Summarizing Summer . . .

Superior:  Wyatt, Gus and I flew down to Michigan where we stayed with my parents at their camp in Little Traverse Bay on Lake Superior. The water was a little cold and the mosquitoes were prolific, but we thoroughly enjoyed spending time with the family.  And even though Alaska had a warmer and drier than normal summer, the summer temperatures are always warmer other places.  Michigan was no exception. 


Gus enjoying a campfire on the beach with his cousins.



Wyatt's fascination with snakes hasn't diminished.

 

Surfing:  From the U.P., we flew down to Cabo San Lucas, Mexico, rented a car, and drove north to Todos Santos to surf.  We stayed minutes from the beach and spent 4 days at the beach surfing, boogie boarding and playing in the waves.  By the end of day four, my body was aching and my eyes so sunburn it hurt to open them in broad daylight without sunglasses.  It was a good thing that I had a travel day.   

 Scuba Diving:  Although it had been nearly 25 years since I put on a scuba gear and received my PADI Open Water Diver, I was anxious to put on gear and try it again.  We made our way to Cabo Pulmo Dive Resort on the Sea of Cortez to explore the underworld.  I took a refresher course, Gus a Discover Scuba Class, and Wyatt became certified as an Open Water Diver.  

Snorkeling by the Arch:  After we finished the diving classes, we circled back around to Cabo for two nights.  My mission was to get to Cabo's famous Arch to snorkel without taking one of the million tourist water taxis.  Ironically, it was a local, who was selling tourist adventures around Cabo, who told me where to park and assured me it wasn't too difficult as long as we didn't mind getting wet from the shore break and climbing over a few rocks.  

Lover's Beach; where the Sea of  Cortez meets the Pacific Ocean

After we finished snorkeling, we walked out between the rocks and watched the enormous surf of the Pacific bang against the beach.  The Go Pro ran out of batteries, so we didn't get any good pictures. 

 

Europe: While the boys and I were busy in our travels Bryant was thousands of miles away pursuing a dream of his own - traveling Europe.  He flew into Germany, headed south to Italy, north to the French Alps and back to Germany.  Condor Airlines has straight flights from Anchorage to Frankfurt, Germany.

Along with seeing some of the culture the area had to offer, he climbed thousands of feet in the mountains on his road bike.  A highlight at the end of his trip was being able to ride his bike up the mountain to see a couple of stages of the 100th Running of the Tour de France.  For someone who has spend many hours riding a bike on the trainer in the garage watching bike races, it was exciting to see him have the opportunity to fulfill this dream.   

The pass Bryant road over to get to the Tour De France

A couple of weeks after his return, we biked to Hatcher's Pass from the house.  Looking at the pictures of the two places side by side, I had to chuckle at how similar the terrain looks! 

Bryant at the top of Hatcher's Pass near Palmer, Alaska





For the past couple of years, I've been making my way to the top of the pass at least twice in a season and the only satisfaction I have is that the end of the year ride always feels a little easier than the beginning of the year ride.  And this day was no exception. 

 Top of Hatchers Pass near Palmer, Alaska

While June and July were warmer and drier than normal, August was its usual rainy and cloudy self.  Finally when the weather cleared on a Sunday afternoon in late August, we decided to headed up to Hatcher's Pass. 

Yesterday after Bryant finished his long bike and I my long run, we dug in the closet and actually found some nice clothes to wear and celebrate our 10th Anniversary by eating out at a local restaurant.  We both feel very fortunate to have had all the adventures we've had in the last 10 years and look forward to many more.   

10th Anniversary

That pretty much "Summarizes Summer."  Over the years, I've been keeping this blog for a dual purpose, to keep others informed and for me to document events.  I've realized my memory can't always keep up with everything and the details over the years and events sometimes contradict themselves.  The blog will keep it all straight if I stay faithful, and I will attempt to do better as we have already approached fall.