Day 126--August 31, 2013

          As we started out today, I knew that when I went to sleep tonight, I would be back in the lower 48 states and truly going home.  The whole day was perfect.  The roads were great (curvy, steep sides, but great).  The sun was bright and only a few puffy clouds hung in the blue skies.

          Suddenly, (uh oh, one of my favorite authors, Elmore Leonard, in his list of helpful things writers should know, said never use the word suddenly, but since I can’t think of another word to use, I’ll stick with it).  Suddenly, I was struck with a case of melancholy.  Yes, I missed my kids, my grandkids, my friends, my house, being able to dial a phone without having to spin around in a circle three times, spit through a V in my fingers, and then climb to the rooftop of the bus to get to hear someone on the other end of the phone say Wher . . . you . . . home . . . while I chanted the familiar saying “Can you hear me now?”

          Yes, I am ready to go home, but it was kind of sad leaving behind the Last Frontier.  Alaska is a special place.  Its beauty takes my breath away.  The down-to-earth, back-to-nature lifestyle Alaskan’s live amazes me.  One of their mottos is The Land That God Forgot, but I don’t think he forgot it.  I think he just got it perfect the first time.  (Forgive me if I’ve already said that in a previous blog.)

          I feel so fortunate to have been able to spend almost 4 months in the Northwestern part of North America.  The neatest part is that as we went into the area, the last snowfall had only been about 2 weeks before we arrived.  The rivers and streams were swollen with rushing water from the winter thaw.  The sun didn’t sleep much during the first couple of months. 

          Along the roadways and up the mountainsides nature put on a beautiful show.  They were alive with wild roses, yarrow, and the fireweed had started blooming at the bottom of its stalk.  I was in Alaska long enough to watch the blooms climb the stalks, becoming more beautiful every day until it reached the top.  With the signal that summer was over, it was time for us to leave. 

          All the way out of the interior of our 49^th state, I felt like I was leaving home and had to do a check list.

          Rivers and streams empty of rushing water except for thin rivulets flowing through the rocky beds and dead trees that at one time had been totally covered by the water.  CHECK!

 

          Fireweed and yarrow dead and brown.  CHECK! 

          Nights no longer dusky, but truly dark for anywhere from 8-10 hours.  CHECK! 

          Bears feeding on salmon had come to a complete stop.  They are full and ready for a long winter’s nap. CHECK! 

          Call Bob at Motel 8 and ask him to leave the light on just in case we are fortunate enough to go back someday.  CHECK!

 

          I’m not sure how well my pictures have shown you the beauty of this area, but as we got closer to the border to come into Washington State, it dawned on me that the lower section of British Columbia and Washington are no slouch in the amazing scenery department.  Here are a few of the pictures I took from the side bus window at about 60 mph or about 90 km hanging on a mountainside on a winding road.  Hope it give you at least some idea of what it looks like.

River bed with rocks and dead trees which were
totally covered with water at the beginning of
summer

British Columbia, Canada

British Columbia, Canada

Train that followed the river and went in and out of small
tunnels for many miles.

Until next time,

Dolores 

 

Day 123--August 28, 2013

Stewart, British Columbia, Canada/Hyder, Alaska.

 

          I’m not even sure where to begin to tell you about these two places.  Richard and I made our first trip here in 2008.  The towns are about 40 miles off the Cassier Highway, but worth every minute of the narrow winding road.

          The economy of Stewart is supported by a varied range of industries including logging, mining and mining exploration and is destined to become a major port for distribution of ore and logs. Stewart offers a paved highway to major transportation routes, a salt water port which supports a barge terminal and bulk commodity loader. The Portland Canal is a mere 80-90 miles from the Pacific Ocean allowing ore and log ships to come from all over the world. Stewart also possesses an excessive amount of hydro power available for industrial use.  Two deep sea facilities are in operation, Stewart Bulk Terminals and the District of Stewart log storage and handling facility.  Space for considerable expansion exists at both facilities.

          So sayeth the welcome brochure.  I can tell you that the first time we visited, there was one heck of a lot of logs in water between the town and the fjords across the way.  This time, they are in the process of updating the facilities, so there were only a few lonely logs bobbing in the canal.

          Gold and silver mining dominated the early economy. Nearby Hyder Alaska, boomed with the discovery of rich silver veins in the upper Salmon River basin in 1917 and 1918. Hyder became an access and supply point for the mines, while Stewart served as the port for Canadian mining activity, which was centered on the town of Premier, which was accessed by a 14 miles (23 km) road from Hyder.

