Talkeetna, Alaska: A Solo Vacation

May 10, 2016January 25, 2023 ~ Crystle ~ Leave a comment

I kid you not, I almost forgot how to log-in to this blog. I’m here, albeit sporadically. I’m currently caught up on all my paid-photography, so I’m finally chipping away at all of my personal work.

I think I need to get everyone up to speed on what’s been going on in my neck of the woods. First, my dear husband Isaac has been in the process of applying to Officer Candidate School (OCS); a process proven to be quite grueling in both the volume of paperwork required, and the demanding prerequisites required of all applicants. It has been about 8 months since he started the process. For months we sat around, twiddling our thumbs, waiting for our orders to Korea to come down (it was the only place with open slots for his MOS), or waiting for an acceptance to OCS.

Second, we recently we heard that he was accepted! Instead of the year-long waiting period for the class date to roll around, Isaac was notified that he would have only 6 weeks to prepare for his departure. Normally this wouldn’t be too problematic, however OCS requires a 3 month training period at Ft. Benning, Georgia. That’s a really long distance from interior Alaska, and a long period of time to be solo-parenting on my end.

Hence the solo vacation (the third order of business). Knowing a summer without Isaac assuredly means very few outdoor opportunities; remember when we attempted Granite Tors, a 15 mile hike while babywearing? Yea, not so successful, I wanted to take off on my own for a little bit, as a sort of motherhood Rumspringa.

I almost went to Ecuador, but I’m certainly glad I didn’t because the earthquake that hit there recently would have definitely occurred while I was there! I fortunately opted instead to stay closer-by, and headed south on a 5 hour drive to Talkeetna, Alaska; my favorite town in Alaska.

Far too much time was spent in my car (my new car, a 2016 Subaru Outback! – so much new information for you all if you don’t follow me on instagram) the first day. The Denali Park Road was open to personal vehicles to mile 30. Typically the park road is open to Savage River at mile 15. I was excited to go further into the park from the comfort of my own car as opposed to a bus, but I didn’t take into consideration the 35 mph speed limit. This added about 2 hours of drive time to my road trip. Well worth it since I saw three grizzlies and a small caribou herd and still made it into town in time to grab food and meet up with my dear pal Jo of Oma + Jo. We’ve bonded a lot over the last year and I count her as one of my closest friends. Anyway, I arrived in Talkeetna a little stiff, but eager to start my vacation.

Jo taught me how to play cribbage, an incredibly archaic yet fun game that probably had originally asinine, made-up rules. I caught on quicker than I would have expected myself to, given my poor math skills, and enjoyed playing rounds at the Pizza place patio over beers and Hummus platters. We had fun drinking, and chatting, and visiting the historical museum. Good company, and the only (temporary) company I’d have the entire trip.

I booked a room at the Talkeetna Roadhouse. Central to all town activities, I was able to watch the tourists and locals walk the town from my window. I was in walking distance to everything except for my massage which took place up the Spur road and in a blue Yurt, of all structures. So cool.

Despite a wonderful time at the local eateries, bars, museums and hiking trails, the main event was reserved for one of my final days in Talkeetna.

I purchased a flightseeing tour over Denali which included a Glacier Landing on the famous Ruth Glacier. The morning of I took a trail run along the river, ate a big breakfast at the Roadhouse, and got a call from K2 aviation about my flight; would I like to come in an hour early and get an upgraded flight for a longer tour with a glacier landing? Sure! I showered and rushed over to the ‘airport’, eager to gain some life changing perspective about the land I intend to call home for good.

I don’t want to bombard you all with a basketful of cliches about how my life has changed from a single flightseeing tour, but I really want to emphasize how mind-blowing this experience was. Alaska is vast, I knew that empirically before this trip, but I didn’t understand it in practice. Flying at low altitude, through the neighborhood of Denali, among the monsters like Mount Hunter, and Mount Foraker and then Denali, I finally understood the gravity of the mountaineering undertakings from the adventure books I’ve been reading for a year, and understood the zeal everyone holds for this mountain range.

Don Sheldon’s Cabin is over my Right Hand!

Structures that looked to be the size of small stones were in reality the size of ranch style homes. Ripples in the glaciers were evidence of crevasses deeper than the the tallest skyscrapers in midwest cities. My mind still has trouble comprehending the scale and scope of the experience, but I’m still contemplating it regularly.

Of course I had all the confidence that our pilot would get us through the tour unscathed, but a naive (or pragmatic?) part of me felt I would probably die on this trip. I was super relieved to land safely on the glacier, to pose awkwardly on it for a photo, to walk around suspiciously on its crevasse-riddled surface, and ultimately re-board the plane, this time riding shotgun.

We flew back the way we came, over semi-frozen tundra. The twisted rivers, partially melted, gave way slightly to spring. The landscape has since turned lush and green.

Homesteads below spread far and wide, connected sometimes only by rivers.

I was exceedingly happy to disembark the small aircraft, if only from a place of self-preservation. I’m an anxious person, and prefer to have my two feet on the ground, fair enough?

I spent the rest of the day decompressing, playing over and over again the sights and sounds of the day in my mind. I went to happy hour, read a book and kicked around some local lakes for a quick hike. My trip ended with a cinnamon roll from the Roadhouse and a long, contemplative ride home to my family, presents in hand; ready to start my summer of solo-parenting.

