Cross Country Skiing near Independence Mine
Christmas had come and the our kids had a great time opening presents. They spent the entire day in the PJ's until we went out Christmas night to see a movie. Yes. you should go see Avatar, but I am not writing about that, I am sure there will be plenty of write ups and you do not need my opinion. No, I want to share with you the next day, the day after Christmas.
Our son was engrossed in Mario Kart on the Wii, and my teenage daughter was sleeping in. My wife, Debbie, and I decided to go skiing (figured it would be a little more fun without the kids). Just the two of us, jumped in the car and headed for Hatchers Pass. This area is in the mountains above Wasilla and Palmer, and just 20 minutes from our house. Very close and convenient. We visit there are mainly during the summer months, as this is where my great grand father's gold mining claims are. There is still a small cabin from 1936 on the site.
But today we were going cross country skiing. There are many trails in the area, local clubs keep them groomed. There is the Arch Angel Valley trail, and the Independence mine trails that we would visit today. There is also several sledding areas, including one that you drive and drop off the sledders. They the sled down a run that is close to 3/4 of a mile in length.
There is also a great skiing/snow boarding area that may people frequent. This are is similar to the sledding area. Groups of skiers jump the car and one lucky person chauffeurs them up to the top. This is how I refined my back country skiing skills as a teen.
Today's trip was to the Independence Mine area. The area has several trails that crisscross the mountain. Our plan was to make it up to the Higrade Mine (The family mine), which is about a mile up the valley above the Indepence Mine. We thought we'd check on the cabin and make sure everything was ok. We started out the slow up hill slug from the parking lot to the Independence mine, this was about a mile. We did good, and I only had to stop a couple of times.
Once we arrived at the half way point, halfway to the Higrade, we started the steeper climb. This became a bit of a challenge, as much of this was untouched snow. Luckily it was only about 24 inches deep. We made it another 300 yards and decided to call it quits. Next time we will bring snowshoes for the final push to the cabin. Cross Country skis were not going to get us there.
We headed back down, and yes this was a challenge. Cross country skis do not work well on steep downhill runs. S, after two backward flops, we made it back to the main trail system. (Picture to the right:Trail Closed). We made it back to the groomed trails. From here we made it across the valley. The trail system is really nice, short uphills and gentle down hill runs.
The trails guided us back towards the Hatchers pass Lodge. We had a really great time, and made it back to the parking lot in about 45 minutes. Then it was time to relax, so over to the Hatchers Pass Lodge for a nice Coffee nudge and Raspberry/Blackberry pie Ala mode. This is a must do for anyone living in Alaska. The trails are easy and the views are spectacular.
