Going to the Beach

Sometimes, living in Anchorage while everyone back in the midwest is actually experiencing a spring is a bit of a downer. Up here, we are just finally starting to see our bulbs pop up and our grass start to turn green. Stories about 70 degree weather really make us jealous.

In order to escape the spring "blahs", Frank, Galileo and I went on a bit of an adventure last Saturday and made our way to the "beach" at Kincaid Park. In order to get there, you have to find a good trail off the coastal trail -- the best trail can change based on the day and tide schedule.

It's worth it though! Take a look at these pictures:

That's real sand!
Piles of driftwood and the water behind it.
Aren't those mountains a nice backdrop?
At first, this looked like a mushroom cloud, but of course it's really just a strange cloud formation.
A driftwood "hut" on the beach.
This is just a nice picture of the beachfront.
We were very close to the airport.
Down at the beach, it really feels like you are far away from everything. It's just you, the water, the rocks, and the scenery.
The rocks are interesting down there too. They are so colorful and unusual to this Midwestern girl!
Another picture across the mud flats. We saw (and heard) so many birds that day!
Galileo LOVES the beach!
We played a lot of tag with Galileo...he loves to run back and forth between us. Galileo's got this drive to get us both right next to each other. Here he is trying to "herd" me back into the fold.
Here's a view over the sandbar and reeds. In the fall, you can see moose sometimes out here.
This sign is a warning, but it's really hard to read from where we were. The bluff there also shows where the coastal trail was in reference to the beach.

It was really great to be out there enjoying nature. Although spring has taken a long time to get here, it's amazing how fast things change here once it takes hold. For example, the flowers below in the windowsill? They are HUGE now -- I had to move the flowers into their own pots after a week! Our grass that was covered in snow? Every day there is visibly more green. Our raspberry shoots are halfway through our yard now -- totally crazy and out of control.

Have a good weekend! Happy belated Cinco de Mayo!