September 6
The drive today was beautiful. The sky was the usual gray, low, drizzly stuff we have come to expect. The Tetlin National Wildlife Refuge was very cool to drive along, thousands of small lakes and marsh areas. Did see a Great Gray Owl fly across the road but that was the extent of the animals for the day. Crossed the border into Yukon Territory and the road went to crap. It was about 50-75 miles of serious frost heaved chip and seal. It was kind of like riding a roller coaster without the big drops. The scenery in this part of the Yukon was much prettier than the drive up the Campbell Highway. Big mountains and a mix of open tundra and spruce forests. Swans were a common sight along here, along with Wigeons, Loons and Red Necked Grebes. Arrived in Haines Junction just in time to find a campground, cook some dinner and have a nice fire. The Yukon Campgrounds have all been pretty nice, $12 a night and free firewood!
September 7
Woke up to a thick ground fog. The plan was to head to the bakery for coffee and danish. The place was closed so we filled up with gas and headed south toward Haines. The fog shrouding the mountains was awesome and hopefully I was able to capture some of that with the camera. The fog lifted by 10AM and we had mostly sunny skies to enjoy for the rest of the day. Lots of Bald Eagles down toward Haines. Haines a is a cool little town with lots of cruise ship traffic. We headed NE of town to Chilcoot Lake Campground. The Chilcoot River was covered with eagles and gulls as the salmon were moving up stream. The river had a fish weir across it. A weir is kind of like a picket fence with removable pickets. The water runs through but the fish can not get through except where the fish counter person opens up a space. This person sits all day long and counts the fish as they move through the opening. Looked really boring to me other than the fact that the grizzly bears figured out that salmon against a fence made for some really EASY fishing. There was a sow with three cubs feeding about 50' from the fish counter. There were lots of people hanging around watching the bears and a ranger lady watching the people. The campground was less than a half mile from the bears. We found a lakeside campsite and pitched the tent then headed back into town for groceries. Back to camp for dinner and more bear watching before bed.
September 8
Lazy day hanging around Haines. Took a short hike, went to the library to get on line and pay some bills (yes, those pesky things are STILL following us!) and drove around a bit. Made our ferry reservations for tomorrow night, ferry does not leave until 10PM so we will have all day tomorrow to mess around too. Back up to camp. There are a bunch of Harbor Seals hanging out at the mouth of the river, snacking on the salmon I suspect. Must be 40 eagles out there too.
September 9
Breakfast and break camp. Head into town and find a shower at the local laundromat. Showers are good once in a while. Drive down to Chilkat State Park, about 10 miles SW of town. Nice quiet campground and not a sole is there. Nice views across the bay to some hanging glaciers. Back into town and a short hike. Had dinner at the local Mexican restaurant, Mosey's Cantina. Good food. Check in for the ferry at 8:45 PM, Loading at 9:30, en-route at 10PM. A very dark trip to Skagway until we get with in site of town. Unload and drive through the silent streets of town at 11 PM to our camground at Dyea, 10 miles west of town. A twisty windy road into the darkness. We get the tent pitched and crash out about 12:15 AM.
September 10
Up and out to the “ghost town” of Dyea. This was the original start of the Klondike gold rush over the Chilcoot trail. We got a ranger led tour of the townsite from a ranger, we were the only ones there so it was pretty nice. To say this is a ghost town is a stretch, there is nothing more than some rotten lumber laying on the ground. The story and history were very cool though. After that we headed into Skagway. Had some lunch at a bar and grill then wandered the streets. It is a BUSY town during cruise ship season. The streets were packed with people as there were two ships in port. There were a ton of cools shops in town and we shopped a lot! Sheri got a couple rings. I got another backpack. We sampled beers at the Skagway Brewery then went to the Red Onion Bar. This was right next to the starting line of the Klondike Road Race. This is a team relay running event that goes to Whitehorse, 112 miles to the north. It was fun to watch all the teams, reminded me of RAGBRAI. We shared a small pizza then headed back to camp in the drizzle and fog.
September 11
Into Skagway to bakery for coffee and danish, luckily this one is open and we enjoy some really tasty cinnamon rolls with our coffee. We go wonder town for a bit and then decide we need to get out of here before we spend anymore money so we head back to camp and pack up. On the road at 1:00 PM. Up and over White Pass. A SPECTACULAR drive, ranks up at the top of all scenery of the trip. Stop at Canadian Customs, very nice young lady working there, first time ANY customs people were pleasant. Drove up to Carcross, across the Tagish highway and back onto the Alaska Highway. This is a stretch of road we have not traveled. We stop at Teslin Lake campground, another Yukon camp. Build a fire and get ready to whip dinner. Not putting up the tarp tonight, it is mostly clear.......Starts to rain, fine, we put up the tarp.
