a better view. We kept climbing and shortly hereafter found ourselves above the trees. The trail was getting even steeper. Switch-backs apparently is not a concept the Alaskan trail builders have chosen to incorporate into their trail design. We crossed scree fields that without the heavy packs would have been a breeze, but proved challenging with our recently acquired higher center of gravity.

Only a few miles into our hike, but after a significant amount of climbing, we came across a somewhat sheltered area at the base of the actual Kesugi Ridge that looked for camping. We pitched our tents here and climbed into them as soon as we had finished dinner. It was cold up here, the wind was blowing, and the gray skies provided for no sunlight.

The next morning the weather wasn’t much better to our disappointment. That day was going to be the day we would hike the ridge, and we were anxious to take advantage of being up this high with a direct view of the Alaskan Range including Mt McKinley (aka Denali). But hey, it is what it is, so we packed up camped and started hiking south along the ridge. The trail was easy going now, meandering on top of the ridge, without much climbing or descending. My feet, however, were already feeling the climb from the day before. It wasn’t a surprise, though. I unfortunately always seem to have trouble with my feet when hiking, probably even more so these days where I don’t have to go to an office and wear ‘real’ shoes.

As we were hiking the weather started to clear up! We were provided with small glimpse of the mountains. Not much at first, but it was getting better. The clearer weather also allowed us to spot a local – a giant brown bear that was walking around not that far away from the trail we were hiking. We stopped for a while to inspect this gigantic bear. Glad to actually have been this lucky to see a bear, and also glad that he wasn’t any closer! The bear didn’t seem to have noticed our presence as it simply went about doing its thing which I assume entailed munching on berries, of which there were LOTS in this area.

We continued on the trail, crossing streams here and there, and just simply enjoying the hike and taking more and more photos of the mountains to the west that looked clearer and clearer. We even saw another bear. This time a brown bear. We actually ended up seeing more bears than people on this hike! After 10 miles or so we found a PERFECT spot for camping. While we would have liked to hike a little further to accommodate our schedule, this spot was so ideal that we couldn’t pass it up! It was dry. It had plenty of flat spots for our tents. There was nearby water, and it had THE BEST thinkable view of the Alaska Range if the clouds around the mountains would just lift!

Jen spotted a nice rock to function as a work surface for cooking and later to dine on as a table – she did this every evening. It was great. While Jen cooked yet another fabulous dinner, my Dad and I put up the tents. We joined Jen at the cooking area which as always was a bit away from our sleeping area due to the aforementioned bears that clearly were found in this area.

The dinner was great and this evening was absolutely gorgeous. The weather was showing itself from one of its better sides. We were sipping whiskey after dinner and were simply having a grand time when the evening got even better: We could finally see Mt McKinley. And WOW! The mountains around Mt McKinley are high, but Mt McKinley is about twice that! Towering almost 18,000 ft over the valley floor that too was visible from our location. This was clearly one of the highlights on our trip. What a great day.

The next day the clouds had yet again closed in on us and were obscuring the views of the Alaskan Range. We broke down camp and continued our hike south. After about 2 miles or so we came across a trail intersection that more precisely placed us on the map and revealed that we hadn’t quite hiked as much yesterday as we had hoped, and that this day would be really long. We didn’t have a schedule per se, but we did have to be back in Anchorage before our flights out of there, and we wanted to be back to REI on Sunday in time to return the bear canisters we had rented there. Alas, hike we did. And we did it for a long time. And through difficult terrain as the trail dropped down from the ridge into a overgrown, wet muddy drainage area. The trail only dipped down into this area for a relatively short distance before it climbed back up into the tundra, but it still took quite a bit of time to travel through it, and all the descending and ascending wrecked havoc on my feet.

It was late before we finally decided that we had hiked far enough to allow us to finish up the hike the next day in time to be back in Anchorage before REI closed. All 3 of us were tired from a long day of hiking, and to top it off we had gotten drenched by a shower just the last 20 minutes or so of our hike. Jen went down to the nearby lake to get some water for making dinner, while my Dad and I put up the tents. Getting ready for making dinner we saw yet another bear. This time again a black bear. It wasn’t as big as the brown bear we had seen earlier, but it was still a bear! After a while the bear finally decided to walk away from us and disappeared over a hill. I’m pretty sure he knew we were there.

