2018 Yukon, Northwest Territiories & Alaska – Page 7 – The (Mostly) True Adventures of Lupe

Hope Point, Kenai Mountains, Alaska (8-27-18)

Days 23 & 24 of Lupe’s 2018 Dingo Vacation to the Yukon, Northwest Territories & Alaska!

8-26-18, the wee hours, near MP 33 of the Taylor Highway – For the first time in weeks, Lupe saw stars. Though it was a clear night, she didn’t see as many as might be expected. A brilliant full moon lit the sky enough so only the brightest stars could compete. Nearly a year ago at this same pullout W of Mount Fairplay (5,541 ft.), Lupe had seen the Northern Lights for the first time ever. She was being treated to another display of the ghostly phenomena again tonight.

8-26-18, 6:20 AM, 40°F – Still a dozen miles from the Alaska Highway, SPHP parked the G6 at a pullout on a hill. This was the place Lupe had first seen Mount Fairplay from back in 2017. The next day she had climbed the mountain, returning only yesterday for a second ascent. Such a fabulous peak! Loop wouldn’t see Mount Fairplay again, at least not on this Dingo Vacation, so it was worth a quick stop for a final look.

Loop in the early morning sunlight with **Mount Fairplay** (Center) in the distance. Photo looks NNE.

8-26-18, 9:43 AM, 43°F, Tok Cutoff at the Copper River overlook – Cheerful morning sunshine had quickly given way to the usual dreary overcast. Lupe was on the road W. Since bidding farewell to Mount Fairplay, she’d seen some impressive snowy mountains, but was now ready for a break from the G6. SPHP parked at a scenic lookout near the Copper River not far from the W end of the Tok Cutoff.

The Copper River was running much higher than when Lupe had seen it in 2016 and 2017.

Snow-capped peaks seen from the Tok Cutoff on the way W.

The **Copper River**. This viewpoint along the Tok Cutoff is only a mile or two W of Gakona Junction.

8-26-18, 11:16 AM, 44°F – Continuing W on the Glen Highway, light rain was falling when SPHP caught sight of a lone peak seemingly floating above the clouds. Stopping for a photo, SPHP suddenly realized Lupe had been up there! That was Gunsight Mountain (6,441 ft.) where she had met her friend Australian adventurer Luke Hall two years ago.

**Gunsight Mountain** from the Glenn Highway. Photo looks SW.

Lupe had been up on **Gunsight Mountain** in 2016! Sadly, it wasn’t looking like a good day for a repeat performance.

The farther W SPHP drove, the more the weather deteriorated. Lupe ended up stuck in the G6 in Palmer and Wasilla, where it rained the rest of the day. SPHP stayed busy with adventures in laundry, supplies, and at the car wash. Maybe Lupe needed a day off, anyway? She hardly ate or drank, content simply resting on her pile of pillows and blankets.

8-27-18, 7:13 AM, 53°F, Seward Highway near Girdwood – The new day was off to a hopeful start, entirely appropriate since Lupe was on her way to the Kenai Peninsula to take the trail to Hope Point (3,708 ft.). Not only was it not raining, but skies were clearing over the Turnagain Arm! If this trend held, surely the American Dingo was destined for some fantastic views of the Turnagain Arm from lofty Hope Point.

Checking out the beautiful **Turnagain Arm** from a pullout along the Seward Highway. The new day was looking, yes – hopeful! Photo looks SE.

8-27-18, 8:55 AM, 52°F, Gull Rock & Hope Point trailhead – No one else was around when the Carolina Dog arrived at the Hope Point trailhead. Probably for the best. Turned out someone was feeling more nauseated than hopeful. Within minutes of arriving, Lupe threw up a thoroughly disgusting, mucousy green slime while sniffing among the bushes.

Guess that explained her lack of appetite. Lupe looked guilty, but hadn’t done anything wrong. SPHP encouraged her, and she soon perked up. Getting rid of that awful load would have made anyone feel better.