September 12
A long day driving, at least recently it is. Put in 8 hours on the road. Stop for fuel. Credit card denied, second card denied, crap, there goes the cash I had. Not sure what is up with that and of course it is Sunday so no one at the card center to fix it. Turn south off the Alaskan Highway and onto the Cassiar Highway. A very remote feeling road, not quite like the Campbell hwy but close. Drive to Kinaskan Lake campground, a British Columbia Provincial park. Very nice place. Hooded Mergansers kept swimming past our campsite on the water, very enjoyable
September 13
Heading south still, down to Stewart BC/Hyder Alaska. Set up camp in the Stewart City campground. Suppose to bears all over. We have not seen any yet...........Glad they can't open a tent zipper. Nice little town. On the end of a 90 mile long natural inlet/canal. About a 100 miles as the crow flies dew east of Ketchican Alaska. Stayed in a nice city campground. Big trees and pretty quiet.
Glacier National Park
Escaping the rat race (sheep race?)
Tuesday, September 14, 2010
Monday, September 6, 2010
The farthest north and heading south
September 4
Headed over to the farmers market, it was cool with lots of produce and arts/crafts. There are a lot of cool weather veggies grown up here, huge cabbage and root crops. We bought a few things and Sheri found some jewelry she needed. Then we went to Creamer's Field to look at the Sandhill cranes, there were lots of them but nothing like the spring migration in central Nebraska. Found a fabric/quilt shop and Sheri got lost in there for at least an hour! We stopped at a little yarn shop and got some cool merino wool so Sheri can knit me a winter stocking cap, it is starting to get cold up this way. Stopped at the grocery store and stocked up on supplies. Bought a couple really nice ribeye steaks for the grill
had a nice dinner of steak, salad and butter/garlic potatoes. Neighbors came over and visited for a while, they were from Nevada MO. They moved to Alaska about 8 years ago and really liked it.
September 5
Pack it up and move 'em out, heading south today, oh so slowly. Kind of a sad thing, I have REALLY enjoyed Alaska. Gray and drizzly, no views of the Alaska range again, just like last time through here. Down through Delta to Tok and found an RV park that had showers and laundry facilities. Nice fire and Hormel Chili on hot dogs for dinner, look out toilets. Heading into Canada tomorrow, then back out to Haines Alaska, ferry to Skagway then back to Canada again.
Headed over to the farmers market, it was cool with lots of produce and arts/crafts. There are a lot of cool weather veggies grown up here, huge cabbage and root crops. We bought a few things and Sheri found some jewelry she needed. Then we went to Creamer's Field to look at the Sandhill cranes, there were lots of them but nothing like the spring migration in central Nebraska. Found a fabric/quilt shop and Sheri got lost in there for at least an hour! We stopped at a little yarn shop and got some cool merino wool so Sheri can knit me a winter stocking cap, it is starting to get cold up this way. Stopped at the grocery store and stocked up on supplies. Bought a couple really nice ribeye steaks for the grill
had a nice dinner of steak, salad and butter/garlic potatoes. Neighbors came over and visited for a while, they were from Nevada MO. They moved to Alaska about 8 years ago and really liked it.
September 5
Pack it up and move 'em out, heading south today, oh so slowly. Kind of a sad thing, I have REALLY enjoyed Alaska. Gray and drizzly, no views of the Alaska range again, just like last time through here. Down through Delta to Tok and found an RV park that had showers and laundry facilities. Nice fire and Hormel Chili on hot dogs for dinner, look out toilets. Heading into Canada tomorrow, then back out to Haines Alaska, ferry to Skagway then back to Canada again.
Denali, The GREAT one
August 30
We left Anchorage for the final time on this trip. It was REALLY tough, we have WONDERFUL friends there. The hospitality was fantastic, we will be back! Heading north to Denali in the normal rain and gray that is what I expect of Alaska summers now. We drive past many Denali view points but still no mystical mountain for us. The Parks highway is one we had driven most of back in the first of July but this time heading back north, fall was in the air. The further north we went more golden aspen and birch trees we saw. We checked in at the park office for our campsites. The campsite we had reserved was at the the 29 mile mark on the Denali park road. Taklanika Camp ground had a minimum of three nights stay and you could not drive your car once you were into the park. The only transportation was the park shuttle system. As we entered the park the colors got more and more impressive. The golds, reds and greens were the coolest fall colors I have ever seen. We saw a single bull caribou and then a small group of younger bulls on our way into the campground. We found a site and pitched the tent and got the Noah's tarp up before the rain started again. Dinner and bed early as we had an 8:45 bus in the AM.
