Summer in Soldotna: Seward for the 4th

It was a glorious day as I drove to Seward to celebrate the 4th of July; the sun and clear skies made the mountains greener and water bluer than ever. Mountains, rivers, and lakes are ubiquitous along the scenic byway-- for every picture I post, there are 10 more, and for every picture I take, there are hundreds more than I didn't take, only because to stop for every postcard-worthy shot would turn the two-hour drive into four. So I drove the whole way without stopping, watching the panoramas roll by. But just outside of Seward I made an exception and stopped because this one was too lovely to pass up:

I was one of thousands of Alaskans and tourists flocking to Seward for the festivities. Usually a quiet harbor with 2,500 people, over 30,000 fill the place for the weekend-- every campsite, every parking spot was full (only with expert cunning was I able to stake a square plot of gravel for my tent). The weather couldn't have been better-- hot at 75 (which in Alaska feels like 90) and relentless sun-- so people trolled the downtown streets, shopping from vendors, eating reindeer hotdogs, kettlecorn, and chocolate-dipped bacon.

The big event is the Mt. Marathon Race-- a footrace up a mountain, 3 miles, straight up, straight down. Not for your average runner. People have been seriously injured (from falling rocks or from falling off the cliff themselves) and someone actually disappeared in the middle of the race, no trace. I sometimes consider myself fairly hardcore, but I'm intimidated to even hike this trail, nevermind race it. You could pick the racers out of the crowd: they all had legs of gods (or tree trunks) and those who had already raced were limping on taped ankles with mud from their butts of their heels.

I arrived in time to see the men's race. I found a spot at the base of the mountain, where the men would start ascending the cliff, and 40 minutes later (the fast ones) would start careening down. Here they are:

(the easiest gradient, just the beginning)

From afar, looking to the top of Mt Marathon, you could see the dust rising from the trail as runners made their way to the top and back (right half of the mountain, barely visible):

Fanfare aside, Seward is a beautiful spot surrounded by mountains and Resurrection Bay, so when all else fails, it's good to just sit on the rocks by the bay, watching the tide roll away: