About a 120 miles from Anchorage is the quaint little town of Talkeetna, Alaska. If you remember the TV show, Northern Exposure, Talkeetna is one of the towns it was based on.
Michele, Tyler and I headed up the Parks Highway for a day-trip on the Fourth of July. We wanted to check out the Moose Dropping Festival and grab a world famous pizza at Mountain High Pizza Pie.
If you are a frequent fan of this blog you know that I think that pizza is the world’s most perfect food and I firmly believe that you could eat it every day! I’ll get back to the Mountain High pizza in just a sec.
Talkeetna is called the gateway to Denali. With the entrance to the park just up the highway, Talkeetna is famous for its sightseeing flights, guided fly fishing and river tours. The little down was bustling with tourists checking out the little shops selling everything from quilts to ice cream made with a John Deer well pump (I think that is what it is).
The Moose Dropping Festival is held in early July every year in Talkeetna and they have the requisite parade and 5K run along with an auction of hand painted moose sculptures by the local residents.
Now back to the pizza!
The Mountain High Pizza Pie is like no other pizza place in Alaska. The little restaurant has an eclectic tie-dye flair. We sat out on the patio enjoying the cool breeze, people watching.
We ordered an appetizer of Lasagna Bites first. They were wonderful! The breaded little squares of lasagna were prefect for dipping in the marina sauce. I washed it down with an Alaska Summer Ale. If you have never had a beer from the Alaskan Brewing Company you are missing out. Of the several varieties I have had the Summer and Pale Ale are my favorites.
After a short wait our pizza was delivered piping hot. We ordered the Roadhouse pie with bacon, sausage, pepperoni and cheddar jack cheese. It was awesome. The crust was chewy, the sauce was sweet and the pie contained just enough of each ingredient to perfectly compliment each other.
After lunch we checked out the shops and headed over to the river. The Talkeetna and Sustina Rivers confluence here as the cold waters rush down from the glaciers to the north. It was a cloudy day so we couldn’t see Denali but we did see a bald eagle soaring above.
We munched on a scoop of the homemade ice cream before heading back down the highway.
What a great way to spend Independence Day. If you are in Alaska I am sure that Talkeetna is on your list. Check out Mountain High Pizza, you will be glad you did!