Feeling perkier again at the Hope Point trailhead on the Kenai Peninsula.

Prior to arrival, SPHP had been under the impression that the Hope Point trail went all the way to the summit. However, information posted at the trailhead said that the maintained trail ended at a cairn 3.2 miles from a junction with the Gull Rock trail. And then what?

Some scrambling is required beyond the rock cairn to reach the summit of Hope Point.

Hmm. No mention of how difficult that scrambling might be. A map showed the trail ending 1,300 feet lower than the summit, not exactly a trivial amount.

Fortunately, the Most Queasy Exalted Dingo of the Arctic Sisterhood seemed sufficiently recovered to take on the Hope Point trail. As soon as SPHP was ready, she set off exhibiting her usual enthusiasm.

The trail immediately entered a primeval forest. Tall trees towered over a lush undergrowth of ferns, devil’s club, and plants with enormous green leaves. Lupe crossed a bridge over a small rushing creek and was underway.

By the bridge over the small creek close to the start of the trail.

*Try to stay alert, SPHP! We’re apt to run into bears or dinosaurs in a place like this!*

After crossing the creek, the trail wound around in the spooky forest. Lupe soon came to the fork where the Gull Rock and Hope Point trails part ways.

At the junction where the Hope Point and Gull Rock trails divide. This junction wasn’t far from the trailhead. 7 minutes? Something like that.

The Hope Point trail was in great shape. It switchbacked at an easy pace up a mountainside, gradually working its way W, then NW, up the valley the creek came down. The trail was soon so high above the creek that the stream could no longer be seen or even heard. Lush, wet vegetation overhung the trail in places. Although it wasn’t raining at the moment, staying dry was a lost cause.

The primeval forest was left behind almost right away as the ferns and devil’s club disappeared, but for a long way the trail remained in a densely forested zone.

Although it wasn’t raining at the moment, Lupe was soon soaking wet from the lush, wet vegetation overhanging the trail.

Above the ferns and devil’s club, the trail remained in heavily forested territory for a long way.

When Lupe got high enough, she finally started coming to little clearings where she had some views. The first views were of the surrounding mountains farther up the valley.

Miss Enormous Pink Tongue reaches one of the first clearings. Photo looks SW.

Other than this ptarmigan, Lupe met no one else at all on the Hope Point trail.

Mountains on the opposite side of the valley. Photo looks W.

Another look with help from the telephoto lens.

After a long switchback to the NW, the trail finally turned E traversing a steep grassy slope. The views were really beginning to open up. Lupe could see the village of Hope to the SE at the lower end of a long canyon. The Turnagain Arm soon came into sight, too.

The views opened up as the trail traversed a steep grassy slope. The village of Hope is down among the trees on the L. Photo looks SE.

Looking back along the grassy slope. The trail was nearly level here. Photo looks NW.

*Now we’re getting somewhere! Look at that, SPHP! The beautiful **Turnagain Arm**. But what happened to our blue skies?* Photo looks E.

The **village of Hope** (R) and **Turnagain Arm** (L). Photo looks SE.

Shortly after the Turnagain Arm appeared, the trail turned sharply NW. Instead of being on a hillside, Lupe was now climbing more steeply up a partially forested ridge. Views were often hidden by bushes and stunted trees. After less than 10 minutes following the ridgeline, the trail leveled out at a spot where there was a big cairn.

After a 9 minute climb NW along a ridgeline, Lupe reaches a large cairn. **Hope Point** (Center) is somewhere up in the clouds beyond Lupe. Photo looks WNW.

Was this the end of the of the maintained trail? Hope Point, or what could be seen of it beneath the cloud cover, still looked a long way up. SPHP checked a photo of the map that was posted at the trailhead. No, this couldn’t be the end of the maintained trail. Lupe hadn’t gone far enough up the ridge yet.

