June 25th

THE DETAILS:

THE WEATHER: Well, we were forecasted for rain and it looked like the whole day was going to be a wash out but it has turned out to be a gorgeous day! High of 71 and partly cloudy.

THE DISTANCE: We left Cantwell around noon time and arrived in Talkeetna around 4:00. A total of about 120 miles.


I spent the morning on the computer believe it or not. Cantwell had a great WIFI connection so I did some banking, etc. on line. We were on our way back down the Parks Highway through a stretch of territory called “Caribou Pass”. It was beautiful. Mountains in the background and tundra in front of us. Of course we never saw a caribou (as usual) but it sure looked like the perfect setting for them. As the road descended and gave way to thicker forests and larger trees, it looks more like New Hampshire! We got to the 14 mile cut off north up to Talkeetna and discovered that was a quaint little town that is somewhere between back-woods Alaska and small-town tourist trap. The road up here was more like a suburb road in a major city due to its paved bike trail that paralleled the road and all the street signs looked modern and new. As we neared the end of the spur road we could just barely make out a gorgeous view of Mt. McKinley in front of us. We’re going to try to get a picture of it if the clouds break up tonight.

This is actually base camp for Mt. McKinley hikers and a great spot for flying to the mountain for an aerial tour. We see many hikers around the area. The road literally ends in a round-about that has a bunch of quaint shops selling a ton of Alaska memorabilia. There is the constant sounds of small aircraft overhead landing and taking off from a lake and a train’s whistle in the distance. Unfortunately we were unable to get the campground we wanted due to it being full so we settled for a “dry” camp site just about a half mile away. We may get a spot at the real campground tomorrow - hopefully. (Dry camping, in case you didn’t know, is where they offer a piece of land you can park your RV that has a picnic table and fire pit but no hook-ups. No water or electric. So we’ll be running off of battery tonight. We’ll have water & electric but at a reduced strength.)

We will spend a few days here for a couple of reasons. #1.… it looks like good fishing in the area. The guy who checked us in said the king’s are starting to run. That’s fish talk for: the king salmons are starting to head up river! #2... Pastor Paul told us of a church here in town that we would like to check out on Sunday. #3... I have a bunch of work still to do on the computer (end of the month bills, ugh!) and I could take care of it at the campsite if they have a good connection.

So we spent the evening driving around the area on the motorcycle. It is a lot of fun seeing the country side that way. We did some grocery shopping and walked around the little shops and enjoyed a Canadian made beer before retiring for the evening.

PS: Rick, the table to my right are all Germans. It was fun to listen to them talk it up all night long!

June 24th

THE DETAILS:

WEATHER: The day started with cloudless skies, 56 degrees and a steady wind. The clouds rolled in by noon and the temperatures rose to a comfortable 80 degrees and of course - afternoon showers.


DISTANCE: We finally left our “Father’s Day Spot” at 11:00 am. We drove ½ of the 134 mile Denali Highway and turned back. We will finish the other 57 miles on our return trip.


As we drove back through Denali National Forest for the last time I was reminded of the dizzying affect of trying to take in the height and width and breath of this mountain range. It reminds me of Psalm 4: “What is man that you are mindful of him? … Oh Lord, our Lord, how majestic is your name in all the earth!”

We continued south to Cantwell and took a left onto Denali Highway. This is some of the most beautiful scenery we’ve taken in since the Yukon. It is rugged and remote but the road wasn’t treacherous like Denali or Dalton Highway. There is a glacier mountain in the distance covered with snow opposite our road, a deep valley full of ponds & streams between and we rode the ridge on the other side of it all. It is perfect terrain for moose, bear & caribou but we only saw 3 very large moose in a distant pond. We could watch the rain showers in the afternoon roll in from miles away and at one point we were in a full down pour but the sun was shining. Very strange weather here.

Gary fished one stream along the way and within an hour had 2 grayling. They are in the trout family. One was 10 inches and the other 9. There’s dinner for tonight! As we made our way back to Parks Highway we watched for bear or caribou but instead saw our first rainbow. It was gorgeous with the mountain range as a back drop. We drove another mile or so and behind us we witnessed a double rainbow! I’ve never seen where a rainbow ends or begins. I didn’t think it was possible, but both of these rainbows dropped right down into the field that we were parked next to. It was so cool. We stayed there a while admiring its beauty and determined that we didn’t have time to continue on down Parks Highway toward Anchorage. We pulled into a place just off of Parks Highway in Cantwell called Cantwell RV Park. So creative!


