August 31, 2008
Day 54
Ocean Side RV Park
Haines, Alaska
Good Morning/Afternoon
Happy Anniversary to US. :>) :>) It's hard to believe that we've been married for 40 years as of two hours ago. Unfortunately we are going to have to put off our celebration for awhile. Merrell is still in the chilling and fever stage of the PMR junk. I hope it follows true to course and lasts only 5 days or so. This is the 3rd day of the chilling stuff and the second day of fever. It was 103 a little while ago and he's checking it again now. It's down to 102.7. He just got up again because he has a hard time staying in bed all of the time. Now, if it was me....................................... Teeheehee I would take a picture of him and post it to the blog, but I would hate to scare you off. You might never check it out again!!!! :>) :>)
Anyway, other than that we are doing fine. Chuck and Carolee went to church in Haines this morning. They said it was a really nice little church with very friendly people. Carolee really likes this little town and said if she had to move to Alaska this would be where she would like to be. NOT that she wants to live here!! It is a nice little town with friendly people and great views all of the way around.
It's 53 here today and and kind of foggy, but the view is still great out the front window of the motor home.
I'm trying to reschedule the ferry that we are supposed to take to Skagway tomorrow. The guy at the campground said we could stay as long as necessary on a day to day basis. I have to wait until morning to talk to the ferry people, but I'm sure they will let us reschedule for another day. We'll probably have to pay a fee for rescheduling, but that's not important at this point.
I can't think of any other news except Carolee has been doing some embroidery work using her Janome sewing machine (it has all the bells and whistles and is one of the cadillacs of sewing machines, I guess). I am amazed at the pretty designs it can do on it's own!!!
Catch ya later,
Love, US
Day 53, August 30, 2008
Day 53, August 30, 2008
Ocean Side RV Park
Haines, AK
It is a beautiful day here in Haines, Alaska. The sun is shining on the water in the harbor and the birds are flying over the water. The sky is so blue with a few soft white clouds. I'm in love!!!
Carolee is sewing on a quilt and then putting some Alaskan decals on a shirt. Chuck and I are watching the Western Channel. Carolee and I are going for a walk uptown a little later. Unfortunately, the PMR (Polymyalgia Rheumatica) has reared it's ugly head again and Merrell is under the weather. It's been coming on for the past couple of weeks. He had upped his Prednisone dosage when he started hurting and was doing fairly well. Then he started shivering and shaking so hard at night he couldn't sleep. Last night it got worse and he started the fever thing again. It was 102.9 when I checked it this morning. He took meds and it finally broke and he's been sleeping for the past couple of hours, so I hope he can sleep it off. We've been trying to be quiet so he will sleep as long as he can. I hope it's just a short spell. This is the first one he has had in months, so he's been doing really well. We were both so hoping that it was totally over, even though he has still been having to take one mg of prednisone every day to feel human. That's much better than the 40 mg. he used to have to take. He's been taking 15 mg. a day for the past few days hoping he could knock it before it got bad. Thankfully, our doc gave him a script for plenty of Prednisone just in case this happened. The only thing he can do when it hits is just go to bed and wait until it's over. It's just a process and something we have learned to live with for the past 4 years. The only thing we have to do is take the ferry to Skagway on monday and that is only a two hour process, so even if it's not over he should be able to get the RV on the ferry and back off and parked in another RV park. Chuck can do all of the things to help set up and hook and unhook the car. We can stay in Skagway as long as it takes him to feel better and then head to Canada. I knew I should have learned to drive this danged RV!!! LOL I'm sure Chuck or I either one could do it, but the roads here aren't the best for learning to drive something so BIG and Merrell is used to driving big trucks, so it wasn't anything for him to drive it. Anyway, it will be fine and he will be all better soon.
I'm still sitting here enjoying the beautiful view of the harbor.
Catch ya later,
Love, US
Ocean Side RV Park
Haines, AK
It is a beautiful day here in Haines, Alaska. The sun is shining on the water in the harbor and the birds are flying over the water. The sky is so blue with a few soft white clouds. I'm in love!!!