In any case, maintained or not, the trail continued on beyond the cairn. The American Dingo did, too. The Hope Point trail kept following the ridgeline higher. This next section featured lots of bushes, overgrown areas where wet grass nearly as tall as SPHP overhung the trail again, and some very slick muddy spots where the trail dipped temporarily.

None of it was difficult, though. The trail wasn’t all that steep. Loopster enjoyed wildflowers and occasional views along the way.

The **Turnagain Arm** from a viewpoint beyond the first cairn. Photo looks E.

Lupe was still making progress, but things weren’t looking as good as hoped for up at Hope Point. The ridge seen beyond Lupe is at 2,800 feet elevation, still 900 feet lower than the summit. Photo looks WNW.

Bluebells and a bee. Or purplebells, if you’re a stickler for accuracy.

Half an hour at a steady, but leisurely pace brought Lupe to a second cairn. A check of the maps convinced SPHP that this actually was the end of the maintained trail.

Pity those who get fooled by the first cairn, and turn back there! They’ve been cheated! The second cairn sat on a hillock on an open ridge, higher up, and with an unobstructed view of the Turnagain Arm. This was a far superior viewpoint. Off to the NW, across the Turnagain Arm, Lupe could see Anchorage.

Looking E along the **Turnagain Arm**, where a rain shower is in progress.

**Anchorage, Alaska** (Center) sprawls over the flat ground beyond the **Turnagain Arm**. Photo looks NW.

While gazing toward Anchorage, SPHP suddenly realized that far, far away a huge white mountain was dimly visible in a gap between cloud layers. Like an abominable monster, Denali (20,310 ft.), the highest peak in North America, loomed menacingly over the unsuspecting city! Lupe could see it from here!

**Denali**, floating in a gap between cloud layers, seems to loom over E Anchorage (L) and the Knik Arm. Photo looks NNW with help from the telephoto lens.

Unfortunately, the news on the weather front was not as good as it had been earlier. The morning sunshine was gone. Quite a while ago, those blue skies had been completely overrun by gray clouds. Hope Point was in their grasp, too.

All hope wasn’t completely lost yet, though. With 1,300 feet of elevation gain to go, it would take Lupe a while to get up there. The summit still appeared to be faintly visible, and conditions might improve. If Loop got lucky, maybe the cloud deck would lift enough to grant her at least a peek at the magnificent views that must be available from Hope Point on a clear day?

The next part of the journey was a 400 foot climb up to a ridge at the 2,800 foot level. From the second cairn, a trail could be seen winding up a steep, grassy slope. The fact that any kind of visible trail continued on beyond this point was encouraging. Lupe and SPHP set out for the 2,800 foot ridge.

Beyond the second cairn, a trail winds up a grassy slope to the next ridge at the 2,800 foot level. Lupe not looking too enthused, or perhaps simply not feeling well at this point. She is still close to the second cairn here. Photo looks W.

The last little bit getting up onto the 2,800 foot ridge involved the only real scramble of the day. Mild and over quickly. Nothing to worry about. Lupe was up in a flash. The trail continued W staying on the ridge or toward the L (S) avoiding impressive drops to the R (N).

The 2,800 foot ridge was rocky, and a little rough. At the same time, it was fairly level, and not terribly long. Lupe soon reached the W end. She was now faced with a 300 foot climb up to a saddle at 3,100 feet. A decent trail continued up another steep grassy slope to the saddle.

Just beyond the W end of the 2,800 foot ridge looking up at the 3,100 foot saddle. Photo looks WSW.

By the time Lupe reached the 3,100 foot saddle, she was getting into fog. Not a good sign, as far as her hopes of seeing anything from up on Hope Point went. The unmaintained trail was still in good condition, though. Despite fading expectations, Lupe continued higher.

Looking back down on the **2,800 foot ridge** (L) on the way up to the 3,100 foot saddle. The partially forested lower ridgeline (Center) Lupe had come up where both cairns had been is in view, too. Photo looks E.

Loopster at the **3,100 foot saddle** determined to press on! Photo looks SE.

