tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-50142680203832637072024-02-20T05:57:22.899-09:00Life at Latitude 64.8Juliehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03422846261966219793noreply@blogger.comBlogger421125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5014268020383263707.post-60637960118508229822012-06-06T17:59:00.000-08:002012-06-06T18:04:12.980-08:00Valdez Summit to Sea adventure race!A couple of months ago while visiting some friends in Anchorage, they mentioned the Summit to Sound race in Valdez over Memorial Day weekend. I was able to get the weekend off of work (rare, but doable in advance), and some interested friends to do the race as well. Initially, I had them convinced to do the race as a team, but Patrik somehow convinced Kim and I that it was worth the extra $50 to Juliehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03422846261966219793noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5014268020383263707.post-48903640711441649452012-04-05T22:03:00.002-08:002012-04-12T19:25:46.361-08:00Maria and Bill visit Alaska!My sister, Maria, and brother-in-law, Bill, came to visit me for a week! Neither of them had been here before, so I had a great time showing them Alaska in March (one of my favorite months!). They came this time of year so they might be able to get a glimpse of the aurora, but go figure, the 5 nights they were here, the aurora did not show its face! The night before they got here it was Juliehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03422846261966219793noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5014268020383263707.post-61795895601512409182012-03-16T14:46:00.003-08:002012-03-16T14:58:26.201-08:00Aurora seasonHere is an aurora shot from 1am last night. I was using Brian's Canon Rebel XTi for the first time ever, and did not focus the camera correctly, or know how to change the aperture, so this photo is sub-par for what the camera can handle! All of the rest of them came out pretty blurry..especially the nice and bright ones! Someday, I promise good aurora photos. :-)My sister and brother in law showJuliehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03422846261966219793noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5014268020383263707.post-60851721175844877022012-03-05T20:42:00.004-09:002012-03-05T20:47:16.658-09:00Blogging Again?Thinking about starting this blog back up - I wonder if anyone would still read it? I just got new ram for my computer and it's working again!!Juliehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03422846261966219793noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5014268020383263707.post-37486056713984965392011-03-29T15:53:00.020-08:002011-05-21T19:27:23.829-08:00Take that, White Mountains 100!Though my name still appears on the bottom third of the results list, I am super pleased with my White Mountains 100 race this year. It helps that I was asked a few weeks ago post-Susitna-100-slump whether I was doing these races because I am trying to beat someone, or beat my own performance. The answer is definitely the latter, hence the excitement. photo of 'Big Blue' sitting at Cache Mtn. Juliehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03422846261966219793noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5014268020383263707.post-89592903196941987032011-03-12T21:18:00.000-09:002011-06-21T21:18:59.522-08:00Ooooooklahoma, where the wind comes sweeping down the plain (and creates huge wildfires!)I was sent down to Oklahoma for work training, as all new full-time employees are with my company. I was completely pumped to go back to Norman and see all of my friends from last summer and make some new ones! Who knew one could be excited to travel from mountain-y Alaska to flat Oklahoma?!?! It can happen!My training class was a BLAST! We had a ton of fun together. Though you can't make outJuliehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03422846261966219793noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5014268020383263707.post-27519797834044458062011-02-22T11:43:00.005-09:002011-03-29T13:42:43.953-08:00A biker's year for the Susitna 100"Bikes and snow?!! The two best things in the world together?!! Yeah dawg... sign me up!"Though those weren't my initial words, they explain my feelings when I first landed across the website for the Susitna 100 by accident in 2006... long before I ever knew I would get sucked back up to live here.. or ever enter the world of endurance winter biking.The Susitna 100, is a run/bike/ski race just Juliehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03422846261966219793noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5014268020383263707.post-39882745932900888102011-02-10T16:39:00.004-09:002011-03-29T13:00:58.718-08:00Fatbikes...fatbikes...fatbikes!I am really trying hard to not be consumed by winter biking, and I think my efforts are succeeding, except that I was told on Monday that I was talking in my sleep, and the words went something like this:"I… I thought… You.. webpage… I thought… fatbike… You were on a fatbike website.."So, maybe not. But I was laughing hysterically when I was told that after a weekend at Luce's Lodge on the Juliehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03422846261966219793noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5014268020383263707.post-46757856188986581862010-12-18T21:42:00.000-09:002010-12-18T21:42:31.974-09:00Meet