Day 2 -- to Sheep Mountain Lodge

I woke up at about 4 this morning, as I expected, since it was 8 a.m. in Lafayette. I’m sure it will take a while to reset my internal clock. And despite the valiant effort of the room-darkening shade to keep the midnight sun out, it’s a losing battle, really, as the light comes leaking in around the sides. I packed sleep masks for everyone, and tomorrow night I will be sure to make use of mine.

We strolled about a mile back into downtown Anchorage for breakfast at the Snow City Café, which my guide books described as a breakfast hotspot. Tamzin, my good friend and knower-of-all-things-Anchorage, confirmed this. (Thanks, Tamzin!) Good thing I made reservations, because the place was hopping with Sunday-morning brunchers. 

I got the rest of the family situated at the restaurant and hoofed another mile it to the downtown Avis office to pick up our rental vehicle. I had reserved a minivan, and by picking it up at the downtown location, I avoided paying steep airport fees. In the back of my mind, though, I had a suspicion that I also avoided an effortless transaction. My suspicion was substantiated: Airport rental lots are set up to get you in and out quickly and easily, while this downtown Anchorage Avis lot was cramped and congested. Cars were quintuple-parked in the tiny lot, and although the office had opened minutes before I arrived, the two associates at the front desk were already swamped. As I approached the Avis lot on foot, I noticed that there were no minivans in the adjacent lot. And when I finally got to the front of the line, the associate confirmed that they didn’t have any vans available. Long-story-short, we’ll be cruising around Alaska in a hulking Suburban, with Bluetooth capability, heated leather seats and plenty of room for all of our gear.

I drove back to the Snow City Café and sat down just as our food was delivered to the table: giant chocolate-chip pancakes, steaming bowls of oatmeal, and lots of bacon and hot coffee.

We took the Suburban back to the hotel, loaded it up with all our stuff and headed out of town. Our first stop was the Alaska Native Heritage Center, about 15 minutes outside of Anchorage, a stunning facility featuring six live-sized traditional native dwellings representing 11 major cultural groups situated around a small lake. 

The Eyak people of southeast Alaska made the passages into their homes small enough to keep bears out, which I think is very clever.

At the Alaska Native Heritage Center, we took part in a sled dog demo, and then we got to cuddle the puppies! These pups are 9 weeks old!

A dance presentation at the Alaska Native Heritage Center.

After a pleasant afternoon at the heritage center, we headed back out on the road toward Sheep Mountain Lodge, past Sutton, near the Matanuska Glacier, on the Glenn Highway. (It’s about halfway between Anchorage and Glenallen, if you’re looking at a map.) Not far outside of Anchorage, we left Home Depot, Target and the Northway Mall behind us, the six-lane highway dwindled down to two lanes, and we cruised out along the Matanuska River, with the Talkeetna mountains to the north and the Chugach mountains to the south.  

Over spring break in the Virgin Islands, our family had fun betting against each other by picking an over/under on, say, wild donkeys on the road, or mankinis on the beach. Today, it was cab-over RVs, and the over/under was 20. We blew through that number in the first 15 minutes of our 2-hour drive. To keep the game fun, we kept adjusting the over/under until we finally gave up. We could have made it 150, and the “over” still would have won. Two out of every three vehicles on the Glenn Highway are cab-over RVs, or so it seems.

At one point, we passed a sign for Jackass Creek. Keith called to Natalie in the back of the ‘Burb, to ask if we should all take a hike. Natalie, who had been plugged into her iPod, removed an earbud, looked dryly at Keith, and without missing a beat, she deadpanned, “Maybe you should go alone. Because you’re the only one who could make it.”

Late in the afternoon, we arrived at Sheep Mountain Lodge, a cluster of neat little cottages set in the shadow of Sheep Mountain. After checking in, we set out on a two-mile hike along the side of the mountain, working up appetites for dinner — and blueberry pie, of course — in the cozy lodge dining room. 

A great first day!