Tag: Alaska

A Long Trek Home by Erin McKittrick – Author Interview

Welcome to the first Mountain Mom and Tots Outdoor Book Club post of 2017. This month I’m reviewing A Long Trek Home: 4,000 Miles by Boot, Raft, and Ski by Erin McKittrick.

A Long Trek Home

A Long Trek Home: 4,000 Miles by Boot, Raft, and Ski is the story of one couples’ epic adventure traveling from Seattle, Washington, USA to the Aleutian Islands – the outermost tip of Alaska all under their own power.  They walked, cross-country skied and rafted their way through sun, wind, rain and snow for 4,000 miles. 4,000 miles! During this year of outdoor adventure they carried their pack rafts, shelter, food, clothing and everything else they needed on their backs. Continue reading “A Long Trek Home by Erin McKittrick – Author Interview”

My Best Outdoor Moments of 2014

This year I snowboarded with Olympians, saw the eighth wonder of the world and fulfilled my lifelong wish of seeing a bear in the wild. Our mountain family has done numerous camp outs, hikes, bikerides and other adventures. We’re looking forward to our next adventurer joining our family in March of next year but before we say goodbye to 2014 I wanted to look back at a few of my favorite things. What were your best outdoor moments of the year?

Last winter I loved hitting the slopes with Team Utah Snowboarding and Sundance Resort. Meeting the amazing athletes on the adaptive snowboarding team, as well as the hard core racers on Team Utah’s Boardercross crew inspired me to compete in my first ever banked slalom snowboarding race. It’s great to try new things!

Motherhood had some emotional ups and downs this year as Big E started kindergarten and I found out I was expecting again. Surprise!

Our favorite vacations this year were seeing the jaw dropping wall of dinosaur fossils at Dinosaur National Park, RZRing in Moab, Beach camping in Carpinteria and a couples’ trip to the great state of Alaska. There’s nothing like taking the tots to wild spaces to enjoy all the variety the world has to offer.

As 2014 comes to a close it’s nice to look back and realize that I have spent my time in a way that is important to me. With my family. In the outdoors.

What were your best outdoor moments of the year?

Horseshoe Lake Hike, Denali National Park, Alaska

The Horseshoe Lake/Nenana River hike was my favorite in Denali National Park, even though part of the trail was under renovation. The dirt and rock path wound through spruce and willow trees down to the banks of a pristine Alaskan lake, then further to the Nenana River.

The beginning of the trail crosses the railroad tracks so be aware especially if kids are in tow. But that also means that if you time your hike right, you could catch a glimpse of the train chugging above the horseshoe lake on its way to Fairbanks.

The long descent to the lake was scenic and beautiful and once we arrived, Mountain Dad and I spied a beaver dam, with signs of recent habitation. The occupants were not out and about but it was fun to see their construction projects at their best.

Further along the Horseshoe Lake trail we found the mighty Nenana River. This river, like all of them in that area, is fed by snow runoff and glacial melt which means they are cold and silty. I didn’t dare put my feet in the 35 degree water. We learned that because of the glacial silt, there are not fish in the rivers here.

What I liked about this trail was the variety of things to see – trains, valleys, lakes, forest, beaver dam, river, sandy beach. What I didn’t like was hiking back up to the trailhead, the elevation gain was not fun.

INFORMATION
Getting there: Take the Denali Park Road to Mile 5ish. Park in the small area just past where the railroad tracks cross the road.
Length: 1.5 miles
Elevation Gain: Approximately 500 feet all at the beginning (and end)
Time: 2 hours round trip
Tips: Watch for trains!

Denali National Park, Riley Creek Campground, Alaska

After seeing glaciers on Alaska’s Kenai Peninsula, our second must see Alaskan destination was Denali National Park.

Our stay in Denali national park involved reserving a campsite at Riley Creek Campground and a shuttlebus trip out to Eilson Visitors Center. Many Denali visitors choose to stay in the commercial area outside the park entrance known as Nenana Valley or Glitter Gulch. That’s also the place for restaurants and gas (We really enjoyed Prospector’s Pizza and Alehouse).

We liked the Riley Creek Campground, the largest and closest to the park entrance, because even with other campers nearby we still got to experience true Alaskan wildlife. This porcupine wandered right past our tent!

The bus system in Denali National Park was confusing with options to ride the entire park road, or part of it (90+ miles and 13 hours) either with or without a naturalist guide and different price levels, leaving every half hour all day long. And that doesn’t take into account the free park entrance area shuttle buses which are all green. Luckily our guide book AK On the Go written by fellow outdoor family blogger Erin Kirkland gave us some good tips.

Private vehicles are allowed on the first 15 miles of the park trail, which allows access to the Visitors Center, Murie Science Center, Dog Sled Demonstrations, Riley Creek Campground and several maintained trails, including the Savage River Trail. However, it was on the bus that we got to see the most wildlife including this guy who walked right in front of our window!

Throughout the trip I thought how much my kids would enjoy Denali National Park, but the Dog Sled Demonstrations were what I think they would’ve enjoyed the most. Although it was great to have an outdoor adventure with just me and Mountain Dad, my favorite times in the outdoors is spending time with the whole family.