About the blog: Alaska is a wonderful and fascinating place. Whether its backcountry hiking, coastline kayaking or dining on a downtown deck, there truly is something for everyone. This blog picks up where the annual Daily News Visitors' Guide leaves off. The guide is published in late April, but that's just when summer fun starts heating up. Throughout the year, we hope to give readers a look at Alaska through local eyes. The blog also serves as a calendar of what's going on, a place to look for some outstanding vacation deals and other cool stuff. We invite your comments and your questions. E-mail me at alaskology@adn.com.
About me: I live in Anchorage, Alaska's largest city, and I'm the special sections editor at the Anchorage Daily News. My wife and I have been Alaska residents since 2000 and never plan to leave.
Pictures from Sunday's ski - 12/1/2008 9:28 am
A winter wonderland - 11/30/2008 10:03 pm
Hatcher Pass skiing - 11/26/2008 5:52 pm
Waiting for some snow - 11/18/2008 3:44 pm
Sunny Saturday - 11/5/2008 5:35 pm
Headed toward winter - 10/27/2008 10:07 am
Tactical error - 10/21/2008 4:59 pm
Lovin' winter - 10/21/2008 2:11 pm
Is it really winter? - 10/15/2008 10:56 am
A week later ... - 10/6/2008 8:09 am
A wonderful fall day - 10/5/2008 5:38 pm
Winter on its way - 10/3/2008 4:25 pm
Ring of Fire riders - 10/2/2008 4:59 pm
Moose, bear and a chill in the air - 9/30/2008 3:31 pm
Autumn arrives - 9/21/2008 6:21 pm
So long summer ... - 9/17/2008 6:23 pm
A weekend on Kachemak Bay - 9/14/2008 10:09 pm
Enjoying summer's end - 9/3/2008 7:16 pm
Celebrate a new Anchorage park - 8/21/2008 4:08 pm
Crolf in Seward - 8/15/2008 4:40 pm
A whale of a time - 8/11/2008 4:49 pm
Wonderful wildflowers - 8/8/2008 10:47 am
DECEMBER 1, 2008 - 9:28 AM
Gina and I skied from the house down the bike path to Forsythe Park on Sunday. Gina pauses for a short break on a snow-covered bridge over frozen Little Campbell Creek.
Gina stops while skiing through Forsythe Park along Birch Road.
NOVEMBER 30, 2008 - 10:03 PM
It was a great winter weekend.
We probably received a foot of snow the last two days. We had so much snow that Gina I decided to forgo a trip to Hillside cross-country trails this afternoon and just skied from the house down the bike trail. It was super.
Street crews will probably have the trail plowed clear in a day or two, so we had to act quickly if we were going to enjoy a no-car ski day. We went down the bike path to Forsythe Park and then made a loop through the snow-covered park.
It was a winter wonderland. And the forecast says it's supposed to be 5 to 10 degrees tomorrow, so I guess it'll stick around for a bit.
NOVEMBER 26, 2008 - 5:52 PM
Gina skis with Beezil toward the sunset on our Friday visit to Hatcher Pass,
My last post was about wanting some snow to go along with the cold weather we were having. It just didn’t feel enough like winter.
Well, last night that snow arrived. We probably got 7 inches in our driveway. That means the cross-country ski trails are taking shape.
Last Friday, before we got our first serious snow of the season, Gina and I headed to Hatcher Pass for some skiing. It was the first time in eight years we'd taken the skis up to the Mat-Su, and it was wonderful. (The trails up there don't have lights for night skiing and we often have obligations that keep us busy during much of winter's daylight hours -- even on weekends.)
NOVEMBER 18, 2008 - 3:44 PM
Flattop Mountain basks in the afternoon light on a clear, cold day in Anchorage.It feels like winter. It kind of looks like winter, with frost on the trees and a little snow in my yard. But we still haven't got enough snow around town to really call it "winter."
Gina’s had her cross-country skis out a couple times, and we plan on hitting the trails again tonight, but we’re still several inches of snow away from having groomers massage it.
According to the Nordic Skiing Association of Anchorage's Web site, we’re off to our slowest start to a skiing season in years. NSAA grooms trails all around town. There isn’t enough snow yet to groom any of the local trails. Last year, the first day of grooming was Nov. 11. In 2006, it was Oct. 30; in 2005, it was Nov. 10; in 2004, it was Nov. 3; and in 2003, it was Nov. 12.
NOVEMBER 5, 2008 - 5:35 PM
Redoubt Volcano rises in the distance across Cook Inlet from the Anchorage Coastal Wildlife Refuge. Ice is layered along the edges of Rabbit Creek.