The trail continues! It goes toward the L (SW), ultimately curling back up to the N (R) on Hope Point’s S ridge. Lupe is still at the **3,100 foot saddle** here, about 600 feet below the summit. Photo looks W.

From the 3,100 foot saddle, the trail went SW gaining elevation steadily at an easy pace. The path became narrower as it traversed slopes of scree. Upon reaching Hope Point’s S ridge, the trail turned N, climbing more steeply while following the ridge to the top of the mountain.

Conditions weren’t terrible, but they weren’t all that great either, when Loop arrived at the summit of Hope Point (3,708 ft.). Foggy, raining, 45°F, with a 10-15 mph wind out of the W. Lupe stood in the rain atop the high point cold, wet, not feeling too well, and with little to show for her efforts despite a peakbagging success.

The Hope survey benchmark at the high point.

On the summit standing next to the Hope survey benchmark.

Taking pity on Lupe, SPHP retreated to a spot with soft tundra a little down the E side of the summit ridge to get her out of the wind. Lupe curled up on SPHP’s lap inside the blue rain poncho.

It was too little, too late. Loopster was already drenched. After trying the poncho for a few minutes, she decided she might as well get out, and endure whatever the elements threw at her. She curled up on the soft tundra, but that wasn’t a solution, either. Nothing felt good. Lupe sat forlornly in the cold rain looking utterly dejected and miserable.

They say that hope springs eternal. Not at Hope Point. Lupe waited, but the wind blew, the rain came down, the fog only worsened, and her faint hopes for a turn in the weather collapsed and died.

May as well call it. Not happening, not today. Lupe had done all she could. No sense in allowing Hope Point a shot at transforming itself into Pneumonia Point. After 25 less than delightful minutes at the summit, the American Dingo brightened when SPHP proposed heading down.

Onward! Puppy, ho! Back down the scree slopes on the narrow trail. Rain and fog now extended below the 2,800 foot ridge. Lupe was barely out of the fog by the time she reached the second cairn at 2,400 feet again, the rain reduced to mere mist.

At the W end of the **2,800 foot ridge** on the return. Photo looks E.

Exiting the fog on the way down to the second cairn (L). Photo looks E.

On the open ridge close to the second cairn, Lupe stood on the edge of a silvery world. The tide had been going out. The Turnagain Arm was a combination of shallow sea and mud flats. Visibility was poor beneath low hanging clouds. Yet the monotone scene blended perfectly in silvery silence, seeming as a long forgotten, mystical land glimpsed through the haze of dim memory, not mist.

The return trek was actually quite a lot of fun. Down the long, winding trail, Lupe sniffed and explored as she gradually dried out. Before she reached the primeval forest near the trailhead, sunshine glimmered among the trees.

A glimmer of sunshine in the dank forest.

8-27-18, 4:26 PM, 61°F, Hope Point trailhead – By the time Lupe was back at the G6, the camera was malfunctioning. Error messages and shutting itself down as soon as turned on. Fresh batteries didn’t help. Must have gotten too wet. A couple of hours spent trying to dry it out were to no avail. The camera was old, and had been having intermittent problems for over a year. This time it was a goner.

So Lupe enjoyed an evening ride. The cloud cover was breaking up, as SPHP drove the Seward Highway along the Turnagain Arm back to Anchorage. Suddenly a fiery golden-orange sun burst through in a blaze of glory, brilliantly illuminating pink and yellow clouds reflected on the shimmering sea. The promised land! The gateway to Heaven! Perhaps the most glorious scene Lupe and SPHP had ever seen!

A backup camera might serve, but the Seward Highway was jam-packed with traffic desperate to roar along at top speed. Highway construction. A narrow lane between endless orange cones permitted no deviation. No place to escape the road and park.

Oh, for Lupe to have been up on Hope Point then, during the ten glorious minutes before the sun disappeared and nirvana faded to gray! Not to be. Yet hope was restored for new and sunnier adventures to come.

