Alaska Day 3

Day 3 Highlights:
We drove from Denali back down to Anchorage. On the way we stopped by Igloo City, an abandoned Igloo Hotel built in the 70s that never even opened because they couldn't meet the codes. Now it's just a hilarious eyesore. See below. We also stopped for some Alaskan BIRCH flavored ice cream, which kind of tastes like a mild syrup flavor. It was good. Also purchased some brittle.

Then we hit up Palmer, which was a very rural, beautiful drive to the east of Willow and Wasilla area. Stunning views. Found a cool magic bus in the middle of nowhere (see below)

Then we did the April Bowl Trail (Rating: Moderate) which was amazing but the fog was thick. The mountains surrounding this area are steep, dramatic and green. It felt a bit like Norway at times. People were hang gliding off of them which was fun to watch. This hike had my favorite hiking feature: GLACIAL LAKES. See below. Nathan spotted some acquaintances on the mountain which was unexpected and very fun. We met up with them for drinks later.

Finally, we stopped by an abandoned gold mine that was working until the 30s and 40s. It was built during the gold rush era. Pretty creepy. See below. An overall eventful sabbatical day.
Odds and Ends: Palmer, AK is known to grow some of the largest vegetables in the US due to the sun being out most of the day.