Day 90- I Love NY

Or at least I love the part of NY that we traveled through today. We left Dickson City, PA late. When Carl opened the door this morning to fill the generator, he couldn’t even see the end of the parking lot the fog was so thick. I stayed in bed with another headache over my left eye but by 9:00, I was feeling really guilty for holding up our departure. I had scheduled 369 miles to travel today and knew it would be a long day. By 9:30, we were on the road, Rte 81 North which we would stay on until Watertown, NY. The further north we traveled, the more I noticed the reds of the swamp maples popping out. It would have been spectacular if the sun had been out. As it was, we were traveling under this massive dark cloud. After turning onto Rte 3 East, storm damage from Irene became evident, roads and culverts washed out as well as lots of mud encrusted foliage way above the water line of the rivers and streams we were crossing. We traveled through some of the places I’d only ever heard about, Tupper Lake, Saranac Lake and even a little town called Fine. At one point we entered Mexico which was kind of cool but later when we hit Peru, I knew we hadn’t actually turned south. Apple trees became more prevalent and signs showed us entering and leaving the Adirondack State Park several times. For a while, we traveled along the Saranac River, a beautiful and fully flowing body of water. I ’m not sure what it normally looks like. From Rte 3, the AAA trip tik sent us on back roads, a mile to the right, 3 miles to the left and so on for about 20 miles until we rounded a corner and found ourselves looking at Rte 9. I made an educated guess to turn left. Yesterday, when I was at the AAA website I plugged in the address of the campground and was informed that no such address could be found so I chose an address they suggested. My hunch proved right. We found Ausable Chasm about ¾ mile down the road and the campground appeared shortly thereafter. I’m excited to be here. As we passed over the Chasm, I looked to the right and saw 3 waterfalls. The office was closed when we arrived but they had put out a note with our site assignment. We’ll check in with them in the morning . All of the roads in the campground are named after trees. We’re in Ash 12. It’s a drive through site and although there is no wi-fi, Carl has 13 TV stations. We decided not to unhook tonight because Carl is sore and tired, I’m okay with that. My head is still pounding. I helped him with the electric and then went inside to put out the slider while he hooked up the water. Then I went outside to inform him of an overly friendly chipmunk but he wasn’t in our site. Sure enough, he’s over at the neighbor’s who is hanging Christmas lights in their site, by the way. He’s such a social butterfly.

