Winter is setting in here, and it's even more beautiful than I expected. We've had 2 decent (more than a couple inches) snowfalls in Anchorage so far, and I find myself staring out the window as the snow falls so gently to the ground. Even though it snows in every location I've lived so far, there are a few differences I've noticed here:
1. The snow falls straight down. In the past several years, I've only seen snow "falling" sideways, piling up in one area and leaving another area with bare ground as the wind blows strongly from the north. It's a true "gently falling snow" here. Every snowfall might not be like this, but at least some of them are!
South of Anchorage International Airport
2. I don't know if it's really true, but the snow sure looks whiter here. Maybe it's a lack of dirt and pollutants mixed in? Whatever it is, it looks so pure and beautiful.
3. Overall, people were anxiously awaiting the first real snowfall, were excited to "finally" see the first snowfall in early November, and only want more. I'm finally in my element! Snow means people can take advantage of the many winter outdoor opportunities, like skiing (cross country and downhill), snowshoeing, and snow machining. It's a welcome feature of winter.
After an unusual freezing rain storm earlier this week that left many roads ice covered, it snowed all day in Anchorage on Thanksgiving. It added up to almost 7 inches near the airport. Snow accumulated on tree branches and just about anything else that had any sort of horizontal surface. Anchorage has a great trail system throughout the city, with mushing trails, cross country ski trails, and multi-use trails. I was able to get out and go for a walk on one of the trails (my only currently available means of using these trails) in Far North Bicentennial Park today, and it was so nice to see so many other people out enjoying the beautiful weather and fresh snowfall. I can't wait to explore more trails this winter!
For those that have requested it or might be interested, here's a link to a Google map of our drive. Hopefully this will help visualize where we were and what we were seeing.
Also, I (Foxpup) plan to keep this blog going at least while I'm in Alaska, so keep checking back! It might be a little bit before I'm settled and have some adventures to write about, but I'm sure it won't take long.
It was another gorgeous day – in the 60s, which is a real treat in western Canada this time of year. Today we actually got onto the Alaska Highway, which starts in Watson Creek, BC. This road is still the only option for people who want to drive through Western Canada into Alaska. It was built in 1942, is a total of 1,390 miles long from Dawson Creek, BC to Fairbanks, AK (we didn’t take it all the way to Fairbanks… we split off in Tok, AK to head to Anchorage), and was completed in a grand total of 7 1/2 months - a major accomplishment! To give you an idea of what the road is like, it’s generally a 2-lane road, and there are places to stop periodically along the way – outlined very nicely for people in the
The MILEPOST®: Legendary Alaska trip planner and Alaska travel guide to the highways, lodgings, services, etc. along the Alaska Highway.
There is a little planning required to survive the Alaska Highway, as services are only provided every so often. There are a few “bigger” towns along the road (pop > 500 people), but a lot of what we saw were stops that contain an entity that provides one-stop shopping including gas, food, lodging, general store, etc. The rule is that if you see an open gas station and have less than half a tank of gas, you stop and fill up. I found the road with its little one-man towns quite appealing, but I’m sure lots of people would feel uncomfortable with so little available to them as they drive along thousands of miles of rural towns.
As we drove out of British Columbia and into Yukon Territory, we caught our first glimpses of the snow-capped mountains and saw lots of evergreen and birch trees. In places it looks like a carpet of green, in others we saw lots of bare trees as we get further north.
Snow Caps in the Yukon Territory
The cats have all been dealing with the stress of being on the road exceptionally well and we’re both impressed. They’ve started to get into a routine in the car – Smokey is little and has adopted the spot between the seats that has the 2 cup holders. Sami seems to like being on the passenger’s lap or on top of the large carrier, behind the driver’s seat. Kimba gravitates toward the arm rest between the seats, on top of the cargo watching out the back windows, or on the floor on the passenger’s side.
Since we are both quilters, our one concession on our long drive was to try to stop in 1 quilt shop in each state/province and today we stopped in 2… the second (Ye Olde Quilt Shop in Yukon Territory) being a real gem! I got moose/bear/wolf batik, which is not something I’ve ever seen before. I’ll tell you though, when you bring a bolt of fabric up to the cutting table in Canada and ask for a yard, your cover is instantly blown and they know that you’re American.