August 31
A quick breakfast and coffee to go, we catch the bus out in front of the campground. The bus is pretty full with folks from all over the the world speaking languages I did not know. The driver told us interesting things along the route about history and eco-systems. The bus would stop and shut off the engine for most wildlife sightings so there were plenty of photo ops. The day was gray and rainy again but the animals were out everywhere. We saw grizzly bear, wolves, moose, dall sheep, caribou, porcupine, golden eagle, merlin, ptarmigan. The only thing missing is a view of Denali itself. We traveled all the to Kantishna which is the end of the road at mile 83. It was a spectacular day. It was a long day, almost 9 hours.
September 1
Slept in then went for a hike along the river near the campground. Did not see anything animal wise but it was a great education on the way a glacial rivers changes course. I now understand why a lot of glacial river beds are big and wide and open, very cool indeed. The sun popped out late in the day and was beautiful. Then the clouds and rain again, come on, make up your mind! Had a nice fire and then bed.
September 2
Woke up to clear sky's and a heavy frost, temps around 33 degrees. Rain drops from the night before froze on the tarp. The high mountains have a new dusting of snow. It really feels of fall this morning. After breakfast we headed or the bus again. This time we were only going as far as the Eielson Center. Today the animals did not seem quite so active but we still saw some good stuff. We had a wolf with a bad leg hobble right past the bus on the road so I got some decent photos of him. We saw other wolf, sheep, caribou and bear, just not as many. We watched a movie at the Eielson Center and looked at the displays. Of course the clouds had moved in by now and there was STILL no views of the mountain. I was able to snap a picture of a partial Denali shot through the clouds from Stony Hilly, guess that is the best I will get.
September 3
Leaving Denali this morning. Breakfast and break camp, no rain and a dry tent packed. We saw some caribou on the way out and enjoyed the fall colors. At the Denali visitor center we ate a couple cheeseburgers and then went to see the parks working sled dogs demonstration. It was interesting, the dogs do a lot of work in the winter. Heading north now to Alaska's second largest city, Fairbanks. We found a nice campsite in the middle of town on the Chena river. Nice wooded sites with all the sounds of the city around us. The Sandhill cranes were all over the place flying back and fourth making there funny cackle.
We left Anchorage for the final time on this trip. It was REALLY tough, we have WONDERFUL friends there. The hospitality was fantastic, we will be back! Heading north to Denali in the normal rain and gray that is what I expect of Alaska summers now. We drive past many Denali view points but still no mystical mountain for us. The Parks highway is one we had driven most of back in the first of July but this time heading back north, fall was in the air. The further north we went more golden aspen and birch trees we saw. We checked in at the park office for our campsites. The campsite we had reserved was at the the 29 mile mark on the Denali park road. Taklanika Camp ground had a minimum of three nights stay and you could not drive your car once you were into the park. The only transportation was the park shuttle system. As we entered the park the colors got more and more impressive. The golds, reds and greens were the coolest fall colors I have ever seen. We saw a single bull caribou and then a small group of younger bulls on our way into the campground. We found a site and pitched the tent and got the Noah's tarp up before the rain started again. Dinner and bed early as we had an 8:45 bus in the AM.
August 31
A quick breakfast and coffee to go, we catch the bus out in front of the campground. The bus is pretty full with folks from all over the the world speaking languages I did not know. The driver told us interesting things along the route about history and eco-systems. The bus would stop and shut off the engine for most wildlife sightings so there were plenty of photo ops. The day was gray and rainy again but the animals were out everywhere. We saw grizzly bear, wolves, moose, dall sheep, caribou, porcupine, golden eagle, merlin, ptarmigan. The only thing missing is a view of Denali itself. We traveled all the to Kantishna which is the end of the road at mile 83. It was a spectacular day. It was a long day, almost 9 hours.
September 1
Slept in then went for a hike along the river near the campground. Did not see anything animal wise but it was a great education on the way a glacial rivers changes course. I now understand why a lot of glacial river beds are big and wide and open, very cool indeed. The sun popped out late in the day and was beautiful. Then the clouds and rain again, come on, make up your mind! Had a nice fire and then bed.