The plan for the next morning was to get up early to ensure we would be back at our rental car early enough to drive to Anchorage before REI closed, so we sat the alarm and got up early as planned. From here, though, the plans got a little derailed. Yet another black bear decided to make a visit. It was probably the same bear as the one from the night before, but I wasn’t going to ask him to make sure. The bear was heading towards us, more specifically, the area were Jen was on her way to for filtering water. We waited and waited, and the bear finally decided to move away from us. He would go from moving slowing to running. Its simply amazing how quick those big animals can move.

We got on with our plans as soon as the bear were moving away from us. Jen got water. My Dad and I packed up the tents, and we were shortly on our way back to the car. The distance back wasn’t great, but the terrain once again proved to make for slow traveling. The steep descent down in particular was challenging. Somebody should really tell the Alaska trail builders about switchbacks! Even down from the ridge, the trail still seemed to go on and on despite us going at a good clip. We eventually made it back to the car with plenty of time to both share and enjoy the one beer that was left back in the car plus make a stop for lunch in Trapper Creek on our way back to Anchorage.

Back in Anchorage, we got the bear canisters returned to REI. We got checked into a hotel room, got a much needed shower and then headed out for yet another Alaskan fresh fried fish meal and a much deserved beer. It was a great evening, looking back at the past 10 days of adventures. We couldn’t stop talking about all the things we had experienced and, now on the backside of it, how the weather had added to it all in a way you just don’t get had we had nothing but blue skies.

Thanks to both Jen and my Dad for an absolutely amazing vacation. I love you both so much. Thanks for wanting to share this kind of vacation, and for enjoying it! I do know people for who this vacation would had been their worst nightmare…

For more reading, check out Jen’s writeup or my write up from the kayak leg of the trip.

Posted in Hiking | 1 Comment

Alaska – Sea Kayaking

I am one lucky guy! Not everybody I know can get their significant other to join them on a sea kayaking trip to Alaska. Nor are everybody I know in a situation to or able to get their Dad to join them on a sea kayaking trip to Alaska. I got both! – and believe me, I do not take it for granted!

My Dad and I have talked about a sea kayaking trip to Alaska for a LONG time. Probably as long as I have known Jen. I have mentioned this to Jen a couple of times and when we last visited my parents in Denmark we started talking more seriously about an actual trip, and at the end of 2009 we started planning one in earnest.

Alaska is one big state, so in order to hone in on an area to visit and investigate further we solicited advice and ideas from friends we knew had previously been to Alaska. Charlie Nuttelman and Forrest Weller in particular had good advice and experience with Prince William Sound, so we started looking closer at this area and shortly thereafter booked boats and gear through the Prince William Sound Kayak Center. We also booked a Glacier Watching tour with Sound Eco Access and made special arrangements to get dropped off on the way back, thereby allowing us to paddle and see more of the sound, compared to doing an out-and-back trip from Whittier alone.

We flew from Denver directly to Anchorage, and stayed a night in Anchorage before driving down to Whittier the next morning. It drizzled and rained as we drove down to Whittier from Anchorage, and by the time we had gotten all our gear from the outfitter and had loaded it all on the boat that was going to sail us out, the rain was coming down steadily and the wind had started to pick up. Because of current weather as well as even stronger winds forecasted for the afternoon and evening, Captain Gerry, had regretfully decided to cancel our original booked Glacier watching tour. He deemed it too risky going out into the sound in his smaller boat, and he told us, that he so far this season due to bad weather had yet to go to College Fjord, which was our original destination for the glacier watching tour.

While we were disappointed that we weren’t going to be able to do the Glacier watching tour we were happy to learn that he still would accommodate our special arrangements for being dropped off out at the North end of Blackstone Bay. We simply wouldn’t go on the glacier tour first, but instead sail directly from Whittier to our drop-off location, which we also modified slightly because of the forecasted strong winds, moving our drop-off location to a more sheltered location from the expected North Eastern winds.

After a bumpy ride out from Whittier, Captain Gerry dropped us off at a little bay tucked in under the North-East side of the entrance to Blackstone Bay. Here we would be relatively protected from winds and it would be a good starting point for our paddle down in Blackstone Bay the next day – cutting off the section that would have been right in the wind had we stuck to our original plan which was to be dropped off on the East side of the Surprise ridge at the Surprise Cove Marina.

