Hike - July 24

Had a great hike yesterday. I was to solo hiker with our guide, so we went off trail in search of remote places and unique scenery. And we found it in abundance. My guide's name was Kevin. He is a biology student at Colorado Springs, and has a unique knowledge of plants, fungus, and spores. In the 3 hours we hiked, I tried to learn as much as a could from him. Again, "beauty is in the eyes of the observer". Had I not had the guides experience to draw on, I would have missed much of the wonder of what we saw. It's been a rainy season in Alaska, and the mushrooms were in abundance. It was like walking through an "Alice in Wonderland" movie. I had never seen mushrooms in such variety and vibrant colors before. Wild!!

In addition, we ran across many trapper set-ups from the prior winter. The sticks making a small teepee in the attached picture are set-ups used by trappers to protect the meat and trap from the falling snow, and to "funnel" the animal to the trap area. The meat is hung on the inside of the teepee, and the trap placed in the doorway. Kevin tells me the trappers check their trap lines with dog sleds.....it's a tough go to make a living here in the winter. It's definitely for hardy folk!

We must of chased off a bear in one area of our hike. Kevin is in one of today's pictures next to a place a bear laid for the night. When we found it, it was still giving off steam from the animals body. Since it was about 45 degrees out, we must of startled the animal with our talk (maybe it's a good thing I talk loud).

We spent 3 hours investigating, searching, and scrambling over the rock ridges above the village of Denali. The weather was about 45 degrees (perfect for what we were doing)......another great day in the Northland.

We left Denali about noon yesterday, and came to Anchorage. We went to "Humpy's" for dinner last night. While the food was just OK (Humpy's has been featured on the Food Channel's "Man vs. Food"), the atmosphere was fun and the drinks great.

Today, we move to Homer and get ready for Halibut and Salmon fishing.

Tim