September 2
Woke up to clear sky's and a heavy frost, temps around 33 degrees. Rain drops from the night before froze on the tarp. The high mountains have a new dusting of snow. It really feels of fall this morning. After breakfast we headed or the bus again. This time we were only going as far as the Eielson Center. Today the animals did not seem quite so active but we still saw some good stuff. We had a wolf with a bad leg hobble right past the bus on the road so I got some decent photos of him. We saw other wolf, sheep, caribou and bear, just not as many. We watched a movie at the Eielson Center and looked at the displays. Of course the clouds had moved in by now and there was STILL no views of the mountain. I was able to snap a picture of a partial Denali shot through the clouds from Stony Hilly, guess that is the best I will get.
September 3
Leaving Denali this morning. Breakfast and break camp, no rain and a dry tent packed. We saw some caribou on the way out and enjoyed the fall colors. At the Denali visitor center we ate a couple cheeseburgers and then went to see the parks working sled dogs demonstration. It was interesting, the dogs do a lot of work in the winter. Heading north now to Alaska's second largest city, Fairbanks. We found a nice campsite in the middle of town on the Chena river. Nice wooded sites with all the sounds of the city around us. The Sandhill cranes were all over the place flying back and fourth making there funny cackle.
Back to Chateau MacHuber
August 27
Awoke to rain, how strange. Pack up the tent and head back to Anchorage. Besides almost getting run over by a couple of semi's it was an uneventful and gray drive back. Arrived at Ken and Heather's about three o'clock and got settled in. Started some laundry and took showers, Damn nice to have a wonderful “base camp”. Pizza and “burn you a new sphincter hot wings”. For some reson Huber decided Extra hot would be good, we both paid for it the next day, poor choice Ken......
August 28
Time to cook. I brought some KC style BBQ up to alaska that I had smoked back in Misery and thrown in the freezer. Ken and I decide that baked beans, slaw and Mac-n-cheese were the perfect compliments for the “Q”. Ken and I went to to the farmers market (they are awesome up here) to pick up some fixin's. I worked on the beans while Ken did the mac and coleslaw. Tim, Julie and Brian joined us for dinner and we pigged out. Julie made a peach/nectarine pie and I had made a peach cobbler in the dutch oven. We all ate way to much. The Monkee ended up napping on the couch, does pulled pork have the same stuff as turkey (triptefin?) in it?
August 29
packing and organizing gear, prepping to leave in the AM. In the evening we go over to Joe and Emily's house for pizza from the Moose's tooth, some of the best pizza I have ever had. Looked at pictures they had taken from Katmai. They had some GREAT pictures of the bears from there trip. Someday we may have to make that trip.
Awoke to rain, how strange. Pack up the tent and head back to Anchorage. Besides almost getting run over by a couple of semi's it was an uneventful and gray drive back. Arrived at Ken and Heather's about three o'clock and got settled in. Started some laundry and took showers, Damn nice to have a wonderful “base camp”. Pizza and “burn you a new sphincter hot wings”. For some reson Huber decided Extra hot would be good, we both paid for it the next day, poor choice Ken......
August 28
Time to cook. I brought some KC style BBQ up to alaska that I had smoked back in Misery and thrown in the freezer. Ken and I decide that baked beans, slaw and Mac-n-cheese were the perfect compliments for the “Q”. Ken and I went to to the farmers market (they are awesome up here) to pick up some fixin's. I worked on the beans while Ken did the mac and coleslaw. Tim, Julie and Brian joined us for dinner and we pigged out. Julie made a peach/nectarine pie and I had made a peach cobbler in the dutch oven. We all ate way to much. The Monkee ended up napping on the couch, does pulled pork have the same stuff as turkey (triptefin?) in it?
August 29
packing and organizing gear, prepping to leave in the AM. In the evening we go over to Joe and Emily's house for pizza from the Moose's tooth, some of the best pizza I have ever had. Looked at pictures they had taken from Katmai. They had some GREAT pictures of the bears from there trip. Someday we may have to make that trip.
Off to Seward and here Fishy Fishy
August 22
Sunday morning and we are up in the drizzle, get the tent packed away and head for the bakery/coffee shop. Had some FANTASTIC blueberry cream cheese danish and couple of latte's to go. The drive back north up Kenai looked just like the drive down, still no views across Cook Inlet toward Mt Redoubt. Took a side trip through the town of Kenai, nice little town. A stop at Tern Lake to make some
sandwiches and to look at the salmon in the creek. Lots of bright red salmon, not sure what kind they were. On to Seward, it also looked about the same as last time we were here on the 5th of July, rainy and low overcast. We found a site in the city campground right next to the hike/bike trail and the water. Not a bad spot with LOTS of people watching opportunities.
August 23
Woke up to partly cloudy and windy. The mountains around us were mostly visible and spectacular. We could see Mt Marathon, the one Julie ran on the fourth of July, thats just CRAZY girl, GREAT JOB! Turned into a great day weather wise. Made reservations to go out on a Halibut trip on Wednesday, should be fun. We just kind of hung out all day, wandering the streets of Seward.