Carolee is sewing on a quilt and then putting some Alaskan decals on a shirt. Chuck and I are watching the Western Channel. Carolee and I are going for a walk uptown a little later. Unfortunately, the PMR (Polymyalgia Rheumatica) has reared it's ugly head again and Merrell is under the weather. It's been coming on for the past couple of weeks. He had upped his Prednisone dosage when he started hurting and was doing fairly well. Then he started shivering and shaking so hard at night he couldn't sleep. Last night it got worse and he started the fever thing again. It was 102.9 when I checked it this morning. He took meds and it finally broke and he's been sleeping for the past couple of hours, so I hope he can sleep it off. We've been trying to be quiet so he will sleep as long as he can. I hope it's just a short spell. This is the first one he has had in months, so he's been doing really well. We were both so hoping that it was totally over, even though he has still been having to take one mg of prednisone every day to feel human. That's much better than the 40 mg. he used to have to take. He's been taking 15 mg. a day for the past few days hoping he could knock it before it got bad. Thankfully, our doc gave him a script for plenty of Prednisone just in case this happened. The only thing he can do when it hits is just go to bed and wait until it's over. It's just a process and something we have learned to live with for the past 4 years. The only thing we have to do is take the ferry to Skagway on monday and that is only a two hour process, so even if it's not over he should be able to get the RV on the ferry and back off and parked in another RV park. Chuck can do all of the things to help set up and hook and unhook the car. We can stay in Skagway as long as it takes him to feel better and then head to Canada. I knew I should have learned to drive this danged RV!!! LOL I'm sure Chuck or I either one could do it, but the roads here aren't the best for learning to drive something so BIG and Merrell is used to driving big trucks, so it wasn't anything for him to drive it. Anyway, it will be fine and he will be all better soon.
I'm still sitting here enjoying the beautiful view of the harbor.
Catch ya later,
Love, US
Day 52-August 29, 2008
Ocean Side RV Park, Haines, AK
I finally had time to upload pictures from several days ago. You will need to go back to the older posts and check them out if you're interested. I just added pictures to the posts I had already made.
We are going to stay here in this RV park until Monday afternoon and then we will take the ferry to Skagway, AK and probably spend a few days there before we head back to Canada and work our way to Washington.
The view here is really good and it's peaceful and quiet, so it's a nice place to stay. Haines is a neat old town, so we are going exploring tomorrow. Maybe we will get some more nice pictures to post.
Have a great weekend.
Love, US
I finally had time to upload pictures from several days ago. You will need to go back to the older posts and check them out if you're interested. I just added pictures to the posts I had already made.
We are going to stay here in this RV park until Monday afternoon and then we will take the ferry to Skagway, AK and probably spend a few days there before we head back to Canada and work our way to Washington.
The view here is really good and it's peaceful and quiet, so it's a nice place to stay. Haines is a neat old town, so we are going exploring tomorrow. Maybe we will get some more nice pictures to post.
Have a great weekend.
Love, US
Days 50, 51 and 52-August 27, 28 and 29, 2008
Days 50, 51 and 52
August 27, 28 and 29, 2008
Kluane RV Park in Haines Junction, Yukon, Canada to
Ocean View RV Park in Haines, Alaska
This monument is located in Haines Junction, Yukon, Alaska at the junction of the Alaskan Highway and the Haines Road. The Mile Post said it was one of the most photographed things on the Alcan Highway. I don't know if you can see all of the animals sticking out of it or not. It has most of the animals on it that you can see while traveling through Canada.
We got to the Kluane RV Park in Haines Junction around 8:30 on the 27th and set up camp. We had originally intended to leave the next morning and head to Haines, AK, but we all just thought we should spend another day of R&R, so we spent the 28 there too. We left this morning (29th) and got to Haines around 2:15 p.m.. We are staying in a campground right on the water and can see the big cruise ships from our windows. Haines is one of the Alaskan towns that caters to the large cruise lines. There is a small harbor here with lots of smaller boats. I am assuming they are fishing vessels, but I'm not sure. I also saw a sail boat a little earlier today. We are at around 30 ft. above sea level where we are now. That's a big change from 3,600 feet where we were earlier today. It's warmer here too. It was a beautiful day for a drive and we all enjoyed it.
Carolee and I drove uptown to the post office earlier this evening and she mailed some post cards. Merrell and Chuck stayed here and got everything set up.
We actually have Directv Satellite for the first time since we got into Alaska. We have had cable in some of the campgrounds, but haven't been able to use our satellite. From what they told us in Canada and Alaska, we were at such a high elevation that the satellite would have to be pointing towards the ground for us to receive signal and that's kind of hard to do when it's mounted on top of the motor home. :>) It's amazing how you can get addicted to something isn't it? Directv allows you to press a button and tells you what you are watching, who is in it and what time it came on!!! I was totally lost without my special remote......................... I'm going to enjoy it for the next three days that we are here. We may not have it again until we get back to the lower 48.
