Vol 6 – South Alaska

August 12 – 14, 2009 - ANCHORAGE, ALASKA
We spent three days in Anchorage and it rained the whole time. Anchorage is as far west as the Hawaiian Islands and as far north as Helsinki, Finland. Anchorage is Alaska’s largest city and is home to almost half of Alaska’s residents. Established in 1915 as the construction headquarters for the Alaska Railroad, it is the transportation and business center of south central Alaska.

It is here that we got our first and only flat tire (so far). After traveling on all those unpaved roads, it’s a city street that gets us. We had to purchase two new tires to balance the tread pattern for the front or back.

On our first evening we checked out a tourist trap, but a fun place called Alaska Wild Berry Park and Village. It’s a large gift shop with junk (I mean gift items), berry products and fudge. You get to sample different kinds of candies and fudge. There is a large chocolate fountain at the entrance of the store. We had dinner at their restaurant; Sourdough Mining Co., and after dinner listened to a storyteller and singer called Dusty Sourdough.













There were ‘door prizes’ if you answered Dusty’s questions correctly. Dave won a nice pocket knife with an eagle carved onto the bone handle (actually it was plastic). The question was “Who discovered gold in California” (George Marshall) and “Who discovered gold in the Klondike” (George Carmack – he was actually one of four people who discovered gold, but he took credit for it).

Despite the rain we visited a few outdoor sites such as the Alaska Zoo; a small but very nice zoo. One of our travel goals is to visit all the zoos in all of the major cities we pass through. And we have visited a lot of zoos so far. This zoo had mostly animals local to Alaska; with most of them being rescued. With our umbrellas, we strolled through the Alaska Botanical Garden. This is a small, but colorful garden with lots of hiking trails in the birch and spruce woodland surrounding the garden. We found quite a few different types of fungi (mushrooms) growing in this garden.










We spent some time at the Alaska Native Heritage Center. The center is run by a confederation of all the native peoples in Alaska, complete with demonstration dances, songs and examples of various tribal villages and homes.
To get out of the rain we spent time in the Anchorage Museum. This is a very nice museum that focuses on art, history and cultures of Alaska. There are full-scale dioramas and a display about the Alaskan Pipeline. There is also a very nice restaurant where we and lunch.



August 15 – 17, 2009 - KENAI PENINSULA
After Anchorage we continued south going around the Turnagin arm and onto the Kenai Peninsula with very high mountains, lots of glaciers and waterfalls and heavily forested valleys. At Cooper Landing we stayed 3 nights at a very nice RV park that was part of the Kenai Wilderness Princess Lodge, (of the Princess Hotel chain). The first night we had drinks and food at the bar and worked on our laptop (the lodge had free WiFi) and enjoyed the fantastic view of the Cooper River and the mountains. We also planned out the next 2 days.
The next morning we went further southeast to Seward (end of the road). Here we visited the Alaska Sea Life Center; an aquarium and a marine mammal rescue organization.
On our way back to Cooper Landing we drove to Kenai Fjords National Park and hiked up to the base of Exit Glacier. There were several points on the national park road and this trail that had posts with dates indicating the glacier was at ‘this point on this date’. The day was a cool day with some rain and lots of mosquitoes.

The next day the weather cleared and it was southwest bound on Highway 1 to Soldotna. Here we found a combination bead & gemstone and used book store that we had to stop at. Didn’t buy any beads, but found some paperbacks that will keep us busy for the rest of the trip. During this trip we got hooked on Lilian Jackson Braun series of mysteries that involve a pair of Siamese cats. “The Cat Who……” series are fun books to read and we managed to get about 12 of the 25 books at various used book stores.

Our next stop was Kenai. Established as Ft. St. Nicholas by Russian fur traders in 1791, Kenai is one of the oldest permanent settlements in Alaska. Until 1953, the town grew under a squatters’ rights policy. We visited the ‘old town section’ and had an excellent lunch at Veronica’s. This coffee shop and deli is housed in a 1918 home built with hand-hewn logs by farmer John Oskolkof.

