Alaskan non-wilderness

There are two rental companies in Fairbanks (well, two with web presences at least) that rent SUVs suitable for driving on unpaved roads. One charges close to $200/day, and the other charges close to $100/day.

Unfortunately, the latter one did not have availability until 6/12, so I would spend the first day carless, in Fairbanks. No big deal. Woke up to a huge breakfast buffet, including biscuits with sausage gravy (it's not a southern thing, is it? It's a red state thing.) And no sense in not gorging myself now, as I will surely not be eating like a king over the next several days.

After a spending a few minutes figuring out the Fairbanks bus system, I managed to find a bus stop and subsequently end up in downtown Fairbanks. After a vain search for wi fi, I went to the Ice Museum, whose exhibits contain a video on ice carving, several sculptures to look at, and finally a live demonstration (would have never guessed it was all that judging from the outside of the building, which looked like a small abandoned urban movie theater.) Here is some ice:










Tomorrow I get my car and drive into the wild.

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad

Location:Fairbanks, AK

Test post using BlogPress

Day before Alaska, part 2. wondering whether I need to bring laptop for blogging purposes, or if iPad will do the trick.

Photo test... Pic from recent warmup hike in Nipmuck State Forest.



- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad

Mount Washington, et al, et al

Despite the forecast of 29 degrees, 50 mph winds at the summit, not to mention rain and snow on the way, we decided to give it a shot. Not the best idea we've had, and we turned back after only about a mile on the Tuckerman Ravine trail.



We then drove to the Mount Washington Hotel, where we walked the grounds, ate, drank, and relaxed.





The next day was the ziplining canopy tour! I lost count of how many ziplines we rode, but I think the longest one was over 600 feet.



We then drove up to Montreal and spent the night. Next day we went to the Jardin Botanique.


And the Notre Dame Cathedral, before heading back to New Hampshire and spending the night in Gorham.


To be continued...

Mount Washington, et al

Our trip to the White Mountains was, in all honesty, one of the coolest vacations ever. I count myself very fortunate that I have a partner who will not only go on your typical touristy, relaxation + sightseeing vacations, but will actually plan out a more adventuresome trip with multiple fun, interesting, and exciting outdoor activities.

We drove up the day after the Inaugural Autocracy Sit N Go, and found ourselves in Jackson, NH in time to check into our B&B and get (an included) dinner at a local pub. We woke up the next morning to an overcast day, and headed to our first adventure after breakfast: kayaking!

The people at the kayaking place seemed a bit surprised that we even showed up, since the forecast called for rain all day. Fortunately for us, their surprise was warranted, as there was nobody else on the river! Unfortunately, the river was running a little low, and we found ourselves running aground a few times, having to bounce or shove our ways free.


We did run into a riverside resident who said that Alice looked like a spaceman.

After kayaking, we went back to the B&B, warmed up in the hot tub, and then went out for dinner in North Conway.

Next day we arose to somewhat better weather, and headed to Black Mountain for the next adventure: horseback riding! We ended up with another couple in a group of four, and I ended up with the friskiest, most aggressive horse (which, admittedly, isn't saying much, as they were mostly old horses accustomed to stupid tourists.) We made it up the mountain and back, despite a slightly worrisome moment when Alice's horse slipped in the mud and ended up on its knees for a brief moment.




After our ride, we headed back to North Conway and did some shopping. We checked out some local art galleries, then went to the Mount Washington Discovery Center. We had the opportunity to speak, via webcam, to a weather observer stationed on the Mt Washington summit, who informed us that tomorrow's weather looked REALLY BAD.

That evening, we camped at the Dolly Copp campground (which, incidentally, is the same place I camped during my 2007 cross country trip.) Alice thought it would be a good idea to take a picture in the dark in the tent...

And the next morning, we geared to hike to the Mt Washington summit!

To be continued...

