Merry Marmot Festival

Alaska celebrates any event with fun and costumes!!! The Merry Marmot Festival is the celebration to mark the end of the ski season at Arctic Valley Ski Resort.  So fun we had!  Kristen and I had the warmest seats on the slope.  High voltage!!! If you look carefully in the background you can see Redoubt Volcano.
I have included a list of the day's events but they started with the snow sculpture contest, find the avalanche beacons (kind of like a scavenger hunt on a ski slope),  skiing without skis (only boots down the hill), up/down race (how many times can you ski down the hill and run back up to ski down again), flat tire race (ride a bike down the ski hill); snow shoe race, costume party, dummy launch, kayak race (ride your kayak down the ski hill), and of course dancing to a local band in the ski house.

The man asking the girl to marry him snow sculpture.

Scary witch snow sculpture.

The twins of the slope.

Cat in the hat sculpture.

These are the entries for the Dummy Launch.  Groups of people designed and made these wonderful dummies to see if their design can soar down the slope and launch off the ski jump and land. Most do not land in one piece.  This is Kayak Man!

Alaskan Eagle - do you think it will soar down the ski jump?

Miller Light Man.  Can he ski the slope and successfully make the jump?

Pirates of Arctic Valley appear each year.  Some years they win and some years they don't.  What do they do this year?

Moose and mini moose hope to make the jump successfully as well.

This was Beth's schools entry.  Balls to Wall because the designer were the PE teachers.  Andrew was confident that he designed a low riding and very sustainable dummy.

The Pirates are ready to be hauled up the hill.  This is why each dummy team needs a lot of volunteers to help haul the dummy up the hill. 

This is "Woody" and he makes an appearance every year.

Every Alaskan event has beautiful dogs at the event.

This is Matt participating in the ski boot race. He chose to try the "butt" race instead.

Young man also tried to ski on his boots but took the fall.

Ahhhh! One successful run down the slope.

Turning isn't as easy as you would think.

The trail signs are held up by a pair of skis.  This sure makes it easy to remove at the end of the season.

The kayak really moves FAST down the ski slope. 

The events for the day.

I couldn't resist taking a picture of this "Cutie" and his snazzy snow suit.

The dummy launch gets started.

Balls to the Wall crashed and burned early on the jump.

 Andrew tried to help it down the hill to make the jump.  Nope.  Crashed and burned.

 Kayak man did well but went off course.

 Most eagles soar for long periods of time.  Not this one.  Off course and crashed.

Perhaps the Miller Light Man had a few too many before the start line.  He left the hill soon.

Poor Miller Light man had his head removed on his fall.

No fear.  With a little help from his design team he had a second chance.  He did get air lift on his re-try.

 Pirate ship had a wonderful start.

 But ended very badly before the jump.:(

 And the Winner IS....... Moose and mini me!  You can see how much air the Moose and mini Me get on their ski jump run.  THE WINNER!!!!

This is the refrigerator at the ski lodge.  I love it.  I bet David will ask for one of these refrigerators for our house.  You don't even have to open the door to get a beer.

The favorite drink of the day.

At the end of the day one more dare was proposed.  Sheryl, are you ready to ride the kayak down the hill?  Well of course I am!!!  I had a really good run.  I went through the orange plastic fence and continued down the hill.  No worries.  We hiked the kayak back up the hill so Beth could give it a try.

Here goes Beth!

Beth went so far - past the parking lot - and didn't realize how much snow is at the base of the mountain.  It was up to her hips and she had the most difficult time getting back to packed snow.  Beth had to finally take the "snow crawl" hoping she wouldn't sink any further.

Kristen was successful at retrieving the kayak.

 Another fun event and a few more silly memories.  Arctic Valley ski slope is closed to skiing and will reopen in a few weeks for hiking.

My three years are up here in Alaska.  Here is why.  Every semester I make David his favorite meals and side dishes.  I think this semester he had meals enough for 90 days.  David informed me that he is out of "Sheryl's meals" and that means it is time to go home. 

David had his own adventure a few weeks ago.  He rode Harley's to Shiloh, TN to watch The Reenactment.  You all may have seen a bit of one if you saw the movie, "Sweet Home Alabama."  David got to watch an entire war on a beautiful day.

Those are big wheels on that cannon.

Everyone dressed in period regalia.

I can't imagine wearing so many layers of cotton during the heat!

Aren't they a cute couple?

Last week this little calf decided to go to school.  Yep, he was strolling close by.  But you know the mantra, "If there is a baby the mom can't be far away." RUN Sheryl RUN!! 

This little gem is living in the neighborhood now. The snow is off the streets and it has been very warm (50-60 degrees and blue skies) and the owner has been driving around town.

Last week the city dump trucks are still hauling snow  away to the harbor.  The main streets are very clean and snowless.  The side streets are another story.  You can see the truck in the drive.  Many neighborhoods have the snow piled up so high it is still far from being gone.

 Can't see the front door.  Yes this was taken in mid April.

These are the some of the little peeps I am going to miss when I leave Alaska.

They are so cute and I am going to miss them.

I hope you have enjoyed another one of my Alaskan adventures.  I only have a few more adventures to complete before I end my workcation in Alaska.  I am thankful for all the smiles I have received in my life.  Julius, Cameron and Violet are some examples of the smiles that warm my heart and soul everyday. 

Until then,

Have a wonderful day, give a smile to a stranger, and live today to the fullest.

Sheryl the Nanuq of the North