As usual ... I'll post ski
trip info here when I ski someplace new. I try for no
repeats on this web site.
The National Weather Service
in Alaska will apparently be adding many more weather forecast
zones. So for example, instead of just one forecast zone
for the Susitna Valley, this large area will be divided into 8
forecast zones. More info
here.
I will add the new NWS forecast zones to the home page of this
website when they become available. The new forecast zones
were supposed to be available this September, but have been
delayed until March 2025. That might work out well for
skiers ... as it is just before spring skiing season where you
often want the most accurate weather forecast that you can get.
Like last year, we will be spending much of the fall and early
winter outside of Alaska ... with van, bikes and hiking shoes.
So far this year we have visited 13 states (AK, MT, ID, WY, UT,
CO, KS, MS, AR, OK, TX, NM and AZ) and 4 provinces (YT, NWT, BC
and AB). Will
be back to Alaska when the good part of winter shows up. A few pics
from recent van-wandering ...
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Canadian Rockies |
An Alaskan and her campervan.
Like with the ski trips on this web site ... we're always trying to check
out places we haven't been to before. |
American Rockies |
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Chaco Culture
National Historical Park |
1000 year-old Chacoan cliff
steps. |
Bears Ears National Monument |
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'Johnny Behind the Rocks'
trail system south of Lander, WY. Awesome. |
Mesa rim riding above
Thermopolis, WY. |
McCoy Flats trail system
south of Vernal, UT. A favorite. |
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Red Fleet State Park, north
of Vernal, UT. |
Bonanza Flats, Deer Valley,
UT. |
Riding the red dirt of
Oklahoma. |
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I have been using the
Trailforks
app to find singletrack venues while traveling. Good app, but pricey.
The free MTB Project
app is also good. |
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Bentonville, Arkansas |
Navaho Rocks Trail, near Moab,
Utah. |
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After leaving
Alaska, our van wanderings this year eventually delivered us to Bentonville, Arkansas (see
above).
Bentonville claims to be the 'Mountain Biking Capital of the
World'. The trail systems in the Bentonville area are
impressive and they are all linked together. Fun riding is
found on singletrack sprinkled with limestone ledges in their oak forests. This
vibrant city is definitely dialed into biking. And you can
sense the pride Bentonville has for its biking infrastructure.
It's a great place.
But as far
as being the 'mountain biking capital of the world' ... it seems
that is a subjective call for some people, like me. If I
travel to a location to bike, I prefer awe-inspiring natural
beauty to be surrounding the trails I ride. And the Ozark
Mountains just don't have that compared to the sandstone towers,
arches, mesas and slickrock of the Utah high desert areas.
I often grumble about the traffic and the mass of humanity that has
taken over Moab. But once you get out on the trails of
the greater Moab area ... it's truly a special place. So
for me at least ... Moab is still is the 'mountain biking capital of the
world'. |
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A picture of our van.
Muley Point, north of Mexican Hat, UT. |
Butte bagging and looking for
wild horses in WY. Van in distance. |
Living on the edge (after
double-checking that the parking brake is on). |
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Canadian truck camper. |
The Texas Panhandle is not Sprinter van
country. ;-) |
Once the
biggest truck in the
world. Sparwood, BC. |
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Lots of signs of anger
these days in Trudeauistan (formerly Canada). |
Somewhere in Montana. Discussing politics in
America be like ... |
Crazy! In Missoula, MT
they have a school for snakes! |
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Cross country
skiing ... your ticket to unimaginable wealth! ;-)
Taos, NM. |
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Mountains near
Cooke City, MT.
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A memory:
About 50 years ago I was at a US Ski Team fall training camp in Cooke City, MT. And as with life events of
the past, you never forget the unique stuff that happened.
Like the day-off from skiing that we spent hiking around
the hills near town (there wasn't much snow). That day a kid from the Aspen ski
club was
crossing a tailings pile below an old mine shaft ... and slipped
and fell. As he was getting up he noticed a gold nugget
next to his hand. So of course he picked it up.
He was very excited about finding the gold nugget and was
showing it to everyone. It was impressive.
That night an old guy at
the bar at the hotel we were staying at said he would
give him $100 for his gold nugget. Everyone knew the old guy was
low-balling the value of the nugget. So no sale was made.
But let's say
the value of the nugget back then was 3 times what the old
guy was offering. $300. Back in 1976 the
price of gold was around $120 per ounce. So doing some
division and rough rounding, the nugget may have weighed
around 3 ounces. What would that nugget be worth in 2024?
Answer: about $8000.
Imagine being out for a hike. Slip.
Fall. And then notice an $8000 gold nugget next to your
hand. That would make for one memorable hike!
Note: When I was in
Cooke City, MT recently, I looked up on the mountainside to the
north side of town and the tailings pile where the gold nugget was found
was still easy to see. |
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