Devil's Creek

We took a last opportunity to get out before the snow hit and hiked Devil's Creek trail.  About seven miles in we reached our campsite.  The mountains above it were filled with sheep.  Unfortunately, it was a month after the season closed!  I did get several grouse, though.

After setting up camp, we dropped packs and hiked another three miles before turning around and heading back to camp.  We nearly had a critical dinner failure when the stove went out and the Husband couldn't get it to light again.  This was, of course, solved after he read the directions.

There wasn't any snow yet but it was still quite cold.  The ground was mostly frozen.  I was comfortable enough after putting on two of everything - including hats and scarves!  I need a new sleeping bag!

Fabulous Fall

 

This fall, we had the amazing chance to spend a week in the back country with two of our friends.  The Husband had a caribou tag for the Kenai Mountains, so we loaded up our packs and headed out into the middle of nowhere.  The thing about nowhere?  It's beautiful.

 

We spent several days camped near this beaver lake.  During the day we hiked the mountains around.  During the evening we watched the beavers work and play.  And during the night... words cannot encompass the beauty of the stars overhead when you are eighty miles from the nearest gas station and fifteen miles from the nearest road.  I only had a little point and shoot though, so no star pictures.

  

The crowberries were fat and tasty.  We'd scoop up handfuls as we walked.  Meant to bring back a few gallons, but we got distracted.

 

View from the top of the mountain.  We climbed it twice in a day, because as soon as we hit the valley floor, we looked up and saw the 'bou!  Once we got to the top though, they were gone.

 

While we didn't get a 'bou, we did get a bunch of ptarmigan, enough to mostly get rid of the nasty dried meat in our dinners.  This was my bird, cooked in the Bakepacker with a bit of bisquick and herbs for breading.  Delicious!

I'm back!

 

Well, I do apologize for the hiatus!  We have been so incredibly busy here, but now I have a break and would rather update here than clean the house!  So, here are some pictures from the end of summer.  The above is from our trip to Denali.  We saw all of the Big Five, which was exciting.  We also got very up close and personal with a sow and two cubs.  I chose the most adorable to post here!

 

This picture, also taken in Denali, earned me an honorable mention at the State Fair!

 

The Airshow was back in Anchorage.  I'm not a big Airshow fan, but we went and I got some nice pictures.  Also, a delicious chimichanga from a cart.

To finish off the summer, I had some close encounters of the ungulate kind when I went to check on the berries in the back yard.  With all the leaves up, I ended up accidentally getting in-between mama and baby... fortunately, we all survived!