My fancy wild animal batik
The road got a lot more windy today as we got into the mountains. There are definite differences between American roads and Canadian roads (at least this Canadian road). A lot of stretches of this road are paved with loose gravel, don’t have any lane markings, and don’t have any guardrails. In some areas there are steep drops, so you best pay attention! As darkness started to set in this evening the wild animals started making an appearance. In total, we saw 1 black bear, 2 moose, 1 caribou, 1 sheep, 8 wild horses, and a few heard of buffalo. Kimba, who previously believed he was the biggest game in town, stood stock still on high alert when he saw the first buffalo we passed… they were huge!
Sharing the road with buffalo
Just to add some interest to our dark evening driving, we got stopped by 6 cops who were standing in the middle of the road and must have been looking for something. Undoubtedly, when they found out we were 2 girls from Kansas and New Jersey, they realized we weren’t the people they were looking for. I was driving at the time, and they asked for my license and of course under pressure of being interrogated on a dark lonely road, in a strange country, after a long day of driving, I couldn’t remember where I had last put it. Luckily, he finally said, “That’s okay, just have it out for the next time.” Ummm, okay, sure, for the next time I’m stopped by 6 Canadian police officers who are standing in the middle of the road after dark and stop me and ask for my license. Our final resting spot for tonight will be Watson Creek, Yukon Territory.
Day 6 (Sat, October 2, 2010)
Today we spent the whole day in YT. I love the road here – very enjoyable for the time I spent driving. Last night was a late night and we’re on hold posting the blog because Fox Pup’s computer seems to have picked yesterday as the day it would “crap the bed”.
We did get to see the SignpostForest on our way out of WatsonLake this morning. Very cool – it was started in 1942 by a homesick U.S. Army G.I. who was working on the Alaska Highway. To help lift his spirits he put up a signpost pointing the way and stating the mileage to his hometown in Illinois. It has been mimicked around the world, and today has more than 10,000 signs from around the world. There are even signs for other planets. We only spent a few minutes there, but you could easily spend an hour or more just walking around. The forest is also home to some of the original equipment that was used to build the road back in 1942.
The Signpost Forest
It was sunny most of today, with a few dark clouds that sprinkled on us here and there. The road was just windy enough to keep our attention, but still allow us to maintain the comfortable 100 km/h speed limit.
The kitties seem to have adopted a schedule of sleeping all day so they stay up and play all night. When we get into the hotel room at night all we want to do is get some sleep, but apparently kitties just want to run around, play, knock things over, and generally make as much noise as they possibly can.
This was a short day, so we stopped in Whitehorse, YT (the capital) and that was a neat town – they have lots to offer and we went to their local quilt shop and took a walk around. We also went into a gift shop and were told by the locals that they got, “a good shmack” of snow last week and yesterday was back to being, “just like a summer day”… and I’m thinking to myself… “it was 44 deg F!”.
After Whitehorse we headed on our way to Haines Jct, YT, where we stopped for the night. The drive into Haines Jct was stunning – jaw-dropping snow-capped mountain peaks that we took lots of pics of. The sunset was absolutely gorgeous behind those mountains!
Day 7 (Sun, October 3, 2010)
Kluane Lake - I loved driving around this!
We left Haines Jct, YT this morning a little before and it was right around freezing. It seems to start to get bright a little before 8am out here. We got even more pics on our absolutely beautiful drive out of Haines Jct and around KluaneLake. We crossed the border back into the US about 12:30pm Alaska time (the time changes right before the border). It was a very quiet border crossing. We got to stop and take pics, there was no line at the patrol station, and there was a young male and female agent who questioned Fox Pup, opened the tailgate, checked things out, and let us through. Apparently the male agent is from Sussex County, NJ!
We made it back into the US!!!