August 24
The sky is clear, We watch a huge cruise ship back out of port and turn around in the bay, a very nice pirouette by a 1200' long ship. We headed up to Kenai Fiords NP's Exit Glacier and took a couple mile hike up to the snout of the glacier, pretty hike. That afternoon we sat and had fish and chips on a restaurant deck overlooking the small boat harbor, soaking up the wonderful sunshine.
August 25
Excited and up early (5:00 AM) to go fishing. I have always dreamed of going out on an Alaskan halibut fishing trip and today it is happening. I made coffee and scarfed a bowl of cereal then hopped on my bike with my pack full of gear and rode down to the docks. Went out with Pro-Fish-N-Sea on the boat named the pursuit. There were ten “fish People”, the Captain (Kevin) and deck hand (Willy). Heading out of the bay was spectacular, clear sky's, light winds and a great moon set over Mt Marathon. Saw mountain goats and huge bird colonies on the rocks near the mouth of the bay. Lots of Murre's, gulls and Puffin's. The ocean was calmer than anytime I had ever been out at sea, no wind and swells of maybe 2', unbelievable. The captain took us out about 15 miles off shore into the gulf of Alaska. We dropped anchor in about 280 feet of water and Willy went over the equipment and how we would fish. They started dropping baits over the side and handed me a rod with a 2.5 oz lead jig head w/a 10” twin tail grub. Drop it to the bottom (a long wait) then start jigging. One of the guys had a bite on the bait in about ten minutes and pulled up a nice 40 # halibut, it looked like a lot of work! Things were kind of slow for the first half hour but started to pick up. Fish started coming into the boat pretty regularly, but still no bites for me. My arms were getting tired of yanking that giant lead head up. I finally hooked a fish and brought it up, about a 20 pounder so I let it go. I caught three more fish before I decided I better keep one so I would have something to show for my money. There were some Lingcod and Yelloweye Rockfish caught by others along with lots of halibut. One of the guys hooked a Salmon Shark that he fought for about an hour before breaking him off. We had a couple of looks at him as he got him near the surface just for the fish to head back down to the bottom. The captain guessed it was about 7' long and 400 pounds or so. It was a hell of a battle and the fish WON! I cuaght another halibut that was about 60 pounds and then a couple of nice lingcod. Everyone on board caught there limit of two halibut and two lingcod. It was FUN. We got back in and they filleted the fish for us. I had 54 pounds of fillets that I had packaged, frozen and shipped to my Dad's house for future consumption, YUMMY! Sheri met me at the docks for photos then we went and ate a hamburger. Is there something wrong with having all that fresh fish and going out for a burger? Probably so.....
August 26
Another beautiful day in Seward. We whipped up some breakfast then headed for the Sea Life Center. It is a pretty cool aquarium that has lots of information on the Alaskan sea life. I think one of my favorite things was the giant fish tank that had the aviary above it. Watching the Murres and puffins swim into the depths was really cool, it was like they were flying under water, very cool indeed. For dinner we decided some salmon on the grill would be good. After all the money I spent yesterday, I am at the fish market buying salmon, that's messed up. The salmon was fantastic, I need to catch some.
Sunday morning and we are up in the drizzle, get the tent packed away and head for the bakery/coffee shop. Had some FANTASTIC blueberry cream cheese danish and couple of latte's to go. The drive back north up Kenai looked just like the drive down, still no views across Cook Inlet toward Mt Redoubt. Took a side trip through the town of Kenai, nice little town. A stop at Tern Lake to make some
sandwiches and to look at the salmon in the creek. Lots of bright red salmon, not sure what kind they were. On to Seward, it also looked about the same as last time we were here on the 5th of July, rainy and low overcast. We found a site in the city campground right next to the hike/bike trail and the water. Not a bad spot with LOTS of people watching opportunities.
August 23
Woke up to partly cloudy and windy. The mountains around us were mostly visible and spectacular. We could see Mt Marathon, the one Julie ran on the fourth of July, thats just CRAZY girl, GREAT JOB! Turned into a great day weather wise. Made reservations to go out on a Halibut trip on Wednesday, should be fun. We just kind of hung out all day, wandering the streets of Seward.
August 24
The sky is clear, We watch a huge cruise ship back out of port and turn around in the bay, a very nice pirouette by a 1200' long ship. We headed up to Kenai Fiords NP's Exit Glacier and took a couple mile hike up to the snout of the glacier, pretty hike. That afternoon we sat and had fish and chips on a restaurant deck overlooking the small boat harbor, soaking up the wonderful sunshine.