Once again we took some wonderful pictures. We stopped by an Indian fishing village on the way here. There was only one family still there because there were no fish to catch and dry this year. The government said that they could not fish there this year because they needed to let the fish multiply for at least this year.
We met a nice Native lady and she told us that the Klukshu village had been there since before any of the roads had been built in that area. There are a lot of log cabins and drying sheds dotted around the village. There is a stream out back where they catch the fish and the drying sheds are located close to the streams.
Carolee and the Native owner of the gift shop in the Klukshu Village, Yukon, Canada.
Donna and the nice Native lady from the Klukshu Indian Village.
Fireweed in it's different stages. The purple/pink ones are newer ones that are just blooming. The red are the ones that are through blooming and have just turned to red foliage.
This is one of the fish drying buildings at the Indian Village.
This is the interior of one of the fish drying huts in the Klukshu Indian Village.
This is one of the log cabins located in the Indian Village.
Fireweed in front, with some aspen, pines and the mountains in the background. We were still in Yukon, Canada when this was taken.
I just love the long winding roads that you just know have wonderful things hidden just around the turns!!!
Check out this tall hill and long winding road. And, we did see some beautiful things around the curves. This was also in Yukon, Canada.
Low hanging clouds over the water and mountains at Haines, Alaska. Elevation around 60 feet where this was taken.
This is an Alaskan Fishing Wheel. I'm not sure exactly how it works, but Merrell and Chuck were fascinated with them when we were in Glenallen. We also saw pictures and the history of them when we were in Valdez. This one was right outside Haines, AK today as we were driving through and I was lucky enough to get a quick picture of it.
August 27, 28 and 29, 2008
Kluane RV Park in Haines Junction, Yukon, Canada to
Ocean View RV Park in Haines, Alaska
This monument is located in Haines Junction, Yukon, Alaska at the junction of the Alaskan Highway and the Haines Road. The Mile Post said it was one of the most photographed things on the Alcan Highway. I don't know if you can see all of the animals sticking out of it or not. It has most of the animals on it that you can see while traveling through Canada.
We got to the Kluane RV Park in Haines Junction around 8:30 on the 27th and set up camp. We had originally intended to leave the next morning and head to Haines, AK, but we all just thought we should spend another day of R&R, so we spent the 28 there too. We left this morning (29th) and got to Haines around 2:15 p.m.. We are staying in a campground right on the water and can see the big cruise ships from our windows. Haines is one of the Alaskan towns that caters to the large cruise lines. There is a small harbor here with lots of smaller boats. I am assuming they are fishing vessels, but I'm not sure. I also saw a sail boat a little earlier today. We are at around 30 ft. above sea level where we are now. That's a big change from 3,600 feet where we were earlier today. It's warmer here too. It was a beautiful day for a drive and we all enjoyed it.
Carolee and I drove uptown to the post office earlier this evening and she mailed some post cards. Merrell and Chuck stayed here and got everything set up.
We actually have Directv Satellite for the first time since we got into Alaska. We have had cable in some of the campgrounds, but haven't been able to use our satellite. From what they told us in Canada and Alaska, we were at such a high elevation that the satellite would have to be pointing towards the ground for us to receive signal and that's kind of hard to do when it's mounted on top of the motor home. :>) It's amazing how you can get addicted to something isn't it? Directv allows you to press a button and tells you what you are watching, who is in it and what time it came on!!! I was totally lost without my special remote......................... I'm going to enjoy it for the next three days that we are here. We may not have it again until we get back to the lower 48.
Once again we took some wonderful pictures. We stopped by an Indian fishing village on the way here. There was only one family still there because there were no fish to catch and dry this year. The government said that they could not fish there this year because they needed to let the fish multiply for at least this year.
We met a nice Native lady and she told us that the Klukshu village had been there since before any of the roads had been built in that area. There are a lot of log cabins and drying sheds dotted around the village. There is a stream out back where they catch the fish and the drying sheds are located close to the streams.
Carolee and the Native owner of the gift shop in the Klukshu Village, Yukon, Canada.
Donna and the nice Native lady from the Klukshu Indian Village.
Fireweed in it's different stages. The purple/pink ones are newer ones that are just blooming. The red are the ones that are through blooming and have just turned to red foliage.
This is one of the fish drying buildings at the Indian Village.
This is the interior of one of the fish drying huts in the Klukshu Indian Village.
This is one of the log cabins located in the Indian Village.
Fireweed in front, with some aspen, pines and the mountains in the background. We were still in Yukon, Canada when this was taken.