Standing on the shoreline all alone with our boats and gear, we debated shortly whether we should set up camp here or paddle a little, but finally decided to set up camp and wait out the weather. So as decided we did. The wet conditions however presented quite the challenge in terms of finding a dry campground, so we ended up settling on a soft, flat but rather wet spot that was somewhat sheltered behind a group of trees. In selecting a camp site we made sure to take low and high tides into account. In this area and at this time of the year the difference between low and high tide is a rather significant 14.2 feet!

Having set up camp we went out and gathered some wood, tried to get a fire going, but not only was any dead-fall we could find soaking wet, it also continued to rain, so we finally gave up on the fire. The rain continued into the night, and as we were trying to get some sleep, water started seeping into the tent that Jen and I were sleeping in (from the bottom!) while the tent my Dad was sleeping in slowly started to give in to the water pressure from above and it wasn’t long before water started dripping in through the rain fly. It was a wet and cold night!

Next morning was the same. More rain. But we went about doing the necessary: going to the bathroom, get coffee going, eating breakfast, and then sat around for a little while hoping for the rain to stop. It did not. We checked the weather forecast on the radio and it became clear to us that it would probably continue for a least another day and half, so we decided to just go with it, break down camp and start paddling into Blackstone bay. So, that’s what we did.

We paddled for awhile, the rain still pouring down, but to my surprise I was not cold. The dry top was doing its job, and the legs were nice and warm tugged away under the sprayskirt. Even my hands were OK despite being exposed to the cold rain, wind and splashing salt water. After 4 hours or so of paddling we felt we were getting deep enough into the bay. We still couldn’t see much because of the rain and low hanging clouds, but we started looking for a suitable camp site. The first couple of places we stopped it was too rocky and probably also too low to be sure that hightide wouldn’t be a problem later, but we finally found a good place to stay for the night.

We quickly got camp set up – this time putting the tarp OVER the tents sheltering them from the rain and I am glad we did. It rained HARD all night. This night was also the coldest night for Jen. By now, most – if not all – of her clothes had gotten wet. Mostly because of an advertised “rainjacket” which wasn’t much of a rain jacket, causing all of her clothes to get wet, one piece after the next. As we tried to fall asleep I literally laid on top of Jen inside our zipped together sleeping bags trying to warm her with my body heat. And it worked. We didn’t sleep much, but I got Jen warm.

By next morning it finally started clearing up and we were getting excited about getting to see the glaciers and get close to them. We could already now see some of the glaciers from our campsite. Sights that had been completed obscured by rain and low hanging clouds the day before.

We decided to go light for our glacier watching part of the trip – leaving all our stuff back at camp, only bringing cameras, map, drinking water and some other small items.

It was an absolutely fantastic morning – a stark contract to the previous two days of hard rain, dark skies and low clouds. The water was glassy, mirroring everything. There was not a single wind. And we had it all to our selves!

The bay finally revealed itself with magnificent glaciers lining the entire bottom of the bay. A sight we hadn’t gotten even the slightest glimpse of the day before. It had all been saved for this morning, and the experience was even stronger because of that.

We paddled through small icebergs floating around in the water as soon as we left camp. Some icebergs were stranded on land due to low tide, making them look like funky organic sculptures. It was nothing short of magical. Almost surreal. This was what we had come to Alaska to experience: Sea kayaking around icebergs, paddling close to gigantic glaciers, and only sharing the experience with local wildlife.

We took our time paddling around, enjoying the magnificent surroundings and of course, snapping a lot of photos too. This was something that couldn’t be rushed. In hindsight I wish we had made plans for staying here even longer, but you can only plan so much, especially with not knowing what kind of weather conditions you will be faced with. One thing I am pretty sure about, though: I don’t think this is the last time Jen and I will be sea kayaking in Alaska.

After a while we started heading back up the bay back towards our campsite, mostly because we had somewhat of a time schedule to adhere to. We had to be back in Whittier, by the evening next day, in order to return the kayaks. But we were super thrilled that we had been given a clear day to experience the glaciers and some of the wonderful views that in many ways are what define Alaska.

