Day 90-July 26, 2013

         This morning, as we kissed Anchorage goodbye (again), we drove along the waterway called Turnagain Arm. Its shoreline runs along the right side of the Seward Highway.  I believe it is one of the most beautiful stretches of highway in America.  You can stop at one of the viewing areas, like my favorite at Beluga Point.  If the tide is in, sometimes the Beluga whales let you know they are playing in the water.  If the tide is out, the sprawling four-mile-wide flats of Turnagain Arm seem to stretch like a prairie to the opposite shores of Cook Inlet.  Each turn along the highway reveals another scenic wonder.


Low-hanging clouds over Turnagain Arm
south of Anchorage, Alaska

          On the left side of the two-lane road, Chugach State Park's 3000-foot mountains jut up.  Dall sheep can sometimes be seen scaling the sheer rock walls.
          Turnagain Arm has the second highest tides in North America after the Bay of Fundy in Nova Scotia.  At certain times, the tide can reach 40 feet and come in so quickly that they sometimes produce a wave known as a bore tide wave. 
          The bore tides are dangerous.  Because of the quicksand-like mudflats which makes up the beaches along Turnagain Arm, hikers and animals like moose, get stuck in the mud, and then the tide comes in so fast, they drown.
          Richard and I have been lucky enough to have seen the two bore tides in North America.  The one at Turnagain Arm and the Bay of Fundy.
          And the trip to Seward, we saw one moose on the roadside on our way to Seward.  I think Richard and I wore out the gang.  Brian and Samantha crashed in the van about an hour ago, and I just had Chase and Travis turn off their connections to the real world.  :-)

 

           This is Richard's favorite spot along the road next to Turnagain Arm.  There is a huge rock on the other side of the railroad track.  You can see some of it in the above picture.  He loves to tell the story of something he did a few years ago that could have gotten us killed.  Of course, he had too much fun with it to worry about something as stupid as dying.

          Anyway, a few years ago when we were here, we were headed south on this stretch of road.  As we approoached this spot, there was an older man taking pictures of a gal who held everyone's attention.  She was posing like a high-powered model.  As we got right next to them, Richard blasted our bus horn.  The girl was sure the train had her.  She jumped two feet in the air, then took off running.  The old man shook his fist at Richard.  I was screaming, "What in the name of all that is holy is wrong with you?"  Richard proudly announces that the old man looked like he was having too much fun.  Sour grapes.  Sour grapes. Sour grapes.

          As soon as we pulled into the camping space, Richard dragged out his trusty satellite dish and commenced to looking for a signal.  I took a handful of Tums and tired to stay out of his way.  He finally relented and put it away and plugged in the cable which is available here at the park.  Thank goodness it was time for Two and a Half Men or he would have still been out there declaring,"if we were on the other side of the campground it would work perfectly."

Until next time,
Dolores

 

Day 89--July 25, 2013

          Brian and Travis arrived at Ted Stevens International Airport in Anchorage about 7:20 tonight (11:20 Jacksonville time).  Samantha and Chase arrived on a different flight at about 8:00.  We went to the bus where I had pork and dumplings, my new pea salad recipe, and Georgia Peanut Butter Fudge cake waiting for them.
          I'm so proud of Brian and Samantha.  They both have lost quite a bit of weight and they really look great.  I asked them if the ran up here from Florida.  Everyone is all tucked in bed, ready for their big adventure tomorrow.  I'll let you know how it all goes.

Samantha and Chase coming to the baggage claim
where we were waiting.

Samantha and Brian after taking separate flights
They both look really great.  I'm thrilled they are here.

Brian, Me, Chase (in the background) Travis happy to see his mom.

Until next time,
Dolores

 

Day 87--July 23, 2013

          This will be a short blog mainly because other than getting my hair done, I did squat today.  Richard got the television working, and I've pressed remote control buttons (we have over 200 channels) until I have cramps in my fingers.  But tomorrow will be house, I mean bus cleaning day, laundry, restocking the supplies for the next round of family coming in Thursday evening.  I'm so excited!!!
          I'm posting the following picture for my adult children.  It is a sight that is very foreign to them, and I'm sure they will want to enlarge it and hang it on the wall.

