Every winter we find plenty back country skiers, snowmobiles and snowshoers tearing it up in Turnagain pass – the best rest-stop after Girdwood heading south on the Seward Highway. This year you can add a 12-pound dauschuahua named Isla to that list.

She floated like a rabbit and pounced like a fox over the heavy spring snow. She even fetched some snowballs and offered some comedy to the hike. Uncanny how at home she seemed, considering her heritage is probably Mexican desert. None-the-less, she dug it. The day was perfect for a hike with man’s two best friends.

If you haven’t been there, Turnagain Pass is about an hour and a half out of Anchorage, gets about five times as much snow and adds a bit of stunning to the long drive down the Kenai Peninsula. It’s more of a pit-stop in the summer, but if you are looking for a way to escape the Anchorage slush-bowl, it doubles as a great way to squeeze in a few good days of winter.