Big Blue!Hi everyone!!Sorry to have disappeared! I no longer have internet at home, so I'm not actively blogging anymore...but wanted to pop in. I'd like to introduce you to the newest member of my two-wheeled family, built at Speedway Cycles in Anchorage, BIG BLUE!!!Big blue was picked up with much excitement after getting stranded in Palmer during a historical freezing rain event in much of the Juliehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03422846261966219793noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5014268020383263707.post-64510194534489148562010-10-13T14:05:00.001-08:002010-10-20T14:20:22.919-08:00Fall to WinterFall Colors...To skiers itchin' for go-time.Juliehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03422846261966219793noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5014268020383263707.post-42094246516784495452010-09-18T18:59:00.003-08:002010-10-11T17:23:43.407-08:00Abnormally Clear Days in Southeast AlaskaAfter getting off of the Chilkoot Trail and back into Skagway (above), we met up with my old roomate, Carrie, and her fiancee Paul. They flew up from Juneau to meet up with us for the day and to see Skagway! :-) It was nice being able to catch up as our communications had been sporadic in the last year. We camped back out in Dyea that night, explored the historical Dyea townsite, and then theyJuliehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03422846261966219793noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5014268020383263707.post-32357576784164648242010-09-17T18:01:00.003-08:002010-12-15T08:14:51.176-09:00Back in History on the Chilkoot TrailMy buffer time before starting my full-time, big-person job is coming to an end. As one last big hurrah, I made one more long road trip with Celine to Skagway, Alaska, to hike the historical Chilkoot Trail. Honestly, the Chilkoot Trail wasn’t on my list of “places to go in Alaska”, mainly because I didn’t know much about it. But prompted by a decision to bike to Valdez, or hike the Chilkoot Juliehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03422846261966219793noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5014268020383263707.post-26219309501442020032010-09-09T19:17:00.009-08:002010-09-29T21:23:17.817-08:00Lost Lake Trail and Johnson Pass Trail, Seward AKFor the long Labor Day weekend, Brian and I headed down to the Kenai Peninsula. I haven't been in this area for 4 years since it is a bit of a haul. We kind of bypassed Anchorage this time, mainly because once I start socializing and shopping in Anchorage, it is hard to get out of Anchorage and will come out with a lighter wallet. AND headed to Seward! Seward is the one major town in Juliehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03422846261966219793noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5014268020383263707.post-40875993215494206362010-08-22T09:04:00.001-08:002010-09-09T19:15:26.354-08:00McCarthy, Kennicott, and the Root Glacier TrailThe Kuskulana River sits beneath a deep gulch on the McCarthy Road.Part 2 of our weekend excursion took us to McCarthy and Kennicott located in southeast Alaska in Wrangell-Saint Elias National Park. This was a brand new place and even a new road for me. We parked the car in McCarthy, packed up the bike and bike trailer (thanks to Helena for the borrow!) and we were off to the town of KennicottJuliehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03422846261966219793noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5014268020383263707.post-20316564439494904722010-08-21T08:49:00.000-08:002010-09-09T19:14:20.150-08:00Biking the Klutina Lake RoadPart 1 of a two part weekend took me 101.5 miles north of Valdez.The "Klutina Lake Road", also known as the "Berwick-Craig Road" is an easement in Ahtna lands just north of the Klutina River, a fun salmon spot you may remember from last year if you were following. The river is an absolute gorgeous turquoise green against the surrounding landscape.Though this trip wasn't amazingly scenic, nor didJuliehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03422846261966219793noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5014268020383263707.post-961423455981167372010-08-16T08:42:00.008-08:002010-08-26T13:53:51.954-08:00Mt. Prindle!Spent a picture-perfect weekend in Interior Alaska hiking up in the White Mountains at Mt. Prindle! It was my first time up here, and a trip that has been on my list of "things to do" (which is excessively long and growing with time) for a few years after I was told "you'd love it up there!" You were right, I DID love it up there!There are a few small stream crossing at the beginning of theJuliehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03422846261966219793noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5014268020383263707.post-5213697061456860172010-08-11T23:22:00.002-08:002010-09-29T21:54:31.739-08:00Staying in AKI am staying put in Fairbanks for the foreseeable future!I was forced to make a yes or no decision whether to go full-time at my job about 4 weeks earlier than I was hoping to. Many factors made the decision difficult, and my wanderlust almost made me say no wanting to move elsewhere for a bit. I was so torn because I felt that either way I