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| Bonanza Mine |
On Thursday, Tori Latiolais, Alex
Robin, Sarah Vining, Sarah Cruth, Breanne Hernandez, Kay Manuel and I set out
for the 9-mile hike to Bonanza Mine located on the Bonanza Peak at the Kennecott Mines National Historic Landmark. This hike
definitely challenged my endurance, as virtually the entire trail was at a
steep incline. Fortunately for us, the weather was absolutely perfect with the
temperature around 70 degrees and clear skies, and after about 5 hours, we made
it to Bonanza Mine!
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| We made it! HOM at Bonanza Mine |
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| Alex playing in the snow |
Once we had soaked in the beauty of
the Mine and the beautiful glacier backdrop, it was soon time to brave the 4.5
miles back down the peak. This was the part I was most dreading – steep ascents
mean difficult descents. My knees and ankles were already screaming when a
brilliant idea came to me. We had noticed many snow patches along the trail
(even stopping a couple of times to play in it!). Why not just ride one down to
sidestep descending the steepest part of the mountain? I have to admit, at
first, I thought my idea was laughable, but then again, I saw a guy earlier run
down the mountain via snow patch. I thought to myself when would I ever be back
in Alaska and decided to go for it. Plus, it looked like a whole lot of fun.
The experience proved not to be disappointing…
Tori, Alex, Sarah Vining, and I all
decided that it would be worthwhile. Tori got a roaring and unexpected start
when she slipped and pummeled down on her stomach. She surprisingly did not
hurt herself during the plummet (no, that would happen later on the trail when
she faced off with a rock). We had an incredible time slipping and sliding, and
we laughed the entire way down. It proved to be an efficient and fun way to
descend the mountain. I’m so happy we did it!
--Kristen Hunter
1 comment:
I remember that day. GwH
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