I just love the long winding roads that you just know have wonderful things hidden just around the turns!!!
Check out this tall hill and long winding road. And, we did see some beautiful things around the curves. This was also in Yukon, Canada.
Low hanging clouds over the water and mountains at Haines, Alaska. Elevation around 60 feet where this was taken.
This is an Alaskan Fishing Wheel. I'm not sure exactly how it works, but Merrell and Chuck were fascinated with them when we were in Glenallen. We also saw pictures and the history of them when we were in Valdez. This one was right outside Haines, AK today as we were driving through and I was lucky enough to get a quick picture of it.
Day 50-August 27, 2008
August 27, 2008
Day 50
Leaving Tok, Alaska and the Sourdough RV park
We are leaving Tok as we speak (or is that type??). I finally got the problem resolved with my AT&T Laptop Connect card, so anywhere in the US that we have cell service, I can get online. I won't be able to be online in Canada, so we will definitely be incognito unless the campgrounds have free WiFi. We should be back in Alaska at Haines by Friday or Saturday, so I should be able to check in. Our cell phones won't be used in Canada unless it's an emergency and we HAVE to use them.
It's hard to believe our time in Alaska is coming to a close. It has been the experience of a lifetime and we have all enjoyed it so much. The people here are very friendly and helpful. It's a whole different kind of life, but it has made me really appreciate our home and all of the conveniences we have that we take for granted. So many people here live in small "shacks" as we would call them at home. From what we have seen, more and more people are moving here and there are new homes being built around the larger towns. The price of everything here is higher than at home too.
There are many vacant and abandoned building along the highways. I guess the people just couldn't make it here and left for bigger and better things. I don't know why else there would be so many empty places. Lodges and campgrounds just shut down and left sitting. Some look like they have been empty for a long time.
Well, Merrell has filled up with diesel and we're about ready to roll towards the border. Diesel was $5.35 here in Tok. It was cheaper near Anchorage. Regular gas was $4.69.
Catch ya later,
Love, US
This is the office of the Sourdough campground that we stayed in at Tok, Alaska
This sign at the gift shop in Tok caught my eye. Alaska sure feels like a foreign country. I found myself saying "when we get back to the states" and knowing all the time we were in the 49th state. :>)
Carolee and Chuck at the display of sleds that they use in Alaska. The one directly behind them is the one they use for the Ididarod races.
These are puppies of the breed of Alaskan dogs that they use for the Ididarod races. I just assumed they used Huskies (like in the movies and on the post cards) but these dogs are bred to be faster. They were also at Tok next to the gift shop and sled display.
We were still in Tok, Alaska when we took this. We were just getting ready to head out for Haines Junction. Of course, Merrell and Chuck spied the old jeep and had to take a gander. I kind of liked it myself.
Now this one is the one I liked. I love OLD trucks and would absolutely love to have one of my own. I think I would rather have a RED one, but I would take this one too. Check out the roof of the gift shop in the background. They actually get on top of it and mow it!!!! What a sight that would be. They sell postcards showing him mowing it and I bought one just so you wouldn't think I was lying. Teeheehee Can you just imagine your better half telling you he would be back in three hours, that he was going out to mow the roof!!! LOL
A moose was right beside the highway on our way from Tok, Alaska to Haines Junction in Canada. We were in Canada when we saw him. He was getting ready to pose for me and the air spitter valve (don't I sound like I know what I'm talking about?) on our motor home made it's loud noise and scared it away. I still got a picture and I guess that's all that matters.
This picture was taken from the passenger seat in the front of the motor home and it's not as clear as I wish it was, but it shows the beautiful fall colors against the water and mountains. We were in Canada when this was taken.
I think we have taken a gazillion or more pictures with water and the mountains, but they are just so pretty that we can't resist. We were also in Canada when this was taken.
The further we went into Canada the more pronounced the fall colors became. It was a beautiful drive.
This shows a mixture of the colors we saw on the drive to Haines Junction. I don't know what the short puffy stuff was in the very front, but it was really pretty when you saw it in "person". The picture doesn't do it justice.
Another water picture, but I couldn't resist. I think we each took close to 300 pictures on the drive to Haines Junction.
I just caught this out of the corner of my eye on the left of the road. The yellow is Aspen.
