Spring Break 2021 - the mission was to ski into Wonder Lake, then back out. After being spoiled by the manicured trails in the White Mountains (thank you BLM!!!) I thought 20 miles a day would be "no problemo". Ha ha ha. The mushers (winter) trail was hard to find, would disappear, was drifted in with snow, icy, etc. For most of the journey the road was the better option, which involved windslab (nice), exposed gravel (bad) or deep untracked powder (even worse). My average moving speed was 1.9mph, a nice stroll in the park pace.
Days 3 and 4 were absolutely gorgeous. The type of day that makes me realize all those overcast and snowy days simply serve the purpose of providing contract with the bluebird days. I broke off the road, travelling south of Polychrome summit, on a wide open expansive river bed.
Peter came along for the first day and broke trail - this was probably very good for my spirits, as I didn't really realize how deep I was burring myself into the adventure until we parted ways on day 2 and I was already committed. Thanks Peter!
The machine - way off in the distance. Note the pleasant trough for me to follow.
The beast of burden. This was easy-to-travel windslab.
No trip to the park is complete with a view of Denali - back left... THAR SHE BLOWS!
Despite the failed objective and painfully slow progress at times, I have fallen for this mode of travel. The sled saves my back and knees from the weight, and as long as I'm content to just ski along at a leisurely pace and take in the views, I can bring enough stuff the stay warm and happy for quite some time. The expected 8 days for a Wonder Lake out and back was overly ambitious (foolish) - it will be more like a 2 or even 3 week trip. Next Christmas / New Years? Exactly!
