eagle lake trail...

went for an 8 mile hike with tanya, maddie and maureen on monday. it was a beautiful day and we all had a great time. since we're not doing the monday walks, i now post a longer monday walk every other monday on facebook so we can get together for some fun hikes. in the summer it's better to travel in groups due to frequent bear sightings. with 3 dogs and 4 people not much chance of bear sightings, which we were all fine with. we wouldn't have minded seeing one across the valley though. we did spy a big moose up on the mountain slope and this cute marmot below. he was sure squawking at us. the spring is behind there so there are these cute little tiny green evergreens that really stick out in all that brown.

the marmots stay pretty far off so hard to get really good pictures of them with my 300 even, though i've had much better luck with that up artic valley...the marmots are thick there.

indy shakes off water from one of the many water spots along the trail. i love when dogs do the shake thing, love it more when i can kinda capture it.

maddie is an excellent hiker, didn't hear her complain at all...just seemed to enjoy getting out and looking at all the stuff out there.

such beautiful weather we are having this week. ran into some tourists last night in town and they were so excited to have seen denali. in the background of this picture you can see the faint outline of denali. looked much clearer when we were hiking. such a huge mountain though, still a 5 hour drive north, but it sticks out there. we've really been blessed this year to have seen it many days. hope the summer weather continues like this.

3 tired pups after thier 8 mile adventure. i love eagle lake trail as there is so much water for the pups, it's not a killer hill wise either which i like. blossom was still a bit muted today. we eventually got out to the bog and after my swim i took the pups up patterson road for a walk. she wasn't her usual totally hyped out self. the pet sitters came, my friend gails daughter and fiance will be taking care of them in between wedding planning. i think the wedding is coming up soon.

the spring hasn't quite come to the valley there. it was quite brown. you could see the starts of sprouting of new growth, but nothing like anchorage is right now. feels like summer already. did love these old dead trees though against the blue skies.

speaking of sky...isn't that beautiful!!

indy actually had a look of intelligence. not his usual dopey dog look.

part of the trail is still covered in snow. we had initally planned to hike back to the lakes, which are supposed to be beautiful. i think i've been to the first lake, but not beyond. the boulder hopping was going to be a bit more trying with the snow out there and the lakes are still frozen. we got a report from some people coming back from camping out there.

we opted to take lunch on the rock, which you see behind me in the next shot, and head back. that is a 4 mile walk so 8 miles with return trip. they just upgraded the trailhead. hadn't heard that so was a bit surprised. bathroom and everything there. wow. the made the parking area larger, which is great as it gets really crowded there. very popular trail.

so yes, this is me. not my most attractive shot. my arms look pretty white, but ended up quite burnt after being in the sun for over 4 hours. my arms are improving with the swimming. had to bail yesterday as was meeting lesley, sandra and sharon for dinner at orso's to celebrate a few may birthdays. happy birthday to me come friday. i ordered king crab, of course, and had a nice molten chocolate cake dessert. orso's was super sweet and gave all 3 of us birthday girls free dessert last night. nummy! i ordered a glass of gewurtztraminer which i hadn't had for quite some time. sharon ordered the same after tasting mine. it is a sweet wine, very tasty.

here we are resting and lunching on the rock. tanya, maddie and maureen resting. that dog, indy, kept jumping up and down off the rock. have no idea how he was able to do that so easily. the other two dogs waited below, unable to make the leap. indy made it look easy. you can see blossom pouting below.

it's a pretty big rock. we had to help each other up there. maddie is only 7, but i must say she did great on this long hike. i told her that when she got to the rock she just had to run around it 3 times and think of oreo cookies and they would magically appear on the rock. she devoured them. she then noticed i had m&m's as well. i told her she could have the rest of those for the car ride home once she got back to the car. i'm sure tanya appreciated the sugar i was giving maddie. i guess maddie ate those and immediately sacked out for the rest of the drive. the cookies and m&m's were leftovers from my oreo salad from the bbq the night before. such a social girl this week. shocking!

random rock shot. maureen, tanya and maddie.

indy makes it tough for maureen to get a mini-nap in.

there is the valley.

random picture of maddie hiking with the dogs. taking lead and kicking the tennis ball for blossom. we lost one out there, but they were well used by blossom. boddhi tends to snag it then forget about it somewhere.

yet another shot of the valley.

the creek and bridge, below, are 2 miles in. also a nice place for a break and turn around if you don't have all day for hiking. the creek wasn't as full as i've seen it. there are already fires burning in parts of alaska. the hospital has been hopping with trauma's from what i've heard. they keep calling me, which makes me know suspect i'll not get an on call these next 2 nights. bummer as i really could use the time to pack. it's only 2 nights though and i have bought plenty of food and a box o wine.

the dogs got to the bridge before any humans did...i suspect they remember that water!

maddie takes a snack break part way in. i don't think i took any breaks today. i tried to convince myself the weather was lousy, even though it was beautiful again. i finally arranged for the carpet cleaner to come tomorrow morning. that meant i had to locate the carpet throughout the house. still missing in a few spots...i'm sleepy though. lots of laundry done, lots of stuff trashed, lots of recycling. sadly, though, i will now have to go back and empty out the closets after the carpet cleaner goes. this is why i've put it off so long. i really should do it annually at least with my pets. one day the carpets will be gone mostly. can't wait.

my king crab came with 4 huge legs. my table mates always tease me as i never finish anything. they thought it horrid that my pets would be eating king crab for a snack that night. they all quite enjoyed it though, i must say. orso's chefs do fine work.

did get my laps in today. the water aerobics class was going on so it was a bit rough going in the water. it really gets a wave going. i did 70 lengths, so 35 laps. i was concerned for many of my laps with this old dude doing water aerobics. he kept having to stop and rest and generally just looked very pale/grey. i really worried i may have to code the dude. i had plans to get people to get the aed, help, towels. always good to have a plan. the class wasn't over when i left, but i think he survived...though just barely. good for him being out there trying, but man did he look rough.

just one last shot of the dogs when they first found snow. they went crazy. you'd think after over 6 months of winter they'd be bored of it, but they seem to miss it all already! such alaskan dogs. good night..