The McPherson Life: Alaska - 2014 - Exit Glacier,Hope, Gold Mint Trail

Before Dave headed up on the slope we did a quick one day trip to Seward. On the way we stopped and hiked exit glacier then headed on up to the Harding Icefield.

The top of the hike, I was feeling pretty successful until I noticed a 4 and a 5 year old girl that were at the top with their parents giggling and playing in the snow. I swear kids are just born tougher up here, I have been so surprised at how young kids are on hikes I've been on, I don't even think they think it's an option not to go up a hill.


The owner did this because he felt like he needed to do something to get peoples attention, I guess the food is really great there. Something else that is fun to check out is the Eagle River Nature Center. There are miles of trails that are stroller friendly and if you want to stay in a cabin or a yurt you can walk right up to the front door. My friend has a little red wagon and plans on packing it full of camping gear and spending the night in a cabin one night, fun and easy to do with kids.

I love all of the giant mushrooms here, really want to check out the mushroom festival at Alyeska this fall, I hear there lots of different colors to see even purple ones.

After Dave's first two weeks on the slope were over, we decided to hike up the Gold Mint Trail in Hatcher's Pass area. He came back mentally and physically exhausted. His schedule is waking up at 3:30 in the morning, working out for an hour, showering, eating breakfast, starting work at 6:00. They work twelve hour shifts, then eat dinner and if he wants to get eight hours of sleep he needs to be in bed around 7. Do this for 14 days in a row and no wonder he slept quite a bit the first two days home. He was all smiles though when he came home and said how happy it made him to think of having the next two weeks off. It did seem weird to think neither one of us had to work for the next two weeks, it is actually totally liberating. The downside was missing him while he was gone, I am ready to start work again in September, I need more socializing during the days he is gone, I will say it has been wonderful to not work for awhile, made me realize how much I miss my surgery friends though! So back to the hike, it is beautiful! We hiked 20 miles out and back, almost reaching the mountaineering hut. From what we know there are four huts in the area that hook up for a fun ski traverse. They are all really basic, mostly just shelters from what I can tell.

I realize this is total picture overload, I just loved them all though, if I don't put them on the blog I will probably forget I even have them.

We hung out and listened to this huge waterfall across the valley that had a ton of water filtering into it for awhile. The best part is that this place is a 20 minute drive from our house. Despite the closeness to town, we still only saw four other people throughout the day. The mint glacier is over to my left. The snow up above in the picture was pink from what Dave said from a rare algae that will only grow in cold conditions.

A few days later after four wheeling for a few days we met up with friends in Hope. This is such a cool, off the beaten path town we would love to live in, it is just a little too far from a hospital for me to work.

Mushrooms!

Officially the place of the best homemade fries ever! They have live bands every weekend throughout the summer, the building is over 100 years old and the only heat it has is a wood burning fireplace. You walk in the door and a whole wall is lined with bookshelves filled with random books people leave or take with them. We will definitely be back, so happy to have friends that have invited us to tag along and see places we didn't even know existed, hike with and are great company!


I've been loving my new hobby of berry picking. It is the perfect excuse to get out and enjoy the summer weather, this is a view from Hatcher's Pass, the mountains in the distance are pioneer peak and the valley where we live.