Anchorage Life

(2018 Alaska Ep 34)

On Monday, July 2 we left Valdez for Anchorage (RabbiTRAILS Alaska Map, pt #38).

With nearly 300,000 people, Anchorage is the first city since Edmonton three weeks earlier. The city has high rise buildings, four-lane limited access highways, a very busy major airport, just about every chain store and fast food restaurant imaginable including real Super Walmarts and Fred Meyer, the cheapest gas since leaving the lower 48, and homeless people.

We camped next to an industrial area just north of downtown. Although the campground didn’t have a lot of fancy amenities, it was very conveniently located about five blocks from the downtown area.

We enjoyed a US Army band during Fourth of July celebrations in a city park and the Anchorage Farmers’ Market and Festival in large parking lot, both less than five minutes away. We connected with several bike trails crisscrossing the city. The weather was clear and unusually warm by Alaska standards – about 80 during the day and 60s at night.

Look west from Anchorage and you’ll see the Cook Inlet and distant mountains. Closer to the east are the mountains of Chugach State Park. We drove 30 miles to hike a state park trail along the Eagle River. The destination was a waterfall on one of the forks of the river. We had to settle for a soaring eagle and sunny picnic lunch on the riverbank when we couldn’t cross the river due to swift and deep water.

We fared better with Anchorage Bike trails. Named for a former Alaska governor, the Tony Knowles Coastal Trail extends 11 miles from downtown along the Cook Inlet. It parallels the Alaska Railroad for a couple miles and then goes through various wooded areas, wetlands and open fields. We were told Denali could be seen on a clear day from one open area, but haze kept us from seeing the high one on that day.

On another day we rode the Chester Creek trail after connecting via the coastal trail. Moose had been spotted in the area (we didn’t see any) and salmon spawn in the creek (wrong time of year). Nonetheless, we enjoyed the shaded trail as it wound several miles across the city.

We saw and heard large jets as they landed and took off throughout the day. Because of its location, Anchorage is a major air hub for global shipping and Alaska tourism.

Many tourists take the Alaska Railroad north to Denali and Fairbanks, and then return south to Seward or Whittier to cruise to Seattle or Vancouver. Three northbound passenger trains in the morning and three southbound passenger trains in the afternoon passed within 100 yards of our campground. The train horns – two long, one short and one long – were very loud!

Our time at Anchorage came to a close as we left for Whittier on Monday, July 9. The weather was about to change.

Alaska Highway – Whitehorse

(2018 Alaska Ep 29)

We arrived in Whitehorse (RabbiTRAILS Alaska Map, pt #33) on June 18 and stayed for three days.

We biked and hiked along the Yukon River, and enjoyed the excellent trails that extend throughout the town. We rode past the SS Klondike, a sternwheeler that ran freight between Whitehorse and Dawson City from 1929 to 1950. The ship is now a national historic site.

The Yukon is dammed upriver from Whitehorse. Besides hydro power and the trails mentioned above, there are various other recreational opportunities, such as kayaking (downriver) and boating (upriver).

We visited the Yukon Wildlife Preserve where a number of animals native to the north can be seen in their natural habitat. The animals include mule deer, wood bison, elk, musk ox, thin horn sheep, caribou (also known as reindeer), mountain goats, arctic and red fox, lynx and moose.

We also restocked our groceries at a smaller-than-normal Wal-Mart, the first we’d seen since Dawson Creek more than 900 miles back. We counted more than 50 RVs in the parking lot, who were enjoying a free night stay and convenient shopping.

Finally, we celebrated Pat’s birthday with dinner at the Klondike Rib and Salmon BBQ. We ended a great meal with birthday-sized bread pudding!

Great Falls: If Only Lewis and Clark Had Known…

(2018 Alaska Ep 21)

We left Cody on Monday, June 4, headed for Great Falls, Montana (RabbiTRAILS Alaska Map, pt #24).

On the way we had an interesting experience near Billings. Our GPS routed us to the middle of nowhere (actually to the very small town of Molt, Montana). We reached a point where our only choice was one of several dirt roads.

We decided to backtrack, and after 30 minutes, we were on the correct road to Great Falls! This was a lesson to be careful what you put your faith in and to double check routing with a map!

During our stay in Great Falls, we learned the Lewis and Clark Expedition passed through the area in 1804. As they travelled upriver, they were expecting a single set of falls on the Missouri River. There were actually five!

The Lewis and Clark National Historic Trail Interpretive Center located on the bluffs above the river gives an excellent chronology of the expedition.

Adjacent to the center is a great bike trail along the Missouri River. We biked part of the trail to see views of three of the waterfalls encountered by Lewis and Clark, and the dams that have been built to control the river.

Giant Springs State Park is also on that trail. More than 150 million gallons of water flows from the springs into the Missouri River each day. Lewis and Clark even noted the springs during their expedition.

The springs reminded us of some of the first magnitude springs in Florida. At 54 degrees year-round, the Giant Springs would be a bit cold for Florida manatees however!

