The Bear Went Over the Mountain

We've been trying to take advantage of the weather when it's good, so we've been doing a lot of hiking. Saturday, we did a short hike up Mt Gordon Lyons, which is about a 30 minute drive north of town.

It was a bit cloudy in the valleys,

but to the west it was clearing up and we got some great views.

Mt Susitna (The Sleeping Lady) with the Alaska Range in the background.

Me with Denali (Mt. McKinley) waaaay in the background.

Ethan and our friend Robin standing on the peak of Mt. Gordon Lyon.

I also got a chance to see something kind of cool -- a glory, which is the phenomenon when the shadow of something below you has a rainbow or a halo of light around it. I've seen this from the plane before, but never from the viewpoint of an observer on the ground. I think this may also be an example of the Brocken spectre, another cool and unusual phenomenon.

No, I'm not the chosen one, but I will accept your gifts anyway.

Remember how in my last post I was talking about signs of fall? The further up in elevation you go, the more apparent they are. Here the fireweed is already turning colors. I think fall is already here.

The red plants are the turning fireweed.

I don't know how long it will be before we get termination dust...and then more and more snow until we can't really reach these peaks. But we'll keep hiking until we do.