Gina and I headed down to the Turnagain Arm Trail on Saturday afternoon for the last glimpse of before-“fall-back” fun.
(Since daylight saving time ended, the sunsets have been before 5 p.m. Of course, that’s nothing. Come the end of December, sunset will be around 3:45 in the afternoon.)
So we grabbed a chance to enjoy a late sunset – around 6 p.m.
Saturday afternoon's sunshine shimmers off the mud flats in Turnagain Arm.
OCTOBER 27, 2008 - 10:07 AM
It's 10:05, and the sun just broke over Wolverine Peak. I can tell, because the sun in shining directly in my eyes.
It's 11 degrees this morning at Merrill Field. And it was 4 at my house earlier today.
We're slow getting any snow, but it sure feels like winter.
-- Steve
OCTOBER 21, 2008 - 4:59 PM
Last night about 9 o'clock I was debating whether I should put the studded tires on the bike for today's commute. I decided I could get one more ride in before making the switch.
This morning about 8:15, I realized that was a mistake. Riding on a bike path between Alaska Pacific University and the University of Alaska Anchorage, the bike skidded out from underneath me on a patch of black ice. I hit the pavement. It's all quite interesting how fast it happens.
As I was taking inventory of myself and my bike after the crash, another cyclist headed the other direction hit the pavement too.
OCTOBER 21, 2008 - 2:11 PM
My friend, Viola, sent me this picture last night. It's a photo of a bubble in the ice at Westchester Lagoon near downtown Anchorage. Now, if a heart-shaped bubble isn't proof that winter is lovable, I don't know what is.
OCTOBER 15, 2008 - 10:56 AM
It looks and feels like winter.
Yesterday, Gina was talking about pulling out her old cross-country skis and heading down to the Hillside trails. Time didn't allow for a ski on Tuesday, but I bet she'll hit the trails today -- even if nothing is groomed.
Yesterday, I was on the phone with an official with the Nordic Skiing Association of Anchorage. NSAA is hosting a bunch of big ski events this winter.
I also spent some time talking with the executive director of Fur Rendezvous. We talked about how sometimes the weather isn't cooperative for the mid-winter festival. She said she has determined that Alaskans turn out for Rondy whether it's snowy and cold or not.
OCTOBER 6, 2008 - 8:09 AM
We came home Sunday afternoon to plenty of snow. So much snow, that Gina decided it was time to make a little snowman family -- me, Gina and Beezil.
So yesterday, I wrote about last Sunday's fun hiking adventure.
Today, I'll tell you about yesterday. It's a one-word report: Snow!
We probably received 1-2 inches at our house. And the forecast calls for more this week, 2-4 inches tonight, more Tuesday, more Tuesday night.
I think fall is offically over, and it's time to get the studded tires on both of our cars and our bikes. That was a quick change of seasons.
OCTOBER 5, 2008 - 5:38 PM
Gina and I love autumn. After a hike up Rainbow Peak last Sunday, we stopped for this picture along the trail. The beautiful reds and yellows tell us it won't be long until everything is covered in a blanket of white. But that has its own beauty too.
Gina and I love autumn. Last Sunday, we got to experience one of the best autumn days we've had in Alaska.
We drove down the Seward Highway to Rainbow Creek, and started hiking up the Turnagain Arm Trail toward Rainbow Peak. We started at sea level, and after about 30 minutes, we broke out above tree line. The view into the snow-capped mountains was beautiful; the view across Turnagain Arm was equally stunning.
OCTOBER 3, 2008 - 4:25 PM
Yes, that is a small pile of snowflakes on the back of my cat, Pooh, this afternoon. Gina sent me the picture and reports that the cat was expressing her displeasure at the turn toward winter.
OCTOBER 2, 2008 - 4:59 PM
If you keep your eyes open, you can meet the most interesting people.
Wednesday morning was a perfect example. I was out of the office for a bit and was driving through the parking lot in front of Title Wave Books and the Kaladi Coffee shop on West Northern Lights Boulevard in Anchorage.
In front of the coffee shop were parked a pair of bicycles loaded to the max -– they had front panniers, back panniers and items strapped just about everywhere. Standing near the bikes was a guy who looked like he’d been pedaling a long time.
I had no idea.
The man was Pierre Bouchard, who, along with Janick Lemieux, is bicycling the Ring of Fire -– the area of frequent earthquakes and volcanoes around the Pacific Ocean. Wednesday, they were in Anchorage after biking in from the Interior. They were headed down the road to Homer and then onto a ferry to Dutch Harbor.
