Hiking Up in a Cloud, Down in the Dark

We started at 4:54. That's over an hour before I started last time, so I thought we were way good to make it back before sunset. But I learned that apparently I hike faster on my own than with a group (although hiking with a group is WAY more fun - and MUCH less dangerous/scary when hiking through bear country after dark).

L to R, Morgan, Ali, Ryan, Kaitlyn, Kelsie, Reece, Tanner, Brian

We all worked a solid day at the store and then we converged on our apartment by the Deer Mountain trailhead. I made pasta and potatoes to give us some energy before hiking up (Yum!) and then we ventured up as a team. Harvey wanted to run the trail, so he took off immediately. The rest of us hiked at a normal human pace (Harvey is part super-human, part mountain goat). Eventually we caught him (because he came back down and then waited for us to get to the second viewpoint).

Brian and Harvey

It was mostly cloudy for the entire hike, which was kinda fun while we were hiking through the clouds. It was like walking through the set of a horror movie.

We stopped at the usual spots: both viewpoints, the pond...

Deer Mountain Hike - Lucky to Be Alive

Sometimes I'm smart. Tonight was not one of those times. Sorry Isa.

The internet said the hike is 4-5 hours roundtrip. Which usually means I can do it in 3. Either way, you probably should start earlier than 6:20pm unless you're hiking on the Solstice. Not today, when the sun set at 8:45 and it's pitch black by 10pm.

Also, you should bring a flashlight. And maybe a hiking buddy, seeing as this trail begins and ends in the dump, which is where all the cool bears go to hang out and wreak havoc. And maybe a ride home, so you don't have to walk 3 miles to your apartment after you finish your hike.

At least I brought snacks and water. And I was wearing sneakers! Woohoo!

Anyway, the trail is relatively easy on a day like today - no rain so not slippery. Most of it was pretty gradual inclines with a few flat stretches. It was a lot more leisurely than the mountains in Juneau. About 30 minutes up I hit the first viewpoint.

Looking south toward Metlakatla and Gravina Island

Another 30 minutes puts you up to the second viewpoint, which is the first time you get to see Ketchikan.

Mt Roberts, Gastineau, and Gold Ridge Trail Guide

Two down, three to go. (Of the five peaks in Juneau)

Tanner and I (and Panda, who had to bail early to go to work) hiked Mt. Roberts today. It was much longer and more difficult than we had anticipated. But much more worth it than I thought it'd be.

Douglas Island (left) and Downtown Juneau with Mt Roberts Tram station (center) and Father Brown's Cross (far right)

We started hiking around 9:30am. Well, I left my apartment around 9am (at sea level) and hiked up to the interns' apartment on 7th (already at 200ft although it feels like way more than just 200ft). We took the 6th Street entrance because it takes so much longer to go around to Basin Road.

No longer maintained, but not technically off limits.

There are a few landslides and downed trees that you have to traverse and the trail itself is a little overgrown, but for the most part it's an easy-to-follow trail. It takes about 45 minutes at a good pace to get up to the Mt Roberts Tram Station (1800ft). There you can refill water bottles, buy some snacks if you'd like, watch a movie about the history of the native people here, and say hello to Baltimore, a chill bald eagle rescue. This is also your halfway point to the top of Gastineau Peak, so it's a nice time for a break. 

There's also a nature center with trail maps and a helpful guide who told us there's too much snow up top so don't attempt Gastineau or Mt Roberts. We didn't believe her, but it's nice to get a guides perspective anyways. I think she could sense our blasé attitude so she asked us to please check in on our return to make sure we came back safely and didn't fall off a cliff.

Above the tram we started to see some wildlife, with this Rock Ptarmigan.

Why can't you hear a Ptarmigan go to the bathroom? Because the P is silent. Bwahhahahaa.

We also saw a bear cub scampering off. I didn't get a picture, but you can see him in the video at the bottom.

Sitka Boating (Favorite Memory)

August 2009 was a good month for us. Isa and I were falling ever deeper in love. We took a few days off from work in Juneau to go play in Sitka with Mike (Isa's dad). We went boating and hiking.

And I asked Mike for his blessing to marry his only daughter.

Isa doesn't like boating because she gets seasick. But she was a good sport and came out anyway. And Mike and I bonded and fished and caught salmon faster than they do on tv shows. And I caught the biggest salmon Mike had ever seen. And I lost it. And it broke my heart. :(

We took the boat out to Sea Lion Cove, to an uninhabited island - scratch that - uninhabited by people island.

recent bear tracks

We hung out on the beach for a while and I raced Dawson to the far side of the beach.

Isa, Dawson, and Mike 

Then we hiked around for a while, me looking for bears and Isa, the trained tracker, looking for "bear scat." Yum. We hiked along the beach and forded a river to confuse the bears following our scent. (Why else does one ford a river?) (Did I use that word right? "Forded" sounds weird.)

Our quest to track the bears proved fruitless, but our photo shoot afterwards was a huge success.

Trying to pull off an "American Gothic" fisherman parody.

All in all it was a fun trip and one of our favorite memories from the before part of our relationship.