As soon as we drove into the US we could see and feel the difference in the road. On this side it’s paved and lined. We stopped in Tok for a bit, but because it was Sunday a lot of places were closed. Tok is where we had to make our turn away from Fairbanks and toward Anchorage so we made our turn onto the Glenn Highway and spent the night about an hour SW of Tok in our own little log cabin in a town called Chistochina, AK. Our little cabin in Red Eagle Lodge was a gem! It was a restored homestead cabin that housed a whole family, was about 12’ x 18’ and had a full size bed, a twin bed (both beautifully outfitted in woodsy quilts over down comforters, with fur-like throws folded at their foot), a glider, wood-burning stove, fridge, microwave, and table with bench. There were braided rugs on the floor and books and magazines on the nightstand between the beds, and 3 walls had windows in them. An awesome place and we both really loved it!
Day 8 (Mon., October 4, 2010)
Snow caps in Alaska as we get closer to Anchorage
We left Red Eagle Lodge this morning after a delicious B&B-type breakfast and great stories from some campers on their way to move their daughter and her BF to Wasilla, AK. We hit the road about and saw lots of frost heaves and little rural roadside towns… and, of course, a beautiful backdrop of mountains. At lunch time we stopped at a restaurant that had a beautiful view of the Matanuska glacier. I never saw a glacier like that and it was neat the way it was all smunched up as it was making its way through the valley.
Matanuska Glacier
We arrived in Anchorage about today. The roads got bigger as we got closer and by the time we were pulling into town we were on a road not unlike Rt. 78 or 287 in NJ. A couple of observations at the end of our trip: not to be gross, but we saw evidence of road kill in many places, but no bodies… that was a nice change. We were sharing the road with a lot of tractor trailers – many of them tandem trailers with 2 full-length trailers attached to the tractor. Big, big trucks – and we saw a lot of drivers who looked like they were in their early 20s! We also passed many wide loads, including some transporting windmill blades, which, if you have ever been near a wind farm, you will understand that to say that each of these blades are ENORMOUS is a severe understatement. I never ONCE saw a driver swerve across the line into our lane, 6” off my bumper, cutting me off, driving while talking/texting, etc., I found it to be a true delight to drive this road. I would not want to do this trip alone, but with the awesome company I had, it was a tremendous experience.
Downtown Anchorage
We had about 5 mins of rain as we got into town, but then the sun came out and it closed as a beautiful day. Fox Pup’s temporary housing is beautiful and she’ll be very comfortable there until she finds a house. She is apparently far from alone in moving out to Anchorage – apparently there are lots of others doing the same thing. While it sounds as if the rest of Alaska is a different story, Anchorage itself is very similar to any city in the lower 48. It has all the retail establishments we’re all used to (Kohl’s, Home Depot, PetSmart, Michaels, etc), so I believe any of us would feel comfortable living there. I did notice a very large Eskimo population there and felt very much in the minority, but it was nice to see another ethnic group thriving. I look forward to returning for a visit – this time via plane, though, so I can maximize my time in Alaska.
So, in total it took us 8 days to drive the 4,000 miles from Wichita, KS to Anchorage, AK. We drove through 7 states (KS, NE, WY, UT, ID, MT, AK) and 3 provinces (Alberta, British Columbia, Yukon Territory) and hit 8 quilt shops (in every state/province but KS and NE). Every day except today was sunny and beautiful, and today wasn’t bad, just a little overcast with a quick shower. We had 2 cameras, and on mine alone we took over 500 photos and 50 videos.This was a trip-of-a-lifetime for me and I am so glad I had a chance to share it with my sister. I have a treasure trove of fond memories and beautiful pictures to keep forever. I hope you have enjoyed reading our blog. If I wasn’t given the idea to do this, I undoubtedly would not have taken as many pics, and probably wouldn’t have taken any video, so thank you to everyone who expressed an interest in hearing about our trip. It was nice to have you along for the ride J
We left the mountains behind for a day as we drove through Alberta and just barely into British Columbia today. We actually got off track for a bit today (looking back, I could easily see how we made the mistake and could make it again) but it could have been much worse. It all worked out, and we got to see some beautiful country that we would not have otherwise seen.
We got an early start this morning, with plans to make it all the way to Fort Nelson. I looked at maps to see how we could go an hour or two short of there, but other than a campground/RV park, there isn't any lodging available pretty much between Fort St. John and Fort Nelson. The weather was beautiful once again... I don't know how I get all this great weather for traveling, but I'll take it! It's in the low 60s in northern Alberta on the last day of September. Beautiful!
