Our very first Turkey Day in Alaska was awesome and a memorable one! The morning brought delicious coffee, a light breakfast (to save room in our bellies for our dinner feast), and cool temperatures with beautiful sunshine. It was a mellow morning with lots of laughter and hugs. It was simply wonderful. The afternoon was a bit more upbeat. We packed our camping gear and warm clothes, and drove up to 46 Mile with Sarah, Chance, and little Cirque. Now.. if you have never been to or heard about 46 Mile, you must know that it is possibly one of the coolest, coziest, and friendliest little ‘villages’ in all of Valdez. At 46 Mile, there are six handmade log cabins that house some of the nicest people. Each cabin is only a hop, skip, and a jump from one another, and have fantastic views of the Chugach Mountains. They also have easy access to excellent cross country skiing and back-country terrain. 46 Mile is a very special place, indeed.
Pete and Ethan, two of the nicest people you’ll meet
We arrived just as folks were starting the Thanksgiving food train, headed toward cabin number one: the tasty beverage cabin. We sloshed and slid to the first cabin with a case of mixed brews and big smiles. Cheers! After an hour of drinks, people, playing children, and puppies, we headed for cabin number two — the appetizer cabin, more commonly known as Matt and Meg’s cabin! Here, we snacked on homemade breads, dip, crackers, delicious sweet potatoes and goat cheese, and more beverages! Yum! The third cabin, provided an amazing array of delightful dishes. Amanda, also known as Kitty, hosted this wonderful feast in her cabin! We had everything from spicy, mashed sweet potatoes and stuffing, to a gigantic salad, and several different meats (i.e. honey-roasted ham, smoked turkey, and fish)! Of course, adult drinks, eggnog, and apple cider were also on the menu! Last, but definitely not least, we made our way along icy trails to the final cabin of the evening. Can you guess what the last cabin, also known as Phil and Lee’s cabin, had waiting for us? If you guessed dessert, you are CORRECT! The dessert table was spectacular! It had a mix of cookies, pumpkin pie, cheesecake, caramel cheesecake, and my personal favorite, chocolate pecan pie! There were so many desserts and they were all so goooooooooooood!
Ethan pullin’ the leftovers YUM
Kids runnin-a-muck
From here, the night winded down and eventually, we made it back to our camping spot. That’s right, E and I decided to winter camp the night away. One of the cabins, not completely finished, housed us for the night. With only foundation and walls to block the wind, we hunkered into our -15 and -30 degree sleeping bags. At first, the sleeping bags were ice against our skin and clothes, but after a few minutes, we were roasty-toasty and half asleep. The night was clear, the stars were bright, and our very first Turkey Day in Alaska was coming to an end. The day was simply wonderful. We are so thankful for new friends, old friends, best friends, great families, and each other. Cheers to you and hoping your Thanksgiving was as memorable and heart-warming as ours.
Ethan and Cirque going for a walk
