A funny/somewhat absurd situation has developed over the last year: a guy friend and I expressed mutual admiration, and then continued seasonal migrations to our respective opposite corners of Alaska. It's almost as though the earth's wobble would be offset were we both to inhabit the arctic at the same time. At least we managed a week with friends and fine food before trading places in Coldfoot.
In addition to tending that nascent flame, I warmed up a bit to big city life in Anchorage. Now, Anchorage is dumpy -- lack of urban planning, seedy "frontier" type bars, and the sort of strip malls that feature a worn-out Italian-Mexican restaurant, pawn shop, and weed store all coalesce into a rather bleak aesthetic. But sprinkled throughout the drabness one can find excellent ramen and pho, functional and scenic bike paths, and independent bookstores. And at 300,000 people, it's still small enough that most everyone is decently nice.
It's been a late, cold spring in southern Alaska, but slowly things are coming life. Leaves popped out a couple days ago. Snow is melting swiftly up the mountainsides, making for squishy hiking and daily increased river and lake levels. My first flowers sighted were roadside dandelions, and wild chives should add purple to the landscape soon.
Coworker Luke and I managed to be in the Mayberry-like town of Hope for its spring awakening. Mid-May is the unofficial start of tourist season, and we watched as summer residents, weekenders, and seasonal workers trickled into town. Restaurants opened after being shuttered for winter, and we warmed up with beers and dancing to local bluegrass as the evening sky refused to grow dim.
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That felt like a good ending place, but I also want to talk about getting out to the backcountry lodge. Skilak Lake stayed frozen over through the first week of May, so after our days of all-staff training HR lectures and group leaf-raking/bonding at the main lodge, we came out to open up our place. WE GOT A NEW STOVE! It gets hot AND the door stays shut! And new cabinets that I got to paint! And lots of new staff who seem mostly cool. Cool enough to dance our butts off sober to stale, trashy club music, then joyfully raft five hours down the frigid river the morning after.