Aurora Borealis

October 12, 2015January 25, 2023 ~ Crystle ~ Leave a comment

I don’t think these Northern Lights will ever get old. I’ll always enjoy watching them, but I know as the temperatures drop here in Interior Alaska, the desire to sit outside for an hour shooting them will fade. Last week was the perfect climate for catching the Lights show.

Snow from a week ago had mostly melted off, leaving our grass once again exposed. Warmer nights (only dropping to the low 30s) meant down parkas and snow pants stayed in the closet, while we reached instead for vests, light hats, and fleece jackets and gloves. Any colder out, and my fingers would have turned to numb useless nubs, my camera battery would have drained, and my damp hair would have frozen. I don’t know how more disciplined aurora chasers tolerate the freezing temperatures closer to the winter solstice.

So here I present to you the Northern Lights, from October 6, 2015. Hopefully more to come, since this is our last season in Alaska, for now.

And in case you missed it, Isaac and I changed our residency to Alaska. We are coming back to settle down here after his military service ends (not for a few more duty stations, unfortunately). Sorry California and Oklahoma family, but something about this wild, Libertarian place has really appealed to our frontier sensibilities. It must be a mix of the bold folks who live here, the pristine tundra, and the bountiful wildlife and the lack of fashion rules that have really got us dreading the adjustment back to the lower 48 next year.

I’ll miss this one day.

Talkeetna, Alaska

September 24, 2015January 25, 2023 ~ Crystle ~ 3 Comments

I have a knack for finding alterna-towns. That’s what I call them, anyway. They’re crunchy, liberal, quirky, Olympia-styled towns, and they draw me in like a magnet.

This time, I made my way with my family in tow to Talkeetna, Alaska.

Why Talkeetna? Isaac asked me this when I approached him with an AirBnB listing for a Yurt, and a proposition to get away from Fairbanks for a few days. Spontaneity is never lost on him, and he went for it. Although I had to sell it as a hippy town, and as the launching pad for Denali Expeditions (I picked up that tidbit from all the Mountaineering memoirs I read this summer). The five hour drive would be worth it, I convinced him.

There’s more to the story, though. A friend suggested I watch Northern Exposure back when I first moved to Washington, since the show was filmed in nearby Roslyn (although based on a town in Alaska). I never got around to it, but two years into my Alaska residency (and nearly four years later), I finally did. I had to rent the DVDs from the local Blockbuster since the show is not in syndication, and it was not streaming online anywhere. It took nearly two months of evening binge watching, and treadmill TV sessions to power through the six seasons, but I did it. And the extra leg work was totally worth it.

The quirky protagonists, odd town issues, and uniquely Alaskan story lines held my attention. I could relate to Joel Fleishman’s poor assimilation, yet I still pulled for him. I loved Ed’s sweet disposition, and Shelley’s bitchin’ style. And of course we all admired Maggie’s tenacity.

For non-Northern Exposure fans, the show’s small town of Cicely is loosely based on the town of Talkeetna.

Walking around downtown, it wasn’t hard to connect the dots between the show and the town. I easily imagined Ruth Ann working the counter at the historic Nagley’s, or Holling and Shelley scandalizing the town with their relationship age-difference while running the Fairview Inn. A long-haired tourist with a leather jacket immediately drew assumptions from Isaac — that must be Ed!

While walking around downtown, we saw a stray-ish dog hobbling about on weak hips. His front legs pulled hard and fast, while his posterior extremities wobbled and collapsed like a baby deer. Out-of-towners sought to help the dog, find his owner and get the poor boy (or girl?) some help. Isaac overheard someone holler out of the Fairview Inn, yelling for the dog — Hipster! Fitting, especially for a town with a stub-tailed cat for a Mayor named Stubbs.

No, seriously. Talkeetna has a cat for a mayor. His name is Stubbs and he’s something like 19 years old. They call him stubbs because his tail is a nub. Anyway, I think someone is finally running against the incumbent. The more you know.

We showed up to the pet-friendly town at the end of the season.

Alaska is flush with tourists for the few warm months every year. After the influx dies down, most commerce boards up, literally, and takes off for the winter. The remaining shops and restaurants rarely disappoint. Talkeetna followed suit. We ate at the Roadhouse twice, and definitely benefitted from the Family Style seating. Advice from locals on where to go and what to do is always welcome.

I had a fine time gawking at the Denali Expedition paraphernalia. I was largely unable to imagine anything about the summit expeditions except how cold it must be at the top, and how glad I am to not have the drive to do something like that.

We were lucky to find the world’s greatest playground. Apparently, the townsfolk wanted a great place for the local kids to play, so they fundraised, and then everyone came together and built this insane playground, modeled after the town itself, in just five days. Another testament to the resolution of the people of Talkeetna. Seriously, the craftsmanship was amazing!

It was basically impossible to rip the kids away from this park, but we did it. And we had awesome food and delicious beer from Twister Creek Restaurant, home of the Denali Brewing Company. I recommend the Mother Ale, if you find happen to visit, or if you see it in your local beer cooler.

And the icing on the cake was our two night stay in a Yurt! I think it took just as long to convince my dad that staying in a dry yurt with an outhouse wasn’t endangering my family. He spent enough time roughing it out of necessity as a kid that he doesn’t see the recreational purpose of vacationing in a glamorized tent. He’s also a grandpa, so he wants to make sure his babies are spoiled rotten, all the time. Unfortunately, Alaska doesn’t have a cushy reputation, so stoking a wood burning stove all night to keep his babies warm is probably not his idea of an awesome family vacation.

Of course we loved it.