          To get to Hyder, you must drive through Stewart and then cross the Canadian border in to Alaska.  They don’t stop you going in because the US doesn’t have a border patrol.  When we were here before we were told stories by the locals in Stewart that Hyder was known as a place for people who wanted to get lost.  They have no police force.  One guy told us they have 2 fire trucks—one with brakes.  One without.  The one with always went ahead and the other ran into the back of it to stop.  Who knows if that is true or not.  I certainly wasn’t going to ask anyone because I couldn’t really tell the dangerous felons from the not-so-dangerous.

          We did ask a lady who owned an art and jewelry gallery wasn’t she afraid to have a store in a place where there was no police and no border patrol to stop unsavory characters from coming into her town.  She told us that she knew we had just come from Canada and we didn’t have a gun, but she did.  She had a very valid point, ‘cause them suckers make sure you don’t have a gun when you come into Canada.  Please refer to June 1, blog post.

          Hyder is called the friendliest ghost town in Alaska. 

          There are two major reasons why people go to Hyde.  One is the area is surrounded by majestic coastal ranges of mountains and the Cambria Ice Fields.  The ice fields, with numerous glaciers, provide some of the most breathtaking scenery in North America. 

          Also, Fish Creek gives us a great opportunity to view and take pictures of Alaskan Brown (grizzlies) and black bears.  The bears come to feed on chum and pink salmon which spawn in the creek.  Supposedly, you can watch the bears in their natural habitat.

            Richard and I have decided this is an elaborate scheme to “punk” the Wilson’s.  The first time we came here, we stayed 3 days and made 3-4 trips across the border (my favorite activity) to see the bears.  Not ONE time did we see any bears.  The people leaving and the rangers would say we were too late.  They’d been there and ate and had gone home to watch Two and a Half Men.  During the day, they would say to come back at 6:30 when the bears would be back for their evening feed.  No, they would have come at 4:00 and we missed them.  Didn’t the stupid bears have watches so they knew when they were supposed to be there?

          This trip, was the same thing.  Several trips over the border, and we never saw one bear.  Now remember that we crossed over, and even though the US had no one at the border, the Canadian’s did.  The officers would give us a friendly wave and off we’d go.

          Coming back was a whole ‘nuther cup of tea.  We had to show passports, driver’s licenses, and answer questions like what were we doing in Hyder?  Uh, looking for bear.  They’d ask if we were bringing anything back from Hyder with us.  Were they kidding?  There was nothing there to bring back—not even a picture of a bear.  I was tempted to say, well yes we did lob off a chunk of Salmon Glacier to take back to Florida with us.  But I didn’t.

          It was so weird.  We had seen 12 bears on the road into Stewart and then one on the way back to the Cassier Highway, but not one had a fish he was gnawing on.  The trip would have been a total loss except for Pursibal (I know I’m not spelling that right.  I could barely pronounce it).

          Anyway, this little fellow was a cute little white doggie who escaped from his owners and had the whole RV park in an uproar trying to catch him.  I think I actually heard old Pursey LOLing all over the place as about 10-12 elderly people moved faster than they probably had in many years.  They kept calling his name and it echoed off the towering mountains that surrounded us.  I would have been running too, if someone had named me Pursibal (?).  We watched for quite a while and when we left to go in search of bears feasting on chum, they were still chasing him.  It was so funny watching a streak of white skitter here and there almost like a phantom.

          Just a few stats—as of today, we have traveled 11,065.7 miles.  We’ve used 1481.5 gallons of fuel.  We’ve averaged 7.4 miles per gallon.  Please don’t try to figure that out.  You will hurt something.   And the stat I am the proudest of is I have had 9,736 hits on my blog.  Thanks everyone.  You’ve kept me connected to my home a long ways away.  Not much longer and we’ll be home.

One of many glaciers in Hyder Alaska

Morning mist in Stewart, BC

Richard on boardwalk waiting for Yogi and BooBoo to come by

Big blue heron in tree watching us watch for bears

Look what I have for you, Lizzy Long.  The old moose horns--
not the old moose.

Main Street
Hyder Alaska

Until next time,

Dolores

Day 122--August 27, 2013



One lane wooden bridge on the Cassier Hwy
held our 50,000 pounds just fine

         We left Jade City around 9:00 am and drove along a two-lane road for hours.  Beautiful scenery and long stretches of nothing but wilderness. 