August 25
Excited and up early (5:00 AM) to go fishing. I have always dreamed of going out on an Alaskan halibut fishing trip and today it is happening. I made coffee and scarfed a bowl of cereal then hopped on my bike with my pack full of gear and rode down to the docks. Went out with Pro-Fish-N-Sea on the boat named the pursuit. There were ten “fish People”, the Captain (Kevin) and deck hand (Willy). Heading out of the bay was spectacular, clear sky's, light winds and a great moon set over Mt Marathon. Saw mountain goats and huge bird colonies on the rocks near the mouth of the bay. Lots of Murre's, gulls and Puffin's. The ocean was calmer than anytime I had ever been out at sea, no wind and swells of maybe 2', unbelievable. The captain took us out about 15 miles off shore into the gulf of Alaska. We dropped anchor in about 280 feet of water and Willy went over the equipment and how we would fish. They started dropping baits over the side and handed me a rod with a 2.5 oz lead jig head w/a 10” twin tail grub. Drop it to the bottom (a long wait) then start jigging. One of the guys had a bite on the bait in about ten minutes and pulled up a nice 40 # halibut, it looked like a lot of work! Things were kind of slow for the first half hour but started to pick up. Fish started coming into the boat pretty regularly, but still no bites for me. My arms were getting tired of yanking that giant lead head up. I finally hooked a fish and brought it up, about a 20 pounder so I let it go. I caught three more fish before I decided I better keep one so I would have something to show for my money. There were some Lingcod and Yelloweye Rockfish caught by others along with lots of halibut. One of the guys hooked a Salmon Shark that he fought for about an hour before breaking him off. We had a couple of looks at him as he got him near the surface just for the fish to head back down to the bottom. The captain guessed it was about 7' long and 400 pounds or so. It was a hell of a battle and the fish WON! I cuaght another halibut that was about 60 pounds and then a couple of nice lingcod. Everyone on board caught there limit of two halibut and two lingcod. It was FUN. We got back in and they filleted the fish for us. I had 54 pounds of fillets that I had packaged, frozen and shipped to my Dad's house for future consumption, YUMMY! Sheri met me at the docks for photos then we went and ate a hamburger. Is there something wrong with having all that fresh fish and going out for a burger? Probably so.....
August 26
Another beautiful day in Seward. We whipped up some breakfast then headed for the Sea Life Center. It is a pretty cool aquarium that has lots of information on the Alaskan sea life. I think one of my favorite things was the giant fish tank that had the aviary above it. Watching the Murres and puffins swim into the depths was really cool, it was like they were flying under water, very cool indeed. For dinner we decided some salmon on the grill would be good. After all the money I spent yesterday, I am at the fish market buying salmon, that's messed up. The salmon was fantastic, I need to catch some.
Monday, August 30, 2010
Ahhh, back in the land of the Mid Night sun
August 10th
Mr Woody picked us up at the airport and delivered us to the Chateau MacHuber (Ken and Heather's). As per the norm it was rainy and cool but still nice to be in the chilled Alaskan air. It has been a long day.....
August 11-14
A few days of rest and relaxation. We ran around Anchorage a bit. Went to the Anchorage Museum, a VERY cool place and really recomend it to anyone in the area to check it out. We tried to do the museum and the Native Cultural center all in the same day and ran out of time to get through all the museum after the Cultural Center. Check them out. Went for a nice bike ride with Tim and friends one evening on the Powerline Trail, it was spectacular scenery. Sheri and I spent a day driving dow to Girdwood (North side of the Turnagain arm)just to check things out. There are some really cool houses there! Made another trip to REI and picked me up a newsleeping pad and a couple new rain hats. We may need them as Friday set a new all time record for the most consecutive days of measureable rainfall, 27 in a row. I love being involved in record setting :)
August 15th
Up and out and down the road. Headed down to Hope to checkout the scene on the way to Homer. Hope is well off the beaten path on the south side of the Turnagin Arm, almost in sight of Anchorage but a 85 miles by road. We pitched the tent at Porcupine Campground then took a couple hour hike.
August 16
On our away to Homer we stopped in Cooper Landing at a Quilt shop and Sheri did some shopping. The weather is rainy and cool, surprised I know. a quick lunch in Soldotna and then on to Homer. The drive into Homer was very cool, as you come off the top of the bluff, the city and mountains came into view. We headed down through town and out onto the spit. We found a water taxi to take us accross the bay to our yurt we had reserved for the rest of the week. The wind was cranking over the mountains from the south and the rain was blowing sideways. We stopped by the Salty Dog for a beer. The Salty Dog is a famous little hole in the wall that you just have to see. The walls are completely coverd with dollar bills with names and notes written on them. After that it was Halibut chunks and fries for dinner. The weather was so crappy we wimped out on camping and got a hotel room for the night.
