Aspen Flats

My “two weeks of fun with visiting friends” continued with a three-day backpacking trip on the Kenai. Glen, Jenica, Kelly, Eric, Callie, Kyra and I headed down to Cooper Landing. We planned to spend two nights at the Aspen Flats cabin on the Russian River.

The trailhead is in one of the more touristed state parks and the area was lousy with RVs and people up from the lower 48. We parked and loaded up our gear. Glen brought along three extra fishing rods and we looked forward to getting in some fishing.

The rangers had posted several warnings about bears at the trail head. We checked that we had our bear spray at the ready and set out.

The first mile was a wide track that headed for the falls. There were a lot of people. But as soon as we turned off to follow the trail back up the valley, the track narrowed and we didn’t see anyone else the rest of the day.

A few miles in Kelly spotted a black bear in the bushes about a quarter mile below us. Only its head, and then only its ears, were visible. Soon it ambled out of view.

We kept hiking and we soon forgot about the bears (as much as was possible) because the mosquitoes were the worst I have ever seen in my life. We all put on as much bug juice as we could (who cares that deet might be a carcinogen) and donned our rain coats to get as much protection as we could. You could actually see them swarming around the person in front of you. Swinging your arm quickly could net you at least 5-10 swats.

Needless to say, this was not the leisurely hike with lots of stops for food and viewing that we’d planned. Instead we just kept moving and hoped the cabin had nice, tight windows and screens.

As bad as the mosquitoes got, bears returned to our top worry. We began to see lots of bear scat on the trail and their footprints began to appear in muddy sections. However, there were seven of us (and one large Husky) making a lot of noise and all set with pepper spray. Most likely the bears would avoid us.

We spotted several bald eagles as we hiked – one even was startled as it sat in a tree above the trail and took off right above us. The sound of its wings beating was amazingly loud.

Eventually we reached the cabin. It was nicely situated near the Russian River in a relatively open area about a quarter mile off the main trail. We piled in and quickly shut the door. Luck was with us and the cabin was well sealed against the squadrons of mosquitoes outside.

We took a few moments to savor a mosquito-free atmosphere and eat some food; then we decided to explore our surroundings. Glen, Eric and I searched for a good fly-fishing spot. There weren’t too many good spots because the trees were thick right near the bank, giving nowhere from which to cast.

Callie took charge of filtering some water and dug out her mosquito net. As much as I’ve mocked people who wear nets (they do look kinda dorky) I could see the immediate appeal as she merrily pumped without having to swat the clouds of mosquitoes around her. (See photo)

Glen and I also found some downed wood for a fire. We sawed the logs into manageable chunks and then split them. Most of the wood was green, so we piled it next to the cabin to season so that another party could use it. It was our way of trying to build some good karma. (Which is always helpful when you are going to be fishing.)

We cooked up our dinner and hung out in the cabin.

Glen then set up some of our rods and he, Eric and I set about trying our luck. We didn’t have a whole lot of success. The Russian River runs pretty straight and fast past the cabin and there isn’t a lot of habitat for fish to hang out – or at least that’s my excuse for why we got skunked.

As the sun set we spotted a bald eagle flying from tree to tree in our area. Then a moose cow wandered past the cabin. We stayed at a safe distance and watched her munch on the willows before heading to sleep.

The next morning we had pancakes filled with dried fruit and chocolate chips. You gotta love the gourmet backpacking.

Callie had to leave and head back to Anchorage to meet her brother, so she armed herself with two cans of bear spray and hiked out with Kyra. She was quite worried about bears, but made it back to the trailhead safely.

Glen, Eric and I decided to hike to Upper Russian Lake to do some fishing. We loaded up on food, water, our gear, bug spray and bear spray. Kelly and Jenica elected to stay in the cabin and enjoy a relatively bug-free day.

We set out on the several mile hike and immediately saw lots of bear sign. The trail mostly followed the river, but sometimes left the river to cross meadows where the cow parsnip and devil’s club grew almost above our heads. We made lots of noise to warn any bears in the area that three skinny and not-so-tasty guys were coming their way.