PS: Dan, I know you’re excited to get to Sarah in Wasilla but you’ll have to be patient. There is SOOO much to see before we get there! Besides, we have fish to catch along the way also. I didn’t notice the W for Wonder Lake but thanks for pointing that out. Very cool.

Martie, Okay, there are your pictures and I’m glad you’re enjoying the reality vacation show. I am DIEING to know what Alex’s story is though…. A fat lip??? Raising boys…. Gotta’ love it.

June 22 & 23rd

THE DETAILS:

WEATHER: Beautiful. Temps from 49 to 70 degrees. Afternoon showers (of course)

DISTANCE: 39 miles to & from Denali. 85 miles to & from Wonder Lake


Okay, our day started at 4:30 when we had coffee, got ready for the day, packed our back pack with all our touristy paraphernalia, our lunch and headed out at 5 am to Denali. We had decided, if we were to have a chance at all for viewing we would sit in the front of the bus somewhere behind the driver because the mountain and open areas would be on that side. WELL….. We ended up on the right side of the bus all the way in the back!! So much for planning. It actually worked out best because there was a full area behind us that was empty where they carry hikers gear in & out of the park but today it was empty. That meant that whenever we saw an animal we could stand in the back of the bus on either side and get great pictures. So there are the “top 5 checklist” which is: grizzly bear, dall sheep, moose, caribou & wolf. We were able to check off 4 of 5 off that list. Gary did see a grizzly WAY off in a field but I never saw it, so I am not going to check that off. We got some close shots of the sheep, wolf and the moose, but the caribou were far off and needed to be viewed through binoculars. We also saw a golden eagle & falcon. The ride was bumpy and at times we rode along the edge of sheer cliffs. The driver was great, took her time & gave us lots of information (not as much as you Dan). So we are now part of the 20% club!! We did not buy the T-shirt but we have pictures to prove that we have seen Mt. McKinley. Hopefully we can post some of these pictures.

The trip was 11 hours and very exhausting for some reason. We were just on the bus but we were both tired and hungry when we returned. We went out for a dinner of halibut fingers and walked through the tourist traps in the Denali down town area. It was a great end of a great day.

Today (Wednesday the 23rd) will be a day of rest and preparing for our next move. It will be difficult to leave this campground. It is beautiful here. I spent my morning with the Lord outside on the picnic table in 74 degree weather with the Nenana river as my background. It was beautiful to sit in the sun, listen to the glacier river run and smell the pine trees.

June 21st

THE DETAILS:

THE WEATHER: The morning started off beautiful and ended the same way. There were of course clouds and the usual afternoon shower, but we were forecasted for rain so we are happy with this.

THE DISTANCE: 0 !!


HAPPY SOLSTICE EVERYONE!!!

Well, it was truly a day of R & R. We got up late, I was able to extend my bible study time, Gary & I went for a walk which we haven’t had time to do for a week now, and I got the laundry done. We decided that we would take the scooter out for a ride up to Denali National Park and figure out what is available to do. It is 40 miles from here and took us about an hour on the bike. The road to Denali started out relatively unimpressive but it didn’t take long before we could see the mountains welling up before us. It seemed, without notice, we were fully enveloped in them on both sides. The road wound around below the cliffs and it was a beautiful site.

We knew we wanted to take a bus tour but were told that you have to book it in advance. Since we didn’t know what day we would be here we were unable to do that. So, I decided to get in line and book for the next possible time slot available. Well, we have been blessed because there was still room on the 6:15 bus tomorrow morning!! So we booked it and we even got a senior citizen park pass which means we get into any and all national parks for free for the rest of our lives. Well, for as long as Gary lives. I am eligible when I turn 62. The tour will begin at the Visitors Center at the entrance of Denali and we will then be driven into the park 5 & ½ hours one way and 85 miles into the heart of Denali. Out of 5 tours offered, each progressively longer, we chose the 4th one. There is a possibility of seeing wolf, deer, moose, grizzly bear, Dahl sheep, caribou and fox.

We headed back to camp around 7:00 pm and were caught in some showers which was a bit uncomfortable and definitely cold but due to the dry weather and speed, we dried off quickly. So we are now packing for tomorrow. We have to bring our own lunch and make sure we’re dressed in layers. Mt. McKinley can only be seen 20 % of the time due to it’s massive size…. 20,320 feet. Some one today said that the mountain has weather of its own. We can be standing in clear weather and the mountain will be clouded over. We’ll see what tomorrow brings. I heard it was visible today and tomorrow is going to be like today so here’s hopin’!

BTW, that picture of the Alex look-a-like didn't come out for some reason. There were a couple of pictures lost including that one. So sad.