          I'm never going to make it to heaven this way, but I sure have a lot of fun along the way.  LOL

Until next time,
Dolores

Day 86--July 22, 2013

          It's 12:30 am here in Alaska and that means it's 4:30 am back in Jacksonville.  Each day, by the time our normal daily activities are over and we can sit down, our family and friends at home have been in bed for hours. 
          Since we left the lower 48 and started our trek across Canada and every since we've been in Alaska, television has been sketchy or non-existent.  We have a dish on the roof of the bus, but it turns out it is too small to acommodate the curvature of the Earth.  So, that means that if we don't have visiting family with us, Richard and I must entertain each other.
          Ha!  Neither of us sing or dance and since we are heading toward 40 years together, we pretty much know each others war stories and how we feel about every subject on the planet.  Last night, our first night alone in about two weeks, Richard rose from the recliner, made the announcement that tomorrow he was going to do something about us not being able to watch television.  He went to bed, leaving me in a state of shock.
           Let me explain why--when DirectTV and Dish first came out, we had to  have one.  Of course, Richard always said it was because of me that he worked so hard to make sure we had television.  Yes, I like having a TV going especially when working because my mind works best with noise going on.  If my surroundings are quiet, my mind drifts to the distant sounds and the next thing you know, I'm looking out the window to see what that far away noise is.  TV drowns all that out and I know where the noise is coming from.  As I said, it's late here, so don't expect me to make too much sense.  LOL
          I can't tell  you how many hours we spent with Richard out moving the satellite and me yelling out the window.  This is pretty much how every conversation went:

Me:  The signal is 45.
Him: 55?
Me: No, now it's dropped to 35.
Him:  Don't tell me until it gets over 75.

Silence for a few minutes.

Him:What's going on?
Me: It's at 45.
Him: Well, tell me that so I know I need to go a little further.
Me: You said not to tell you until it goes over 75.

It was at that time he would usually throw me a dirty look and I'd send him one right back.  Good thing dirty looks can't kill.

Me: It's 75.
Him: Okay, I'll lock it there. 
          He comes into the motor home and slams the door.  The signal drops instantly.  He looks at it and asks by I said it was 75.  I try to tell him it was until he slammed the door.  At which time, he explains that since the dish was not attached to the motorhome, the vibration of a slamming door could not cause it to drop.  At which time, I tell him that I just lied so he would come on in.  BTW, he has NO sense of humor what so ever.  Anyway, this went on every night we were camping for at least 10 years.
          Oh, he tried several other types of receivers, but it was always the same song and dance.  Remember we don't sing or dance, so therefore, it was not a pretty sight.  When we bought the bus we have now (5 or 6 years ago) we had an on-the-go dish.  When I was first introduced to this concept, it was as if the heavens opened up, rays of beautiful sunshine shone all around me and I heard a band of angels sing Shall We Gather At the River.  No special reason, I just happen to love that song.  :-)
          So, last night, when he announced he was going to do something about not being able to watch television, the vivid recollection of years past almost forced me into a fetal position.  Sure enough, this morning, he took off for town and when he came back he had a new dish bigger than the one on the roof.
          I took a tranquilizer and took my position at the bedroom window ready for the familiar exchange which was about to happen.  Two hours later, he stopped long enough to take me to IHOP and as soon as we got back, he was at it again.  After a couple of calls to Dish technical support, we had success.  Problem is-there is still something wrong.  We can get local network channels, but only one of the other channels.  A few hours ago, Richard watched Two and a Half Men on a local channel and then he went to bed, leaving me to watch OWN, the only working channel.  The funny thing is that the only thing on that channel has been hours of Dateline about people murdering their spouses.
          I personally think that is pretty ironic.  LOL
Until the next time,
Dolores
         
         

Day 85--July 21, 2013

          Richard has two sons from a previous marriage.  My oldest stepson, Robert, from Vallejo, California, flew into Anchorage shortly before Ryan flew out and spent almost a week with us.  Ryan and Robert got to spend a little time together.  Tonight, Robert flies back to San Francisco (where he works for the San Francisco Fire Department), and then he'll go directly back to work in the morning.