About half-way to the lake we stopped on a stretch of the trail that was right next to the river to toss in our lures. We fished for about 20 minutes with no luck and decided to press on up to the lake.

Once we reached the lake, we turned off and made our way down to a campsite that is right by the mouth of the lake. We ate our sandwiches and played around on some logs that had fallen out into the water. Luckily the mosquitoes were not as bad at this spot so we were able to relax in relative comfort.

After we’d scoped out a few fishing spots, we made a more concerted effort to land a fish or two. Glen worked his way out onto a rock where the lake began to flow into the river. Eric and I clambered out onto a large tree that had fallen into the river about 40 yards downstream from Glen.

It was a gorgeous day with bright sunshine. Eric fished from one side while I worked another. We could see a few salmon lazily swimming below us and one large trout that steadfastly refused to try to take the hooks that we dangled in front of him.

I was in the middle of talking to Eric, who was sitting on a smaller branch, when I turned around at the sound of a splash further downstream. I was greeted by the sight of a large female grizzly and her cub walking up the river towards us.

My first reaction was to alert Eric to the bears’ approach with the eloquent phrase, “Dude, bear!” The bears were about 50 yards away, hadn’t noticed us, and were moving closer. I didn’t want them to get too close without knowing we were there, so I moved along the tree to let them know something was there. The mom immediately stopped and woofed. When a bear woofs, it’s not like a dog’s woof. It’s definitely a bear’s woof. The cub went scampering back to the opposite bank and the mom took a few bounding strides towards us to (a) get a better look at whatever it was we were and (b) scare the bejeebers out of whatever it was that was near her cub. Both objectives were accomplished.

Luckily the grizzly only took a bounds and the cub scrambled up the far bank and into the trees. The mom then relaxed and wandered across the river, up onto a small island and then down through the brush to another side channel out of sight.

We were more than a little excited.

Eric and I pocketed our bear-spray, slung our cameras, grabbed our fishing rods, and got off that log and away up the bank. Glen met us and we talked things over. The bear was on the other side of the river and so we decided to stay at a safe distance, stick together and see if she would show herself again. We got lucky and the mom and cub wandered back up onto the island after fishing for a bit.

Content with our sighting and glad it hadn’t gone badly we headed out of the area and back down the trail. We spotted a porcupine on the trail who was annoyed that we were walking behind him.

We decided to give the fishing one more try at the spot we had scoped out that morning and tossed in our lines. About 10 minutes in Glen pointed at a particular spot and said, “There’s probably a trout hanging out right under that spot in the bank.” I immediately floated my dry-fly right past that spot within a second had a trout on the line. After tiring the fish out and not letting it wrap the line around a fallen log I finished reeling it in. We had landed a rainbow that was near the size limit. (You have to toss back anything over 14 inches.)

Glen gutted the fish there. We decided that even with bears in the area, it was safer to gut the fish by the trail and quickly move on rather than do it back at camp and possibly attract bears to that spot.

We hiked back in a fantastic mood. Mostly we were happy that we were returning to camp with fish in hand and a bear story to boot.

Back at camp we related our adventures and took a dip in the river. It was cold. Very cold. But we all appreciated getting a chance to wash a bit of dirt and accumulated deet off ourselves. The women-folk made a number of less than charitable comments about our level of intelligence, but we had a good time nonetheless.

Glen and I then set about grilling the fish. We built a wood fire and rigged a grill out of some wire mesh that was left in the cabin. I salted the fish and we stuffed it with lime and herbs. It smelled delicious. (So much for our plan to not attract bears with fish smell.)

That night we had burritos with slices of avocado and fresh caught trout. Not too bad for a backpacking trip! Everyone ate their fill and we lounged in the cabin, safe from the mosquitoes.

Glen, Eric and I then gave the remains of the fish a pseudo-Viking funeral by floating them off down the river on a log. It was a touching moment.

After that we made smores and sat around the fire. The smoke kept a good number of the skeeters at bay.

