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24...for the 9th time.

What a day, tiger!  My bday celebration was more of a weeklong vacation excursion.   Tbell, my BFF from Ptown (well, Vancouver, don’t judge) came for a visit to Denali with her SO for 9 days.   Talk about unleashing the Sass, AK-style!     I picked them up in Fairbanks and we went to Chena Hot Springs for a soak.   1st order of business back in C-Camp – the annual Mustache Party.  The ability to grow facial hair is not an option here – pretty sure it’s a government mandatory upon hire.  And as if the male members of the Park don’t already pride themselves on the rugged, outdoorsy, untamed and wildly flowing beards they sport – now, they get the opportunity to groom the craftiest, nasty-est, creepiest mustache they can.  Their face is their playground.

Male 'Stache

Jared Stache

And the women… leave them to their devices and they can come up with some pretty swirly, maybe even downright raunchy, stuff.  From pencil-thins to last year’s dredlocks, and rolled husky hair to….? Use your imagination.

Lady 'Stache

Portland’s Fire on the Mountain would be proud…we BBQ’d some Soon-To-Be-Famous Spicy Thai Chicken Wings, some Flank and Sausies.   Shout out to the one of the tastiest restaurants in the PDX owned by ultimate frisbee players.

22 surprised me with the most beautiful, delectable, visually and orally stimulating cake.  The White Mountain Cake decorated lavishly with natural AK vegetation including pink primrose, edible purple bluebells and white labrador tea flowers.  (see top photo) As if that weren’t enough, the baked cupcakes lovingly rolled with bacon bits and topped off with dark chocolate frosting.  What more could a girl want or need?

Then some C Campers headed over to the Salmon Bake for some ska music by a band called Nervis Rex.  We danced, or should I say bounced, until 4 am.   Not the type or duration of an evening I am equipped for, but super fun!  These Lady ‘Stachers rocked the energy and the hiz-ou all night long.

Thank you Tbell for always, and I do mean ALWAYS for as many years as I can remember now, making my birthday ridiculously fun and special.  I’m so glad you could make it to AK and I love you.

Aftershot other direction

Finally, the TLT.  Triple Lakes Trail.   22’s project for the last couple of years.   I’ve heard so much about it and finally I get to hike out and see it.  It’s only taken me 3 months of being here    He has the majority of Before & After shots on his blog at Stonester.com so I’ll only post a few.  He collaborates and mentors multiple SCA youth crews over the summer.  Crews come in for a few weeks at a time and work on a section of the trail with the guidance of their crew leaders and 22.

Aftershot TLT with Tink's Progress

Today, we sit in the sun, throwing back some sammies by the 3rd lake of TLT.  Looking at 22 as someone I didn’t know but would like to, an old stranger. The envy, the awe and the pride I feel for him in making a difference in the lives of so many people, young and old, who have a deeper appreciation for the outdoors and all things beautiful.

Caught in a moment watching him look out over the Lake, all I can recall is how the copper tones in his beard and on his tanned toned arms glistened in the sun and how illuminated that made me feel.

TLT 3

TLT 2

Ground Cone

Tinker's Trail

In the name of the Dandelion Queen’s Deveg effort, I helped to eradicate invasive species from the Park this week.   Those little yellow pests that drive you mad because no amount of plucking, pulling or chemical dousing will get them the hob out of your yard.   At least they are fully edible, so instead of burning them when you remove, try making a salad.

Dandelion comes from the French dent de lion meaning “lion’s tooth”, referring to the coarsely toothed leaves.
There are two types here. Exotic – the green stem and leaves are a  brighter green and the bracts underneath the flower point down. These must be ripped.   And the Native – the green stem and leaves are a darker green and the bracts under the flower head point up.   These can remain intact.

Without further ado, here is my Ode:

Here to pluck yellow headed invasive species
A Volunteer job with no pay
Which is OK
It comes with the biggest bonus ever received!

Prancing around at Wonder Lake
On the throat of Denali
She swallows
and a feeling of bliss I can not shake

Into the Hubba Hubba I crawl
Crack a book and read for hooooours
10 pm sun still beats on me
naked on the Cat’s Meow I sprawl

Outside, badly wanting in
Ten million bloodsuckers on the mesh
Waiting to feast on me
I squish a prisoner and diabolically grin.