The drive reminded me a lot of the Plains... with more trees. Lots of spruce and birch, and the birch is all bright yellow. Because of the lack of terrain across much of the area, it isn't worth trying to take many pictures from the car. We did go over a suspension bridge near Dunvegan... it's Alberta's only motor vehicle suspension bridge. We've got some video, but for some reason we're having trouble uploading it. Ok, here's a photo for you then...
After we got back on track, we headed to Dawson Creek and on to Fort St. John. We knew we wouldn't make it to Fort Nelson, so here we stay. Who knows where we'll make it to tomorrow, but I'm sure it'll be an adventure! I didn't have time to create a "Plan B" before we left, but it appears Plan B is creating itself as we go along here. Still no polar bear sightings, but we did see 2 wolves! :)
So you know that email funny that is written like journal entries through a dog's eyes and through a cat's eyes... and the dog's goes something like, "Day 1... it's a beautiful day! We have so many fun things to do today! Let's go out and play!... Day 2... it's a beautiful day! We have so many fun things to do today! Let's go out and play!... Day 3... it's a beautiful day! We have so many fun things to do today! Let's go out and play!.."... and the cat's goes, "Today is day 374 of my captivity..."? Welllll... today was day 3 of my captivity...
What? Are you saying you don't have a tissue box in your wall?!?
Haha... just kidding... starting from Helena, MT:
Actually I got up a little earlier this morning so I could get in a little run before we hit the road. I was glad to find that my legs still work, but half way up my first hill... hello altitude! I had forgotten we were at about 7,000 feet - good training for me!
A mural in downtown Helena, MT
We hit the road about 9:00 again and today is the day we were hoping to go international, but not before taking some beautiful pics. Fox Pup was driving and I just couldn't put the camera down, as you can see in the attached:
**Video Coming Soon... Technical Difficulties**
Now, several years ago we vacationed in Washington State and we spent a day in Vancouver. We still laugh about the border crossing because I was driving and was expecting a few friendly questions before being sent on my way... but was met with an officer who barked question after question at me in rapid succession while I tried to keep up. We were unsure about how today's would go, but this time Fox Pup drove and we got through in 7 minutes flat! A new record for us! It's another absolutely perfect day weather-wise today, and the border patrol officer asked Fox Pup what she does for a living and she told him she's a meteorologist and then I sat there poking her saying, "Tell him it's gonna be sunny today, tell him it's gonna be sunny today...". When he asked if she was planning to leave anything behind in Canada I'm surprised she didn't say, "Yeah, my sister!". Let's just hope the return back into the US goes just as well.
We made it through Calgary today and are spending the night about 1.5 hrs south of Edmonton. 500 more miles under our belts - about half way there! No polar bear sightings yet.
Enjoy the attached pics and video... will try to add more tomorrow.
Now to change gears to our road trip from Kansas to Alaska...
Day 1:
Archway Monument on I-80 at Kearney, Nebraska
Monday morning we hit the road. I was glad to get the trip underway. Fox Pup did accomodate my request and packed within an inch of her life, so the car had plenty of room and we were comfortable. We'll see if I still feel that way after we live in it for 7 days, but for now we're settled - and with only 2 or 3 hisses out of her "no worries kitty" ;-) Within a very short time of leaving KS it becomes obvious that even though we have an entire SUV packed strategically so kitties can roam, they all want to be in the front seats with us. They are all doing exceptionally well with all the stress so far - I hope that only continues.
The best part of today was getting 750 miles, including Kansas and Nebraska, behind us. Wyoming had more visual interest and we were able to see the Rockies in the distance before dark. I ended the day looking forward to the coming attractions.
Day 2:
Brigham City, UT
We both got up and hit the road early this morning since we had a long day ahead of us. We drove out of Wyoming and through Utah and Idaho and into Montana. Beautiful scenery in Utah, and the other states were pretty, but nothing we could do justice to on film. One thing I didn't plan for is the number of bug deaths we would cause. We're already overachieving at that, and are doing a number on Fox Pup's brandy new windshield. It is a challenge to take pics in the car with all the bugs on the windshield, but we'll keep trying. As it was getting dark tonight we were driving through some windy, mountainous terrain and I anticipate more picture opps tomorrow. Today's tally: another 750 miles. Whew!