Robert and Dad

 

          We had a really good time visiting and seeing some of the beautiful sights.  He has been on a cruise of the Inner Passage of Alaska, but he agreed that isn't really seeing the REAL Alaska.  I always ask the "kids" (big and little) what their favorite thing was.  Robert's was the tour to the Ididaride (isn't that a clever name).

          Ididaride Dog Sled Tours are run by the Seavey family.  They are three generation Iditarod winners.  In 1973, Dan Seavey (father of the owner of Ididaride) was one of the founders of the Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race, a 1,000-mile sled dog race from Anchorage to Nome.  He placed third in the first race and fifth in the third race. 

          Dan's son Mitch ran his first Iditarod in 1982 placing 22nd.  In 1995, Mitch ran his second Iditarod and placed 20th.  He has competed in every Iditarod race since.  He won the Iditarod in 2004.  In 2013, Mitch became the oldest to win the Iditarod at age 53.  In 2012, one of Mitch's sons, Dallas won the Iditarod Championship.

          The Seavey Dog Sled Tours run in the summer with wheeled sleds and also in the winter.  This is what I consider a real Alaskan adventure.  It begins with a two-mile dog sled ride. The minute the dogs see the harnesses brought out, they begin to bark and jump around.  The most excited dogs are the ones picked to be harnessed to comfortable wheeled sleds.

Robert in blue shirt and hat on wheeled dog sled
waiting to hear "Mush"

          They told us that most people can’t own mushers because they demand so much attention.  They need to run several times a day, every day.  They are happy to be hooked up and pulling sleds.  The minute the sleds leave the kennel, the dogs not chosen stop barking and lay back down.

          The dogs pull the sleds through the Alaskan wilderness to the base of Resurrection Mountain and along Box Canyon Creek. The guide explains how they train and steer the dogs, and tell stories from the trail.

          Upon return to the kennel, there is a tour of the beautiful kennel facilities, a guest is dressed up as an Iditarod musher, and then you get to cuddle the adorable husky puppies. This tour was chosen as one of Alaska’s Top Twenty Attractions, and is a must-do for all visitors to Alaska.

5-week old husky puppies.  They are so cute.

 

A Little History of the Iditarod Sled Dog Race:

          The most famous event in the history of Alaskan mushing is the 1925 serum race to Nome, also known as the "Great Race of Mercy." A diptheria epidemic threatened Nome, especially the Alaska Native children who had no immunity to the "white man's disease".  The nearest quantity of antitoxin was found to be in Anchorage. Since the two available planes were out of commission and had never been flown in the winter, the governor approved a safer route.

          The 20-pound cylinder of serum was sent by train 298 miles from the southern port of Seward to Nenana where it was passed just before midnight on January 27 to the first of twenty mushers and more than 100 dogs who relayed the package 674 miles from Nenana to Nome. The dogs ran in relays, with no dog running over 100 miles.

Robert took this picture of his Dad at a watermill-run grinding
stone where Richard has sharpened his knives every time
we've gone through Moose Pass.  With two more trips still scheduled to be
made, he should have the sharpest knives in the world.  Hey, maybe
I should keep an eye on all those sharp knives.  I do still have to go
through no-man land of Canada.  Yikes!!!

 

 

Until next time,

Dolores

 

 

 

 

         

Day 84--July 20, 2013



 

          This blog has been interrupted by a mosquito, but I am back on the road and having a great time.  When last we met, our son Ryan, our d-i-l Heather, and their son, Brody had just arrived.  I have a lot to tell  you about the places we visited, but since we have three more times to do basically the same activities, I'll spread it out over the next three weeks.

          Some of the things we are doing for all 4 families, but some of the activities are customized for the different tastes of the people in the family.  Ryan, for instance, went out on a 12-hour cruise halibut fishing.  I don't think the other three will be interested in that.  He also went down on the Kenai and Russian Rivers to try his hand at salmon fishing.  They are what they call "between runs" which means very few salmon are in the rivers, but Ryan wanted to try it anyway.  We all rode to the ferry that takes them to the other side of the river where fishermen stand side by side and cast and cast and cast with the hope a big ol' salmon will bite their lures.

