Snowboarding in Alaska

There is a ski resort about 45 miles south of anchorage called Alyeska in the town of Girdwood. This ski resort consists of one mountain with two faces and 4 different chair lifts. The mountain has several different trails including groomed, powder, and chutes. It is a fun mountain, but there isn't as much diversity as Colorado resorts. The view is gorgeous though because the mountain is right next to the Cook Inlet and the surrounding mountains are beautiful. I have been snowboarding here 3 times, and I have enjoyed each trip.

The last time I went to Alyeska, the wind chill was between -15 and -25. Surprisingly, I stayed pretty warm, except for my toes and my face. When I came back to the lodge for lunch, I could no longer feel my toes, and when they thawed out, they were stinging/burning. I'm glad I came in when I did.

We are in the middle of a record breaking cold spell in Anchorage. It has been well below zero for over two weeks now, but supposedly the cold spell is breaking very very soon. It has consistently been -15 degrees in Anchorage. At the risk of sounding like John Madden, just for perspective, there is a 40 degree difference between a balmy 60 degrees and a freezing 20 degrees.....and another 35-40 degree difference between that 20 degrees and the temperature in Anchorage. The cold takes your breath away when you step outside, and it is incredible how quickly things freeze in this temperature. After my 2 minute walk to work each day, my face is completely numb. The other night, it was so cold and clear that I mistook street lights for northern lights because the light from the street lamp streaked about 100 ft straight up into the air. And the snow looks almost like glitter because the air is so dry and cold that it is more crystal-like than flake-like. Hopefully it will get warm soon. I don't feel too bad though, because it is -50 degrees in Fairbanks.