Hatcher Pass and Cabin Building in Chickaloon

Hatcher Pass is in the Talkeetna Mountains about an hour and a half north of Anchorage. It's further into the mountains from the Gold-Mint Trail that we hiked back in early September (see earlier post). About 12-15 of us headed out there Saturday morning to get in some backcountry skiing, skate skiing and snowboarding (I was the sole boarder - it felt like 15 years ago).

The snow was gorgeous and fresh. The weather was fantastic: blue and clear. We rented a cabin, stashed our gear, and headed for the mountains. One group strapped on their skate and classic cross country skis and headed up to the abandoned mine. I went with the other group that made its way up the road into the pass for downhill action. Everyone else (Ron, Callie, Ryan, Liz and Lea) was on backcountry skis and skinned their way up. I, however, had my board strapped to my back and (no so) simply walked up. It wasn't too bad, but I did post hole semi-regularly. Skinning seemed to be a lot faster. (n.b. Skinning is when you cover the bottom of your skis with a sticky fabric so that you can walk uphill without sliding. Also, the heel on backcountry bindings can lift while going uphill and then you strap your heel down when you want to go downhill.)

Once we got up into the pass, Callie, Lea and I made an early turn around. I didn't fancy post holing up the steeper ridge. The ride down was awesome with fresh pow on both sides of the road. At the bottom Lea decided to try to catch up with the skaters and Callie and I hiked back up for another run. After that I was completely worn out.

The cabin was great. We piled 10 of us and 2 dogs (2 more in cars) in. We also had enough food and beer for a small army. After some good cheer, we headed to the sauna. It wasn't quite hot when we got there, but we went in anyway. Once it heated up we made trips to jump in the stream or snow outside.

After our time in the sauna (poor us) we headed back for a huge potluck feast. Everyone brought their A-game (standouts: Lea's Curry, MK's lentils, Jeff's Chili, Liz's Bread, My Aunt Charlene's Cookies!, and Ron's fish).

Just as food coma was setting in, MK worked her magic and got everyone outside for some sledding. I can't believe that no one complained about the noise we made, but we were allowed to hoot and holler and make a whole ton of noise running around. Mostly it evolved =) into a snow fight.

PICTURES:
http://picasaweb.google.com/jack.r.mckenna/HatcherSPassSkiingAndCabin

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Chickaloon
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The next day Callie and I headed to Chickaloon, a town about an hour north of Anchorage on the Glenn Highway. Ryan, a friend of ours, is building a cabin out there and we headed over to lend a hand.

The cabin will quite nice when done. Ryan and his friend John were in the process of putting the main roof beam on when we got there. Ryan was using climbing gear to hoist the log. Apparently a grigri works fine.

Liz joined us and we made progress putting up the rafters. During a break Ryan and I grabbed some downed logs for Callie and I to take home for firewood. After using a chainsaw to make rounds, I split the logs and loaded them in the truck.

Ryan's friend Skinny stopped by to enlist some help in lifting a log to be used a roof for an outdoor, wood-fired bathtub he was constructing. He had constructed quite a beautiful tub with a nifty roof. We lifted the log into place and the mortis/tenon that he had cut fit snugly.

PICTURES:
http://picasaweb.google.com/jack.r.mckenna/ChickaloonCabinBuilding