SEPTEMBER 30, 2008 - 3:31 PM
The seasons are changing –- and that's good news.
Autumn has always been my favorite season. Sadly, in Alaska, we often get short-changed. A couple weeks of sunny, crisp weather is frequently all the fall we get. I don't know how long it will last this year, but the change from a dreadful summer of wet, cool weather is welcome.
Monday at work, Daily News outdoors writer Craig Medred was entertaining us with a story of his mountain biking trip last weekend. He headed up the Powerline Pass trail toward snow line. By the time he made it there and then back to the trail head, his feet were "blocks of ice."
SEPTEMBER 21, 2008 - 6:21 PM
Fresh snow was covering Flattop when we woke up this morning. This is the view from our front deck. It hasn't been much of a summer, and as we transition into autumn, we can hope it gets a bit better. Sunday was a beautiful day -- fresh snow on the mountains and sunshine lighting up the golden birch leaves.When the clouds lifted Sunday morning, there was no question what season we were in -- autumn.
Fresh snow covered all the mountains surrounding Anchorage, including Flattop Mountain. Flattop is usually the last mountain to get covered with termination dust. Looking at all the snow in the mountains, it's pretty easy to see that fall is here and winter isn't far away.
SEPTEMBER 17, 2008 - 6:23 PM
Friday night I was in Girdwood and saw a woman walking out of Jack Spratt restaurant. I knew right away she was a visitor –- she was wearing a coat, scarf and gloves.
I asked where she was visiting from. After answering she was from Oklahoma, she said, “Is it that obvious I’m a visitor?”
Yes, it was.
She then commented on it being chilly and needing the gloves and scarf to keep warm. Well, it was kind of cool in Girdwood on Friday. In fact, there was fresh snow atop the surrounding mountains.
That termination dust has worked its way to the mountains right next to Anchorage now. As I look out the window at work, the top couple hundred feet of Wolverine Peak are coated in white right now.
SEPTEMBER 14, 2008 - 10:09 PM
Gina and I kayak down the narrow entry to Tutka Lagoon off Tutka Bay south of Homer.
Nine summers in Alaska and I’d never been to Kachemak Bay State Park. It was on the to-do list, and now I can check it off.
Gina and I headed south to Homer last weekend with frequent camping buddies Pat and Laurel. They had visiting family along for the ride. After a night camping on the beach along the Homer Spit, we boarded a water taxi and headed across Kachemak Bay.
Our friends, Pat and Laurel, and their family head out on a kayaking trek on Tutka Bay in Kachemak Bay State Park.
SEPTEMBER 3, 2008 - 7:16 PM
Looking across Cook Inlet at Fire Island the mountains on the west side of the inlet. The sun was shining beautifully on Friday evening.Gina and I spent a couple hours Friday evening at Kincaid Park. It seems like summer never got started, but on Friday you would never have known. It was beautiful.
It just leaves you feeling, "If only ..."
-- Steve
The beach at Kincaid Park was the perfect place to enjoy one of summer's last -- and finest -- days last weekend.
AUGUST 21, 2008 - 4:08 PM
It’s Alaska State Fair time. That means loads of people will make the trek out of Anchorage for a day or more of liquid sunshine (it almost always rains during the fair), fried food, carnival rides and big vegetables.
Good luck to those folks.
For those of us not heading out to Palmer this weekend, maybe a couple hours spent in Midtown Anchorage will be the tonic to a somewhat depressing summer (chilly days, rainy days, more chilly days).
From 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. Saturday, there is a grand opening of the Cuddy Family Midtown Park. The park is near the Loussac Library off Denali Street and 36th Avenue. The grand opening celebration features live bluegrass and Dixieland jazz music, Alaska Theatre of Youth performances, circus arts, a climbing wall, a mechanical sailboat regatta, REI boat tutorial, rollerski races, activities for the kids and food booths. Dogs are also invited, and they’re encouraged to arrive in costume.
AUGUST 15, 2008 - 4:40 PM
Gina, Noah and Katy walk along the Resurrection Bay beach south of Seward on Saturday afternoon. A beach walk here can be tricky -- you have to time it with low tide. The white tree stumps are leftovers from the 1964 earthquake. The beach is lined with the trees; they died when the land mass dropped several feet.
Over the years, we've made pretty regular summer camping trips to the beach in Seward.
This year, we went with Noah and Katy, and, as usual, it was a memorable weekend. What made this year's trip stand out was a game of “crolf” on Saturday evening. (Crolf is a combination of croquet and miniature golf; at least that’s what we decided to name it.) Noah's a bit of a croquet savant. A little devious, too, when it comes to setting up the course.
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