We spent some time visiting Eagle Eye and enjoying the view from his house. The large front windows look out on a gorgeous mountain range. The back windows look out on a different mountain range. He is a big hunter and the living room rug was adorned with a bear skin rug. The way it was positioned reminded me of the way our big black dog sprawls out. I did more than one double take that day when I entered the room. After eating a late lunch, the three of us set out on our adventure.
We drove north on Parks Hwy to Denali State Park (different from Denali National Park). We stopped along the way at a crazy little store called Wal-Mike's. He had all kinds of interesting things sitting out front, including statues made from tree branches of men in various stages of "excitement". I will leave it at that. You will have to take a trip there if you want more information than that. We were in our minivan, following Eagle Eye in his big truck. He pulled down a long gravel road to an abandoned gravel pit. Eagle Eye informed us it was time for us to learn to shoot a shot gun. He gave us lessons on a 22 gauge shot gun that he insisted we carry from then on. It scared me to death to have that thing in the van with us, but Eagle Eye insisted that we really needed to have protection from the wildlife in case of an attack. Okie dokie. This was not going to be a typical vacation! I was very grateful to have someone with us to let us know what to do to survive and enjoy this journey. Lesson over, we continued on our trip.
Our next stop was at a trail head leading to Byers Creek. To find the trail head, you could probably stop any guy with a gun in his truck and ask for directions. In Alaska, that means pretty much any guy. I thought, "Oh goody, we are going hiking!!" What a dummy. If you are prepared to hike in bear country, this is a beautiful spot. Take note of the "if" in that sentence. You could also get really lost here so you either need a friend that knows the area or you need to know how to use a map and compass or gps. The vegetation in Alaska grows very large. It has a short growing season but takes full advantage of it. If you step off of the trail, you could become disoriented rapidly because the plants grow so lush that you can't really retrace your steps. Fortunately, we were hiking with Eagle Eye, who is like being in the woods with a cross between Grizzly Adams and Survivor Man. I've never met anyone more in tune with nature.
We hiked the trail to a lovely little lake, climbing through a forest of Alder trees, giant fern, false hellebore, blueberry bushes and other plants foreign to my husband and myself. Eagle Eye could name many of them and knew which ones were edible. I ate some fern and fire weed. It tasted like grass but it was nice to know that if we got lost we would have something to eat. Eagle Eye pointed out various plants that would produce edible berries later in the season. He also showed us the spot where he once shot a bear. A bear? My heart started beating a little faster. Wasn't this supposed to be just a little nature hike?
Now, when I say we hiked, this was like no other hike I had ever been on. I have hiked a jungle in Argentina, the Rockies, the Cascades, Smokies, Appalachians, Catskills, and others but never with a tour guide like this guy. The three of us hiked single file. Eagle Eye was in front, carrying a large rifle. He held it up high, with one hand. That sucker was really heavy. I don't know how he did that. Around his waste was a belt with all kinds of outdoor paraphernalia. Some of it would be revealed along the way. I was next, carrying a can of bear mace. Not being the most coordinated person, I secretly prayed that I would not have to use it. My husband brought up the rear, carrying the 22 gauge shot gun. We crept along as silently as we could. It didn't turn out to be very silent because there were dry leaves on the trail. Nothing makes me want to giggle more than someone telling me that I have to be quiet. Along the way, Eagle Eye stopped to examine various piles of animal excrement. Lets just call it poop from now on. There were four piles of bear poop, a pile of moose poop, pile of grouse poop, and one pile that came from either a wolf or a coyote. Okay, so the shooting lesson was beginning to make sense at that point. At each pile, Eagle Eye informed us not only of what animal it had come from, but what it ate, how big it was, and how long the pile had been there. The first time he bent down to examine one, I thought maybe he'd lost his mind. Were we deep in the woods with a crazy man? A crazy man carrying a big gun? A crazy man that knew how to use the big gun? Now I realize that I was in the woods with a very competent outdoors-man. There is a science to tracking animals. This was the first time that hunting made any sense at all to me. I still don't like it, but I was beginning to understand some of the allure.
We hiked on, stopping at the top of a gorge that overlooked Byers Creek. It was like a scene from a show on the Discovery Channel. This was the Alaska I came to see. Brilliant green undergrowth, huge trees, pristine water, and a family of bears!! Yes!! A mother black bear and at least two cubs. The plants were so tall that the cubs would often disappear from site. Eagle Eye removed several pieces of equipment from his bag. One was a range finder. According to it, we were 600 yards from the bears. We were also way up high on the gorge. I felt like we were safe from them but I did realize that there could be a bear standing right behind us at any moment. It was exhilarating! If Eagle Eye hadn't been with us, it would have been terrifying. Being with a life long hunter gave me piece of mind. The other instrument was one of those miniature telescopes. I'm sure it has an actual name, but I have no idea what it is. Range finder was a new one on me too. We hung out there for a long time, just watching the bears. It was such a special treat to observe them in their natural habitat. They were free and happy.
It was getting late and the sun would be setting soon. Time to go. It never actually got completely dark while we were in Alaska, but it would get darker than I'd like it to be while hiking. We quietly hiked back out with Eagle Eye and his rifle leading the way. Once we were safely back to our vehicles, Eagle Eye threw his head back and let out his Count Chocula laugh. "You just went bear hunting!", he exclaimed. I did? Holy cow!!
Onward we drove up Parks Hwy. Eagle Eye pulled off near mile marker 159.There was another long gravel road leading to an abandoned gravel pit. To find it, just look for a gravel road on the right just past the mile marker. It is not marked. We learned that there are many of these in Alaska. You are allowed to camp in them unless there is a sign stating otherwise. This one had some type of low growing plant covering the ground. It was soft to walk on and kept the glacier dust off of our boots. There was a fabulous view from there. Eagle Eye had been there many times. There was evidence that others camped there too. He named it Moose Camp because he saw a moose there once. My husband went to answer the call of nature. He walked down the road for privacy. Eagle Eye told me that he once saw a man down that way. It looked as if he was living down there. He hadn't seen him in a while. Just as my husband disappeared behind a tree, we saw the guy!! My husband was too far away to hear us if we shouted. We thought the guy was harmless,, but the two of us kept watch until my husband returned. For some odd reason, later that night we found this very funny. We set up camp, built a fire, and relaxed to the sounds of nature. Eventually, we crawled into the minivan and went to sleep. The shotgun was within reach in case of wild animals or humans. What an awesome first day!
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