***Note: Pictures will be added later, so please check back. Thanks!***
Today, we drive from Valdez to Anchorage.Perhaps our string of beautiful weather is done for this trip… it is quite foggy outside our hotel.We get packed up and head out… and before we even start climbing the big hill to Thompson Pass, the fog clears and it’s another beautiful day.We got a few more photos of Bridal Veil Falls since it’s in the shade rather than somewhat harsh sunlight we had the other day, and stopped for a few other photos of the Wrangell-St. Elias Mountains.Otherwise, we trekked onward toward Anchorage.The Glenn Highway near Anchorage gets pretty curvy… it was a very pretty (and fun) drive.
We’ve got one more B&B to stay at on this trip, and it was a very nice one.Room scheduling conflicts even got us an upgrade, so we couldn’t complain about that!We headed out to dinner to the Moose’s Tooth Pub & Brewery (yes, YET another brewery… too bad we’re not actually getting any brews at these places!).This is supposedly a favorite of the locals, so we had to give it a try.I approve… it was a neat atmosphere with great food!The wild berry cobbler wasn’t bad either. J
Last night in Alaska… just one more day to explore the area, and then we leave tomorrow night.
The last full day in Alaska, Day 11, was spent in Anchorage doing odds and ends. Not much to say here, other than we visited the Alaska Zoo and saw polar bears among other animals. Neat to see, but since I've been spoiled by the Sedgwick County Zoo in Wichita, it was hard to be very excited about the photography opportunities with all the bars and stuff between me and the animals. This trip has been absolutely amazing... I still can't believe I get to live here very soon! Next on this blog will be our drive to Alaska... coming soon!
***Note: Pictures will be added later, so please check back. Thanks!***
This morning, we decided to start the day off by going back to the small boat harbor to see if we could find some sea animals that might want to show off for us.Soon after we got to the dock, we found a sea lion who came pretty close to us (I’m sure he thought we might have some fish we’d like to share, but of course we didn’t).So after a great photo session with the otter yesterday, we got a great (but quick) photo session with a sea lion.Other than this 30 seconds or so, all we’ve really seen of the sea lions is heads sticking up out of the water as they come up for air.
After awhile at the dock, we decided to go check out the fish hatchery just outside of Valdez.We found many more sea lions, otters, and seals there, with a couple more getting close enough to be something other than a tiny little head in the water in our photos.There were also several bald eagles and a couple golden eagles around the hatchery (they’re smart… there were a lot of salmon there!), so it was neat to hear their calls and see them in the trees.Overall though, they were too far away for our meager zoom lenses.
On our way back to Valdez from the hatchery, there were several cars parked on the side of the road along a bridge.That’s a tell-tale sign that SOMETHING is lurking nearby.We realized it was a grizzly bear… not just one, but 5 right there together.Right in the river finding stuff to eat.Out came the cameras once again…luckily we hadn’t put them too far away!Just another “awesome” (have I overused that word yet??) experience in Alaska!
We drove all over Valdez looking for some shops or something open, but apparently a Sunday outside of tourist season (which ends either around Labor Day or Sept. 15th) is pretty quiet around there.Good thing the wildlife didn’t know about that!
We headed back to the dock for the evening, and watched more jumping salmon, looked for otters, seals, and sea lions, and even searched for Poppy (the harbor kitty).We found Poppy after awhile… she’s a great ambassador for the harbor!We learned that she was found under one of the docks about 10 years ago, and has lived on one of the boats (and wandered around the docks) ever since.
Tomorrow we head back to Anchorage.It’s hard to believe this vacation is almost over, but at the same time it feels like we’ve been in Alaska (and away from “life”) for a long time.Oh, and by the way… it’s still been sunny everyday!Amazing.