Cassier Highway

More Cassier Beautiful scenery
 

          We’ve eaten quite a few of our meals in the bus, but once in a while I just want something different.
We stopped at a roadside café, store and post office.  Everything smelled so good I decided to sit down and order lunch.  I really wanted breakfast since it was well after noon and I hadn’t eaten yet, but we were too late for breakfast.  I ordered baked spaghetti with meatballs.  It came in a nice casserole dish, hot, covered with melted cheese and garnished with fresh blueberries.  Different, but very good. 

          I ate by myself while Richard went to the bus to have his usual lunch.  Sorry if I’ve already mentioned this, but trust me it never changes.  He had one thin slice of deli roasted turkey (no smoke, no honey baked, no peppered, just ONE thin slice of roasted turkey), 1 slice of Kraft American Cheese (individually wrapped, not deli sliced, no other variety).  The turkey and cheese are placed on one slice of bread spread with olive oil mayo, then he bends it in the middle and BAM!! folds that sucker in half, grabs him about a cup of cheese puffs and a glass of iced tea.  For dessert, he takes two Oreo cookies (count them, one, two) then places one Sausalito cookie between them and eats it like a cookie sandwich.  Just keep in mind, I am out here in the wilderness totally alone with this man.  I am a lucky woman, don’t you know?

          I put chicken thighs and legs with seasoning in the slow cooker.  A little while ago, I took out the chicken and added rice.  It should be done when we stop for the night, which shouldn’t be much longer.  I hope so, smelling that chicken cooking all afternoon sure does make a body hungry.

          We’ve had 12 bear sightings along the road today.  One mama had 3 cubs, another had two.  They almost got hit by a car that passed us at a high rate of speed.  Mama had one baby on one side of the road and the other on the other side.  She ran back to get the one and they almost got hit.  By the time we actually got to them, they were climbing the back side of a tree.  We did get a picture of one that ran in front of us and then went up the hill and looked back at us as if to say, “Nana nana boo boo.”  I shot him.  With the camera that is.

 

          We still have 2-3 days left in O! Canada.
Until next time,
Dolores 

Day 121--August 26, 2013

I’ve talked about the many, many lodges along the roads throughout Canada and Alaska.  They are never just a LODGE.  Oh, heaven forbid.  They remind me of something I heard comedian Ron White say one time.

I heard some of you gasp.  I know he has a filthy mouth, but for some strange reason, I don’t usually hear the curse words.  What I do hear are things coming from a mind that works like mine.  I’m not sure if that is a good thing or a bad thing, but I digress

Ron White once told of being on an airplane the size of a pack of gum.  Why this routine comes to mind every time I see a lodge up here in the far northwest is because Ron (pardon me--I feel so close to his way of thinking that I think we should be on a first-named basis) said where he took off from was the airport, hair salon, and tire center.

All the lodges up here serve multiple purposes.  For example, Eagle Plains Hotel-restaurant, lounge, gift shop, showers, service station, diesel, propane, aviation gas and JP4.  Very busy place.

Another one lists:  Fossil Hunting, flush toilets (my personal favorite), friendly bar,   breakfast for guests and brick-oven pizzas.

Alaskan Gifts—Ice cream—Health foods.

RV park-gas-car/rv wash-tire sales-tire repairs-oil changed.

BTW, the tire industry is BIG up here.  Tire centers are everywhere.  As a matter of fact, Canada has Canadian Tire Store.  They have many locations and are a big rival for Wal-mart and Sams.  They have anything and everything you can imagine.  Oh yeah, inside a small area of the ginormous store is where they deal with tires.

At the Gold Hill in Ester, Alaska-wines-meads-beer-Delta meats-moosetards & chips.  Drive thru coffee and sandwiches.

I believe there was a post office here too.

 

Burnt Paw, Tok, Alaska---Dog sled and equipment-cabin rentals-books.

Midnight Sun Emporium-Cuban Cigars-Yukon jewelry-moose hair tufting-mastodon ivory.

I have one more to tell you, then I want to tell you about one of the tours offered at one of the lodges.

The Other Place I think that was located in Otter Creek.  They had a small building next to the campground/fuel station/café/ hotel.  Inside that small building they have clerical services, gift shop and DMV.

Clerical services, gifts, DMV

Many lodges have tours by land, sea, or air.  My favorite is Bucket List Tours.  They can take you to Yellowknife, home of the Ice Road Truckers.  Fly with ice pilots aboard a vintage DC3 Buffalo (?) plane.  Cruise with local commercial fishermen.  Walk rare salt plains in Wood Buffalo National Park.  Lunch at Virginia Falls, which are twice the height of Niagara Falls.  Travel lands few people have ever traveled.

To my cousin, Sandy, I have signed you and me up for this when we come back in 2017.   Gather your fur-lined parka and Mukluks.  I’ll be coming for ya!!

