Yes, the absent blogger has returned. Why has he been so silent in the midst of so many exciting airline deals? Perhaps it’s because he chose to slowly step back and observe, like a trader closely watches the stock market in order to better guess the next trend. Or, perhaps he’s been more of a day trader, grabbing reservations only to release them for a better deal the next day while never being able to follow through. Or, perhaps he just hasn’t been flying. Yes, it has been a month and a half since I last hopped on an airplane…but this weekend promises to be a wonderful way to re-enter the world of flying.

As you’ve probably read, John and I will be joined by his roommate on a journey to Alaska this weekend. The good deal was available from DEN to ANC…however, I live in PHX. Nevertheless, when John told me what a great price they were offering I took the bait and figured the rest out later. I eventually decided to use some of my extensive America West miles to get a flight to Denver, then meet up with John and Paul to continue the expedition on United to Alaska. And in true form, we are returning home through ORD, adding a good chunk of miles to the trip.

When it comes to using miles, John and I are both pretty particular. John is much more stringent than myself, but I do tend to be very careful how I use my miles. In fact, I have used more miles upgrading friends to First Class that have never flown FC before than to purchase tickets for myself. But this trip should be well worth the 15k miles to DEN in order to hit the great outdoors. John and I both intend to spend some time blogging this weekend, fully documenting what will be quite an experience.