PS: Sue, I hadn’t thought of this computer being the “gift that would keep on giving”! It has been a pleasure to write knowing there is an audience out there that wants to listen! Thanks so much for gifting it to us. Like Martie said, we’ll have a keepsake log when we return.

Dan, you are so full of fun facts. And you are right about the "northern lights", we learned all about it by watching a movie. I think we may have to come back here in December.... of 2012!! I think it's fun to watch you track us... even without complete information. You're doing great. You should be a bounty hunter! We'll say hello to Ms. Palin for you.

Tim, you must be patient... have another glass of wine. We have to climb Mount McKinley first!

Geoff, so good to see you joined us! Don't you worry, that steak was grilled and eaten and it was mmmmmm mmmmmm good!

June 20th

THE WEATHER: We’re socked in with clouds and rain! From horizon to horizon there are only clouds. Further west the skies brightened and the rain stopped but we are still covered over with thick cloud cover.


THE DISTANCE: We finally left Fairbanks around 1:00 pm and arrived in Tatlanika RV Park (this is for you Dan) at 3:30. We are only 39 miles north of Denali National Park.


HAPPY FATHER’S DAY TO ALL THE FATHER’S…. ESPECIALLY MINE!!!

Due to the rain, we took our time getting out of the campground. Gary was treated to his traditional strawberries & cream breakfast along with a ham & cheese omelet. After receiving the calls from Kim & Kelsey and making the call to Dad, we got on our way westward. We drove about 100 miles in mostly rain when we came upon a campground on the side of the road that we could tell was in immaculate condition. We pulled in to find a quaint little gift shop that is set up like a museum. There are interesting Indian artifacts and jewelry plus a ton of animal mounts including a polar bear!! Yeah, did you know that the polar bear is one of Alaska’s animals?? I didn’t! Our site sits on the Nenana River, and even though it looks like it should be great fishing, it isn’t. So we will merely appreciate its beauty from the view out our window.

Even though we are still a ways from Denali we have decided to make this home for the next few days. Gary will do some maintenance on the RV (after our teeth rattling ride to the Arctic Circle) and I’ll do some cleaning & laundry. Gary has even pulled out the awning and set up our folding chairs. This is a perfect place to celebrate Father’s Day, grill the steak that’s been marinating and finish that bottle of wine.

If I am able to post some pictures (I haven’t been able to post yesterday’s pictures yet) you will see a guy who worked at the Fairbanks campground who could be Alex’s twin(my nephew from Roanoke, VA)! He let me take a picture of him, so Alex, if you ever need another brother Austin said he would be willing!

June 19th

THE DETAILS:

THE WEATHER: A beautiful start to the day….. Clear & 56 degrees. The rain showers came and went all day long but for the most part it was partly cloudy and in the upper 70’s & lower 80’s. It’s so cool to see the rain from miles away before it ever hits you.


THE DISTANCE: We left Fairbanks at 10 am for a drive up the Dalton Highway. 220 miles one way only to return to River’s Edge RV Park in Fairbanks at 10:00!


So today Gary wanted to climb the infamous Dalton Highway to cross the Arctic Circle. “Why?” you ask? Because it’s there. This is one of Alaska’s most remote and challenging roads. Only about 25% of it was paved, the rest was gravel. The trucks do not slow down and they know the road much better than anyone else so they continue to barrel down on you even on a curve or cliff. There were steep grades of 9%. It was certainly a driving adventure and our vehicle can vouch for it with about 80 additional pounds of mud and dirt on it. Mom, this is where, if you were with us, you would have packed your bags and headed home.

It took us 5 & ½ hours one way to get there. Dalton Highway follows the Trans-Alaska pipeline up and down hills and through forested valleys, across rivers like the Yukon, and through treeless tundra before you reach a sign that says, “Arctic Circle”! The sun does not set on summer solstice here and it does not rise during winter solstice. This drive gave us the possibility of seeing moose, grizzly, & caribou among other animals. We, unfortunately, saw only a moose off in the distance. That was a bit disappointing. There was 110 miles between gas stations and once you were on the highway the price was $4.49 per gallon! Ouch! But hey! We got our official certificates that prove we climbed Dalton Highway all the way to the Arctic Circle!! Yippee!

Bruno is getting acclimated to this region and I think he wants to stay… which is fine with us! (Gary’s getting a little irritated with the long showers he takes) So we are conducting a pole of our 20 “followers”, “Do you think Bruno should stay in his native Alaska? Or should he come home to NH with us?”

Can you believe that at 9:30 I am still wearing sunglasses!