Day 89- On The Road One More Time , September 12, 201

I think we lulled ourselves into a state of disbelief where Tropical Storm Lee was concerned. Today, we left Carlisle, which was relatively untouched, and headed for Hershey. We knew the park had had some washout issues and were uncertain what we might find. What we found was muddy high water marks more than 6 feet up on trees. Whole fields were flattened and a section of roadway will need to be rebuilt about ¼ mile long. The ground and asphalt was gone on either side of the guardrail. I can’t figure out what was keeping the guardrail there. In other places, you could see debris hanging from branches 4 feet above the ground, road signs were flattened over from the force of the water and large areas of roadside where covered with mud and trees. When we arrived at Chocolate World, the signage indicated the amusement park and the sports complex was closed until further notice and the parking area in front of the Experience Center had only one bus and perhaps 50 cars total. I haven’t a clue how many of those cars belonged to staff members. Once inside the building, a gentleman handed us a map of the building and explained our options. We decided to take the free factory tour and add two paid additional experiences, the Chocolate Tasting Seminar and the Build Your Own Candy Bar. We could have added a trolley tour of downtown, a create your own dessert and the 3-D extravaganza. The factory tour was a mock up of the real thing. They changed this around in the late 80’s because so many people were touring the plant, they couldn’t get anything done. Then we went to the Chocolate Tasting Seminar and were the only two people in the room. There were five pieces to try, starting with milk chocolate, the lowest percentage of Cacao all the way up to a 45% square. We were invited to snap in half, smell and take a nibble to melt on our tongues. The “Guest Lecturer” encouraged us to figure out what the finish of the candy was, similar to a wine tasting. I explained to her I was a dismal failure in the wine tasting experience, but, I could pick up some of the after notes like coffee, cinnamon, fruit and caramel depending on a variety of reasons. I asked about the higher percentage of cacao and she said Hershey makes a Sharffen Berger Bittersweet Chocolate that is 70% cacao. They gave me the last little sample square they had but I haven’t tried it yet. After I share it with Carl, I suspect I’ll be unable to afford the bar. This seminar was entertaining and I did learn to just melt the chocolate on your tongue instead of biting and chewing. I also learned the average milk chocolate candy bar takes 10 days to make ( from Cacao nib to bar ) while the Sharffen Berger sample I haven’t eaten yet takes 45 days. I have a new respect for the common candy bar. The last thing we did was to make our own candy bar. We had to put on aprons, hair nets and sanitize our hands before putting on a plastic glove over my wedding ring. Carl even had to cover his beard. Then we entered the mini-factory and chose our base chocolate, milk or white. They were out of dark chocolate today, bummer! That's the one I would have chosen because it's loaded with antioxidants which are good for you. Then we could choose 3 ingredients to add to our bar. I chose raspberry bits, pretzel bits and butter toffee crunch bits. The other three ingredients were crisped rice, chocolate bits and almond slivers. We watched as each ingredient was added and then followed our bars through the robing process (pouring milk chocolate all over the bar ) until we lost sight of them in the cooling tunnel. The bars would spend 6 minutes in this cooling chamber which would give us time to design our own wrapper in the production studio. It was a touch screen process which allowed us to choose colors, logos, wording and other additives. The board on the wall notified us when our bars were leaving the cooling tunnel and heading to the boxing machine. This was a fun thing to do although I have to admit I would have liked different ingredient options from what they offered. I would have chosen to add coconut or mint chips to my bar with almond slivers on top. There was a space at the end for us to give them suggestions for other ingredients to be considered. The computer also compiled statistics from all the people who have built candy bars. My bar was completely unique. No other person has chosen those exact ingredients. I don’t know if this is good or bad. I spent some time in the souvenir shop and then we hit the camper in the parking lot for lunch. It was the fastest two hours I’ve spent in a while. We were supposed to head to the Crystal Cave in Kutztown but the lady at the souvenir concession thought they were closed due to the flooding so we passed and headed to our “campsite” for the night. When I built the trip tik for this alternate trip, I may have put in the wrong information and had I not read ahead we would have driven 25 miles north to turn around and drive 23 miles south. It saves us time and gas. Our generator is puttering away while Carl is watching TV. And me, well you know what I’ve been doing. You’re gonna miss these daily blogs when this journey is over, aren’t you?

Day 88- 10 Years Later , September 11, 2011

There are few days in history when events are such that everyone remembers exactly where they were or what they were doing when they heard the news. Today was a day for retrospection, the phrase , “Where were you when…” kept coming to mind. Days like the invasion of Pearl Harbor, the assassination of President Kennedy, the first man in space, the first landing on the moon, the death of Elvis Presley and the attacks on the World Trade Center are just a few that come to mind for me. Both Carl and I sat before the television in the camper watching the events unfold on this 10th anniversary much as I did on that horrific and eventful day. Only today was a much more believable scenario. Ten years ago, I sat stunned, thinking it must be some horrible mechanical accident, unbelieving that anyone, in their right mind, could dream up and put action such events. The world is a much different place today and things can never be the same as they were. After careful debate, our plan has also changed once more. This latest change will see us home in a few days. The new plan is to leave Western Village RV Park on Monday morning and head for Hershey, PA to spend a couple of chocolate filled hours learning about the stuff that fills my head with dietary suicidal notions. I hope to learn the truth about chocolate actually being good for you. Afterwards, we’ll visit the Crystal Cave in Kutztown, PA for a tour of the underground limestone formations. From there, we’ll head north and spend the night in Dickson City, PA at the local Wal-Mart. On Tuesday, we’ll continue north into New York, driving up through The Adirondacks to end at Ausable Chasms campground for the evening. Wednesday will be spent in and around the geologic wonders of the Chasm. I’ve heard about it but never visited so I understand we’re in for a treat if the weather’s good. We’ll spend another night at the campground and head for the Lake Champlain Ferry at Fort Kent, NY on Thursday morning. If all goes as planned, our arrival into Burlington will leave us with a 3 hour trip home. Okay, so that’s the plan. What I can’t figure into this travel plan is any Irene or Lee damage remaining in Vermont. We’ll know when we get there. The good news in all this is when we get to Vermont detours, we know the roads they might switch us to, unlike in Lancaster County, PA. This afternoon, we went to fill up the gas tank and grab the last few groceries needed for the last of our trip. Carl swung by the cinema and I discovered we had about 5 minutes before the next showing of “Apollo 18” began. Believe me when I tell you this is one of the worst movies I’ve seen in a long time, it’s a Blair Witch Project rip off and it wasn’t worth the $13.50 we paid to see it. And don’t even get me started on the popcorn and coke that cost $12.25. The tally stands at 3 movies viewed over the 12 weeks we’ve been traveling. I guess it’s true what they say, “two out of three ain’t bad”.

