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[Ron]

Week 38: Ending 8/03/03


Monday:
It’s another drizzly overcast cold day in Alaska! We are up bright and early to drive to Seward for an all-day cruise to Kenai Fjord National Park. Driving along Sterling Highway, the sun starts peeking out, but it does not last.

We arrive in Seward to drizzle, which continues throughout our cruise and throughout the day. We walk around the dock area a bit and shop. Ron and Nan meet us at the ticket booth and we all walk to the Major Marine ship. Our seats are reserved, so we do not have to wait in line outside for ver to get a good seat.

A primary reason for choosing this cruise is the fact that a National Park Ranger provides commentary and information throughout the cruise. Our ranger, Carole-Jane, or CJ, proves to be very helpful and enlightening. A secondary reason is the “All You Can Eat Prime Rib & Salmon Buffet”, which proves an equally wise choice!

When we pick up our tickets and again when we board, we are warned that weather might prohibit the completion of the full tour. Should that prove to be true, we will receive a partial refund, which is nice.

Try as they might, our valiant crew cannot really get the ship close to any glaciers. We do get to see seals, sea otters, loons, puffins and bald eagles. CJ tells us a clue when looking for bald eagles, or least mature ones. Look for golf balls in black spruce trees. The white heads of mature bald eagles do look like golf balls.

Everyone except Rita took seasickness pills prior to departure and good thing, because the waters become increasingly choppy. Our ship is not a catamaran today and it is rough going. Cruise ships out an hour ahead of us warn our crew that the waves are 8-10 feet high and they decide to not to venture any further into the open sea. We had kind of figured that was what they were doing by the route they were taking. We enjoyed the shorter cruise nonetheless. Ron spent most of it outside, listening to CJ, taking video and pictures and getting absolutely soaked. Although the cruise is not what everyone had hoped for, we still enjoyed ourselves! We bid farewell again to Nan & Ron and drive back home to dry out Ron.

Tuesday:
Everyone sleeps in late when we awaken to rain at 7 am. Rita and Joan decide to drive to the City of Kenai when the weather finally clears up. The Kenai Peninsula is gorgeous, but it is really a sportsmen’s paradise. Fishermen, hunters and hikers are those who can fully enjoy its features.

It takes about an hour and half to drive to the city of Kenai. Old Town is small and quaint. We drive to Beluga Point to view Fire and Ice. Several volcanoes line the Point on one side and glaciers stretch towards the sea on the other side of the Inlet. Luckily, neither are active today.

Wednesday:
Farewell to the beautiful peninsula of Kenai. We drive back north towards Anchorage and stop at the Big Game Alaska Wildlife Center just after the Whittier/Portage Access Road. This is a preserve which takes in injured and orphaned wildlife and educates the public about the same. It is a worthwhile stop, only $5 per person. We walk around and are able to get up close and almost personal with caribou, moose, a grizzly bear, elk, owls, a baby black bear, a porcupine and red fox.

The remainder of the ride to Anchorage RV Park is uneventful. We check in, hook up and settle down for a bit. Rita has reservations (but we are going anyway) at Simon’s & Seaport for dinner. We are seated with an expansive view of Cook Inlet, although it appears that every table has a pretty view. Rita treats us to an elegant meal and wonderful company.

Afterwards, we go browsing and shopping at some of our favorite Anchorage stores: Cook Inlet Book Company, Grizzly and Made in Alaska, to name a few. It is still bright outside at 10 pm when we finally head back to the campground.

Thursday:
Rita’s last day in Alaska! We take it easy and take Rita out for a late lunch at Moose’s Tooth. After a final drive around Anchorage, we hang out at the airport with Rita until an hour before her flight and wish her bon voyage.

Friday:
Rest and relaxation plus laundry and grocery shopping.

Saturday:
Farewell for the final time to Anchorage RV Park. We head north on Route One for the Glenn Highway. Just before MP 53 on the Glenn, Ron spots a bald eagle flying across the sky in front of us, relatively close to the ground. It is majestic to watch him effortlessly fly (the eagle, not Ron!).

We stop to admire several vistas of the Matsu Glacier. Not far behind, of course, is the Glenn Highway MP 100-109 road construction. The road is significantly wider since the last time we traveled it, so progress is evident from the construction. We pull into our favorite moose-watching rest stop near MP 113 and Sheep Mountain. Other RVers soon join us but we see no moose. A few Dall sheep can be spotted high upon the Chugach Mountains across the road.

A few RVers decide to try their luck at panning for gold in an iron-laden creek across the road. We follow with cameras, ready to record any finds. The oxidized iron deposits turns everything bright orange, so it is difficult to distinguish anything in the pans. They have fun looking and we have fun watching. We wander around underneath the Chugach Mountains and find a treasure trove of ripe blueberries and low-bush cranberries. Further along we find deposits of moose scat, increasingly recent as we head north. Finally we come upon moose tracks heading back towards the Mountains. Although we haven’t seen “our” moose, we know they are still hanging out at our favorite rest stop. We decide to stay the night, in spite of the fact we have only traveled about 100 miles today.

Sunday:
Still no moose, so off we go. Less than 20 miles down the road, we stop at the Eureka Lodge for breakfast. Well nourished, we hit the road again for Tok, about 180 miles away. Black spruce flourish on both sides of the road, indicative of permafrost below. Gorgeous glacier on the right-side of the road (heading south) near MP 135-6 but no turnouts available so that we can fully admire it.

We have been in Alaska for 34 days now and the fireweed growing along the roadsides indicates the fast-changing seasons in Alaska. When we first arrived, the flowers were almost in full bloom and a brilliant fuchsia in color. A month later, the blossoms are almost all gone and the color has dulled to a dusty raspberry. Winter is not far away.

Once we drive through Glenallen and remain on Route One, we are on virgin territory again. It proves to be a nerve-wracking, body- and vehicle-shaking experience, especially the last 60 miles or so to Tok Seemingly every few yards, another sign announces: Rough, Road, Loose Gravel, Road Damage. We have to remind ourselves that it is all part of the adventure.

As we pull into Tok RV Park, what do we see but a familiar looking Bounder bus also checking in. It’s Nan and Ron! After hooking up and settling in, we all drive over to Fast Eddy’s for dinner and updates. It is a good evening of comraderie. Both couples are headed to Haines, AK, so we will catch up with them again over the next couple of days.

We return to the motorhome to work on the Happie Camper website. Ron counts 387 pictures taken since 7/19, when he last uploaded images to the site. He’s got some serious work ahead of him. Joan helps with photos from flightseeing Denali and calls it a night. Ron continues to work until sometime in the morning.