          We had Brody and we went back to the bus for a few minutes and picked up Heather from the Hutch B&B, then headed back to the ferry to watch Marlin Perkins in the wild.

          As we pull into the parking lot, we were surprised to see the ferry just docking on our side of the river and it was loaded to the gills with people.  We thought, what the heck, did the fish go home?  As it turns out, a big brown bear with her cub was walking along the edge of the water terrifying the men and women fishing.  Some people stayed on the other side and braved the dangers around them.  We watched for at least 20 minutes as the bear forced the people to climb hills, climb stairs, and drop their stringers of fish to keep from being lunch for the bears.  I tried to take pictures, but all I had was my phone and it wouldn't zoom in close enough.

          Below are some of the pictures we took while Ryan, Heather and Brody were here.  They aren't in any kind of date order and don't have details about the places, but I'll tell you a little about them as the others come for their visits.

 

Ryan took this picture from the sled he and Heather and
Brody were riding on being pulled by sled dogs.

 

Ryan and Brody on the path to Exit Glacier
Notice he is scratching mosquitos

Heather and Brody in the kennel of the Ididaride Sled Dog Tour

 

Ryan and Heather chillin' on the wildlife cruise

Me at three-quarters of a mile up the path at Exit Glacier.  This was the only wide and flat place
on the path.  The rest was narrow and rocky and did I mention very steep.

That is the van you see in the distance.  This is me almost running
to the van after coming down the path at Exit Glacier.

Taken on wildlife cruise
Orcas

Heather, Brody, Ryan and me
at a rest stop on Turnagain Arms.

Ryan with his haliburt and yellow eye fish.

Ryan and Brody just before daddy went on the
ferry to catch salmon

Ferry crossing the river to bear land

Brody at the Sealife Center where he actually touched
sea urchins and starfish.
 

Brody at the aquarium watching sea lions swim

Bear in the garbage.  Ryan took this from the balcony
just outside their B&B room

Heather looking a lot better than I did after she
came down the path from the Exit Glacier

Brody's Ranger badge he earned on the wildlife cruise

Papa and Brody cheesing it up for the camera
Do you see a strong resemblance?

Brody in front of some kind of plant that we later found out
had thorns under it that were poison.  We'll sacrafice anything
for a photo opt.  LOL

 

 

 

Brody, Ryan, and Heather eating at a salmon bake on
Fox Island.  A special stop during the wildlife cruise of
Resurrection Bay.  They had prime rib, salmon and crab legs.


 

          Be sure to check back to learn a little about the places I've mentioned above.  I should be back on a daily posting schedule again.

 

Until next time,

Dolores 

Day 74--July 10, 2013

         Today, I discovered that I am older than I think I am.  There is nothing that will show you how much energy you DON'T have until you have spent the entire day on the move with a five-year old.  Here's what we did today:
1.) Left Anchorage
2.) Stopped at Turnagain Arm where one of the world biggest and fastest tide (Bore Tide) comes in.
3.)  Visited the Alaskan Wildlife Conservation Center, which consisted of walking a loop of over 1/2 mile to see Alaskan wildlife that had been injured or abandoned by its mother.  I know 1/2 mile doesn't sound like very far, but remember, I'm old.  LOL
4.) Went to Whittier.  A very unique experience.  I've been there several times, but it still blows me away.
5.) By midafternoon we had driven a total of 120 miles and arrived at our campground in Seward where we will be for the next four night.
6.) Richard, Brody, and I crashed for a late afternoon nap.  Ryan and Heather explored the campground.
7.) We went to dinner on the marina in Seward. 
8.)  We did a little bit of driving around to see a few sights.
9.)  We came home and I washed a few dishes, while the rest of the crew took their showers.
10.) Just sat down to write my blog and realized my brain went to sleep a couple of hours ago, and I was just going through the motions of being awake/alive.

          There are several very neat facts about the above places.  I promise to tell about them tomorrow when my eyes will stay open.

Until next time,
Dolores