Alpenglow on Denali at Wonder

Out bloodsuckers!

Wonder Lake Campground

Out into the field to do Sheep Obs with the Road Study goddesses.  Dall sheep (Ovis dalli) are the primary driving factor in the creation of Mount McKinley National Park in 1917.

Ewes and lambies

We had two nights in Igloo Creek cabin, which is picturesque and a fun stay.   We went out both days in pursuit of Ewes (female), Lambs and Rams(male).  We hike and get close enough to set up a scope and record their behaviors at 10-minute intervals for an hour depending on the size and separation of the groups.  Historically, park people use aerial and ground surveys to determine sex and age composition.  Age is determined by the growth rings in the horns. Horns curl in 7 to 8 years.  Ewes have their first lambies around age 3. Results from 2008 show that in survey units, about 1,500 sheep were observed, in groups from 7 to 48 in number.
We set the timer and during each interval, we record what they do.   Sounds a bit like “4 lambs laying, 3 Ewes feeding, 2 Ewes traveling and 1 Ewe laying”  and sounds similiar to the 12 Days of Christmas carol when you’re verbalizing it.   We move to follow them if we need to and do it all over.   The 2nd day we did a bit a sketch hiking the next day in a effort to get to the backside of Igloo Mountain where we suspected the lambies were today.   Too dangerous to get back there, we came down and tracked what the Rams were doing instead.   At one point we hiked a couple hundred feet from the car to use the scope and record and when we looked back at the car, a LYNX was walking right in front of it like it was nobody’s business.   Silly, slinky, sneaky pretty kitty.  So long and cool.   Can’t believe we’ve seen two already.

Road study goddesses in search of sheep

Forget-Me-Nots

Igloo Creek cabin

Igloo Creek Cabin

Graceland, put your hunk a burnin' poo here

Wall tent at Friday Creek

Borg and I drove to Kantishna and stayed at Friday Creek.  This is 90 miles in and as far as you can go on the park road.  End of the line.  Took about 7 hours.  Here there are two cabins, a couple of wall tents, an outhouse, one community yurt for cooking, an airstrip and that is about it.   On the way in, there are also private lodges tucked in the hills for those who have too much money and a hankering to see some serious Alaska backcountry, can lodge in comfort and style. They start out at roughly $250/night.  If this is your demographic, I would highly recommend seeing the park this way.   Only because I wish I could

Great view from Stony Overlook

Borg on a road obs stop

Home for the night

Friday Creek Camp, all of it

In one pond on the way, we scoped a variety of exotic ducks, including Northern Pintail, Scaup, Goldeneye, Long Tailed, Green-Winged Teal, Bufflehead, Red Necked Phalarope and Scoter (for you birders out there)

The scenery is a bit different out there, with Wonder Lake in the foreground of a looming Alaska range and a whole different view of The Mountain.   It’s a bit warmer, and certainly swarmier with ’squitos now thru summer.   We busted out make-shift smorgasbord dinner, talked and read a bit, then called it a night.   We awoke and got on the road back.  Caught one moose on the creek and then we were taken with a clear, sunny view of Denali that left us virtually speechless.   How lucky we are!

A prized view of Denali from the W. end

We checked traffic counters and prepared to put out dust buckets at 5 stops on the way back – the purpose of the trip.  Overall, we put out 60 buckets, 6 on each side of the road at each stop.  One bucket at 5 feet from the road, one at 25, one at 50, the remaining three in a U-shape following.   A rain gauge between Buckets 2 and 3.  We fill them with a couple inches of water and will check them in a couple of weeks and analyze the data to determine how much dust from the road traffic affects the surrounding area.

Later this week, I got to take an Aviation Safety course, in the event that I get to fly into the park with whatever group for whatever reason.   Way cool.   Here’s to getting to do THAT, soon.

Weekend was good – went to a friends BBQ and you Oregonian and Midwestern friends will be happy to know that Suzi Stix and Cornhole are both alive and well up here in Denali.