It took us almost a week for our sore muscles to recover from the trek up Harp Mountain here in Alaska. Sucks to be out of shape! However, another week of otter necropsies and we were good and ready to get back out on the trails. This past weekend, we planned out a stimulating one-way hike, beginning in Arctic Valley, and returning us to the South Fork trailhead in Eagle River, not far from where we are staying at Verena’s house. We mapped out our route using Google Earth, where we planned to follow the mountain ridge line and have towering views on either side. Ahhh, it always looks so much easier on a map than it does when you are actually face-to-face looking up the mountain! There were also several challenging geocaches along the planned route, which made it even more alluring (well, at least for me).

We drove our borrowed Subaru up a long winding gravel road to the start of the Rendezvous Peak trail. Upon arrival, there were some other hikers there in shorts. Although the sun was shining, we knew it would be chilly at the higher elevations so we came prepared in pants, long sleeves, and windbreaker jackets. The trail began at the Arctic Valley ski area -- no skiing right now, though!

The trail began as a gentle climb through a lush green valley. There were plenty of wildflowers and golden-crowned sparrows in the fields. Ravens appeared high up in the sky, sailing on wind thermals. The air was cool and crisp, just breathing it in feels like biting into a Peppermint Patty!

After an hour or so of ascending a mild incline, we deviated off the path and blazed our own trail up a steeper slope to grab our first geocache of the day. Definitely started to work those calf and quad muscles! Nice views of Arctic Valley pass, but we weren’t at the top of Rendezvous Peak just yet.

We descended a bit into a wide open pass before the grueling ascent of Mt. Rendezvous. To the east were some extensive views of Eagle River valley below and the community of homes down there. We looked up the mountain (to Eliana’s right, below) and prepared for the steepest climb of the day!

We just love these wide-open spaces...

After some huffing and puffing, we were at the top of Rendezvous Peak at about 4,000’! You could see all the way to Anchorage from up there. We grabbed a few more geocaches, and had a more leisurely stroll along the ridge line after that.

Since we were already so high up, there wasn’t much more climbing that could be done. We stayed at one elevation for a while, which is always nice. There was a little bit of snow remaining in patches, and the ground squirrels were barking at our presence. We spotted a Northern Goshawk hunting for ground squirrels, and some horned larks were feeding on bugs. It was much cooler and windier up here, and Eliana’s bad fingers started hurting as they usually do when it gets cold. She put her gloves on, and we each added on a top layer to stay warm.

Extreme terrain calls for some extreme navigation skills...!

By mid-afternoon, we were famished and took a little lunch break. Sitting on the tundra is so comfortable, it’s like having a soft cushion under you, perfect for napping.

The descent into Hunter’s Pass was punishing! Rather than take the more mainstream path, on my request, we bushwhacked down the side of a mountain to grab a geocache placed in a rather unorthodox location. See Eliana working her way down? (below).

Who puts a micro on the side of a mountain? Eliana was none too pleased about that part of the journey, but I touted the fact that it was good “backcountry practice”. The views were pretty incredible, though.

From Hunter’s Pass, it began to rain, so we high-tailed it down to the South Fork parking lot and then had to climb another mile to walk back to the house. Eliana’s injured knee was sore, and while we were both in awe of the amazing hike, we were both sufficiently exhausted too. Looks like at least a few days’ rest to recover from this one! Click here to see the rest of the pics!