Category Archives: Wasilla Hotels

A Weekend of Hiking in the Mat-Su Valley

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Independence Mine at Hatchers Pass

Independence Mine at Hatcher's Pass

I spent most of the day hiking in Hatcher’s Pass. The weather was mostly cloudy with periods of light overcast and filtered sunshine. It’s definitely cooler because of the clouds, but perfect for hiking (and still no rain!).

The primary attraction at Hatcher’s Pass (elevation 3500 feet) is the old Independence Mine, a gold mining site that was active in the 30′s and 40′s and eventually closed for good in 1951. I would have enjoyed this visit no matter where the site was located but, as a bonus, the site is in the mountains with incredible views and hiking trails all around. I took one of the trails (Gold Cord Trail) up a steep mountain slope through a massive boulder field to a beautiful lake that overlooked the mine site below. It was one of the best hikes I’ve ever done (easily in my “top five” list).

The next day, I took a short drive to the Bodenburg Butte hiking trail, a moderately difficult climb to the top of a butte. The 360-degree views were excellent! On the way up the trail I kept hearing an intermittent sound that was like a drag strip in the distance. When I got to the top, I could finally see the source of the noise in the valley below; there was a drag strip in the distance (Labor Day races at North Star Speedway).

This really was an incredible way to enjoy the natural beauty of Alaska.

Grant Dufrer

Alaskan Musk Ox and Qiviut

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Qiviut pronounced ki – vee – ute, closely resembles cashmere in its hand, luster and microscopic appearance. It can withstand temperature shock and agitation without shrinking. Warm, soft and lightweight the wearer is barely aware of having it on. All the fiber combed from the animals at the Musk Ox Farm in Palmer each year, as well as fiber from other hand combed sources as they become available. As well as fiber from the Alaskan Native people who have hunted musk ox for subsistence use. They will comb the fiber from the hide and sell it to us as part of their effort to utilize every part of the animal they have hunted, carrying on the traditions of their lifestyle..

Musk Ox Farm Palmer Alaska

Musk Ox Farm Palmer Alaska

The Eskimo name, Oomingmak, meaning “the Bearded One.” Is a more appropriate name for the Musk Ox. The name “Musk Ox” is deceiving, as the animal does not produce musk, nor is it related to cattle they show a closer relationship to sheep and goats. Although the musk ox was indigenous to Alaska, they were hunted to extinction in the 1850′s.
The Qiviut Shop is one of the “must do” shops in downtown Anchorage, the corner of 6th and H, during your Anchorage walking tour. The Musk Ox farm tour is a stop on the road to Denali National Park while enjoying your vacation using a rented car.

Best Western Lake Lucille

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We decided to stop of an overnight in Wasilla, so we stayed at the local Best Western, which ended up being the Best Western Lake Lucille. This is significant because the 2008 Republican nominee Sarah Palin lives on Lake Lucille in Wasilla AK. We asked the front desk if they could point out which house was hers and they did (even though they must have been asked that question a hundred times!). Well I couldn’t see Russia from my room, but we still had a great time! The hotel was warm and comfortable, and we were close enough to the local attractions that we had no problem finding our way around Wasilla and the surrounding area.

Fall Munches

Fall Munches

We did some driving around and were absolutely delighted that we could see spawning Salmon in some of the nearby creeks and rivers. What a wonderful vibrant color they are in the water, it makes them nice and easy to see.
We were driving home when we had to stop to let the Moose cross the Park Highway right in front of our rental car. We used the opportunity to take all the pictures we could possibly take, and ended up with some wonderful shots to share with the family back home.
Wasilla was well worth the stop!

Going Rogue at Lake Lucille Alaska

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I just finished reading Sarah Palin’s new book “Going Rogue”.
On page 232 talking about nice hotels on the campaign trail she says “In Wasilla we have the Best Western Inn on Lake Lucille. We have used it for years, for evereything from town hall meetings to the Wasilla Warriors high school prom. It has a gorgious view of the lake backed by thick forested parklands and jagged peaks, and it’s only a few doors down from my home”
How interesting!! When we were touring thru Alaska we stayed at that very hotel ‘Best Western Lake Lucille Inn”.
Yea, thats the place to stay in Wasilla

Yea, thats the place to stay in Wasilla

Indeed it’s a beautiful hotel. It has been completely renovated, recently. It has all the amenities of a nice mid-level (AAA – 3 star) hotel including three telephones and a refrigerator in every room, Wireless internet thru out the hotel including the Lobby and the Lounge. Speaking of the Lounge, they offer couple of complimentary drinks for each room or one can order a bottle of wine for the room and get a complimentary cheese and crackers tray. The mangement really tries hard. I saw the house-keepers all wearing a badge saying “I care”. They said it was a new Best Western propgram; but I could see they really care. Deluxe continental breakfast was on the house. I started to chat with the Breakfast attendant and in the conversation she said “We are in people pleasing business”. What a philosophy!! I thought.
Alaska is ones in a life time destination for most tourist but if we do make it up there again, we will be sure not to miss this hotel. As a matter of fact we might even add a day to our itinarary, just to enjoy this hotel. In the mean time we are telling all our friends and club buddies about this fabulous place.
Sam Mature

Exciting Rafting Trip in Alaska

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This summer while in Alaska I planned a pretty exciting rafting trip for myself and my boyfriend. We had done some research on Alaska waters, and are both avid rafters from the “lower 48” (which is what Alaskan’s refer to as the continential United States). We decided to go for a slow moving river, primarly class 1-2 as we were unaware of the enviroment we would be rafting in.

We opted to run the Little Susitna River which is a 82 mile run if you do the whole thing, we had a total of 3 days so we decided to do 42 miles, instead of the whole run. We put in at Mile 57 of the Parks Highway and pulled out at Burma Landing by Port McKenzie in the Matanuska Valley.

was it really this calm?

It really was this beautiful!

While on our journey we got to see plenty of wildlife and soak in the serene soroundings that the grand state of Alaska has to offer. We quietly watched a momma moose and her calf drink from the river bank, once she seen us she slowly backed up and walked along the river we were floating. The birds were unreal on this trip, I wasn’t aware of how many different birds Alaska had-so if you are a bird watcher, you could be in for a big treat! Never did actually see a bear but on one of our lunch stops we came across a nice set of tracks just to remind us that we were not alone in this quiet, ever so peaceful surrounding. All in all it was a great first rafting trip there in Alaska, that place has so much adventure built into its terrain. I highly recommend a trip to the Last Frontier if you want to get your soul out of society.

Wan Eaple