could potentially have regrets. But luckily this is a Juliehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03422846261966219793noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5014268020383263707.post-66686524508557760832010-08-09T00:08:00.005-08:002010-08-24T14:46:36.261-08:00Fort Yukon, AKA trip for work took me back to one of my first villages in Alaska - Fort Yukon.Fort Yukon lies on the Arctic Circle in the Yukon Flats. It recorded the highest ever temperature in Alaska of 100 degrees F on June 27, 1915.On the way, we got an awesome view of Denali from the airI was in charge of putting in the new weather station from scratch.. including digging a ditch for wiring.Remote Juliehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03422846261966219793noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5014268020383263707.post-11418867178149020362010-08-04T23:40:00.005-08:002010-08-05T22:43:32.046-08:00Quartz Creek Trail Rocks!You can take that as "Quartz Creek Trail, ROCKS!" or "Quartz Creek Trail Rocks!", because either way works.But this trail, in all honesty, is not for the faint of heart.This ATV/backpacking/biking trail is not your afternoon leisurely stroll through the woods on a bike. Though it's a short 14+ mile distance, it's a taxing ride through the heart of the White Mountains, and tricky on the way out Juliehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03422846261966219793noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5014268020383263707.post-67950916214954747242010-07-24T23:55:00.001-08:002010-07-25T19:46:32.662-08:00Post thesis defense shenanigansWell I did it - I've added another two letters to the end of my name! (those academic M.S. ones!) The time since I arrived back in AK and hit the ground sprinting in a 4 week race all blends together in my memory, and now here I am, trying to figure out what is next. I finally got over my post-Vortex2 depression a couple weeks ago, so have been able to kick back and enjoy Fairbanks again. The Juliehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03422846261966219793noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5014268020383263707.post-83363810128925779172010-07-08T23:23:00.004-08:002010-07-11T15:53:47.696-08:00Ester Dome Singletrack"It's only about a foot high" - famous last words. I would like to say that I think that jump was higher than a foot! Amazingly, had just enough speed to clear without flipping. Not exactly what I'd call good form by any means, but cleared, nonetheless. This is one of a few jumps on the brand new Ester Dome Singletrack. I'm pumped that Fairbanks finally has a trail with some obstacles other Juliehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03422846261966219793noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5014268020383263707.post-78530653758480362162010-07-04T00:25:00.005-08:002010-08-24T14:32:34.305-08:00The 4th of July in Eagle, AKSpent the 4th of July in a very patriotic small town on the mighty Yukon River. Not a full week later, the Taylor Highway would be completely shut down for most of the remainder of summer due to continual heavy rains, and Eagle would be no longer accessible by vehicle until DOT got the road back into stable shape.Eagle saw their bout of flooding last spring, which wiped out most of the shorelineJuliehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03422846261966219793noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5014268020383263707.post-73208679095039661222010-06-28T14:09:00.006-08:002010-10-01T21:48:46.332-08:00The 4400 mile haulThis last leg of the trip put me over 25,000 miles in a little over two months - approximately the circumference of the earth! I was lucky to spend the last 2800 with one of my best friends.We found a lot of beautiful lakesSlept by the Kootenay RiverWatched some mountain goats along the Icefields ParkwayStopped by Lake LouiseMade a run to the Athabascan Glacier in a rainstormEnjoyed the clear Juliehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03422846261966219793noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5014268020383263707.post-42341629854789959432010-06-20T10:24:00.009-08:002010-06-20T11:06:27.987-08:00Biking at 9,000 feetAfter hauling my bike about 5300 miles, I finally got the chance to use it. ;)I knew this was a potentially dangerous situation, as I got a bit altitude sick in April when I was hiking in Boulder. But, people have been taunting me with stories of Colorado trails for about 7 years now and there was no way I wasn't going to go check them out.Felix took me out to Golden Gate Canyon State Park in Juliehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03422846261966219793noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5014268020383263707.post-76541572363291898042010-06-18T08:42:00.005-08:002010-06-18T09:30:43.115-08:00The End of V2VORTEX2 ended on June 15, the day before the big tornado outbreak in SD (go figure)!Now 60 days on the road, I am slowly making my way north to Alaska. I am completely exhausted, but still very happy to be out here on the open road. Yesterday I had a cop at a gas station say "Those are Oregon plates?", "Nope, Alaska.", "Wow you are a long ways from home!" Yeah I guess so. Funny thing is, thisJuliehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03422846261966219793noreply@blogger.com0