Tuesday, January 12, 2010

Andrew Skurka at Happy Days

Tonight Brian and I went over to Happy Days to listen to backpacker Andrew Skurka. I missed this last year, but Brian had gone and said it was really interesting.

Andrew has hiked the nearly 7,000-mile Great Western Loop, which passes through 12 national parks, as well as a 7,778-mile sea-to-sea route from Quebec to Washington. He spoke about these adventures during his presentation and showed some pretty cool pictures and videos. He also talked about his hike in Alaska in which he showed a video of him right next to a whale while paddling in his pack raft and one of a bear near him. Also, in 2008 Andrew placed second in the Leadville 100 in Colorado. He said he trains for his hikes mainly by running up to 100-mile weeks.

Tonight he told everyone about his 2010 endeavor in Alaska which will encompass the 4,500-mile Great Alaskan-Yukon Loop. This loop is not an official trail or route, has never been attempted and only crosses 10 roads the entire length. Below is a map of the route he plans to take. To read more about this adventure click here.


Afterward, Brian and I were pumped up and went for a run by the ledges and on the Pine Grove Trail. The snow was easy to run through since it was really powdery. It was a very cold night with a clear sky, but it didn't take long for us to warm up. We finished with 5 miles.



Following the run, we went over to the Winking Lizard in Peninsula and had a couple beers with Jim Christ, Andrew Skurka and a few others. Good times!

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