Hiking and Camping in the Front Range

Over the course of my life, I’ve actually spent about 2% of my nights sleeping outside. Considering that I’ve never been homeless, I think that’s pretty cool. But somehow out of those roughly 200 nights camping, I had never done a solo overnight trip before last weekend.


Not that I consider that a bad thing. In fact, the chance to hang out with friends is one of the best things about camping. But this weekend the stars were aligned just so: Beth was out of town, Chris had movers coming on Friday and wouldn’t have access to his camping gear after that, Louis is trying to finish his masters, Brynn was out of town, the weather forecast looked good and its late enough in the year that an opportunity to get outside shouldn’t be missed. So that’s how I found myself hitting the trail at 2:15 on Friday afternoon after a short day of work, heading for wilds so remote…. so distant…. so…. wild…. that significant portions of the route cannot be seen from my office window and cell phone reception for many parts of the hike is poor-to-moderate.

Originally the plan was to do a loop that hiked around and then back over a ridge behind Wolverine Peak, one of the peaks in the front range of the Chugach, and an excellent hiking destination in its own right (You can click on the map, or any of the pictures, for an enlarged view).

It’s good to know that if discretion is the better part of valor, then I had a trip that was at least 51% valorous, because in the end I didn’t trust the route I would have to take to cross the ridge, especially alone and with a strong wind blowing on the valley floor. Instead, I simply took the same route back that I had taken to hike in.

Overall, it was an excellent trip. That wind I mentioned before kicked up pretty suddenly just after I had set up my tent. Given my setting, I didn’t really have any options for a more sheltered campsite. My tent was buffeted by the winds all night which made for some restless sleep, and it was actually windy enough that lighting my cooking stove was difficult for both dinner and breakfast. But the stove did get lit and I was plenty warm, so I guess in the end it wasn’t too bad at all.

I didn’t really have my phone handy on the first day to take pictures, but on Saturday I kept it out and took a bunch of pictures. I guess that was one good thing about backtracking – I got to take pictures of all the beautiful scenery I had missed the day before!

Here's Bella on day one, making good use of the "load up" command with O'Malley Peak as a backdrop



No more pictures until this one from the morning of day 2. I camped at the far end of this lake (Long Lake), with a good view of the ridge on the left of this picture. The original plan was to hike over the ridge in the morning, but i just didn't like the look of that plan. Wolverine Peak is in the sunshine at the far end of the ridge, just left of the picture's center.

You'd take a picture of a poop this size, too. Glad I didn't run into this guy on the trail, although from the look of things he was more interested in berries than anything else.

Climbing up from Long Lake and looking back on a pretty view.

On day 1 I came down the center of this slope on the way to Long Lake. I guess thats the problem with bushwhacking and following game trails - sometimes the route you take ends up being unexpectedly steep. (Note to my mom: steep enough to risk skinning a knee, not plummeting into an abyss)

Here's where I should have crossed the divide on day 1, and where I did cross on day 2. It was much easier this way.



Bella, sitting at the head of the Williwaw Valley. My eventual route will take me right up the line of the shadow on the right side of the ridge above the lake.



Looking back up at how I came down from the divide on day 2, heading back towards the start. I guess sometimes there's no helping it and you've just gotta do a bit more scrambling than hiking for a few minutes.

Taking a break from the scrambling - out of the wind and enjoying the view...

This view.

Bella enjoyed kibbles instead.

She also enjoyed romping through the tundra.

Looking down the Williwaw Valley, towards Anchorage.

Lots of sheep on the slopes of the valley. There were 14 here (not all are in the frame), but the day before there had been 19. I guess some had wandered off.

Look! Wildlife that's identifiable in a picture, instead of just being specks!

Thats more like it. These white specks are ptarmigan. There were dozens and dozens of them in the Williwaw Valley. Strangely, Bella wasn't interested in them in the slightest, despite the fact that they were roosting on the ground and milling about not far from us making funny little noises, and then would explode into the air as we got within about 20 feet.

Looking back up into the Williwaw Valley. My route went over the lowest point in the ridge in the background.

Bella pauses before the hardest part of our hike - a very steep 600' high scramble over loose rocks as we left the Williwaw Valley and climbed to "The Ballfield," as the high flat area west of O'Malley Peak is known.

Looking back mid-scramble, as I paused to catch my breath.

Up on The Ballfield, looking west over Anchorage.

Back at home, Bella was all tucked up after the hike. You can always tell how tired she is when she lies down, because the more exhausted she gets the farther she pulls up her hind legs. When her front and back paws are touching you know she's done. Maybe this is where the phrase "tuckered out" comes from?