Hiking

Mario invited me along on a trip to the grocery store with him yesterday. We had a nice chat. He told me some funny stories about his struggles to understand English during his first few days in Alaska. On his first day in town, Marine and Clement invited him to go out for a hike. Mario said sure, it sounded like fun! But though he didn't admit it, he didn't actually know what "hiking" was. Would they be out for a long time?  Would they do this activity in the city?  Maybe on a boat? Should he bring a helmet? They parked the car at the base of the mountains near Anchorage and started walking uphill. This wase fun and good exercise for Mario, but after 45 minutes or so, he started wondering, "Hey guys, when are we going to start hiking?"

Over the weekend, D and I rode some motorcycles to Hatcher Pass and went hiking.  Winter will be here soon.  We found a little bit of snow in the mountains.

Looks like Mario has figured out what hiking is now.  Here's a video from Clement, Marine, Etienne, Erik Bjornsen and Mario in the mountains above Anchorage on Sunday.  Clement must have robbed a bank up there on Wolverine Peak; he's dressed like a bandit on the way back down.