Back on the road today… we’re now off toward Valdez, right along Prince William Sound. More golden birch trees brighten up the hillsides, and we got to drive through the Wrangell-St. Elias mountains. Part of this drive took us through Thompson Pass, which was absolutely beautiful! So much of the scenery we’re seeing on this trip is so hard to put into words. Beautiful, gorgeous, pretty, great, exciting, and awesome just don’t cut it. The word “Wow…” comes out of our mouths quite often.
South of Thompson Pass, we came upon a couple of awesome waterfalls… one named “Bridal Veil Waterfall” and the other named “Horsetail Waterfall”. Surprise, surprise… photos don’t do them justice. But the names are quite representative, actually. We met a couple of professional photographers at Horsetail Waterfall who live between Wasilla and Palmer, and they were sharing some of their stories about Valdez with us… telling us about a road by the pipeline where you can see otters and sea lions along with some other great scenery. Really? We’ll have to find that!
From there, we continued on toward Valdez. We passed by a road that had a sign saying “Old Valdez Town Site” with an arrow pointing down the road. I had forgotten that the entire town had to be relocated after the 1964 earthquake that caused ground level to sink something like 10 feet. Could be something to check out tomorrow. Our first task as we got into Valdez was to find lodging for the night. As I made reservations several months ago, I was not able to make reservations at the B&B we hoped for in Valdez because the host said she doesn’t take reservations after Sept. 15th but we wouldn’t have trouble getting a room. Well, of course now we can’t get in touch with her. We called a few other places and finally settled upon an Inn. When we were trying to figure out which direction we needed to go to get there, we realized it was RIGHT behind the parking lot we were sitting in. Valdez sure isn’t a large town, but we didn’t realize everything was within about a 2 block radius of where we were sitting! Funny.
After dinner, we decided to roam around the harbor a bit. As we were walking down there, a bunch of fish were suddenly jumping out of the water and we saw something brown chasing after them. Someone told us it was an otter. And the fish were salmon. Those salmon continued to jump out of the water one by one the entire time we were there… I didn’t know they did that (I’m certainly no fisherman though)! We tried to get pictures of them doing that, but our reaction time was always just a bit too slow. We did find a local kitty named Poppy who was very friendly, and while we were giving her attention, we realized an otter was right behind us in the water. Ooh!! He was apparently getting muscles off the dock and totally enjoying them… making little happy noises and all. We were following him around getting pictures of him. A couple of times he was right near the dock as he was eating and swimming, so even though I only had my wide angle lens I could still get some good, close shots of him.
Poppy, the harbor kitty
As he swam away from us, we meandered around the docks a bit more and eventually came across something else coming out of the water and blowing spray into the air. Not a whale, but what is it?? It looked like a dog sticking its head out of the water. It was a sea lion! Unfortunately, it would only stick its head up, stay for a moment, and then go back under water. Kind of hard to get any real photos of them that way! It was still neat to see them though, and enjoy the scenery and sea smells around us. As it got dark, we finally let it go and went back to our room… we have a whole other day to find more photo ops around town.
As we woke up and ventured outside, my friend says, “MB, we have clouds today!” in reference to a few cirrus clouds in the sky. That pretty much sums up the beautiful weather we’ve had. Day 7, and all we've seen is a few wisps of clouds in the sky on a couple days. We’re absolutely spoiled! People are talking about past years when they’ve had snow on the ground at this time already… and they’re enjoying summer in September this year. We’ll take it!
Today has been deemed a relaxing day at the lake. No driving… no shopping… just a walk, some photography, and plenty of relaxing outside by the lake. Other than some parents who obviously would prefer their children to be much better behaved, it was a very nice day! Playing cards, writing in my journal, watching a float plane land on the lake and take off a couple times, and reminiscing about our childhood memories… I don’t get to do this stuff very often! Sometimes it’s nice to take a step back from my normal, busy life and truly relax for a day.
As we left our latest temporary home, we drove north to the town of Fox so we could see the Alaska Pipeline. We got there just ahead of 4 tour buses full of people… good timing! It was neat to see the pipeline and learn a little about how it contains “pigs” that help the oil flow through the pipe. From there, we headed south through North Pole (which screams tourist trap with everything set up like Santa’s village!) and on toward Glennallen. We got to see a couple bald eagles, some more magpie, and even a few snowshoe hare. It was another beautiful drive with lots of views of golden birch trees.
