Moose Passings

Willow Hetrick
Turnagain Times
Moose Pass Correspondent

Kenai Crewsers Rowing Club Learn to Row

The Kenai Crewsers Rowing Club is holding their annual Learn to Row Clinic. This year, classes will be held on Saturday and Sunday, May 29 and 30 at Bear Lake in Seward. For both days, classes will begin at 1pm and end at 5p.m. This class is for everyone interested in learning to row (ages 14 and up) and for those who wish to improve their rowing skills. The Learn to Row introductory class covers the basics of sweep rowing. Instruction will include: dry land training, terminology, boat handling skills, safety information, erging techniques, and rowing fundamentals. All water classes are held on a “weather permitting” basis. The Learn to Row course is $90. However, novices who complete 100 percent of the training will receive a $50 certificate that can be applied to that year's annual membership. For more information contact Lori at 362-3433.

Forest Service Trail Updates

Thanks to our dedicated Rangers at the Kenai Lake Work Center in Moose Pass, we have updated Forest Service trail information in-and-around Moose Pass.

Updates as of April 22

• Snow machine access to the Lost Lake area is now limited to Snug Harbor Road. There is still 4+ feet of snow in the Cooper Lake area. The road is down to gravel all the way to the winter trailhead. Lost Lake and other areas open to winter motorized use will remain open until April 30.

• The lowest elevation trails are starting to melt out with some bare ground beginning to appear. Expect ice, slush, mud and standing water travelling on these trails for the next few weeks as well as fallen trees which crews will begin clearing soon.

• Snowpack is still deep over 1000' elevation. Trails that are used regularly in the winter will have firmer snowpack while all other areas will be soft and difficult to travel on as the days become warmer.

Updates as of April 9

• There's still good groomed skate skiing at the Divide and Trail River Campground. The snow is icy in the am, soft surface in the pm.

• The Lost Lake and Primrose Trails have icy areas on the lower parts. The propane at Clemens Cabin has been restocked.

• The first part of West Juneau Road (access to Resurrection Pass) is starting to melt out. The oil stove at Devils Pass Cabin, which had been down for a while, is now fixed.

• Slaughter Ridge Road/Bean Creek still has snow cover.

• Snug Harbor Road is down to gravel with lots of potholes, except the last 1/2-mile, which is still covered in snow and ice. Travel into Upper Russian Lake is packed and smooth, except for 2 miles of bumps from the winter parking area up to Rainbow Lake trailhead, they recommend taking the winter route through Cooper Lake.

Moose Pass Methodist Church Renovation Project Needs

The 15 member Volunteer in Mission team from North Carolina is getting excited about their trip to Moose Pass. They will be here from June 17-30. The congregation is grateful for the highly skilled labor they are bringing as the church plans to repair the roof, the ceiling, install new efficient windows and repair the old wiring in the Moose Pass Chapel. The team plans to stay at the Moose Pass School. Their trip is complicated by the fact that they will be here over the annual Moose Pass solstice celebration. Furthermore, it is complicated by the transition between Pastor Peter's leaving and Pastor Paul's arriving. Both Moose Pass and Seward congregations are needed to assist them in various ways.

Here's some of what the church needs for its volunteers need: Bedding for 15 persons (including mattresses or cots if we can get them), hand tools (please clearly mark your tools with name or color identifiers), sawsall pry bars, skil saw table, saw drop cords, ladders and step-ladders, scaffolding, router meal provisions for the team (the more we can do in this area the more the team can concentrate on the work projects). To donate tools and supplies, please contact Peter Perry at 907-224-7368.

Trash Cleanup along the Seward Highway

Each spring, residents of Moose Pass take it to the highway to clean up the trash leftover from the long winter months. To date, Jeanne Follett, in her safety vest with her garbage picker-upper, has collected over 12 bags of trash between the “Y” and mile 34 of the Seward Highway in a matter of two days. Thanks Jeanne! This should encourage us all to adopt a highway, driveway, pullout or a portion thereof and take part in beautifying our scenic byway.

Moose Pass Community Church Updates

Moose Pass Community Church has acquired new property at 34554 Seward Highway, and plans are underway to convert the old bus barn into a church building. The congregation has simply outgrown the current property, which is also starting to really show its age!