I just barely got a picture of this teensey tiney church that was sitting in the middle of nowhere. We were traveling pretty fast and I just barely saw it before we were totally past it. It is really tiney and very fancy for where it is. I'm not sure of the name of the church. I could look it up in the Mile Post book, but I will probably forget to do it!! :>)
Day 50
Leaving Tok, Alaska and the Sourdough RV park
We are leaving Tok as we speak (or is that type??). I finally got the problem resolved with my AT&T Laptop Connect card, so anywhere in the US that we have cell service, I can get online. I won't be able to be online in Canada, so we will definitely be incognito unless the campgrounds have free WiFi. We should be back in Alaska at Haines by Friday or Saturday, so I should be able to check in. Our cell phones won't be used in Canada unless it's an emergency and we HAVE to use them.
It's hard to believe our time in Alaska is coming to a close. It has been the experience of a lifetime and we have all enjoyed it so much. The people here are very friendly and helpful. It's a whole different kind of life, but it has made me really appreciate our home and all of the conveniences we have that we take for granted. So many people here live in small "shacks" as we would call them at home. From what we have seen, more and more people are moving here and there are new homes being built around the larger towns. The price of everything here is higher than at home too.
There are many vacant and abandoned building along the highways. I guess the people just couldn't make it here and left for bigger and better things. I don't know why else there would be so many empty places. Lodges and campgrounds just shut down and left sitting. Some look like they have been empty for a long time.
Well, Merrell has filled up with diesel and we're about ready to roll towards the border. Diesel was $5.35 here in Tok. It was cheaper near Anchorage. Regular gas was $4.69.
Catch ya later,
Love, US
This is the office of the Sourdough campground that we stayed in at Tok, Alaska
This sign at the gift shop in Tok caught my eye. Alaska sure feels like a foreign country. I found myself saying "when we get back to the states" and knowing all the time we were in the 49th state. :>)
Carolee and Chuck at the display of sleds that they use in Alaska. The one directly behind them is the one they use for the Ididarod races.
These are puppies of the breed of Alaskan dogs that they use for the Ididarod races. I just assumed they used Huskies (like in the movies and on the post cards) but these dogs are bred to be faster. They were also at Tok next to the gift shop and sled display.
We were still in Tok, Alaska when we took this. We were just getting ready to head out for Haines Junction. Of course, Merrell and Chuck spied the old jeep and had to take a gander. I kind of liked it myself.
Now this one is the one I liked. I love OLD trucks and would absolutely love to have one of my own. I think I would rather have a RED one, but I would take this one too. Check out the roof of the gift shop in the background. They actually get on top of it and mow it!!!! What a sight that would be. They sell postcards showing him mowing it and I bought one just so you wouldn't think I was lying. Teeheehee Can you just imagine your better half telling you he would be back in three hours, that he was going out to mow the roof!!! LOL
A moose was right beside the highway on our way from Tok, Alaska to Haines Junction in Canada. We were in Canada when we saw him. He was getting ready to pose for me and the air spitter valve (don't I sound like I know what I'm talking about?) on our motor home made it's loud noise and scared it away. I still got a picture and I guess that's all that matters.
This picture was taken from the passenger seat in the front of the motor home and it's not as clear as I wish it was, but it shows the beautiful fall colors against the water and mountains. We were in Canada when this was taken.
I think we have taken a gazillion or more pictures with water and the mountains, but they are just so pretty that we can't resist. We were also in Canada when this was taken.
The further we went into Canada the more pronounced the fall colors became. It was a beautiful drive.
This shows a mixture of the colors we saw on the drive to Haines Junction. I don't know what the short puffy stuff was in the very front, but it was really pretty when you saw it in "person". The picture doesn't do it justice.
Another water picture, but I couldn't resist. I think we each took close to 300 pictures on the drive to Haines Junction.
I just caught this out of the corner of my eye on the left of the road. The yellow is Aspen.
I just barely got a picture of this teensey tiney church that was sitting in the middle of nowhere. We were traveling pretty fast and I just barely saw it before we were totally past it. It is really tiney and very fancy for where it is. I'm not sure of the name of the church. I could look it up in the Mile Post book, but I will probably forget to do it!! :>)
Day 48-August 25, 2008
August 25, 2008
Day 48We left Tolsona Wilderness Campground in Glenallen, Alaska and are now in the Sourdough Campgound in Tok, Alaska
We have Internet and cell phone service!!! Yeah!!! We only have Alaska channel 13 on our TV, but we have lots of movies to watch if we get bored with the Democratic convention!!!
I have decided I am a technoaddict (I don't know if that is a word, but it describes me) I really like my gadgets.
I took some more pictures (in the rain) coming down the road to Tok. It was a beautiful drive, even if it was rainy and gloomy. The trees are starting to change here and that made the drive so enjoyable. All of the golds, reds and greens mixed in with the lakes and mountains. Merrell said he enjoyed it almost as much as Glacier National Park in Montana. That says a lot!!!