Our lodging for tonight is right on Lake Louise, which is about 30 miles west of the town of Glennallen. It’s a pretty lake! We’re in a “rustic cabin”… I was actually excited to find out there is electricity and heat in our cabin! One of the beds lacks some support (to say the least), but it’s great to have a roof over our heads for the night! :)
We were told that the northern lights were supposed to be very good last night. Our host said she usually checks for them before going to bed and again at 3am, and she asked one of us to get up at 1am to check. I volunteered, but when I looked at 1am, all I could see was a very faint band of maybe greenish light across the sky. Much more striking were all the stars… the big dipper was bigger and brighter than I’ve ever seen before. I expected to be woken up at 3am with better lights, but instead I woke up in the morning. Apparently the lights weren’t nearly as good as they were expected to be, but what I saw at 1am was in fact the lights, albeit very faint.
Breakfast this morning was “moose ears and nuggets”… very tasty! We then set out into town and explored the botanical garden at the University of Alaska at Fairbanks. We were able to get a lot of flower photos since the weather has remained so warm and sunny this far into September. We then explored a fabric store… did some laundry… and got some ice cream at a place named “Hot Licks”. We heard Pioneer Park would be great to explore, so we went to check it out. Turns out… most of it is already closed so we didn’t spend much time there. We did a little shopping and explored the Visitor’s Center… and then went to the historic “Pump House” for dinner.
At the end of yet another spectacular day, I learned that the weather in Wichita hasn’t been quite as quiet as here in Alaska. A severe thunderstorm brought up to softball size hail to parts of Wichita… including where my car is patiently awaiting my return. I guess I get to work on fixing that one before moving to Alaska in a couple weeks. What interesting timing!
Today we started our day going to Jeff King’s homestead just south of Denali National Park. Jeff King has won the Iditarod 4 times… one of only a few to make that accomplishment. We met at a lodge near the park, and Jeff’s wife Donna brought us to their home. As we pulled up to the front of the house, we saw a few people bringing over some adorable puppies… most of them about 7 weeks old! As we got off the van, we were handed a puppy to cuddle with. Donna warned us before we even got off the van that they know how many puppies they start out with, and we are not allowed to bring one home. Darn. ;) They were quite cuddly, and very hard to return to their rightful owners. After we had our fill of the puppies, Jeff, Donna, and Tessa (Jeff and Donna’s daughter) shared with us a lot of information about raising the dogs, racing the dogs, and great stories from their many years of experience. The dogs are all Alaskan Huskies, which are long distance runners and therefore small, strong, and actually not as furry as you might expect. Pretty neat to see them and hear their stories. Those dogs are well loved and obviously enjoy what they do!
Alaskan Fall Foliage
After the sled dog tour, we drove on toward Fairbanks. This time, our drive was during the day, so we got to see much more beautiful scenery. The birch trees are just golden, and there were lots of hillsides filled with golden birch trees. So pretty! We took many photos along the way, but they just don’t capture what we were seeing. That doesn’t stop us from snapping away though!
We decided to go to the Silver Gulch Brewery for dinner, which meant a drive on a scenic road northeast toward Fox. On the way there, we came across a plane parked in a lot next to the road. Not a bush plane... but a commercial jet. We have no idea how it got there, but when we stopped to take pictures of it, we also found a couple moose in someone's front yard. Neat!
Our lodging for the next two nights is a log home B&B, and it’s beautiful. Our hosts are very hospitable, too! Can’t wait to explore Fairbanks tomorrow.
Another early morning and long day, but that is hardly a complaint! We had to be at the entrance to Denali by 7am to catch the 7:15am shuttle bus. Personal vehicles are generally not allowed beyond Savage River, which is 15 miles into the park. Since the road is 92 miles long, they have shuttle buses and tour buses that can take you through the park. I liked that... it really cuts down on traffic, someone else is doing the driving, you're up much higher than you would be in a car, and there are several people looking for wildlife also. There were hairpin turns and switchbacks that the drivers are used to on the narrow roads, so we were glad to leave the driving to them!