**Hope Point**, Kenai Mountains, Alaska 8-27-18

Directions to the Hope Point trailhead – At mile 56.5, Seward Highway, turn W onto Hope Highway. Drive 17.8 miles, take a L 500 feet before the Porcupine Campground, drive 0.25 mile to the trailhead.

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Mount Fairplay near Chicken, Alaska (8-25-18)

Day 22 of Lupe’s 2018 Dingo Vacation to the Yukon, Northwest Territories & Alaska!

9:11 AM, 38°F – Fog and light mist! So, what else was new? The Most High Exalted Dingo of the Arctic Sisterhood was leaving the Yukon, and heading for Alaska! The border was only a couple of km W, and ought to be open by now. A vehicle heading E on the Top of the World Highway confirmed it. Someone had made it through. Onward!

9:52 AM, 39°F – Lupe had made it into Alaska! She’d breezed right on through customs, but hadn’t gone much farther. The plan was to keep doing domes today. In this weather, Loop seemed destined to continue yesterday’s foggy, soggy doggie escapades along the Top of the World Highway. The G6 was parked only a short distance NE of Davis Dome (4,124 ft.), a mere mile or two W of customs.

However, the doing domes plan was off to a poor start. Davis Dome ought to have been an easy climb. The summit was only 0.25 mile away, and something like 300 feet higher, a situation similar to the one at Swede Dome (4,150 ft.) yesterday, but no sooner had Lupe reached the pullout near Davis Dome than the light mist turned to constant rain. The fog was so thick, not even the closest part of Davis Dome was in sight.

Mist was one thing, rain and dense fog was another. No sense in getting totally soaking wet to start off the day, just to see nothing at all. Lupe and SPHP waited for a while, but the rain wouldn’t quit, and Davis Dome didn’t appear. May as well forget it, and move on! However, conditions were the same when Lupe reached Jack Wade Junction S of Steele Creek Dome (4,015 ft.). This time she didn’t wait around.

12:59 PM, 45°F – After crossing a bridge over the South Fork of the Fortymile River, SPHP turned into a rest area on the R (N) where there were a few picnic tables. Not foggy down here, and the rain had finally ended a couple of miles back. Lupe and SPHP took a short walk along the river. The South Fork was brown with sediment and running high. Hardly surprising, considering how seldom Loop had seen the sun on this Dingo Vacation.

The South Fork of the Fortymile River is 6 or 7 miles E of Chicken, Alaska.

SPHP prepared a quick lunch at one of the picnic tables. Looper’s joy at being released from the G6 turned to ecstasy upon discovering a squirrel in a nearby tree. Lunch became a shrill, noisy event.

Although doing domes had been at least a partial success yesterday, the domes had been a complete flop this morning. Lupe was beyond them now. The weather had finally improved, though. Loop could go back to see if conditions had changed back at the domes, but that didn’t make much sense. If it was going to turn into a decent day, she had a much better option ahead. Chicken, Alaska was only 6 or 7 miles farther, and 34 miles S of Chicken a fabulous peak was right along the highway.

Lupe and SPHP had discovered Mount Fairplay (5,541 ft.) entirely by accident while coming the opposite direction in 2017. First seen from afar, Mount Fairplay looked like merely a barren hill, but a very high one sitting off by itself in grand isolation. Unaware of its existence prior to catching sight of it, SPHP had been instantly impressed. Lupe could climb that! And the American Dingo had, too, when it turned out that the Taylor Highway (Hwy 5) went right by it.

With over 3,000 feet of prominence, Mount Fairplay is the dominant high point of a large region. The climb from a highway pullout W of the summit involves a tad more than 2,000 feet of elevation gain. No trail, but the trek isn’t particularly difficult, not even much of a scramble. Lupe had such a good time last year, and the whole experience had been so magnificent, that a return to Mount Fairplay was high on the wish list for this Dingo Vacation.

