The Last Few Weeks

After returning to Alaska from my southern tour, I wanted nothing more than to stick around Fairbanks for a while and to keep my feet on the ground; however, it was only a few days before I boarded a plane for Colorado. I had a meeting in Keystone and seized the opportunity to visit my cousin Cori in Denver. Unfortunately we were only able to catch up for one evening, and I didn't take any pictures, but it was great to see her again. (Thanks for the great hospitality, Cori!) Soon enough I was in beautiful Keystone, Colorado, where the weather was perfect. I left the window of my hotel room open 24 hours a day and enjoyed the sun and beautiful views during breaks from the meeting.



A few days later, I was back in the Denver airport, yet again returning to Fairbanks. Coincidentally, my friend Carrie's sister Rachel and her daughter Claire were on the same flights as I was. Rachel lives in Colorado and was heading to Alaska to visit Carrie. What are the chances?

Since there were visitors in Fairbanks, a little entertaining was in order. Carrie and Thea, Rachel and Claire, and I headed out to Mt. Prindle to hike up the Quartz Creek Trail and pick some blueberries!


There weren't a whole lot of blueberries to be had, but the view from the trail was gorgeous.



The only wildlife we saw were some grouse hanging out on the hilltop, but it was a sighting none the less.


Since there weren't many blueberries to be had this year, thanks to a few weeks straight of rain, I still had the berry picking bug. It didn't take long when I got a tip that the raspberries at Pearl Creek Farms were great this year (Thanks, Andy!), so I headed on over there and picked a gallon of raspberries in short order. Mette and Kieran joined me for a bit because who can resist raspberries? Yum!


The only other annual tradition that needed to be fulfilled before the snow starts to fly was attending the demolition derby with Carrie. This year Thea was able to enjoy being a 'red-neck-for-a-day' with us, and now you can too thanks to the following video.

Diversified fun is a must!