Everyone living in the places we've been so far has told us how unusual this beautiful weather is. Temperatures have been in the 60s, wind is calm, and the sky is a deep blue. The best part about that is that Mt. McKinley is completely visible. We are told that this only happens a handful of times each year, because usually some portion of the mountain is obscured by clouds. We're thankful and appreciate it!! We met people on the shuttle bus from Texas, Illinois, England and Switzerland. The guys from England and Switzerland were camping and hiking in the park, and it was neat to hear about their adventures while they were on the bus with us.
So... aside from the wonderful scenery we've been seeing, we just so happened to see a little wildlife, too. I picked out a moose right near the road, a couple snowshoe hare running across the road, and a golden eagle in a tree. Others on the bus found a small herd of moose, grizzly bears, caribou, and dall sheep. When the day was done, we saw a total of 16 moose, 13 grizzly bears, about 12 dall sheep, 5 ground squirrels, 5 magpie (birds), 2 caribou, 2 snowshoe hare, 2 golden eagles, and a small group of ptarmigan (the Alaska state bird). Our bus driver said the most moose he's ever seen in one day is 8, and he's been driving on this road for almost 8 years. We doubled his record! :) So much for our reputation of being a day late and a dollar short! It was another day of being thankful for having so much room on our digital cameras!
Today started out with a drive south on the Seward Highway again, but this time to Portage to visit the Wildlife Conservation Center. This is a drive-through/walk-through park that contains common Alaskan wildlife such as reindeer, caribou, grizzly bears (one named Joe Boxer that we got to photograph), elk, porcupine, moose, bison, and bald eagles. It was neat to see the animals, and they have lots of room to roam there, but it was still hard to see them "behind bars".
We then drove north back through Anchorage and continued up the Parks Highway to Talkeetna. At one of our stops along the way, we heard that there were whales swimming next to a raft in the river, but once again, we were a little too late to see them. A man made the comment that we're a day late and a dollar short. I hope the whole trip isn't like that!
One of the many awesome views of the Alaska Range
From Talkeetna, we took a flight on a small plane around Mt. McKinley. Since the weather was once again gorgeous, the flight was amazing. Sunny and blue skies, calm winds, and a great pilot made for an adventure of a lifetime! We learned a lot about the area (including that Talkeetna was the town where the TV show Northern Exposure was based), and we saw mountains, glaciers, rivers, and forests up close. Our pilot flew us to 11,000 feet, so that means the peak of Mt. McKinley was still over 9,000 feet above us! So cool! Makes you feel like an ant next to something that huge, though. It was difficult to keep up with the photography with so much beautiful scenery! I was very thankful for 4 GB worth of space on my camera's memory card, and that I didn't have to stop every 24 or 36 snaps of the shutter to change the roll of film. If you happen to watch Sarah Palin's show "Alaska", watch for her to be flown to a mountain near Mt. McKinley and climb a portion of it. Our pilot flew her to that spot. :)
After that flight, we headed toward Denali National Park. Unfortunately though, it was dark for much of our drive, so we couldn't see a lot of the scenery. And... we saw two mosse, but they were both just hit by cars (the cars were still there with them). We were glad when we found our lodging for the night, and did so without adding to the moose casualty numbers!
Goose has so graciously allowed me to use this blog to add posts about my vacation in Alaska. I might add a photo here and there, but a link to all my favorite photos will be added later when I get time to go through the many photos and find the best ones. :) Onward...
It's our first day in Alaska, and the weather is beautiful! After a great breakfast at our B&B, we drove around the city to explore and get our bearings. There were a few photo ops along the way, but just enjoying the mountainous scenery along the way as we were driving was great. We decided to take a drive south of Anchorage on the Seward Highway, along Turnagain Arm. There were a lot of places to pull over so we could photograph the scenery. A couple told us about seeing some bears at a nearby rest area the day before, and some others saw some whales, but we didn't see any such wildlife. :( We decided to turn around when we got to Girdwood. Dinner at Sourdough Mining Company was great, including the free ice cream at the end!
In a few weeks we will be embarking on a road trip from Kansas to Alaska to move Ms. Fox Pup to her new NWS job. We'll try to provide updates regularly - feel free to follow along.
