Carlanna Lake Trail

Hi there!

This week I was in Southeast Alaska for work, so I was pretty excited to be able to tackle a few trails in that area of the State.  My first destination was the always-bustling island town of Ketchikan.  Tourists are fewer during this time of year - I think I only saw one cruise ship at port – but regional basketball tournaments were happening this week, so there was a lot of excited people and activity going on around town.  I was lucky to be able to get a decent hotel room.

Who uses shoe polish anymore?

It was overcast and a bit rainy all day, but the rain ceased by the afternoon as if to encourage me to stick to my hiking plans.  I changed out of my ubiquitous Southeast AK footwear (XtraTufs) and into my new hiking shoes; then my friends and two beautiful Golden Retrievers and I walked to the Carlanna Lake trailhead for a 3-mile excursion.

Cheating on Fly and hiking with other canine gals...

Once at the trailhead, I was glad I’d brought microspikes, because the trail began as a pretty steep incline and it was covered in snow.  It looked like a really great sledding hill, actually.

At the top of the slope lies the lake, so there was almost instant gratification from this trail.  Summer is the best time to view this lake - seriously, do a web search for images of Carlanna Lake and you’ll see what I mean; I’m totally going to pay this place a visit when I return in the Fall.  My friend says it’s a lovely lake for floating on an inflatable raft and people also do some fishing or swimming in the lake.

Still beautiful, even in winter.

We followed the trail around the lake and then continued on up the Minerva Mountain trail.  It was so strange to be hiking in the rainforest with all its greenery and have snow at the same time.  Snow blobs would kamikaze down through the tree canopy and ‘shplop’ on the ground, or on my head, with an action that felt as if the trees were doing it on purpose.

Most of the trees were new growth, but there were several giants that told of former forest glory and a history that I can only imagine.  They were beautiful specimens.

After a bit, the trail reached an avalanche chute and we could see recent avalanche activity.  Actually, a hiker was killed about a week ago in the heavy snows in the Ketchikan area.  So, with that in mind, we decided to call it a day and return home safely.  If you find yourself in Ketchikan and want to do a relatively easy, super beautiful hike, Carlanna Lake trail is a safe bet.   For some really lovely scenery, go even further and give Minerva Mountain trail a try.

There's the avalanche chute where we stopped.

Eklutna Lake

Hi there!

Fly, TheMother, and I managed to squeeze in one more hike while it was still full on winter here.  Before our hike, it had snowed for two days straight, so we knew there would be a lot of fresh snow; it was the perfect time to strap on some snowshoes and practice using trekking poles.  People have been telling me how great poles are, so I reluctantly decided I’d try them, even though all previous attempts have resulted in me just packing them, because I don’t like holding onto things as I hike.

There are some seriously beautiful photos of Eklutna Lake out there on the internet and I’ve never visited during the winter, so it was an easy decision as to where our destination should be for the day.  The large, curvaceous, glacier-melt fed lake is located close to the city, it’s actually the city’s water source, and is a popular destination for day-trippers and campers, as well as families with young children and seasoned adventure seekers.  We were going mid-week and in the morning, so it wasn’t a surprise when we found a practically empty, unplowed, parking lot.  There were two other vehicles; one covered with a foot and a half of the newly fallen snow, so TheMother and I guessed they had spent the night at the cabins on the lake.

Our destination was the first cabin, three miles around the edge of the lake.  The snow on the lake was deep: very deep, even with snowshoes.  We saw some open water in places, so we returned to the bank and walked along the trail: the trail’s snow had been packed down by a snowmachine, but we were still walking in the new snow on top of the old tracks.  There were two skiers in front of us, but they turned around before the 1-mile marker, so we broke trail on our own.

After the first mile or so, the ATV trail curved into the snow-laden woods and we lost sight of the lovely lake.  I never knew how much I rely on the scenery for my hike to be enjoyable, but after trudging through the woods for a time, all those trees became rather monotonous.  We enjoyed watching the snow falling off the trees, except for when the snow fell onto our heads and down our backs – that was less enjoyable.

We passed a family hauling sleds full of gear and little kids who were clearly heading back to the trailhead.  They had spent the weekend at the first cabin; as we passed the mother, who was pulling a sled and pushing a fat tire bike, and she exclaimed: “It snowed the entire time!”  Poor folks, it seems like they were having more of an adventure than they’d bargained for.  We crossed a bridge and rounded several bends and then, to our immense joy, the turn off for the cabin appeared. 