At the entrance to the ‘old town’ section, you are greeted by ‘Monarch of the Wind’; an 11.5 foot, 3000 pound, steel sculpture.

We continued on to the end of the road past Anchor Point (“North America’s Most Westerly Highway Point”) to Homer ( “Halibut Fishing Capitol of the World”). From Kenai to Homer we had impressive views of three of the four active volcanoes across Cook Inlet on the Alaska mainland.
Of all of the places we have visited in Alaska, we liked the Kenai Peninsula the best. The area is very scenic and we found the towns and villages ‘quaint and charming’. Two days was not enough time to thoroughly enjoy this area. This trip to Alaska was to explore the whole state and just see the highlights and look for places to return to and spend more time. The Kenai Peninsula is one of those places. So we will be back.

August 18 – 20, 2009 – TOP OF THE WORLD HWY - GOOD BYE ALASKA
Our time in Alaska is ending. We will take two days exiting Alaska by heading north through Anchorage and an overnight stay in Mendeltna where we stayed at one of the worst RV parks in Alaska. Take note…if you are the one and only camper at any RV park, resort or campground, there is a reason you are the only one. Pack up and run. At least the drive there was scenic and we saw ‘moose on the road’.


We continued north on Hwy 1 for another overnighter in Tok, a major crossroad in central Alaska. Dave had already stayed in Tok on his way to Fairbanks, earlier this month (see Vol 5). Some claim that Tok’s name came from the native word meaning ‘peace crossing’. Others say Tok was the name of a survey crew’s dog. A center for dog breeding, training, and mushing; Tok claims the title “Dog Capital of Alaska”.

Something we forgot to mention in our past blog volumes is the Fireweed that grows all over Alaska. Fireweed is a flowering plant or weed that has a bright pink flower that grows in cleared spaces in the mountains and elsewhere. It does not like the shade and therefore will not grow in the forests, unless there is a fire. Then it is the first thing that springs up in open spaces right after a fire. It dies when the frost comes, then grows again in the Spring. This plant is also seen in Canada and in other states, but it is very prominent in Alaska. It is everywhere….which also shows you how often there are fires in Alaska. It really adds to the beautiful landscapes you see all over this state.

On our last day in Alaska we traveled north on the “Top of the World” highway to Chicken, so named because the miners who lived there couldn’t pronounce the original name of the mining camp, “Ptarmigan” (the Alaska state bird). “Highway” is a really a misnomer because most of the 60 miles from Tok to Chicken is somewhat paved, but mostly gravel with wall to wall potholes. It was slow going but a very scenic drive.

<=Click on this picture to enlarge for easier reading. xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx We spent about an hour in Chicken taking pictures, having a very nice lunch and visited the Chicken Pooper.






From Chicken to the Canadian border; the next 40 miles of road is even worse. The road is dirt instead of gravel, and even more potholes. Remember, we are towing our 26 foot trailer on this road. Actually, the few other travelers we saw on this road were also pulling trailers. The road is really at the top of the world, it feels like you can see all the way north past the Arctic Circle and south to the US. The country is tundra, very few trees, lots of flowers and fall color. At the border and into the Yukon the road improves to asphalt but has just as many potholes for another 60 miles into Dawson City, Yukon.
See the Fireweed?




The weird part was seeing the US/Canada Border checkpoint set up on this dirt road “on top of the world”.

We said good-bye to Alaska. We are now headed south to ‘home’. But we will spend the next three weeks exploring the Yukon, Eastern British Columbia, a little bit of Alberta (Jasper National Park) and of course Washington and Oregon before heading to California.

Stay tuned for Vol 7 – Back to the Yukon.

Vol 5 – North Alaska

July 31 – August 3, 2009 - NORTHWEST on the KLONDIKE HIGHWAY & ALASKA HIGHWAY
To get to Northern Alaska from Skagway, I had to enter the west corner of British Columbia and then cut through the southwest corner of Yukon. Leaving Skagway and heading up the Klondike Highway towards Fairbanks, you climb from 0 to about 4000 feet in less than 10 miles, a real hard pull but the views are gorgeous at the top. This highway runs parallel to the White Pass and Yukon railroad (the train ride I did while in Skagway). At the summit I crossed over into British Columbia and then into the Yukon. The first town you come to in the Yukon is Carcross (used to be called Caribou Crossing), which was the main terminus for the White Pass Railroad. From there you used to take a lake steamer into Whitehorse. An old depot and lots of ancient railroad equipment here. Carcross is also famous for having the “world’s smallest desert” which turns out to be about a square mile of dunes formed by an ancient lake.

