Fin

A clear day near the end of the trip was our last chance to make the most of things. A hike in the morning near Seward, then up to Summit Lake for a ski. I decided to keep things simple and leave the camera in the rv.

Boating and mountains near Seward

We had a short 'Teton style' approach through tall grass and bushes to get to the snow, more bushwhacking through tight trees, then a quick skin to a ridge. The turns weren't as manky as we expected, and once the snow ran out, we decided to keep our skis on. Our last turns in Alaska were on grass down to the rv, and as always, they were amazingly fun.

Things looking bare

After grilling in Hope, we decided to go for a sunset hike. We reminisced on memorable ski days the whole way out. We worked backwards starting with this day, since it was our last, mentioning powder and corn skiing at Summit Lake and Turnagain Pass, long runs and good turns on Thompson Pass, blower and cool places visited in Hokkaido, skiing Yarigatake, countless good ski days in Hakuba, and the start of the season in the Tetons.

A fitting sunset to end the trip

A few days later after two planes, three trains, and a bus, I found myself at a Connecticut train station waiting to get picked up. Deliriously tired, bags strewn across the country with reckless abandon thanks to late and canceled flights, I couldn't help but smile. Going into the trip we had no clue how things with the rv would work out or if it was possible to ski in Alaska without going hungry because you spent all your money on helicopters and snowmobiles. It was a great feeling to know that a budget rv trip in Alaska can be done. Now it's time to start planning the next one.

Saying goodbye to Turnagain Pass