August 17th
We woke up to clouds and winds just cranking again, but this time it was coming out of the ocean and whipping up some good waves on Kachemak bay. We had some breakfast and headed to the spit to get our gear down to the boat docks for our water taxi. We unloaded our stuff into a cart in a steady drizzle. The Mulligan (our taxi boat) pulled up to the dock and we loaded our gear on board. Luckily there was a cabin that we could get in out of the rain on board. Of course the rain stopped once we got inside. The ride accross the bay was a pretty good roller coaster trip, lots of air and sea spray. About 45 minutes later we were pulling up to a big rocky point called Quarry Point. We dropped a ladder off the front of the boat and unloaded our gear. After the boat left we shuttles our gear up to the yurt. It was nestled in a grove of alder trees, sheltered from the windy waters. The yurt was a 16 footer with three twin mattresses on platforms, a table and a small barrel stove. After settling in we took our chairs out to "our" private rocky point for an evening of watching.
August 18, 19 and 20th
The time was spent sipping coffee in the mornings and looking through the spotting scope for wildlife and birds. Afternoons involved a bit of hiking, exploring and more scoping for distant life. Yurt life was great, the solitude was cool. It was a strange thing, we could see Homer in the distance and see boats passing by all day yet we were alone on our own little space...........
August 21
Last night we camped on the spit, it was nice sleeping with the wind and the sounds of the waves crashing in. We drove the east end road to the end of Kamachek bay, pretty drive. Starvin Marvin's pizza for dinner, very tasty.
Mr Woody picked us up at the airport and delivered us to the Chateau MacHuber (Ken and Heather's). As per the norm it was rainy and cool but still nice to be in the chilled Alaskan air. It has been a long day.....
August 11-14
A few days of rest and relaxation. We ran around Anchorage a bit. Went to the Anchorage Museum, a VERY cool place and really recomend it to anyone in the area to check it out. We tried to do the museum and the Native Cultural center all in the same day and ran out of time to get through all the museum after the Cultural Center. Check them out. Went for a nice bike ride with Tim and friends one evening on the Powerline Trail, it was spectacular scenery. Sheri and I spent a day driving dow to Girdwood (North side of the Turnagain arm)just to check things out. There are some really cool houses there! Made another trip to REI and picked me up a newsleeping pad and a couple new rain hats. We may need them as Friday set a new all time record for the most consecutive days of measureable rainfall, 27 in a row. I love being involved in record setting :)
August 15th
Up and out and down the road. Headed down to Hope to checkout the scene on the way to Homer. Hope is well off the beaten path on the south side of the Turnagin Arm, almost in sight of Anchorage but a 85 miles by road. We pitched the tent at Porcupine Campground then took a couple hour hike.
August 16
On our away to Homer we stopped in Cooper Landing at a Quilt shop and Sheri did some shopping. The weather is rainy and cool, surprised I know. a quick lunch in Soldotna and then on to Homer. The drive into Homer was very cool, as you come off the top of the bluff, the city and mountains came into view. We headed down through town and out onto the spit. We found a water taxi to take us accross the bay to our yurt we had reserved for the rest of the week. The wind was cranking over the mountains from the south and the rain was blowing sideways. We stopped by the Salty Dog for a beer. The Salty Dog is a famous little hole in the wall that you just have to see. The walls are completely coverd with dollar bills with names and notes written on them. After that it was Halibut chunks and fries for dinner. The weather was so crappy we wimped out on camping and got a hotel room for the night.
August 17th
We woke up to clouds and winds just cranking again, but this time it was coming out of the ocean and whipping up some good waves on Kachemak bay. We had some breakfast and headed to the spit to get our gear down to the boat docks for our water taxi. We unloaded our stuff into a cart in a steady drizzle. The Mulligan (our taxi boat) pulled up to the dock and we loaded our gear on board. Luckily there was a cabin that we could get in out of the rain on board. Of course the rain stopped once we got inside. The ride accross the bay was a pretty good roller coaster trip, lots of air and sea spray. About 45 minutes later we were pulling up to a big rocky point called Quarry Point. We dropped a ladder off the front of the boat and unloaded our gear. After the boat left we shuttles our gear up to the yurt. It was nestled in a grove of alder trees, sheltered from the windy waters. The yurt was a 16 footer with three twin mattresses on platforms, a table and a small barrel stove. After settling in we took our chairs out to "our" private rocky point for an evening of watching.