Day 83- Rain, Rain, Go Away!

Our trip back to Carlisle can be summed up in just one word, “RAIN”. It was pouring when we left Easton and it was pouring when we arrived back at the camper. There are large amounts of standing water everywhere and the news and weather are filled with warnings for flooding. The rain from Lee is heavy and stalled over the area which doesn’t bode well for our outdoors rally at the Hotel Carlisle. Set up is for Wednesday but I’m less than enthused about the prospect of exposing my work to the dampness. Rain and paper based products do not mix well. Granted, we have a great heavy vinyl tent and my work is, for the most part, in plastic sleeves but the dampness permeates everything including my bones. And, on top of the whole dampness thing, I can’t imagine the participants, Honda Gold Wing owners, really enjoying this kind of weather. We rented a couple of movies from the Red Box at Wal-Mart, had supper and then settled in for the night. I’d like to say we were lulled to sleep with the pitter patter of the rain drops on our roof but that isn’t the case. We are under an oak tree and the heavy downpours have done a number on the acorns falling on our roof. And you know the weather is depressing when I didn't grab even one photo to post with the blog today.

Day 76- The Bridges Of Lancaster County

We slept much later than usual. It had to be a combination of a couple of things. First, we were beat last night and second, the site we have at Western Village RV Park is under a lovely canopy of trees so it stays a shaded (overcast) level of light all day. Then, we had a leisurely breakfast and spent some time pouring over the 4 maps of the area we have. The plan was to drive over to Lancaster County and photograph some of the 30 bridges in that part of the state. Before we left NH I had bookmarked a website with 5 driving routes to help us enjoy the countryside, experience some of the Amish charm, sample bits of the local fare and get those photos I’ve been thinking of for a long time. So, I’m wondering why I didn’t print these directions out. After using Carl’s planning skills one more time, we roughed out directions to Lititz which is where the starting point of one of the driving tours began. We hoped the Visitor’s Center would either have the printed directions or would be able to print them for us. In fact, they couldn’t help with anything other than to give me a printed list of the bridges with their GPS coordinates. Armed with another map, Carl plotted a route to 4 bridges and I wrote the directions out longhand. So, off we went and found the first bridge with no problems, the second one proved a bit more elusive and we got lost looking for the third one. The map wasn’t proving as helpful as we thought. Not all roads were represented and others didn’t exist. We were told to go to the end of Farmersville Road and turn left onto Gristmill but when we got to the end the road was Sykes. We accidentally found a bridge we hadn’t been looking for. The day trip fell into a rhythm. I would jump out take the photos of the bridge and whatever else was in the area while Carl sat in the truck and plotted what he hoped would be our next move. Then we’d drive to the next destination, miss a road or find the road wasn’t there and then I’d have to set the camera down and try to figure out where we were on the map. It was all very frustrating. By the third time we were “not quite aware of where we were” , we were pretty frustrated. We found our way back to one of the major routes and the Oregon Dairy Restaurant and Ice Cream Stand for lunch. It was 2:30. After lunch, we set off to try to find one last bridge. It was on the edge of a campground on Red Run Road and was in really bad shape. It was twisted, closed off at both ends, missing side boards and wasn’t over any water that I could see. I passed on this one. Carl worked out how to get back to our RV Park and we immediately couldn’t find one of the roads. After another frustrating few minutes, the highway was in sight and we discovered we were 20 miles further away from the camper than we thought. Once more, poor Carl was beat. He fell asleep sitting up during the first couple of innings of the Red Sox Yankees game. No supper for either of us tonight. The photos we took today were not bad. We did see the classic horse and buggy trotting down the road. After 5 bridges, I realized they all look alike and that’s because they are all Burr Arch Truss construction and built by the same type of craftsmen. Today’s travels took us through Lititz, Manheim, Brownstown, Farmersville, New Holland, Goodville and Blue Ball. Perhaps, tomorrow will reveal a different type of bridge in the Strasburg area.

