Winner Creek Trail

 I always dread the long drive to Girdwood from Anchorage, but it was beautiful today.  The sun was shining and the leaves and grasses are a beautiful deep yellow color.  The tide was coming in and some families saw belugas.  A few lucky ones also caught a glimpse of some sheep on the cliffs.  Needless to say, the drive flew by and was amazing.

 I love this hike, but my only complaint is how long it takes to get to the actual trailhead from the parking.  If you have another driver, I suggest dropping the child off near the tram and then parking (leave the child with an adult of course).

 The trail has small streams, benches, huge trees, mosses and a fabulous river within about 15 minutes.  If you have a strong hiker, you can make it to the hand tram (about 2 miles from the trailhead).  Our group didn't make it quite that far... (by a long shot!)

 They are building a multi-use trail that parallels the Winner Creek Trail.  The kiddos stopped to watch the big equipment dig and scoop. 

 A few children were content to ride in backpacks, but the older children felt the need for speed.  They ran along the boardwalks, down the trails and into the ferns. 

 The weather cooperated and it didn't rain at all.  You can't tell from the pictures that it was sunny due to the trees.  They are big, green and magical.  You can find trees with holes, big burls and those cracked and toppled over into the ground.

 The biggest draw for our crowd was the first creek on the trail.  They came back to it and had such fun.  Lots of rocks were relocated into the creek and many trips across this log were taken.  Only one child fell into the creek (another stepped into it and one small kiddo crawled into it..)

 It seemed like everyone had a good time, even though there was a bit of whining (only from my own children. 

We all said goodbye to the Tram (and tourists) on our way back to the cars.  Please join us next week for another great hike!