I don't know how long we will stay in Tok. We want to do a little more of the "tourist" thing while we are here. I think we have decided that when we do leave here, we will go to Haines and take the hour long ferry trip (motorhome included) to Skagway and then head through Canada to Washington. That is the plan at this point if we can get a booking on the ferry. I am going to call them tomorrow and see what dates are available.
I am sitting here in the motor home at the kitchen table looking at the porch of the campground office and it's covered with beautiful pots of flowers. I have just fallen in love with what Alaskans can do with a packet of flower seeds!!!!
All of the campgrounds say that the RV tourist business is way down this year. Not only because of the price of gasoline and diesel, but they have had a lot of rain and colder weather this summer and people have left earlier than usual. It's made it nice for us. Nothing is crowded and the roads have very little traffic, so we can stop whenever we need to take a picture. Teeheehee
I will have to wait to post those pictures later when I have time to see how many of them turned out OK. 90% of the pictures we have taken have been taken out of the windows of the car or motorhome, so about 70% have spots or raindrops on them. :>)
Catch ya later,
Love, US
Leaving
This is the flower bed at the Tolsona Wilderness RV park we stayed in on our way to Tok. Look at the size of that cabbage. They had a whole "bed" of cabbages (no pun intended!!) there and said that before long they will harvest and give some to the campers and keep some themselves.
This old wagon with the flowers in it was in front of the Golkona Lodge and Trading Post we stopped at on our way back to Tok, Alaska. We have a wagon at home very similar to this one that belonged to Merrell's Dad. We plan to get it fixed up and put it in our yard too. The flowers are a good idea, huh?
This is another view of the wagon in front of the Trading Post part of the Gakona Lodge and Trading Post. I sure wish it hadn't been raining that day so I could have explored more. They had some neat stuff there.
They also had this neat teepee in the front part of the Lodge and small cabins that are rented to tourists. I know in a lot of places we have been they will actually rent teepees to tourists to stay in. Now, I like to camp and travel, but I can NOT see myself sleeping in one of these. The idea is cool, but that's about it as far as I'm concerned. I'm sure it doesn't have a king size air mattress in there with a computer, satellite, TV, indoor FLUSHING toilet and microwave just to name a few necessities. :>)
We stopped at the Gakona Lodge and Trading Post. From what I read in the Mile Post book, it's the spot with one of the oldest "Road Houses" in Alaska. A Road House back in the day served as a one stop shop for everyone traveling through Canada and Alaska. They would feed you and give you a bed to sleep (I don't mean give in the strict sense of the word. You definitely had to pay) in and a place for your animals, etc. Now it is a gift shop and some new cabins that they rent out and a restaurant. Once again they have the beautiful flowers that I fell in love with. I bought some post cards, but not much else. The post cards weren't too expensive, but I checked out a bag of chips and it was $7.50 and I figured I didn't need a snack anyway. :>) :>)
This is the inside of the Gakona Lodge gift shop. They had some neat stuff, including items handmade by Native Alaskans. Most of it I didn't care too much for, but a few things were really nice.
This is one of the old original smoke houses where they smoked all of their meat for the Gakona Lodge. At least that is what the girl at the gift shop told me as I was aiming my camera out the window behind her trying to get a shot of it. It was raining outside and I didn't want to melt (you know SUGAR does melt) so I took the picture out the window. :>)
I loved the way the fog hung low below the top of the mountain range and over the trees which are just beginning to turn fall colors. It was a beautiful drive, even though we had some sporadic rain.
As you can see, the trees are starting to turn and it makes for a beautiful drive along the highway. It's amazing what a difference the changing colors make in the landscape.
No matter how many of the mountain lakes we see, we never cease to be amazed at the beauty we see. I'm still amazed that a picture can turn out so well from inside the motorhome. Must be the camera!!! :>)
It looks like we're driving to the top of the world, doesn't it? The clouds seem to be within our reach. It was an amazing sight.
More clouds hanging low over the mountain side.
The fall colors here aren't the same as the colors in our WV mountains. Most of the deciduous trees here are the aspen and they turn a beautiful gold. There are very few reds and oranges. We see an occasional one, but it's mostly aspen mixed in with the pines.
I don't know whether you can tell how HIGH we were when I took this, but trust me we were HIGH!!! Again you can see that the fall colors are coming fast. Hard to believe it's only August 26th.