Still in Canada.  Hopefully, only 3 more days and we will be in Washington State.  Just as a side note, last night we didn’t have any of the 3 things we need to keep our lives happy.  Tonight we have perfect Internet, but no phone and no television.

Moose cow on side of road between our camp and
Lyle's house

 

Until next time, (whenever that happens to be)

Dolores

Day 120--August 25, 2013

          Don't pay the ramson--we've escaped.  After 30 hours of no television, no telephone and no Internet, we have arrived in Whitehorse, Yukon Territory.  That's right.  We are back in Canada, and the good news is we were only detained at the Canadian Border for about 45 minutes. 
           It's been a long day.  We are 1,475 miles from going back into the lower 48 states.  It will take us 4-5 days.  I know that sounds like a long time to travel that far, but HURRY is not something you want to do going through Alaska and Canada.  Some people find it annoying, but I think it's God's way of making us slow down and truly look at the beautiful scenery.  I love every minute and every view waiting for us as we go around, up and over mountains.
          During our trip today, we saw a coyote that crossed the road in front of us.  We slowed down and watched it walk back into the middle of the road and watch us like he was giving us a piece of his mind. 
          Just a few yards passed the coyote, we stop to watch Tundra swams floating on a lake.  What a beautiful sight. The picture isn't very clear, but they were a long ways across the lake.
 

Tundra Swan

I don't know when we will have Internet again, but I'll post as soon as I have a way to do that.  I have a request.  Please work on cooling things off at home.  It is 45 degrees where we are now.  I won't make it through the HOT weather I keep seeing on television.

Until next time,
Dolores

Day 118--August 23, 2013

          One of the things Alaska introduced me to in 1997 was express coffee shacks.  Think free-standing Starbucks in well . . . shacks.  Some are really rustic. Some are brightly colored.  Some are open most of the time.  Some are opened when they want to.
          Back then was when I was introduced to steamers.  You drive up to either side of the mini building, which usually sits in an abandon or active parking lot.  You order whatever coffee creation you want and the barista hands your hot or cold creation through a window.  You may also get a muffin as big as my head or a cinnamon roll as big as my a**.
          My favorite always was (and still is) a steamer.  They heat and froth milk and give it a shot of any kind of flavor you might like.  I like mine with honey or a shot of caramel.
          On this trip to Alaska, the number of coffee shacks is mind boggling.  They are everywhere.  They are decorated differently and have some of the most creative names imaginable.  I didn't actually take the pictures of the ones I'm posting here only because I never thought about taking pictures of them.  I just pull up to the window, order and anxiously await to feel the heat warming my hands and the flavor to ease over my taste buds.

A Cup on the Run

          Since it is only 8:45 pm here, I think I'll post this and get Richard to take me down to North Star Java for a milk and honey steamer.  It's a great sleep aid.

Jammin' Java



Tasha's Natte Latte

Peak a Brew

Java the Hut



Until next time,
Dolores 

Day 117--August 22, 2013

          Hi there everyone.  Yesterday we left my favorite town in Alaska.  Homer is the town I told you about a short time ago.  Our friend Lyle lives there. Since I knew Richard would be spending most days with Lyle, and since we didn’t have the Jeep with us, I had planned to walk the town and visit interesting bookstores, art galleries, gift and clothing boutiques and yummy cafes with some of the best gourmet food I’ve ever tasted.  Jeannie and I had done that when we visited Homer before and I wanted to do it again.  But, alas that was not to happen.

          For four days, it rained.  Definitely not like the rains we have back home in Jacksonville, but steady, cold rain, which fell onto the muddy, pothole-ridden road right outside our bus door.  Each morning, I looked outside to decide if I would brave the nasty weather.  Each day, I would say that I’d go tomorrow, but for that day I would sit in the bus, look out the windshield across a field of dying fireweed and over the bay to the mountains and glaciers.  I drank hot tea or coffee, wore by Duck-Duck-Moose PJ’s I’d bought somewhere along the way.  The rain pattered on the metal roof and I thought I had died and gone to heaven.  Each day, my desire to brave the cold, wet weather weakened, and my desire to just sit there and read or write or watch television or nap grew stronger.  Oh yeah, napping ranked right up there.

          So the moral of that story is, I took a vacation while I was on vacation.  Not sure how that happened, but I LOVED it.

          Oh, it did quit raining long enough for me to venture out long enough to have Richard take a picture of me with the view of what I was looking at out my windshield.

Me with Kachemak Bay in the background.

 

Until next time,

Dolores