1:41 PM, 50°F, Chicken, Alaska – Loop had been reluctant to leave the wonderful squirrel back at the South Fork of the Fortymile River, but SPHP had left her little choice. The promised chickens at Chicken, Alaska were big and colorful enough, but in the Carolina Dog’s opinion completely lacking in the feisty pizazz that the squirrel had exhibited.

Chicken, Alaska at MP 66.9 of the Taylor Highway, is about the only place to get fuel or supplies between the Alaska Highway SE of Tok, Alaska and Dawson City in the Yukon.

*Chickens are fine, I suppose, but I’d rather be at Squirrel, Alaska.*

The sky was still overcast. The ground was wet here, indicating it had rained recently (of course), sadly dampening SPHP’s expectations for Mount Fairplay. Nevertheless, after checking out the chickens, Lupe hit the road again.

2:40 PM, 46°F – Fantastic! Not a drop of rain on the way from Chicken to the pullout just S of MP 33 along the Taylor Highway. In fact, although the summit of Mount Fairplay (5,541 ft.) was in the clouds as Lupe set out, a fair amount of blue sky elsewhere was quite encouraging.

The first task was to get through a large zone of tall bushes on the slope immediately E of the highway. Lupe had a great time exploring, while SPHP thrashed around looking for the easiest route up onto a broad, open ridge above.

The bushes were wet. So were Loop and SPHP by the time open terrain was reached. At least there was some sunshine to help dry off a bit.

On the ridge above the bushes. Thoroughly soaked, but in sunshine and high spirits!

Approaching the tundra-covered part of the ridge. **Mount Fairplay** (L) in the clouds. Photo looks SE.

Once up on the open terrain, Lupe turned SE following the broad ridge higher. This ridge is the longest part of the journey up Mount Fairplay. At first, spongy tundra, low bushes, and scattered rocks predominated. Lupe already had some great views, but was having way to much fun roaming and sniffing to pay them any attention.

On the way up the lower portion of the broad ridge. Lupe would head toward the L side of the high saddle beyond her. The summit of Mount Fairplay (Center) is nearly out of the clouds now. Photo looks SE.

Above the bushes with beautiful views. Photo looks S.

For a while, the summit of Mount Fairplay basked in sunshine. Lupe made steady progress up the long slope, which slowly steepened. The tundra was gorgeous and optimism prevailed.

For a while, **Mount Fairplay** basked in sunshine. Photo looks SE.

As Lupe gained elevation, she started coming to channels full of dark rocks encrusted with pale green lichens. The rocks were a jumble, but at times SPHP could make better progress on the rocks than trying to deal with the soft tundra.

Channels of dark rocks appeared with increasing frequency. Photo looks SSE.

The tundra was somewhat boggy the entire way up the long slope. Near the start of the steeper climb up to the saddle S of the summit, the tundra actually became wetter. Streams trickled among the vegetation. Lupe came to holes full of water. Choosing routes carefully, SPHP tried to avoid the wettest areas.

Getting close to the start of the steeper climb. Photo looks ENE.

Loop in one of many waterholes hidden in the tundra.

After traveling the long slope, the next phase of the journey was an ascent of the saddle ridge beyond Lupe. Photo looks E.

Once Lupe reached the rocks at the base of the huge saddle ridge, she was beyond all the wetlands. The climb became considerably steeper now. The Carolina Dog scrambled up rock-strewn slopes. She followed lanes of vegetation. The higher she went, the sparser and drabber the vegetation became, but the tundra never disappeared entirely.

*Hey look, SPHP! We’re almost to the saddle already. ….. Uh, not really, Looper. It’s a false summit. Still a long way to go yet!*

The views kept improving. Photo looks SW.

Higher up, it was a much rockier world. The tundra became drier, drabber, and sparse. Photo looks NE.

The saddle S of the summit was another broad ridge, mostly rocky and fairly flat. At the S end sat a prominent rock formation. Lupe turned N toward the summit. The final climb was no more difficult than getting up onto the saddle had been. Soon Lupe was nearing the same towers she had seen on Mount Fairplay in 2017.

