Video from Our Crow Pass Backpacking Trip

A couple summers ago, Malcolm and Brandon backpacked the eastern half of the Crow Pass Trail, a roughly 26 mile-long backwoods trail that forms part of the Iditarod National Historic Trail.  The Eagle River bisects the trail around the midpoint, and though it can be forded, we chose not to risk it (there's nothing to hold onto or guide you as you do your best to cross the thigh-high water without being swept away), meaning we'd only hiked one half.  This year we came at it from the other direction, which took us over the Crow Pass itself, a notch in the Chugach Mountains at 3,500 feet. Here's a cool video from the overnight trip, though it looks like we're walking to Mordor.

Summer's Over Already?

Alaskan summers are like rare flowers - their blooms are brief, and all the sweeter for it.  So it's a bit surprising to look back over scores of photos from the past few months and see just how much we were able to cram into such a short time.  Calvin celebrated his 6th birthday, Chloe her 10th, and Brandon replaced his 30 year-old Saab with a new Subaru.  We spent the night in a cabin and went canoeing at our favorite lake, visited Fairbanks for a weekend (including the University of Alaska Museum and a surprisingly fantastic car museum), and took in the State Fair.  Calvin met Santa Claus at the big guy's house in North Pole. Brandon and Malcolm backpacked several miles along a section of the Iditarod Historic Trail, hiking over a glacier and cresting the Crow Pass.  Chloe now has reading glasses and is playing the clarinet, Malcolm is nearly a First Class Boy Scout, and Calvin is officially a violin player.  And just when we thought we'd done enough for one summer, we happily hosted a very cool world-traveling English couple by the names of Ed and Rachel who are traversing the globe on a pair of tiny Honda C90 motorcycles.  We sold our own 1975 BMW R75/6 motorcycle this summer, but hope to buy a new Suzuki V-Strom 1000 next year.

 

Needless to say, it's been whirlwind, as usual.  And of course, entirely worth it.  We wouldn't have it any other way.

 

Crazy Like Foxes!

Somehow, we've managed to usher in summer while even busier and crazier than usual.  And what a summer it's been, too - this may be the most beautiful season we've experienced here so far.  We've had two months of warm, sunny, dry weather, with little of the wind we normally experience in the Matanuska Susitna Valley.  Of course, it was a mild and dry winter, too, and this year's terrible fire season has already gotten well under way, reminding us all that there's a definite downside to the picturesque weather.

Here's the recap on a few of the things that have been keeping us so busy these past few months...

Malcolm was part of his school's science "olympiad" team that competed in the statewide meet on the UAA campus.  Malcolm and his partner placed third with their handmade helicopter, and Malcolm's school placed first overall for most medals won in all events.  And Calvin was able to join the science bandwagon this year with his first science fair project, "Mixing it Up", in which he employed a five year-old's enthusiasm for household chemistry.  They all brought home excellent end-of-semester grades, with Chloe earning her class' top score on their big annual placement test, and Malcolm getting an A in every one of his six classes - an exciting first for him.

Unfortunately for Chloe, she fractured her patella (kneecap) back when there was still a bit of ice left on the ground, while she was on a school field trip.  She wound up in a full-leg cast for a month, then a full-leg brace for a month.  Now she's in a half-leg brace that can bend to a predetermined angle.  It's been an unpleasant way to start the summer for her, but she hasn't complained a single time throughout the whole ordeal.  She should be able to take it off completely by June or July.  Of course, that's put her gymnastics on hold, which is perhaps the hardest part.

Calvin still loves his weekly karate class, and Malcolm has been very busy with both baseball (he's on the Reds this year) and Boy Scouts.  He and Brandon have also started doing more hiking, and have planned a camping trip in Denali for July.  For now, we're all heading up to our usual camping spot of Byers Lake soon, with a second night camping in Fairbanks, which is home to the University of Alaska's flagship campus (and a terrific museum), as well as, surprisingly, a rather impressive car museum.

Stephanie's office has moved to a big, new location which she loves, and Brandon's new job has already started sending him around the state - including to the Native village of Quinhagak (QUIN-a-hock) on the Bering Sea.  The photo of the footbridge was a "work" day for Brandon, when he had to trek into the woods to inspect a beautiful public use cabin built in the 1930s.

We also find ourselves with yet another family member - Clover the cat.  She's already endeared herself to everyone, as you can see.  And one more animal wishes to join, but we're not letting it inside - a red fox, who seems friendly enough to hang out in the yard and pose for photos, but fortunately not enough to come too close.

As always, life is good.  Everyone's happy and healthy, Chloe's mending kneecap notwithstanding.  Stephanie turns a young and sprightly 41 on May 29th, and Calvin will hit the big 6 on June 13th (a Friday, no less).  Our schedule is packed, and we're making the most of the sunshine.  The kids are spending half of their days now at Boys and Girls Club.  School will kick in again in August.  This year will be Chloe's last in elementary school.

Next year will be no quieter; Malcolm is thrilled to be visiting Washington, D.C. and Philadelphia as part of a school trip in March, and in May we'll all be packing up and flying to Europe for our first international family vacation!  That's a BIG one, and something we'll certainly talk about more in the months to come.

Until then, have a terrific summer!

When We Get Bored, We Make Movies

As usual, it's been too long since we last posted.  [Of course, "we" means Brandon - ed.]  Also as usual, we'll let the photos - and now, videos - take the place of what would otherwise be a long, boring blog essay about all the wild and crazy things the Tucker family has been up to.  

But first, a few words of introduction.  It's true; when we get bored, we make movies.  Or at least, we got bored one morning and decided to make a movie.  It became a huge hit at Chloe and Calvin's elementary school, and now the kids want to make a Godzilla movie starring Malcolm's bearded dragon, Smaug.

Speaking of Malcolm's reptiles, the second video is a presentation he made for class.  It was so popular, the teacher asked for a DVD copy to share with future students as an example.

And finally....yeah, we went ice fishing.  We didn't catch anything, but come on.  We got to drive on a lake.  That's just cool.

♥