It was a cute little cabin, complete with picnic bench and modern outhouse, tucked back into the woods and had great views of the lake.  The building was still warm when we entered, though the family had put out the fire that was in the wood stove.  We shucked off our cold wet outerwear and I retrieved my little stove and pot from my pack and boiled water for our hot cocoa and homemade freeze-dried lunch.  It was nice to be able to sit down, especially somewhere warm and not snowy, but we didn’t linger too long because we still had a return trek to think about.

The "why did you go to the outhouse without me" face.

This snow dog would rather be outside where it is cool.

She knows we are gearing up to leave.

Once we regained the road, choosing to not take the scenic pedestrian trail because it was really snowy, we found the ‘mile 3’ marker and had to take a photo of our triumph.  The return journey was uneventful, though a dog sled had passed on the trail while we were at the cabin, and we had to step off the trail to let a snowmachine pass at one point and three fat tire bikers pass at another.  Snowmachiners were cruising out on the lake too, so the afternoon traffic picked up and we weren’t able to hike along in peaceful silence, like we had during the morning. 

Fly and I will absolutely be returning to Eklutna Lake this summer, because I want to ride my bike all the way to the end of the trail and spend the night there.  Also, there are some other great mountain hikes to be done in the area, including Twin Peaks trail.  Overall, it was a nice, albeit tough in the deep snow, 6-mile hike.  Oh, and the verdict is still out on those trekking poles: I used them with fidelity, but didn’t notice any benefit.

She was as ready to be done as I was; she hopped into the back of the truck without even being asked.

Day 21: Kathmandu - Home

Sam and I woke early and didn’t take very long to pack.  We wandered through the now familiar passageways of Thamel until we found a restaurant we liked: New Orleans, I think it was called.  We ordered, and there was a minor kerfuffle with my meal, because they did not have the apple that was supposed to come with it, so they substituted with banana slices and were super concerned that I wasn’t happy with it when I didn’t eat very much.  I tried, but was so excited for the day that I couldn’t stomach a lot of the food.  My hot chocolate was strange and tasted a bit like mocha.  Suddenly, Sam remembered we had forgotten to pay our hotel bill for the room and our meals, so he dashed out of the courtyard to go back to our hotel and pay.  I sat, people watched, and sipped my warm drink while I waited for him to return.  The manager approached my table, very concerned that Sam had abruptly run away and (1) not paid for his meal, and (2) left me alone.  Once I let him know Sam would return, he was still concerned because I was sitting there by myself, I don’t know why, I felt quite safe where I was in the calm, quiet, lush plant filled courtyard – apparently that kind of thing just isn’t done.  They wanted to remove Sam’s plate, but I wouldn’t let them; I don’t think they fully believed me that he would come back to the table.  Of course he did, after about 15 minutes, and said the hotel manager was forlorn when it was discovered we were gone without paying and elated when Sam returned to take care of the outstanding bill.  Sam then paid for our breakfast meal, to the great relief of the still befuddled restaurant staff.  We then walked to find a taxi, which we found at the corner of Wal Mart (it bears no resemblance to the big store back home, much like my milkshakes).  The driver stopped in the middle of the narrow, but not yet busy street and offered us a ride.  I told him we were going to the airport and would pay 300 rupee.  He said no way and shook his head adamantly, offering a counter of 700 rupee.  I refused to get in the car, even though he was hurriedly motioning for us to do so, and again insisted on 300 rupee.  He said, “No, 500,” but rapidly agreed to 300 when I said we’d just find another taxi and started to walk away.  Sam and I kept our packs crushed in our laps, rather than put them in the hatchback, because it would be all too easy for someone to pop the hatch and grab our bags while we sat at a stop somewhere along the road.  No way was I losing my pack.

Final breakfast in Kathmandu.

Airport drop-off zone.

Here are some videos of the drive to the airport.  Sorry for the shakes and bumps, the taxi didn't have any cushion and we were jarred by every bump, rock, and pothole in the road.  Wish I'd taken more videos of our trip, but these show a bit of how many bikes are on the road and the crazy traffic.  Be on the lookout for the pedestrians and bicyclists trying to cross the road in traffic!

