Alaska

I headed to Alaska to take a course relevant to my job. Flight left from St. Louis in the afternoon and arrived in Minneapolis that evening.

The frozen tundras of Minnesota.

Thanks to a delayed flight from St. Louis, I had to run through the Minneapolis airport to catch my Alaskan-bound flight. 

I'm sure I looked majestic.

It was cold in Minnesota... 0 degrees!

Arrived in Alaska to a balmy 28 degrees.

Headed to Hertz for my rental car. I was thinking everyone in Alaska would have big 4-wheel drive vehicles and wide snow tires. I was looking forward to rolling around in my monster truck.

Imaginings:

Reality:

Ford Fiesta! It didn't handle the snow or ice very well, but it is a nice little car.

It was dark when I arrived in Alaska, and dark when I woke up in the morning and went to class. We were released for lunch, and WHOA

Elmendorf AFB is so close to the mountains! I had no idea. 

I arrived on Monday night and Tuesday - Thursday were spent almost entirely on base.

The base is huge, and I encountered my first Moose Crossing sign.

These are everywhere... I probably saw hundreds. No actual Moose sighting, sadly.

Actually, the only wildlife I saw on the trip were Magpies and Ravens.

Can't tell from the picture, but ravens are HUGE! I always figured they were slightly larger than crows, but they're like 4X the size.

I explored some trails on base with my trusty sidekick.

And visited on-base amenities, like the commissary, library, and Fitness Center:

Elmendorf gym is awesome; multiple weight, stretching, and cardio areas, an indoor track, and an indoor pool.