**Mount Fairplay’s S ridge**. This is the saddle that Lupe had been climbing toward. Photo looks SSW.

To SPHP, it seemed sort of incredible that Lupe had actually returned to the summit of Mount Fairplay (5,541 ft.), yet here she was again! The mountain had become an old friend. The summit was just as it had been a year ago, an oblong shaped area covered with dark rock, towers, and associated equipment.

At first, it was often sunny, but chilly, with a W wind driving clouds and showers this way. SPHP layered up, and even put on gloves. Ignoring the approaching clouds for the time being, Lupe and SPHP took a tour of the summit area. The entire summit was several hundred feet long, and no more than half as wide.

On the highest rocks, which were toward the S end. Photo looks NNW.

Most of the S half of the summit. Photo looks S.

This survey benchmark is toward the N end of the summit area. SPHP hadn’t even known the name of the mountain until Lupe came across this benchmark during her first ascent in 2017.

Looking ENE with help from the telephoto lens, A bit of rainbow is on the R.

Sniffing along the SE edge. Photo looks SSW.

SPHP was amazed again by these fabulous views, yet increasingly leery of a line of showers still approaching from the W. Blue sky could always be seen, but sunshine disappeared. Mount Fairplay was in shadow, as a parade of large clouds began sailing overhead.

Meanwhile, having completed her tour of the summit area, Lupe was sniffing her way back toward the shed and towers near the S end, when an electrifying, unmistakable sound reached her big soft Dingo ears.

A squirrel!

What? Unbelievable! Not a tree within a mile in any direction. What on earth would a squirrel be doing way up here?

Perhaps it was a peakbagging squirrel? It was certainly a great climber, but then again, most squirrels are. Furthermore, this particular squirrel had tremendous incentive. Lupe was off like a shot after it, but the squirrel, which never should have broken radio silence, raced to the safety of the top of a skinny pole, and refused to budge from then on.

Lupe was beside herself, first with joy, then with frustration. She sniffed all around a metal shed and nearby towers. Where on earth had that squirrel disappeared to? The squirrel couldn’t keep a secret, and soon gave its position away.

Aha! Way up there, aye?

Searching for the Mount Fairplay peakbagging squirrel. It’s at the top of the tall pole (Center) near Lupe. Photo looks S.

A squirrel on Mount Fairplay? Why? How? Maybe it was nuts, instead of looking for them? Wasn’t crazy enough to come down, though.

The rest of her nearly hour long stay on Mount Fairplay, Lupe remained entranced by and preoccupied with that dang squirrel. The Carolina Dog was still willing to pose for a photo or two, but once they were taken, she invariably went immediately back to trying to solve the problem of how to get at the squirrel.

Time and again, Lupe circled the pole, all the nearby towers, and sniffed around the shed. She attacked a step ladder leaning against the shed, to no effect. That squirrel at least had sense enough to stay put. It wasn’t going anywhere. Fine! Lupe eventually laid down to wait it out.

*I see you now! I know you’re up there! Why don’t you come down? We can play a game! How about a round of **Predator & Prey**?*

*Oh, fun! Kinda busy right now, though. I have other plans. Go ahead and start without me.*

*No worries! I’ll wait! Come down as soon as you can.*

When rain showers appeared imminent, SPHP grabbed Lupe and hid with her on the downwind E side of the metal shed. No need to. The showers hit, but rain didn’t. Snow! Heh. Snow wasn’t a problem, not enough of it to matter. The clouds passed, and the snow ended.

Lupe went back to squirrel duty. SPHP wandered the summit of Mount Fairplay gazing out on the incredible Alaskan scenery. Mountains were in all directions, but for a very long way, none were as high as Mount Fairplay. All the rolling hills nearby were much lower.

Looking down **Mount Fairplay’s S ridge**. Photo looks SW.

Loopster gets back into the picture, while still keeping a watchful eye on the squirrel. Photo looks SSW.

