Adventures

Hiking South Fork and Walking Talkeetna

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Breakfast on the Mountain

We had everyone over to the house for breakfast last Saturday. We were going hiking on the South Fork trail that day and needed some fuel! Among the spread was bacon, eggs, fruit, biscuits and donuts! I managed to snap a few pictures before we started eating. Hiking was one of the main things I wanted to do so I was really excited!

Hiking South Fork

The South Fork Trail was just down the road from where we were staying in Eagle River. I couldn’t believe how many cars were parked at the trail head when we got there. It turns out everyone was trying to get their hiking in before Winter hits. The leaves are already starting to change there so I think they’re running out of time! The South Fork trail is BEAUTIFUL. From the very first steps you take, the views are already incredible. It’s carved zigzag up the side of a pretty steep mountain. As we climbed higher and higher, the sights only got greater. Off in the distance we were able to see snow covered mountains. There was a mesmerizing river that carved a path down in the valley and beautiful lakes splotched all over the landscape. As we made our way up, down and around we got to a bridge about 2 and a half miles in. It was right over the river we had seen from above. The water was a clear, icy blue and it was COLD. On the other side of the bridge were meadows full of blueberries!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Blueberry Picking

I had never been blueberry picking before so I wasn’t sure what to look for but once I found one, they all just jumped out at me! They were everywhere! As we were wandering around the meadow, my aunt’s friend, Lynn, pointed out some moose prints! I got a couple pictures but they didn’t really come out. Since it was in the mud, it looked more like poop than a moose print. LOL. After a while of hanging out in the meadow, we made our way back. In total we got a 5 mile hike in. I could have kept going, it was so beautiful! I think if we had kept going we would have eventually come up on a lake. Maybe next time! The hike back is always easier. Once we got home we relaxed a little while, got cleaned up and then went to dinner at the Eagle River Ale House.

 

 

 

 

Drive to Talkeetna

The next morning we drove to Talkeetna, where on a clear day you can see all of Denali. Talkeetna is an adorable little town next to a huge river. We walked around a bit, met a local man who was eating ice cream in the freezing Alaskan air, and eventually stopped for lunch at Denali Brewing. After they seated us my mom looked up to see an old bullet hole right in our window. YIKES. I can easily forget that though because their food was delicious and boy did they make a good Mule! They made their own vodka and bourbon at Denali brewing, also. It was great!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Spying Denali

After lunch, we walked down to the river. This is where you can see Denali from. Unfortunately it was a bit overcast and I couldnt get a picture of the tippy top! I wish I’d been able too. Even though we couldn’t see the peaks, it was obvious that those mountains were massive. On the ride back from Talkeetna, my mom turned around and looked out the back window of the Suburban with the binoculars. “Oh my God, Erin! Look!” as she threw the binoculars at me. I managed to focus just in time to see the peak of Denali! The clouds had cleared. Figures… AFTER we leave… It was bigger than I even had pictured in my mind.

 

 

 

 

Alyeska Resort

On our last day in Alaska, we drove out to the Alyeska Resort in Girdwood. You can take a tram up to the top of the mountain to see one heck of a view. You also have the option to hike up to the top. I would love to do that one day, we just didn’t have time. As we rode the tram up, my eyes followed the steep hiking trail that was winding back and forth all the way up the mountain. We were so high up that the hikers looked like little ants. We had lunch at the Bore Tide cafe. It was named that because you can watch the bore tide come into the bay. Again, they made AWESOME Moscow Mules!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Alaska Wildlife Conservation

Throughout our entire time in Alaska, we didn’t see ONE animal in the wild. We claimed defeat and headed for the wildlife conservation. I’m honestly so glad we went here because it was incredible. I’d say it was in my top 3! We saw brown bears, black bears, buffalo, moose, the most beautiful wolves and even reindeer! I loved it.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Since Then…

Alaska is a beautiful state that everyone should see atleast once in their life. I’m so lucky to have been able to see it. Thanks SO MUCH aunt Wendy for being an awesome tour guide! We left Anchorage at 2am and got into Seattle around 7:30am. We had 20 minutes to get to our gate. Luckily this time, our departing gate was right next to our landing gate. We didn’t get off the plane in Tampa until 4pm. It was a LONG day. We instantly went into hurricane prep mode. It was such a helpless feeling being all the way up in Alaska, watching this monster of a storm head straight towards our home. Over the past few days, we’ve been working on getting things together. As I sit here now (Sunday afternoon 9/10) we’re waiting for the brunt of it over at Mike’s parents house. It’s supposed to come around midnight tonight. I’ll write another post soon!

Until next time…

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I'm an NASM Certified Personal Trainer and Corrective Exercise Specialist. I worked in a gym setting back in Florida for over 2 years, training one-on-one clients and leading group fitness classes. I absolutely loved it, but once we moved across the country to Colorado, I decided to take the opportunity to pursue a slightly different career! My obsession with exercise and love for writing collided, which is how I became a fitness lifestyle writer.

2 Comments

  1. Dad

    September 10, 2017 at 6:25 pm

    Great post Erin! We ha the time of our lives in Alaska…it was Amazing.
    Some day we’ll go back again except this time with Mike!

    • Chinups_and_Cupcakes

      September 17, 2017 at 7:28 am

      It was incredible, wasn’t it?! Mike would LOVE it there.

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