More aspens and pines with the beautiful dark mountains in the background. It's only in the 50's here in the daytime so I guess fall just comes early in Alaska.
Remember when I told you that Carolee should have learned by now about standing up while Merrell is driving on these roads??? Well, she did it again. See the camera in her hand. AND, GUESS WHAT??? I had mine in my hand again and it was turned on............................. At least she fell on the couch and not in the floor. Teeheehee
Day 49-August 26, 2008
Day 49
August 26, 2008
Sourdough Campground, Tok, Alaska
We decided to spend today in R&R. Of course, that means just me and Carolee!! LOL Merrell and Chuck changed some filter thingys on the motor home and I'm not sure what else. Anyway, I guess we are ready to head out of Tok tomorrow. We will cross the Canadian border and go as far as Haines Junction, which is in Canada, tomorrow and spend the night there. The next day, we will probably head down towards Haines, Alaska. We will have to cross the border again to get there. I made a reservation on the Ferry out of Haines taking us to Skagway, Alaska. It's only an hour trip, but saves a lot of driving time and we all want to see Haines and Skagway and we thought we might like the ferry trip. They load the motor home and car onboard and ferry you across to Skagway. I'll probably be hiding my face most of the time they are loading the vehicles. I'm afraid of heights AND water, so this should be an experience and a half for me!!! I couldn't get a ferry out until Monday, Sept. 1st, so we will get to spend our 40th anniversary in Alaska.
While we are in Canada, we won't have cell service and won't have email access unless a campground has free WiFi. If anyone needs us, just email or leave a cell message and we'll get back to you when we can. I'm still having problems with my AT&T laptop connect card, but hopefully it will all be resolved by the time we get to Washington State. While in Canada, we will just have to try and find campgrounds with free wifi if we need or want to get online.
Anyway, it has been a nice restful day. We watched Hillary's speech to the democratic convention. She actually did a really good job. We watched Michelle Obama's speech too and I thought she did an outstanding job considering all of the hoopla that has surrounded her for the past few months. The reason we watched is because we only get one channel here and it was either that or NOTHING!! Teeheehee
It turned out to be a nice day today. It got up into the 60's. It was cold this morning. I think it was 47. Thank goodness for heaters................................
Well, I think we're going to put a movie in to watch. Nothing much on the CHANNEL!!! It's 8:13 here and for most of you it's after midnight. It's still staying daylight until really late and gets daylight very early. I really like the dark blinds at the windows. :>)
Good nite and I'll be in touch when we get somewhere...........................
Love, ME
Day 47-August 24, 2008
August 24, 2008
Day 47
Tolsona Wilderness Campground, Glenallen, Alaska
We decided to stop for the night at this campground which is in the middle of nowhere. It's a neat campground, except Merrell discovered that there were a lot of mosquitoes when he tried to fish in the stream. The only bites he got were theirs!! Teeheehee
We are camped in the woods beside a stream and it's really peaceful and quiet. We just finished watching a DVD we bought about Alaska, the last frontier. Howard bought it first and it looked really good, so I bought one. It shows a lot of the places we have been and animals and scenery that we have seen. It was really good and I'm glad we got it. We're not sure where we are going tomorrow and so don't know if we will have cell or internet service. We don't have much cell phone signal, but the campground has WiFi, so we could check email and update the blog.
It's 9:15 and still daylight, but I think I'm going to go to bed and read awhile. It's nice and quiet here, so maybe I can get to sleep early and get up earlier than my normal (which by the way is NOT early).
It's still kind of rainy, but hopefully tomorrow will be better. We've been really lucky and haven't had a lot of rain over the 47 days we've been on the road.
Catch ya later,
Love, The Gang
Pictures of Caribou taken at a Caribou Farm between Palmer and Sutton, Alaska. I had to zoom in quite a bit and the picture isn't as clear as I wanted it to be!!! They had a whole field of caribou.
This is Merrell and Sally Harvey, Uncle George Johnson's friend. She was nice enough to have copies of Uncle George's pictures that were hanging on the wall in the Alpine Inn copied for us. She even met us and brought them to us on our way out of the Palmer/Sutton area. Without her we would not have been able to find out about his life and meet his friends. We will be eternally grateful to her. Thanks again Sally!!!!
As most of you know, I love barns and unfortunately Alaska doesn't have very many of them. This one was also located between Palmer and Sutton, AK. Taking pictures out of the window of a motor home is an acquired talent and I haven't acquired it yet!!!!