On to Whitehorse, the Yukon capital. In Whitehorse I toured the SS Klondike, a riverboat restored by Parcs Canada. The steamer used to sail the 2,000 miles or so up the Yukon River from the coast bringing miners and supplies and connecting to the White Pass Railroad to Alaska.Another treat in Whitehorse is the Beringia Center, a museum devoted to that part of North America that arose during the Ice Ages of 10,000 years ago allowing people and animals to travel between Asia and North America and later sank. Lots of displays of Mammoth fossils, Saber Tooth Cats, Lions and also primitive human tools and artifacts.
From Whitehorse I headed towards Alaska again stopping at Destruction Bay, so named because of a storm that occurred there when the Army was building the ALCAN Highway which killed many workers and wrecked a lot of equipment. I also visited another very nice Natural History Museum in Burwash Landing along Kluane Lake.
After crossing the Alaskan border I had another overnight stop in Tok, (say “toke”) Alaska. Not much in Tok, just a major road junction.

Next it was on to Delta Junction, the “true” terminus of the Alaska Highway, There is a monument there commemorating the highway and the people who built it. Also the Alaska pipeline, another engineering miracle, crosses the Tenana River here. Before and during our trip to Alaska we were warned several times about the mosquitoes in Alaska. At the Delta Junction I ran into some giant mosquitoes. I never saw anything so big. We are going to need to get a lot of bug spray.













August 5 – 8, 2009 FAIRBANKS, ALASKA
I had one day in Fairbanks before Jo was to return from Orlando. I explored a few places, but was waiting for Jo to join me before exploring other sites in Fairbanks. The weather was rainy and there was a great deal of smoke from various forest fires in the vicinity. Despite it being wet, it was very hazy from the smoke and along with your eyes burning; you could smell the smoke everywhere.

I visited a wonderful museum at the University of Alaska, a combination of natural history, art and Alaska history plus it was housed in a beautiful new building.I also took a trip to the Large Animal Research Station, a part of the university, where they house and study a large number of Caribou, Reindeer and Musk Ox. I finally learned the difference between Reindeer and Caribou (Reindeer are tame, Caribou are not) and that Musk Ox are really related to Sheep (not cattle). Another Reindeer factoid, both male and female Reindeer (and Caribou) drop their antlers in the late fall and are bareheaded in the winter with the exception of pregnant or nursing females which keep theirs for protection. Makes you wonder just exactly who is pulling Santa’s Sleigh doesn’t it ? What is the real difference between Caribou and Reindeer?.......Reindeer can fly.












Jo, who had a great deal of trouble getting back to Alaska, joined me again on the 7th. Here is her story:
August 6 – 7, 2009 - JO RETURNS TO ALASKA – THE NIGHTMARE BEGINS (and ends)
On Aug 6th I got on a plane to return to Alaska and continue my trailer tripping. I made it to Minneapolis/St. Paul International airport and was getting ready to board my connecting flight to Fairbanks at 5:30pm, when the flight was cancelled. While I was in Florida, parts of Alaska were being ravaged by several forest fires, with some being around Fairbanks. Due to all the smoke covering Fairbanks, visibility was almost down to zero. Most flights departing or arriving at that airport were being cancelled.