The airport was crazy and I tried to snap photos of the inside, but was swiftly and firmly told “no” by official looking uniformed men who materialized from out of nowhere, so I didn’t press my luck or run the risk of getting detained.  We were early, so we sat outside of the secure area and chatted with the Israeli couple whom we ran into again, and then, after wishing them well, we got in line for security.  There were two lines: one for men and one for women.  My line was by far the shorter of the two, so I was through with my x-rayed pack and pat down search long before it was Sam’s turn; this only meant that I didn’t have to stand so long, because I still had to wait for him.  I sat on the other side while I waited, at first garnering a scowl from the security men, but after I smiled at them, they shrugged and let me stay.  Finally, Sam and I were through security and found ourselves in a large square terminal that was absolutely completely packed full of people of all nationalities, colors, and smells.  Miraculously, we were able to find seats against the wall, giving a friendly nod to some travelers in front of us.  From time to time a man’s voice could be heard over the loud speaker, making announcements of some sort, but all we could understand through the crackling and muffled intercom was his ending phrase, that was always the same: “Namaste.”  After an hour and a half of waiting, we’d gotten there super early, to be prepared for any delay, a bunch of people suddenly, without announcement, got up and moved out of the room en mass.  Sam and I looked at each other in confusion.  The men across from us did some rapid questioning of the people around them and then they told us that our plane had changed terminals.  Thank you, fellow travelers.  So we rushed down to the other terminal, it wasn’t far, only to sit and wait for another half hour.  Our entertainment came in the form of a group of American schoolgirls, on some mission trip presumably: one of them suddenly couldn’t find her passport and a great search ensued.  Book bags, purses, and pockets were searched, the floor scoured, security notified, and the girl mostly just sat there and wailed “My passport is lost” while her friends moved in a flurry around her.  This continued for a decent 15 minutes before an adult, the voice of reason, finally ordered the sniveling teen to search her bookbag again.  She upended her bad and the missing passport plopped, anticlimactically, into her lap.  Then it was time to board our flight, so we again lined up into male and female lines, were halfheartedly pat-searched again, and set free to walk across the tarmac to our waiting airplane.

This is what our boarding gate sign said - though we were flying Korean Air and going to Seoul.

Covert photo taken by Sam, still fearful about the "no photo" policy.

Our first flight was uneventful.  I sat between Sam and a young Nepali girl and I showed her how to access the movies and games programmed into the headrest in front of her.  The cartoon, Sponge Bob, was in English, which she neither spoke nor understood, but she laughed at it anyway.  I had to help her again when she stood up mid-flight and said something to her mother who was seated across the aisle.  They waived a flight attendant over and asked her where the toilet was.  The Korean flight attendant didn’t understand Nepali and there was a minute of confusion as the two foreign languages tried to make themselves understood.  I finally blurted out “toilet” and all three looked at me and nodded their heads.  Problem solved.

We climbed Thorong La to a higher altitude than this plane is flying.  Crazy.

Seoul airport is amazing, which makes up for the long layovers that usually occur there.  Free massages, free showers with shampoo and heated fluffy robes and towels, free massage chairs, and a mini library complete with books, audio books, and a computer with free internet access.  There are stores that line the terminal halls, rivaling any upscale shopping mall, restaurants, and lounges.  Then there are the bathrooms: zen bathrooms complete with their own gardens.  I kid you not.  We had a pretty long layover and we’d planned to exit the airport and do a quick tour of Seoul in the morning, but I overslept, so we indulged in the comforts of the airport and then I dashed outside of the airport to take a look around while Sam watched my backpack, and then I easily checked through security upon reentry. 

Where we spent the night in the airport.

Burger King - first non-Nepali meal in 23 days.

Drinking fountain - get a stainless steel cup from the right and fill with hot or cold water and then put the used cup in a bin below the cup dispenser.

My brief foray into the South Korean sunshine.

Bathroom - see in the back?

Zen garden

I could get used to bathrooms like this - wonder if it would catch on back home...

Why not have a putting green on top of the boarding gate?

From South Korea to Seattle, we were twice fed full meals and passengers were plied with wine, which I guess made them happier and content to fly for 14 hours in peace.  I enjoyed my soft airline provided blanket, pillow, and slippers and felt moderately well rested when we finally reached Seattle and we considered ourselves, essentially, home.

The sunset and sunrise of the same day, because we are traveling backward in time across the international date line.

Seattle!  One more flight and we're home.

Namaste!