9/28/20 – Day 4 in Alaska Up Ship Creek

Today I rode Chester Creek Trail to the Tony Knowles Coastal Trail past downtown Anchorage to Ship Creek Trail. I don’t know why it’s called Ship Creek, it’s hardly navigable, but it does meander past the port where ships dock, and eventually merges with Alaska Hwy. 1 to Denali and on to Fairbanks. In the summer, when it’s light all the time, I’ll bet one could easily travel the 300-plus mile distance on sunshine. Hummmmm. I’ll bet I could make it in two days. Along with the wildlife and natural scenery, there’s a lot of industry along the Trail. Shipping containers are stacked 5 high, waiting to take stuff away and bring stuff in.

It was overcast today and rained off an on. I limited my riding to 20 miles, using one more bar of solar energy. I had time to drive in my rental car up toward Denali, but only got a good look at it through the telescope at a roadside park. It’s over 20,000 feet, but often is shrouded in clouds. The mountain is so big it creates its own weather. Still, looking through the scope, I got a glimpse of the top as the cloud cover cleared momentarily. What I saw was hard, steep, dark shinny rock coated with ice. It looks completely foreboding, impossible to climb, yet people have now for over a century. Maybe I’ll get a better look before I go.