We had fly over Mount McKinkey and landed with that brilliant expression, reserved at the moment memorable. We were in the town of Talkeetna, just released January, Thinking about Denali's magic, The park that covers the most steep peaks in the United States. An inaccessible and cold place, Cuajado de Abismo. We would soon discover the contrast between nature and the men who inhabit it.
In the latitude motel 62, José Luis, Alfonso and I get rid of the suitcases as who has just got home, Such was the familiarity with which they treated us from the beginning. Much of the Talkeetna activity took place at the motel bar. Every afternoon the neighbors of the town appeared there. They did it on their snowmobiles, looking for maybe the warmth of a fireplace conversation.
Wandering souls arrived yearning for a shelter to their storms
The waiter from the restaurant next door arrived, A retiree, The craft store girl, The most accurate hunter in the place, Wandering souls arrived yearning for a shelter to their storms. Alaska is full of loners who find a company around a beer.
The hostel manager called each one by name and nobody had even to ask for the drink, because she knew that they wanted to drink and even the number of bottles that everyone needed. We also also call us by our names. Everyone knew about the arrival of two Spaniards and an Argentine to that hidden village. It was not tourist season. There are mountaineers who dare with the McKinley in the middle of winter and even spring did not arrive salmon fishermen. We answered their questions and invited us to another round of Alaskan Amber, the local cerveza. “How do you come from Spain by car?"And where are you going to?"Put these guys another beer."
“With the girls, There is only one standard here, You must wait for your turn "
I walked the afternoons through the snowy callecitas, I looked out the oldest little hotel in Alaska, el Fairview Inn, or saw the sunsets precipitating at the time of the nap. Then I met with my travel companions that were never alone. The hotel head spoke to us without complexes from each of its customers. Most were from outside and fled the past, fed up with cities frenzy. Others escaped from impossible love, Looking perhaps comfort in northern lights or snowstorms. I knew that the restaurant owner was in love with the motel waitress, that in turn looked with good eyes to a handsome hunter who looked at all with great generosity. “With the girls, There is only one standard here, You must wait for your turn ", said laughing the owner of latitude 62.
One afternoon they told us about Jerry Souza, The most peculiar of the residents of the town. Every year it was prepared for days to dispute the sled race with the most important dogs in the world. Iditarod is a sled test of more than 1.000 kilometers between the city of Anchorage and Nome. They warned us that they speak more with their dogs than with men and we went to visit him. We find him by wearing the four legs of twelve of his dogs. He agreed with a gesture without a trace of enthusiasm to take us to take a turn with his sled.
The Huskies ran tirelessly between the branches of snowy trees. It was a winter slide, The most cheerful way to travel in Alaska.
I sat in the sled seat to record that walk. The Huskies ran tirelessly between the branches of snowy trees. It was a winter slide, The most cheerful way to travel in Alaska. When we finish the excursion, Jerry went to his dogs and his signal vehemently started anywhere. He told us goodbye.
Another morning, A couple of mountaineers proposed to try luck about an ice mast. I dared to practice the most difficult escalation mode in the world and as it was obvious I failed a few meters away. It took several minutes to ascend less than half of the mast but I took a few hostels for a couple of days.
Every night we found new reasons to stay one more day.
Thus time passed in Talkeetna, Without going, Well every night we found new reasons to stay one more day. They invited me to play Ping Pong and José Luis to play the piano. Talkeetna is a place to walk in home. It is a parenthesis on any trip, An anesthesia to the kilometers of route. It was a known place much before arriving. Talkeetna was the town that inspired the "Doctor in Alaska" series and it seemed to me that the atmosphere of that place was as endearing as the television program, although here men shave less. Talkeetna's magic lies in the still winter, Because at this time people tend to cor, To light fires and scare nostalgia. This is one of those places where one considers retiring one day., Far from road noise. Maybe when I fell to run, I will return to Talkeetna to the heat of winter.