After two nights in Great Falls we continued north and became international travelers when we crossed the border into Canada!

Yellowstone NP: Heels and Wheels

(2018 Alaska Ep 19)

Heels

There are great day hikes throughout Yellowstone. We enjoyed a couple.

After a visit to Lamar Valley in the northeast corner of Yellowstone where we saw lots of buffalo and a group of big horn sheep, we decided on the Lost Lake Hike.

From Roosevelt Lodge, we followed a series of switchbacks as the trail climbed more than 400 feet to the top of a mountain. A short ways further we found Lost Lake, a quiet lake in the cradle of several surrounding mountains.

The trail continued along a creek to the parking lot for a petrified tree. This was a bonus as we didn’t associate petrified trees with Yellowstone.

From there, a very steep 300-foot climb led to a mountaintop meadow. The view of the distant mountains was spectacular.

Hikes don’t always yield the expected.

We hiked the Elephant Back trail later in the week for a grand view of Yellowstone Lake and the distant mountains.

The trail was muddy and as we neared the top, we discovered it was covered with deep snow! We were unable to continue. When it started to rain, we put on ponchos and trudged back to the parking lot, muddy, cold and tired.

We caught a glimpse of the lake and mountains part way up the trail. A more interesting find was a small pine tree growing on the top of a rock. This reminded us of the perseverance and faith needed when facing day hikes in the rain, long trips to Alaska and the challenges of life. Praise God for His presence and steadfastness in every situation!

Wheels

We learned about and rode several bike trails added to Yellowstone in recent years.

Our first ride took us 2.5 miles to Lone Star Geyser.

A few short sections of the trail were still covered with snow and we had to walk our bikes through them.

We parked our bikes when we arrived at the geyser and to our delight, Lone Star geyser began to erupt!

A couple days later we rode four miles down another road to the backside of one of the largest and most beautiful thermal springs in Yellowstone, Grand Prismatic Spring. We parked our bikes and followed a short trail to an overlook with a phenomenal view of the spring.

On the way back, we rode close enough to a group of buffalo to hear them grunting and snorting! Fortunately we passed by safely.

Epic Wheel Spins Across the West

(2018 Alaska Ep 12)

A few years ago, we became interested old train lines that have been converted to recreational bicycle trails. Many of our camping trips, including this one, involve riding these and other recreational bike trails.

We’re not skinny tire, spandex britches, 60-miles-in-a-day sorts of riders. Our bikes have wider tires, we wear comfortable clothes and our rides are usually 15-20 miles. This gives us something healthy and fun to do while camping.

Our bikes and associated gear travel in the back of our truck. Here are some rides we’ve done so far:

Austin: Ann and Roy Butler Trail at Lady Bird Lake

(RabbiTRAILS Alaska trip pt #8) We were amazed at the number of riders, walkers and runners enjoying this trail in the middle of a workday. The trail circles Lady Bird Lake adjacent to downtown Austin (click for more). The trail is mostly shaded and an easy ride.

This ride was a welcome diversion while our camper was being repaired.

Santa Fe: Arroyo De Los Chamisos Trail

(Map pt #13) Our ride in Santa Fe was disappointing and brief. Although this trail is a good connector to a number of other bike trails in Santa Fe, it was not easily accessible from our campground. In addition, parking in Santa Fe was a challenge.

So, we enjoyed walking the streets of historic downtown Santa Fe instead. There are many colorful shops and vendors selling jewelry and other items in the historic town square area.

Carbondale: Rio Grande Bike Trail

(Map pt #15) The Rio Grande Trail is a 42-mile rail trail that follows the Aspen Branch of the historic Denver and Rio Grande Western Railroad. It parallels the beautiful Roaring Fork River in numerous places.

We rode from the campground a short distance to downtown Carbondale and loaded our bikes on a public bus. The bus took us about 15 miles up the valley towards Aspen. The ride back to Carbondale and our campground was mostly downhill!

The day was an 11 on a scale of 10! Our ride took us past yellow-flowered fields and dense wooded areas in a valley between mountain ranges. We ate a packed lunch overlooking the Roaring Fork River.

Glenwood Springs: Glenwood Canyon Trail

(Map pt #15) Interstate 70 spans Colorado east-west. After crossing the Rocky Mountains west of Denver, the highway passes through Glenwood Canyon for 12.5 miles on its way to Grand Junction and beyond. The highway is an amazing engineering accomplishment, with extensive viaducts and elevated roads as it winds through the steep-walled canyon. It follows the Colorado River (that eventually reaches the Grand Canyon!), a Union Pacific rail line and includes a paved bike trail.

An outfitter in Glenwood Springs transported us and our bikes up the canyon and dropped us off for the mostly downhill 16-mile ride back to Glenwood Springs. We got to to see I-70 engineering from the bottom, rafters on the Colorado River, an Amtrak train and much more.