This is one of my favorite pictures I have taken. This old falling down barn was also in the Sutton/Palmer area. I just happened to see it out the window and was lucky enough that I had my camera in my hand AND turned on. Teeheehee Isn't it just a grand old barn??
Merrell took this picture of a dog that he liked the looks of. Now he can't remember what kind of dog she told him it was. Anyway, it was a dog in Alaska. Teeheehee
I took this picture going up the STEEP mountain out of Palmer towards Glenallen. I was kind of chicken and took it out the window with my head turned and my eyes shut. It was REALLY steep and had a major dropoff!!! As you can see by the road coming down the other side of the mountain (that is where we had just came from) the road was windy and up and down and STEEP. Some sections had a guardrail and MOST of them didn't!!!
Now for the REST OF OUR STORY.................. As you must have already gathered, Carolee has had a hard time staying on her feet on this trip. Well, she was at it again on the way up the mountain. As usual, she was up snapping pictures out of each side of the motorhome. Now, one would think that by now she would have learned that the roads in Alaska and Canada leave a little bit to be desired in the smoothness area, right?? Well, Merrell hit a bump and down she went!! She was lucky this time that she landed on something SOFT!! Namely Chuck. Teeheehee AND, luckily once again I had my camera in my hand and turned on and I got a picture of them while they were still laughing about it. :>)
Catch ya later,
Love, US
Day 47
Tolsona Wilderness Campground, Glenallen, Alaska
We decided to stop for the night at this campground which is in the middle of nowhere. It's a neat campground, except Merrell discovered that there were a lot of mosquitoes when he tried to fish in the stream. The only bites he got were theirs!! Teeheehee
We are camped in the woods beside a stream and it's really peaceful and quiet. We just finished watching a DVD we bought about Alaska, the last frontier. Howard bought it first and it looked really good, so I bought one. It shows a lot of the places we have been and animals and scenery that we have seen. It was really good and I'm glad we got it. We're not sure where we are going tomorrow and so don't know if we will have cell or internet service. We don't have much cell phone signal, but the campground has WiFi, so we could check email and update the blog.
It's 9:15 and still daylight, but I think I'm going to go to bed and read awhile. It's nice and quiet here, so maybe I can get to sleep early and get up earlier than my normal (which by the way is NOT early).
It's still kind of rainy, but hopefully tomorrow will be better. We've been really lucky and haven't had a lot of rain over the 47 days we've been on the road.
Catch ya later,
Love, The Gang
Pictures of Caribou taken at a Caribou Farm between Palmer and Sutton, Alaska. I had to zoom in quite a bit and the picture isn't as clear as I wanted it to be!!! They had a whole field of caribou.
This is Merrell and Sally Harvey, Uncle George Johnson's friend. She was nice enough to have copies of Uncle George's pictures that were hanging on the wall in the Alpine Inn copied for us. She even met us and brought them to us on our way out of the Palmer/Sutton area. Without her we would not have been able to find out about his life and meet his friends. We will be eternally grateful to her. Thanks again Sally!!!!
As most of you know, I love barns and unfortunately Alaska doesn't have very many of them. This one was also located between Palmer and Sutton, AK. Taking pictures out of the window of a motor home is an acquired talent and I haven't acquired it yet!!!!
This is one of my favorite pictures I have taken. This old falling down barn was also in the Sutton/Palmer area. I just happened to see it out the window and was lucky enough that I had my camera in my hand AND turned on. Teeheehee Isn't it just a grand old barn??
Merrell took this picture of a dog that he liked the looks of. Now he can't remember what kind of dog she told him it was. Anyway, it was a dog in Alaska. Teeheehee
I took this picture going up the STEEP mountain out of Palmer towards Glenallen. I was kind of chicken and took it out the window with my head turned and my eyes shut. It was REALLY steep and had a major dropoff!!! As you can see by the road coming down the other side of the mountain (that is where we had just came from) the road was windy and up and down and STEEP. Some sections had a guardrail and MOST of them didn't!!!
Now for the REST OF OUR STORY.................. As you must have already gathered, Carolee has had a hard time staying on her feet on this trip. Well, she was at it again on the way up the mountain. As usual, she was up snapping pictures out of each side of the motorhome. Now, one would think that by now she would have learned that the roads in Alaska and Canada leave a little bit to be desired in the smoothness area, right?? Well, Merrell hit a bump and down she went!! She was lucky this time that she landed on something SOFT!! Namely Chuck. Teeheehee AND, luckily once again I had my camera in my hand and turned on and I got a picture of them while they were still laughing about it. :>)
Catch ya later,
Love, US
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