My flight to Fairbanks was rescheduled to 6:00am the next morning. I stayed the night at Quality Inn nearby and on the way there on a shuttle, we passed ‘The Mall of America’. I had no idea I was so close to the MALL that I have read and heard about and have always wanted to visit. I had a few hours before it closed so I took a shuttle from the Inn to the mall and spent the next two hours exploring this place, despite being exhausted. The best part was finding a bead and gemstone shop where I found and bought some unique beads.
The next morning I was up early to get to the airport for my 6:00am departure. Just as I was boarding the plane, that flight was cancelled; for the same reason it was cancelled the day before. I could not believe it. In all my years of flying, I have never had this kind of thing happen to me. While some passengers just sat there in shock; others lined up at the counter making other arrangements. I walked down the hall and found an empty gate with someone behind the counter and booked a flight for 3:00pm to Anchorage (and got the last seat, I was told) and then on to Fairbanks. So I had 7 hours to kill.

All I wanted to do was sleep. And I did, for a few hours, and then I worked on my laptop, ate lunch, called a friend in New York and waited. Finally, while holding my breath, at 3:00pm, I boarded my flight and found that my seat assignment was in first class! Without realizing I was assigned to first class, I tried three different times to get my seat changed from a window seat to an aisle seat. Thank God I was not successful. For the next five hours I was in heaven. I had two glasses of wine (at no charge), a hot pasta dinner with chocolate fudge cake (at no charge) and watched the movie “My Life in Ruins” (a great movie) and slept. To top it off, as we flew over Alaska I had some spectacular, magical views of snow covered mountains and glaciers from my ‘window’ seat.
Well, these last 30 hours were quite an adventure. But I finally made it to Fairbanks and back to my ‘home on wheels’ where I hugged my kitties, my little dog, and Dave too. Not necessarily in that order.

August 8 – ARCTIC CIRCLE
Dave arranged to stay an extra day in Fairbanks. One of things I wanted to do while in Fairbanks was to drive north, from Fairbanks to the Arctic Circle. This is an unpaved road called the Dalton Highway that is about 400+ miles long and ends at Prudhoe Bay on the north slope and the Beaufort Sea. It follows the Alaska Pipeline all the way north. The Arctic Circle is the ½ way point and that is as far as we drove and that was enough for the day considering it took us about 4 hours to get there and another 4 hours to get back with an hour lunch and gas stop when we crossed the Yukon River at the Yukon River Camp. The day started out very foggy and wet with rain in some parts. But the fog cleared up by the time we got to Arctic Circle. It did remain smoky the whole drive and we even came upon a small fire that was left to burn out on its own.


The Arctic Circle is the point where it is sunlight for 24 hours a day during the summer and dark for 24 hours a day during the winter. It was a very scenic drive and we had hoped to see a lot of wildlife, but we saw none.

August 9 – 11, 2009 - DENALI NATIONAL PARK & MOUNT McKINLEY
Going south out of Fairbanks, we traveled about 150 miles to Healy, AK. and a pretty tacky RV Park, well you can’t win them all. Healy is about 9 miles from the park entrance. That evening we went into the park and as far as we could on the park road, surprising a bear that ran across the road in front of us. We then went to the Denali Visitors Center to get a sense of what we needed to see and do. We decided to get tickets for the following day for a shuttle bus ride to Wonder Lake and return, about 85 miles into the park (there is no automobile traffic allowed beyond 15 miles from the park entrance).
The following day we boarded the bus and had a very long but very interesting trip through Denali. The driver was very astute and knowledgeable and would stop for views and wildlife during the day and gave an interesting travelogue throughout the ride. The day was cloudy so we were among the 75% of visitors who don’t get to view all of Mount McKinley, but we still saw a lot of beautiful scenery and a lot of wildlife. We saw Caribou, Moose and several Grizzly Bears and their cubs, Dall Sheep and lots of bunnies. We returned late that night tired but very happy with the ride and had a great time.

Mount McKinley is behind those clouds.

We came upon this big Grizzly rolling on his back on the side of the road. Got a close-up picture of it.

Just kidding…

This is actually a picture of a picture.
The next picture is the real thing. All of our animal sightings were far in the distance.


The second day we drove into the park as far as we could go again but no wildlife this time. We also visited the Denali Princess Lodge Hotel for lunch, very nice. In the afternoon we attended a sled dog demonstration at the kennels. They use sled dogs regularly in the park each winter.
Stay tuned to Vol 6 - South Alaska. Here we visit Anchorage and then down into the Kenai Peninsula.