| Northern Lights Log (2007-07-13 -> 2007-08-02)
Leaders: Molly Damm, Jack Matthews
Students: Justin Baker, Tara Heagen, Wesley Kenney, Sheldon Mills, John Plyler, Sheldon Taylor, Devin Tellatin, Jadon Thompson, Adele Walter
July 13
All have arrived safe and sound, though a bit travel weary. Trying to get a little shut eye before heading into the Talkeetnas. We will update you around Thursday, July 26 after we finish our backpacking and rafting trip. Stay tuned!
Good day to all. Jack and Molly here. It is a bright sunny day up here in Alaska and our stellar group of fine folks finally made our way out of the wild backcountry yesterday. As we make our way down to the Prince William Sound for our kayak expedition, we thought it would be right to do a little bragging. Let me start my ramble by letting everyone know how impressive these recently initiated Alaskan mountain characters really are. Right from the start, it was great to see everyone come together so quickly and work so hard for the betterment of the expedition. These guys flew into Anchorage with two things on their mind, to be happy and get rad. And that my friends is exactly what has taken place in these first two weeks in the big state up north... !
After a successful prep day and a well deserved nights rest, we hopped a ride up to the trailhead to begin what would be a burly eleven day backcountry section. The first nine days included an amazing backpack that traversed every which-a-way through valleys, across rivers, and up mountains in the wild alpine tundra of the Talkeetna Mountains. Everyone strapped on our packs and hit the trail moving quick. Our first leaders of the day, Wesley (who immediately took on the nickname "Big Love") and Devin took control and navigated us up and above the tree line and into to our beautiful campsite with not a problem. Never have I seen a group of eleven cover as much ground on the first day in such a short amount of time. People were cruisin'...Lovin' Life. Tents were set up with ease and a hearty meal of chicken and veggie stir-fry was prepared. After a brief backcountry class, we had a brilliant moon-up on our first night in the bush. Adele, Sheldon M., and the rest of the gang were itchin' for the warm comfy sleeping bags, and so we turned in for the night with the sun still high in the sky. (Alaska=sun always high in the sky) Every member of our Alaskan party slept with smiles for sure. We woke on day two to another day of blue skies and happy people. After Justin, John, and the rest of cook crew prepared cheesy hash browns that filled the bellies, it was off for another haul on the trail. It had been raining for quite some time in Alaska before we arrived, so the trail was a mud bath. So much fun. We weaved through the swampy terrain and down a glorious valley. Adele and Jadon made friends with the mud a few times, but good times all around. Its always more fun in the dirt. The group trucked it down to Caribou Creek and set up camp next to fresh Alaskan waters. The view from our tents was mind-blowing. This was it...leave me out here for life. We did some swimming, made some grub, and went to bed with perma-smiles again. Day three was a test. The first couple days were excellent and all, but day three we were going to push it a bit. We had a lot of distance to cover and a couple rivers to cross. I have nothing more to say but these guys are studs, champs, rock stars, etc. Day three was completed with such powerful determination and style hard to put into words. IT’S ALL ABOUT GETTING RAD IN ALASKA!!! !
After three days of cruising, a day for rest and relaxation was rewarded. We made good food, went for dips in the river, did a bit of bronzing in the sun. (We were working on our base tans) Anyway, the picture was perfect. Day five we cruised up valley and made our way completely off trail. This would be the real test. What do you know, Sheldon T. was out front as usual and the group was hangin' tough. I looked back once and saw Tara working hard and smiling from ear to ear. We ate lunch high atop a plateau, laughed, and headed through the tundra further, following Glass Creek up to its headwaters. The views were beyond epic....and it was still sunny. Where are we? I thought it rained in Alaska. Not on our parade. We made camp and ate calzones. Life was good. That night we experienced our first taste of rain. We were actually craving it at this point. Our next day, we took another day off from moving camp and decided to bag the summit of a nearby peak. We made to the top in style, and in a light drizzle. BURLY. We love it. Satisfied our souls with Snickers bars to reward our success. !
The next two days involved hiking up and over a high mountain pass and down into the Chickaloon river valley. Its technical work, but this group cruised as usual. We ate the remainder of our food and headed down towards the Chickaloon where we were to begin our rafting section. The final day we ended up in a land of fog. It was crazy, and totally amazing. More smiles. !
Our next two days consisted of rafting out of the backcountry on the mighty Chickaloon river. It was definitely an amazing opportunity. Not many people get the chance to raft this section of river every year. Kids were stoked. Our rafts and guides flew in on a drizzly morning and everyone was eager to brave the class 3/4 rapids. We covered our bodies in warm layers and dry suits, and hopped in for the ride of a lifetime. The river was powerful and facilitated an awesome time. We traveled a quick twelve miles and set up camp for the night along the shore. Beautiful. Tara and Devin helped prepare enchiladas and we feasted and laughed for hours. After filling our stomachs to maximum capacity, we fell into a deep slumber with the sounds of whitewater in our ears. The next day we hopped back in our boats and finished out the gnarly section. Sheldon T. fell out of the boat once, but Justin was quick to the rescue. More smiles all around. As we made our way to the take out, I couldn't help but overhear voices of excitement and laughter. It was good to see everyone finish our backcountry section in such great style. Haha. We love Alaska. !
Off to go sea kayaking...We miss you all. More to come soon.!
Jack and Molly !
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