The hike of all hikes

As winter came to an end this year I began planning all of the hikes I'd do this summer. There were several I had missed last year and I was determined to check them all out. Unfortunately, summer only showed up for all of one week I think this year. OK, 10 days at the most and instead of setting out to accomplish my hiking goals I set out for long nights at the bar, crocheting sessions on the couch, and lazy weekends of doing nothing. I started getting depressed. Thankfully, my good friend, Storme, was visiting from New Zealand for the summer and wanted to see Alaska for all it's worth, rain or shine. It was time to change my boring old tune and see Valdez up close and personal. So, we headed out. We did a nice hike to the Valdez glacier. The trail stops out on a point on the lake where you can easily see the glacier and get some pretty nice pictures. We wanted to get closer though so we hiked along the shore line to get right up to it. The shoreline was pretty difficult to navigate and I ended up standing in ankle deep water more than once. We made it to a big rocky mound that was a stone's throw away from the glacier. The photographs began. I knelt down once to get a better shot of the guys and my foot slid back pretty far, enough to spread the gravel off the "rocky mound" we were standing on to reveal we weren't a stone's throw away from the glacier after all. We were actually standing on it, right atop a huge chunk of ice. Sweet!
This hike got me pumped up for our next adventure; The Shoup Bay trail.
I had heard of folks talking up this trail for the past year however I never met someone who had actually done it, start to finish so we didn't know exactly what we were in for. My friend,Tom,rented a cabin that was just across the bay from the end of the trail. He would go there by boat and pick us up after our long walk. It was a 10 mile hike that started out pretty flat in thick vegetation but with a wide nicely cleared path which eventually opened up to a flat, clear, marsh land that butted up against the Prince William Sound. From there we traveled on relatively flat ground on simple bridges and wood planked walk ways to help us through the really marshy wet areas. How nice. Just a lovely....simple....easy hike.....Ha! Right, then the real hike began...
So'd ya hear the one about two Poles, one New Zealander, and two Americans that headed into the rain forest? That was our group and the story went kind of like this:
After the marsh land we headed back into the rain forest surrounded by the most beautiful plants and trees. Wild flowers and berries were peaking out of thick green foliage almost every step of the way. When we reached a giant waterfall and accompanying bridge I remember looking around in utter amazement. It reminded me of the swampy forests of Louisiana with the stringy moss hanging from every limb. This moss land was home to many creatures. We saw bear poop around every corner and bugs were thick when the air was still. Mosquitoes laughed at my all-natural hippy bug spray and relentlessly attacked. I broke down at one point and drenched my face and hands in the hard stuff, deet and all. And we pressed on. At times the trail was so muddy there was no where to step except right in the middle of it, sinking down past my ankles. The previous easy, meandering well maintained trail quickly changed to slick rocky terrain on which I fell at least 7 times. We were heading up an down and up up up up again, taking switchbacks and careful steps across waterfalls all the while noticing a quickly shrinking path ahead of us. Our once wide, well groomed path shrank down to less than shoulder width at some points. I remember thinking of bears and if we should meet one. The narrow path would yield little escape. I didn't let my mind go there for long. I had no choice but to stay focused or give up and choose to make my home in that rainy forest, obviously I chose the first option. We stopped for lunch and a break but it lasted only long enough to scarf down our pre-made sandwiches and chug some water. The mosquitoes at that point must have been on lunch break too. We had to get out of there but we didn't leave with out a keep-it-going toast. My husband, of course, packed along a tiny flask of whiskey. Cheers and a "cheese" for the photos and we were off again. At this point the trail became really steep and rocky and I have to admit I struggled. Storme was behind me most of the way, patiently dealing with my frequent quick breaks for an extra gasp of air. It was pretty difficult for me but I kept at it. As I began to feel the weakest, as if I didn't think I could take another single upward step the terrain flattened and opened up to a nice little flower covered meadow. We had made it up the most difficult portion of the hike. Scheww! At this point we were probably 5 hours into the hike. We estimated only having about an hour left. We were going to make it. That last leg of the trip proved to be the most beautiful. We reached a point where we could see the cabin and the Shoup glacier nestled behind it. It was an incredible site. As we neared the end of the trail, the Polish hiking team as we cleverly labeled them suggested we go off trail on a "short cut" to get to a nice spot where Tom would pick us up in the boat. Okay.....
There we went climbing over a labyrinth of trees, hoisting dogs up and under, cursing the Poles for leading us into this mess. It was difficult but we had no choice but to stick with the off road plan since my body gave up on hiking upward over and hour ago. There wasn't a chance of turning around. At one point I got wedged in between two trees held back by my backpack that was stuck under the trunk of one tree, my right leg wrapped around another. I started to slide. Again, my fear of an upward trek pulled me through. I slithered and clawed my way out of my restraint and suddenly I could see the light at the end of the twisted tree tunnel. There was water. A few moments later, I flopped down on a pointed wet rock with the most awesome feeling of accomplishment soaring through my body. It took us 6 1/2 hours to make one of the best hikes of our lives. Our rescue team arrived shortly to pick us up and taxi us to the party going on at the McAllister Creek cabin. Turns out that self made trek was the best idea of the trip. It landed us in the perfect location for the boat to pick us up. We were safe, with food, fire, and a cozy cabin to celebrate in. What an accomplishment. What an adventure. Rain...shmain....there's lots of livin' no matter the mood of sweet Mother Nature. Go on...Get ya some!








RESCUED!!!