Hatcher Pass Summit, Alaska

One last day trip before leaving Alaska. Tonya decided to take us to nearby Hatcher Pass Summit.  It would be an easy ride from the house. Tonya must have scripted the day for this road trip as it was clear and beautiful, which made this trip all the better.  Hatcher Pass is a montain pass between the towns of Willow and Palmer running through the southwest part of the Talkeetna Mountains in the Mat-Su Valley.  Elevation 3,886 feet. It is named after Robert Hatcher, a prospector and miner.  In my opinion, this was one of the more beautiful and picturesque drives of our trip.  The pass is open officially from July 4th to October 1st ish...and as long as the road is clear from snow.

Hatcher Pass Lodge is a popular place to stay if you want to take extra time for hiking and exploring this area.






As beautiful as the drive getting to the summit was, it kept getting better. This is one of those spots where you are obliged to have your picture taken.  So we did.





Letting go the magic!









At the top of Hatcher Pass is Summit Lake, a glacier fed lake that is turquoise colored.







Driving away from the summit, we spotted this hang glider.  How awesome that would be.







Shortly after returning from this wonderful day trip, Boone and I would be driving to Anchorage for the night and making ready for an early morning flight for the 13 hour trip home.  I am not sure how I would do in Alaska when daylight only last a little more than an hour a day and the temps are frigid, but I would come back this time of year in a heart beat.  Tonya and John were the perfect hosts who showed us Alaska only as locals can by combining touring with life as they live it. I could not have scripted this better.

Talkeetna, Alaska

The day we visited Talkeetna,  Tonya first wanted to show us one of their favorite camping spots.  To get there, we had to take our favorite kind of road...no lines.  And look where it ends!



Tonya got some alone time with Uncle Butch (Boone) and her Dad.




One more detour before heading to Talkeetna...we had to see Denali, also known as Mount McKinley, the highest mountain peak in North America at 20,310 feet above sea level. The upper half of Denali is permanently covered with snow.  It has its own weather system and more tourists than not never get a glimpse of it as it is so often cloud covered.  We were blessed to get a glimpse of part of Denali.

Denali is that very bright white thing at the edge of the clouds.





NEXT STOP: TALKEETNA, population about 876. The town is only a few blocks long so exploring the shops and restaurants is very doable.




There is lots to explore here, but we had to eat first.  The food is delicious at Mountain High Pizza Pie.  There weather was perfect for outdoor seating.



Everything in Talkeetna is old.  The Fairview Inn is a lot of fun to explore.

You must visit Aurora Dora's Gallery.  Dora Miller is fun to talk to and knows all there is to know about what it takes to get photos of the Aurora Borealis.  I bought this photo printed on metal.

After a very fun day, we back home with Tonya and John for a fabulous dinner on their back deck.


I have had some mighty good food in my day, but this dinner was well at the top.  Thanks to Tonya's daughter for making her grandmother's recipe for lasagna.

….and a wine named after me!  Hello!!!  To top it all off, this was a late night dinner...the photo below was taken at 12:30 AM!  That's summer time in Alaska for ya.


This is what it looked like every night all night...except for a little over an hour, which we never witnessed.