DEADLY FUN

An Arizona friend and his wife took an Alaskan vacation not long ago. Yes, in the dead of winter. They skied down steep slopes at the Alyeska Resort http://www.alyeskaresort.com/ in the finest deep powder in anyone’s memory, cross-country skied in an untouched wilderness, and learned that Alaska, indeed, is a true winter wonderland. Anchorage was interesting as well, and, to their delight, there were great restaurants. Oh, and don’t let me forget to mention the shopping wasn’t bad either, since the city’s jewelry shops sell the best gold nugget bracelets and watchbands in the world.

My friend truly loves adventure, and he likes survival challenges as well, even if it sometimes means getting in over his head. Snowmobiles, of course, were on his short list of fun things to do while he was in the Far North. Who wouldn't want to race over the snow at rocket speed?

One day, he and his wife went riding in Turnagain Pass, a steep pathway first used by Native Alaskans to access the Kenai Peninsula. Later on, prospectors used it to find gold at Hope and Sunrise in the 1890s, where people still work placer mines. Most locals know better than fool around in snow up to your neck. What seems like lots of fun when you’re zooming around on a snowmobile can suddenly turn into the biggest mistake of your life.

My friend went off a snow bank into a frozen creek in the blink of an eye. Going fast, everything is fuzzy white—the last thing in the world you would expect is a five-foot drop-off. He ended up wet to the bone, which means freezing to death unless you warm up in a hurry. Thankfully, he was with an experienced guide and other people, so he got rescued in time, but he learned a lesson. “Boy, one second you’re having a blast,’ he said, “and the next you’re dead.” I heartedly agreed with him, then added the Last Frontier never takes any prisoners.