We had a quick lunch back in camp, complete with Heineken, which as always seems to taste extra good out here in the wilderness. While eating lunch we had all our wet clothes and sleeping bags hanging up on suspended strings and trees hoping that some of it would dry at least a little bit before we had to pack it all up again. And I think it did – at least our sleeping bags which was crucial since both Jen and my bags were down bags.

After lunch we broke down camp and got it all packed up in the kayaks again, ready to start heading back towards Whittier. The paddle back up and out of Blackstone Bay was almost as incredible as our touring down by the glaciers, with all the many waterfalls running down the cliffs defining the east bank of the bay.

The absence of wind caused the waters to be super still, almost glassy, even out in the middle of the sound. Something that was very welcomed as we had to make the widest crossing of our trip getting from the east side to the west side of Blackstone Bay.

Having crossed over to the east side we continued along the shore line out of Blackstone Bay up North and then West towards Whittier, finally deciding to stop for the night at Decision Point Marina. We checked out a few other potential campsite on our way, but they were either too hard to access or were overgrown with Devil’s Club.

Decision Point Marina was an established camp site area, with platforms built for pitching tents, and even an outhouse for doing your business. We were clearly getting back closer to civilization.

As we were setting up camp, the weather was building up again, and by dinner time it was raining and the clouds were once again hanging low around us. The next morning we couldn’t even see the mountains on the other side of the waters, which was just fine. All we had to accomplish was to get back to Whittier in time for returning the rented kayaks and gear, as well as get back to Anchorage in time for Jen to purchase a real rain jacket! We did all that, and that concludes our very first sea kayaking experience in Alaska, with more to come.

Well, let me quickly also mention that back in Whittier we had probably THE BEST and MOST FRESH Fish and Chips I have ever had!

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Alaska

Wow! Alaska was everything I had hoped it would be. That, and a whole lot of extra rain, and much greener than I had ever imagined. I have yet to go through all the many pictures I took as well as a bunch of video footage I managed to get despite the rainy and wet conditions. It was definitely a struggle to keep camera gear dry, but we managed!

For now, let me share a couple of teaser shots from our kayak leg of our trip as I go through all of the pictures.

Posted in Hiking | 1 Comment

Northfork 50

I am so proud of Jen. She finished her first ever Ultra yesterday at the Northfork 50 race held at Buffalo Creek. 50 kilometers on a course with lots of climbing and descents and on a record breaking hot day. Jen has diligently been training and keeping a sharp focus on this event for months, slowly increasing her training mileage and getting race day nutrition and execution dialed in. To witness her come this far from struggling with Plantar Fasciitis just last year is nothing short of amazing.

I got some video footage from Jen’s great achievement that I will be putting together soon, but for now, a few pictures from yesterday.

YOU ROCK SWEETIE!

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Changes

Its time for some changes! First and foremost I am going to give my website some more attention and return to posting updates and pictures here rather than at a lot of other places, such as Facebook and various forums. Secondly, with better Internet bandwidth being available to everybody and the fact that most people are running screens with higher resolution or at least a widescreen format, I am going to be making some updates to the format of my website.

The biggest drive for change is to allow for bigger pictures and videos, but under the hood I’ll also be upgrading to WordPress 3 and Gallery 3, so please excuse the dust, missing post and pictures, dead links, and possible other weird functions while I make the changes…

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Walker Ranch

Patrick and I made a trip up to the mountains west of Boulder, more specifically Walker Ranch. This was Patrick’s first ride at Walker, and interestingly enough, Walker was in fact one of the first rides I did when I first moved to Boulder. I still remember that first ride very well: I strained my ankle really bad right the moment I got off my bike to start the portage down towards Boulder Creek. I was smart about it, though:

  1. I soaked my hurt ankle in the cold waters of Boulder Creek, and
  2. I didn’t take my shoe off!

Walker Ranch provides for a great ride, with a varying terrain; smooth trail, rocky trail, big ups and fast downs, and the bonus is a cool portage down to Boulder creek; our own little oasis in the mountains.

Posted in Mountain Biking | 1 Comment

Colorado Spring Weekend

A quick sample of my Point Of View from this past weekend:

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Gotta love the mountains in spring!

Posted in Mountain Biking, Skiing, Video | 1 Comment