Sam And Saundra’s Year Long Adventure – Part 144

 Alaska

7/6/09 – Glennallen area - Tolsona Wilderness Campground

We are both dressed in shorts and short sleeve tops.  We have sprayed our exposed arms and legs liberally with skeeter repellant.  We are ready.  Sam reaches out and I grab his hand.  We start walking away from our trailer – leaving Brutus behind. Walking the lightly graveled road, we cross over the bridge that is a part of the entrance to the campground.  It is astounding that with our combined weight, added to Brutus and the trailer (even minus the rocks), we were able to make it over this bridge without it collapsing.  It was even a little worrisome just to walk over.  We continue past other camp spots, turn left and start a steep climb up a side road.  We approach a tent site at the top and walk to the edge of the cliff. We find a stunning view of Tolsona Creek as it snakes throughout the campground.  That is when I discover that we both forgot our cameras.  It was awful pretty.  When our eyes get view full , we turn off the road and proceed on a foot-trodden path through the ‘wilds’.  It was already overcast from all the wild fires, and now the vegetation starts crowding in, taking more of the light.  I put my head down and follow Sam.  The trail continues to be steep in places, uneven, but fun.  At least it was until the hordes of mosquitoes descend. They follow Sam’s head especially and remind me of the Peanuts cartoon character that always had the cloud of dust around him.  Sam was doing a great new dance step that involves taking one step forward, slapping his own face and waving, then quickly lifting each leg up – brushing it – while hopping on the other. Of course then he had to do it all over, ending with the opposite leg.  He does this much better then the two step. Seems more natural for him.

Sam is following the CD discs that have been nailed to trees to show us ‘hikers’ the path.  It tends to disappear due to the marshiness of the area.  It is strange that we are on a side of a hill, not close to a lake, river or creek, and there is swamp all over. After about one grueling mile, we almost decide to go back.  Sam has new contours on his legs and is turning red.  I am not looking at myself.  Just concentrating on the welts in front of me.  On and up we go.  My thoughts go back to the camp manager who recommended this adventure.  Wish she were here.  We again just about give it up when a little brighter light can be seen ahead.  We break out of the swamp and into a dried mudflat.  A large field area that is minus vegetation, but contains the tracks of all sorts of critters.  We identify moose, Sam’s tenny runners, a dog, and other hiker’s. The view up here may be better on years with fewer major forest fires.  Then … we see the main attractions: mud volcanoes.  About 6-8 feet in diameter.  Rough, basically circular, wet and bubbling due to the methane gas exiting the earth.  We spend maybe five minutes admiring all there is to see and hurry to beat the hordes of swarms of incessant buzzing back down the hillside.  We did not win that race.  When we got back to camp, Sam was well bitten in all areas not clothed.  I got two bites.  Naw! That can’t be the reason.