Alaska Part 2

One of the amazing aspects of the city of Anchorage is the fact that there are 75 city parks. In those parks there are 20 lakes stocked with trout and there are also 2 beautiful creeks running through town. The boys are obviously a little young to take advantage of the fishing opportunities but many of those parks contain great playgrounds for young kids. Almost every day we were in Anchorage we sought out a new place to explore and let the boys play.

Christin's brother's family had been to Alaska a few months before us and were able to scout out all the good places to take young kids. One of the places was this large gift shop and chocolate factory that had some interesting attractions. On the grounds of the shop was a pen containing 4 or 5 reindeer (domesticated caribou). The boys loved picking leaves off the trees and feeding them to the gentle deer. Things got hairy in a hurry however when the boys wanted to get down. The reindeer seemed gentle enough so we weren't threatened. Apparently the reindeer wanted some more leaves from the boys and decided to try gently pawing them to make their requests known. As you would expect, this sent the boys into hysterics and I still refer to it as “the time when the boys were mauled by rabid caribou.”

One of the highlights of the trip for Christin and I was an overnight trip we got to take by ourselves. It was the first time we had left the boys together for an overnight trip. Marv and Beth were kind enough to set it up for us and were eager to watch the boys. Marv has a friend from church who owns a condo in the town of Girdwood which is at the base of Mount Alyeska. Click here for map

Alyeska is the ski resort that serves the Anchorage area. Amazingly it receives 750 inches of snow per year and this last December it snowed 274 inches, in one month! This is all at an elevation of 2750 feet and only 3 miles from the Cook Inlet. When we rode the tram to the top of the mountain, we could easily see the water. People were also still skiing – on Memorial Day.

Aside from all that, the condo we got to stay in was really a great get away. We did lots of walking, we took the tram to the top of the mountain, we hiked a trail that was the prettiest trail I've ever seen. We just took our time everywhere for the first time in a couple years. By the way, if you are ever in Girdwood, Alaska and have the hankering to rent a movie, I have an account at the Girdwood Mercantile. I got a raised eyebrow to say the least when I handed her my Texas driver's license to open a rental account!

Well this post is shorter than Part 1. There is much more to tell. We went on a cruise in Prince William Sound while on our overnight to Girdwood. I also haven't yet described the unreal beauty of the drive south out of Anchorage. This trip might end up being a 10 part series. See you next time!