I was a bit restless that night because the next day was going to be a busy one.

We woke early and packed up our gear. I had to be back in Anchorage by the early afternoon to prepare for my next days’ adventure: the Fireweed 400. (See next post.)

Forewarned by our experience on the way in we prepared as best we could for the mosquitoes on the way out. We made sure our bear spray was accessible, put on lots of bug spray, and put on our rain shells to provide some physical protection.

The hike out went quickly. We played various games and continued our running string of “Office” references. Once back on the wide trail near the cars we ran into some park rangers who asked us whether we’d encountered any bears. We related our experience at the lake and mentioned all the bear sign on the trail.

About a half-mile from the car we ran into a group of my fellow clerks who were hiking in to spend the night at the cabin that we had just left. Rob, Katy, Merrill, Sam and a group of their visitors were planning to spend a few days there doing just what we’d done. We warned them about the bears and mosquitoes and wished them luck.

Back at my truck I found the note Rob had left me on my windshield, “Go back to CA chardonnay boy!” My dad’s “VINOTRK” plates always make an impression on people.

We drove back to Anchorage and unloaded our gear.

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

Fourth of July

Summer of 2008 in Anchorage has been the coldest summer on record. But we got lucky for the Fourth and had one of the nicest days of the year; the temperature cracked 70 degrees for the first time in ’08.

Our house was incredibly full and boisterous that weekend due to all of our visitors. First, my friends Adam and Crystal were up from SF for a quick weekend. They wisely elected to skip the full house and get a hotel. Second, my friends Kelly, Eric, Jenica and Glen were also up visiting and they crashed with us. Finally, Callie’s brother and his girlfriend were also visiting. Everyone arrived the night of the 3rd.

The Fourth started with a huge family-style breakfast. Adam made a run for more food and I cooked up scrambled eggs, pancakes, bacon, and as much coffee as people could handle. Callie and Jeff took turns spelling me on the cooking as we all crowded around our table, which groaned under the weight of all the food. (Lila had left late the night before to go clam digging on the Kenai Peninsula.) We also had to appropriate every chair in the house and a few of us ended up sitting on side tables that got dragged over to act as benches. It was probably the best breakfast we’d had there all year.

After the eats, Adam and Crystal took off for Seward. They were going to check out the town and then go to Homer and bear watching out in Katmai National Park.

The rest of us headed out for some quick activities before our afternoon BBQ. Kelly, Eric, Jenica, Glen and I went for a quick hike out in Campbell Park. The park takes up a sizeable part of central and eastern Anchorage and connects with Chugach State Park. Because Campbell Creek runs through it with a rather sizeable salmon population, the park is home to a number of Grizzlies. We made sure we carried our bear spray and made lots of noise.

It was actually hot as we hiked and a bit humid. Not conditions that I was used to in Alaska. We finished our hike without bear-related incident and headed back to the house to start party preparations.

I began setting up, getting the keg on ice and getting snacks out while the rest of the gang made last-minute runs for more party supplies and grabbed food for their planned trip to Denali National Park. Callie and her brother got back and soon the place was all set.

The BBQ ended up being quite a success. I manned the grill and cooked up burgers, salmon burgers (the ones from Costco were pretty tasty), veggie burgers, and hotdogs. Judge Wolverton showed up on his mountain bike and introduced us to the “AK Surf and Turf” which was a burger made of one beef patty and one salmon patty. Very tasty.

It was nice to really be able to use our house’s backyard. It was a perfect size for a large BBQ and people made the most of the nice weather. A good number of our friends and friends of friends showed up, Kelly brought her parents and people from the neighborhood stopped by our place.

As the party began to wind down, we moved the party to Mike Baylous’s place down near Ship Creek. The group of us that got there first organized an impromptu football game using a water bottle. As others arrived we got the bonfire started. Rob and Katy showed up with a table pedestal that they found in the “free wood pile” down near the creek. It wasn’t until late that night that everyone decided to head home.

Pictures: http://picasaweb.google.com/jack.r.mckenna/FourthOfJuly#