August 18, 19 and 20th
The time was spent sipping coffee in the mornings and looking through the spotting scope for wildlife and birds. Afternoons involved a bit of hiking, exploring and more scoping for distant life. Yurt life was great, the solitude was cool. It was a strange thing, we could see Homer in the distance and see boats passing by all day yet we were alone on our own little space...........
August 21
Last night we camped on the spit, it was nice sleeping with the wind and the sounds of the waves crashing in. We drove the east end road to the end of Kamachek bay, pretty drive. Starvin Marvin's pizza for dinner, very tasty.
Wednesday, August 11, 2010
Time to catch up with the world
WOW, things have been happening! Let me back track a bit. When we were in Dawson City Yukon in late June, we had an offer on our house that had been for sale for about a year. I did not want to mention this little detail in my last post as I did not want to jinx it happening. We could not pass the offer so when we got down to Tok Alaska we scrambled to find a place that I could print a copy of the contract so Sheri and I could sign it and email it back. After getting that done it was waiting time. The buyer was a cash buyer so the process was going to be quick. We told the Realtor that we would fly back and start moving out as soon as the mechanical inspection was done. I did not want to fly home to find out there was some issue that would kill the deal. The word came through on Thursday July 8th that all was good so we parked our car at the MacHuber's and caught a flight out of Anchorage at 11:15PM that night. It was the first mostly sunny day we had seen and we spent the day unloading the car and storing stuff in the basement. It was a really long flight and neither of us slept. We arrived back in KC at 11:45AM Friday morning were we were met at the airport by our friend Becky Treichel. Stepping out of the airport doors reminded me why I really did not like Missouri summers. It was miserable hot and just a taste of what was to come.
Sheri turned in her resignation at the school and the wheels were turning. We rented a storage space and started moving our stuff. Sheri focused on the house while I started on the garage. For those of you that had seen my garage know that was going to be a monumental task! I spent four days moving my garage stuff, I have WAY too much CRAP! With temps hovering in the mid 90's and the usual humidity it made it all that much more painful. After getting the garage done it was time to start moving the insides. Sheri had a great start on all the boxing so I moved all the boxes and small stuff that I could. On Monday the 19th Al Miledi took the day off work and came up to help me move all the big stuff. HUGE THANKS AL, that was above and beyond! We closed on the house on Friday the 23rd. The 24th was spent finishing up and then attending a wonderful going away party at the Treichels. It was fantastic to see a bunch of old friends. Thanks Becky and Don, you guys are the greatest! We turned over possession on the 25th and moved into my sister and brother in-laws house. It was great to be done with moving but there was still plenty to do. I sold our old fifth wheel travel trailer and the old Lincoln Town Car. Had a big yard sale and sold most of the other junk we did not want. I was able to squeeze in some bike rides and visits with old friends and Sheri made the rounds with her buddies. The two weeks spent hanging around after closing just flew by. Big thanks to Elette and Bill for letting us stay at their house, it was great.
Tuesday August 10th found us back on a plane bound for Anchorage. This flight was MUCH better as we left KC at 1:00PM (CST) and landed in Anchorage at 6:00PM (AST)
Sheri turned in her resignation at the school and the wheels were turning. We rented a storage space and started moving our stuff. Sheri focused on the house while I started on the garage. For those of you that had seen my garage know that was going to be a monumental task! I spent four days moving my garage stuff, I have WAY too much CRAP! With temps hovering in the mid 90's and the usual humidity it made it all that much more painful. After getting the garage done it was time to start moving the insides. Sheri had a great start on all the boxing so I moved all the boxes and small stuff that I could. On Monday the 19th Al Miledi took the day off work and came up to help me move all the big stuff. HUGE THANKS AL, that was above and beyond! We closed on the house on Friday the 23rd. The 24th was spent finishing up and then attending a wonderful going away party at the Treichels. It was fantastic to see a bunch of old friends. Thanks Becky and Don, you guys are the greatest! We turned over possession on the 25th and moved into my sister and brother in-laws house. It was great to be done with moving but there was still plenty to do. I sold our old fifth wheel travel trailer and the old Lincoln Town Car. Had a big yard sale and sold most of the other junk we did not want. I was able to squeeze in some bike rides and visits with old friends and Sheri made the rounds with her buddies. The two weeks spent hanging around after closing just flew by. Big thanks to Elette and Bill for letting us stay at their house, it was great.
Tuesday August 10th found us back on a plane bound for Anchorage. This flight was MUCH better as we left KC at 1:00PM (CST) and landed in Anchorage at 6:00PM (AST)
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