Denali

Halibut and fries for lunch! We could walk from the camping area out to a little town called Healy, where we got this lunch and bought souvenirs. Cool shirt (didn't buy it though), which reads, "If you must smoke, smoke salmon":

Our campsite #54 in Wolf Loop.

So many neat things in the gift shop just outside the entrance to Denali National park.

Savage River yesterday.  We collected some beautiful black rocks there.

Crossing the walking bridge over Riley Creek on the Triple Lake Trail.

We stopped as the train went by...

The mountains here are quite snowy still, many glaciers. Denali's highest peak is 20,310 ft.  It used to be called Mt. McKinley until 2015.  It's the tallest mountain in North America and the 3rd most prominent summit in the world.

Junior Ranger!

quiet little chapel

It's our 2nd day in Alaska.  Below, you see a pretty flower, fireweed.

We hiked out to Saint Sergius chapel built on a huge natural rock in the woods, not accessible by car.  It was so beautiful, glimpses of the wood and gold cupolas as we neared, through the forest.  It's on the property of this church, past the cemetery. There's also an Orthodox school with about 60 students and a monastery.

The mountains provide a stunning backdrop for St. John's Antiochian Orthodox church.

There's so much to see in Alaska.  I'm already thinking we'll have to make another trip here.

We are staying with our niece and her husband most of this trip.  I carried George on my back up Mt. Baldy.  It was good hike, not for the faint of heart, we were careful, but still had a few stumbles.  Loose stones and narrow steep paths made it difficult.  We made it to the summit in about 2 hours!

There are mosquitos here, not too bad, but definitely more than in Ohio.

Tomorrow we drive north 4 hours to Denali.

first day in Alaska

Just arrived and saw 3 moose already!

1st airplane ride for him. It was 8 hours and he was pretty good.  Took a 2 hour nap!  View of snow on mountains...

The girls at the airport!  We were excited to see a moose...  But then even better to see a real one just a little later.

wonders + garden

"never lose your sense of wonder"

- Lee Ann Womack

A glimpse of our garden right now:

I want to share this story:  if you ask a fly, “Are there any flowers in this area?” it will say, “I don’t know about flowers, but over there in that heap of rubbish you can find all the filth you want.” And it will go on to list all the unclean things it has been to.Now, if you ask a honeybee, “Have you seen any unclean things in this area?” it will reply, “Unclean things? No, I have not seen any; the place here is full of the most fragrant flowers.” And it will go on to name all the flowers of the garden or the meadow.You see, the fly only knows where the unclean things are, while the honeybee knows where the beautiful iris or hyacinth is...As I have come to understand, some people resemble the honeybee and some resemble the fly. Those who resemble the fly seek to find evil in every circumstance and are preoccupied with it; they see no good anywhere. But those who resemble the honeybee only see the good in everything they see. The stupid person thinks stupidly and takes everything in the wrong way, whereas the person who has good thoughts, no matter what he sees, no matter what you tell him, maintains a positive and good thought.

+ St. Paisios of Mt. Athos, “Good and Evil Thoughts,” Spiritual Counsels III: Spiritual Struggle

We had so many bees in our garden last month, when everything was flowering, but I haven't seen many lately. We have seen fireflies the past few evenings!  Feels like summer.

 Our raspberries will be ready soon!

What is green + growing near your home?

Sourdough starter

I've got a new hobby.  It's baking with sourdough starter, instead of yeast, for bread.  I made crumpets for the 1st time about a month ago.  It sounds fancy, but really is simple, and V E G A N:

C R U M P E T S

2 c. sourdough starter

1 t. salt
1 t. baking soda
1 T. sugar or honey (this morning I used a mashed banana instead, so it was more like a pancake)

Mix together and pour onto a skillet with a bit of oil on it. I find it's easier without rings (who needs a perfectly round one?), one less thing to wash.
Flip and let cook about a minute.  I top mine with jam (Bonne Maman is my favorite right now, and I'm reusing the jars for starter and other things) and I enjoy mine with a hot cup of tea.

I usually use a little less starter, never measure it, just guess, what would be the amount I "discard" daily.  I think it's pretty cool that the starter + baking soda react with each other, an acid and base.  Chemistry in the kitchen!

Recipe credit:  Cultures for health and the King Arthur flour crumpet recipe on their website.

I also made artisan loaves of bread, focaccia, crepes, two batches of kulich (for Pascha, the first one came out a bit too doughy but the second one was better because I let it rise longer, overnight), and pizza dough. 

Our outdoor pizza oven is heated by wood.

Parmesan after baking!  We made pizza last week on my husband's birthday.

Inside the 1st batch of kulich.  Not right, but still edible.

 Cheese pascha makes everything better.

One cup of starter in a large bowl, add 2 cup water, 4 cups flour, 1 teaspoon salt and mix well.  Knead.  Let rise overnight.  And bake at 400 for 45 minutes or thereabouts.  There are so many great recipes and varieties a flower that you can use tomorrow I'm going to our farmers market and picking up some spelt and rye flour.

Garlic + basil from our yard.

I made herb-cheddar rolls!  Using a sourdough based dough, it wasn't ideal, but still scrumptious!

Hope you have a great weekend.  What are you making or baking?