The view to the W. Lupe had come up the long golden slope in sunlight from R to L. The G6 is parked at a pullout (not visible) along the Taylor Highway toward the R.

Same view with lots of help from the telephoto lens.

An endless stream of clouds sailed overhead. A few were dark enough to look a bit ominous, but nothing ever happened except brief peltings by tiny snow granules. Lupe kept up her squirrel vigilance. The hills in all directions had a mottled appearance, partly in sunshine and partly in shadow, but Mount Fairplay remained dark and cold.

Another dark cloud sails overhead. Photo looks SW.

Looper hadn’t even started out for Mount Fairplay until mid-afternoon. After a glorious hour, it was time to press on. The American Dingo was reluctant to leave, chagrined that the squirrel had not come down from its spectacular perch to play.

However, if the squirrel wasn’t interested in a game of Predator & Prey, there were other fun things to do. In 2017, Lupe had not visited the big rock formation at the S end of the saddle S of Mount Fairplay, even though it had been tempting to go check it out. This time around, SPHP was determined that Loop was going to get a chance to explore it.

Approaching the first big rock formation on Mount Fairplay’s S ridge. Photo looks SSW.

Scrambling up was trickier than it looked. Lupe got close to the top of the rock formation, and might have been able to reach it, but settled for a bit less. She already had a nice view over the length of the big saddle back to the summit of Mount Fairplay (5,541 ft.), and there was plenty more intriguing territory to explore farther S.

Lots more fun territory to explore. Photo looks SSW.

The S ridge was rocky and rough. Loop abandoned the ridgeline bound for easier terrain below. Perhaps upset at having been led away from not one, but two, perfectly good squirrels today, the were-puppy made an appearance. The were-puppy first attacked SPHP, then delivered a stern lecture.

*I’d already found a squirrel up on Mount Fairplay! Why did we have to come down here?*

Lupe soon forgave SPHP, though, as she entered a golden land. With no goals or objectives to pursue other than to enjoy a magical evening in the trackless Alaskan wilderness, Lupe and SPHP simply wandered.

Looking back along the S ridge. The rock formation Lupe had climbed nearly to the top of is on the L. Photo looks NE.

Another look back. Mount Fairplay’s summit (L of Center) is the high point below the small cloud. Photo looks NNE.

The evening was magical! The Carolina Dog roamed free, far and wide. Lupe went a long way SW before SPHP realized it was time to start N in hopes of finding a way back down to the Taylor Highway not too far from the G6.

At one point Lupe came to a column of rock on the edge of a ridge. The skies had been clearing, and the evening had turned mostly sunny, but an impressive cloud still hung over Mount Fairplay as Lupe stood poised on the column.

**Mount Fairplay** (L) momentarily plagued by yet another dark cloud. Photo looks NE.

*You know, SPHP, there’s a squirrel up there. If we had only waited, I bet it would have come down by now.*

Though still August, this far N it was early autumn. As the sun slid ever closer to the far horizon, its slanting rays set aglow the blazing colors of the tundra. For a while Lupe and SPHP stopped to rest on a hillside, and ponder the sublime beauty of this precious world.

A magical evening on the W slopes of Mount Fairplay. Photo looks NW.

During the rest of the gorgeous trek back, the clouds all disappeared. Perhaps this magical evening was about to be followed by a magical night?

In the entire 3 weeks since the American Dingo had left Montana, Lupe hadn’t seen a single star. A year ago in early September, an orange moon had risen over Mount Fairplay in the wee hours of the morning, and for the very first time, Lupe had seen the Northern Lights.

Wouldn’t it be a treat, if she was in for a repeat performance tonight? (9:38 PM)

Returning from Mount Fairplay, Alaska 8-25-18

Links:

Next Adventure Prior Adventure

The Taylor Highway

Mount Fairplay & Chicken, Alaska to the Top of the World Highway & Dawson City, Yukon Territory (9-2-17 & 9-3-17)