Alaska es muy grande

I imagine this probably looks like a six year old's account of what he did on his summer vacation, but since my Spanish teacher might be reading, here goes:

Alaska es muy grande. Hay osos en Alaska. Ellos comen las plantas. Hace frio y viento en Alaska en julio. Las montanas son altas. Mis pies fueron mojados y frio. Hay muchos mosquitos! Es siempre horas de luz en el verano. Fue muy divertido!

Brooks Range - Epilogue

I have received several questions asking why I cut my wilderness trip short. I thought I had mentioned the reasons in successive posts, but as I often think about what to write long in advance of writing it, I often end up writing something and forgetting that I didn't write something else. Anyway, here they are in case I had not made everything clear.

1. Tundra hiking was a LOT tougher than I expected. When it was level, the terrain choices were bog tundra or rocky riverbeds. The bog tundra sucks your boot into a murky muck up to your ankle-- you expend a lot of extra energy just pumping your legs up and down. The rocky riverbeds are less fatiguing, but harder on the ankles and knees. In both cases, you need to watch almost every step carefully to avoid stepping on something that could cause an ankle sprain. And your feet get wet in both cases; in the bog for obvious reasons, and in the riverbeds because you are constantly crossing through small streams.
2. Some of the non-level parts were extremely steep, and usually covered in what's called talus. Talus is gravelly, sand-like rock that would actually be a pleasure to hike in on a level surface, but when going up hill, you slide down about 3/4 step for each step you take up. This of course means it takes a lot longer to get up a hill, and it makes you more tired and more likely to fall backward, which almost happened several times.
3. Many times I would wonder whether I would be able to safely go down a hill I was in the process of climbing. Many times I would also wonder whether I could continue to climb, because the steepness of the ascent would increase. This combination was stressful.
4. Without better detailed maps, I found myself many times in a situation where I hiked into either a dead end or one where there was otherwise no chance to go in the direction I intended. This would involve backtracking, sometimes for hours, to find a suitable path.
   
5. When I got to the top of the ridge of the Continental Divide, my choices were to turn back or to basically slide down a very long, very steep talus chute. Returning that way may have been impossible.
6. I was time-constrained. With the possibility of not being able to return in the way I arrived, I could not accurately estimate the length of my return trip.
   
7. Rain. More specifically, thunderstorms.
   

Almost all of this stems from a lack of preparation due to a lack of experience. More detailed maps would have helped, as would better (e.g. more waterproof) boots and rain gear. I should have also packed lighter.

With all this said, I still had an amazing time and in the short three days, saw some amazing views. I didn't see as much wildlife as expected, but I got an experience of nature and solitude, and got to feel what it was like to possibly be the only human to walk where I walked in years (if not forever?) I am already thinking about doing it again, but with more preparation and probably some companions. Anyone out there want to go?

Alaska! Man: 0, Wild: 1, Part 5

I awoke to more cold and more rain. I hurriedly packed up my wet tent and, in complete rain gear, started heading back. All was fine for the first few mile or so, until I hit a dead end (a drop off that was too steep to safely climb down, especially when wet) and had to backtrack. I did see this set of antlers, complete with partial spine:

Then, as I was crossing a stream, it started to thunder. Great. From what I remember on how to not get hit by lightning, if you can't find immediate shelter, you're supposed to crouch on the balls of your feet, minimizing both your height and your area of contact with the ground. Doing that in the rain with a heavy pack isn't a whole lot of fun.

Incidentally, the reason you're not supposed to lie prone is in case of electrical current traveling through the ground. If you are on your feet, then ground to ground current can travel up one leg, through your genitals, and down the other leg, rather than going through your heart or nervous system. :/

Not many other pics, as it rained the entire trek back to the car. My rain gear gave out after about three more miles, so I ended up completely drenched when I got there. One thing I hadn't noticed until the next morning was that the upper hills did receive new snow:


And that's it for the Brooks Range. Since I had planned to be there for six days but only stayed for three, I had some time to kill. I visited the village of Wiseman (population 22) on the way South, then decided to continue past Fairbanks and down to Denali. But that's for the next update.