Day 72- To Topeka, Kansas

Our stay at the truck stop was brief. Carl couldn’t relax enough to fall asleep with all the trucks running. It really was quite loud so we moved. First Carl thought he’d drive to the next rest area but when he went out front where the restaurant was closed, he noticed a couple of buses and campers parked there. That’s where we spent the night. And it was considerably more quiet than it would have been among the 50 or so trucks out back. As we got closer to the Colorado Kansas border, we began to see evidence of corn, lots of corn, which brought out a conversation about the number of varieties of corn there may be very much like the potato. We even posed the question to one another, is it a special breed that produces baby corn or do they just pick it immature. I suspected it was it’s own variety. We must have been in high spirits because the levity continued with guessing why towns were named the way they were or in the case of Bovina, CO, I broke into very bad song, “ Nothing could be finer than to be in Bovina in the morning”. Carl didn’t get it so either I sang badly or he isn’t a fan of that musical genre. Our very first stop in Kansas was at the Visitor Center where we found out overnight parking was welcome at all rest areas which was good news for us. We checked the area out and could see a lovely paved loop away from the road noise with covered picnic tables and fire pits for charcoal cooking. At the end of the parking area, just before rejoining the highway was a dump station to empty your tanks before heading on your way. It was perfect but way too early for us to pull over. Carl estimates we must make 400 miles every day on our push from Moab, UT to Gettysburg, PA. The very nice ladies at the visitor center also told us where I could find sunflowers in an unfenced field with their heads held high. It was a short but productive side trip. I spent about ½ hour in the field shooting and all the while wishing the sun was out. Everything else was perfect, several acres of accessible flowers in all stages of blooming, complete with honey bees and butterflies. On our way back to the highway, we passed a Wal-Mart out in the middle of literal no where in a tiny little out of the way community of Central Brewster, KS. Back on the highway, we were treated to long views of corn which you’d expect in Kansas plus several more large fields of sunflowers but none as nice as what I had been able to roam in freely. What we didn’t expect to learn is that Kansas is called the Wheat state. We didn’t see any wheat but we did see miles of fields that had already been harvested and I suspect those were the wheat fields. Another surprise was the amount of oil wells we saw during today’s travel. And the people of Kansas sure do like their museums. I should have counted the number of signs proclaim thing the way to the Cavalry, Oz, Stover, Zoo and farm machinery museums to just name a few. Carl was only slightly tempted with the Stover factory store while I really was interested in the Cavalry museum. We even passed the Eisenhower Museum and Presidential Library. And there were so many other claims to fame, counting 3 astronauts and many collegiate championships. Fort Riley, home of the Big Red 1 appeared on our left, a couple of miles of sand colored vehicles, tanks and other items needed overseas. Towards the later part of the afternoon, I spotted a beautiful church off in the distance, the sign read St. Fidelis Church, one of the 8 great wonders of Kansas. I can’t wait to discover what the other 7 might be.

Day 69- Change Of Plans

Well, plans change quickly with us. The alarm went off and I could hardly get out of bed to shut it off. I suspected after my fall yesterday, I might be sore but I wasn’t prepared for the stabbing pain that shot through my shoulder and back. Back into bed I tumbled and Carl and I slept until a little after 7. After breakfast I got caught up on posting some photos, through some boneless ribs into the crock pot for a meal later in the week and did laundry. Now, we’re trying to salvage the day. We have the rest of today and all of tomorrow to cram in as much as we can before hitting the road on Rte I-70 all the way to Gettysburg, PA. We decided a drive along Rte 128 which winds along the banks of the Colorado river would be a nice alternative. It was a good decision. The countryside we drove through was spectacular and the drive gave us many miles of pleasure, including watching river float trips go by as well as checking out the Bureau of Land Management campsites along the way. We even took a few moments to stop at the Castle Creek Winery to sample the fruits of their labors. The exceptionally pleasant lady could pour three samples for each of us and we could share so we got to taste 5 different wines and had a second sample of one other one before we made up our minds to purchase two bottles. Later in the evening, it was the Moab Brewery for supper and to sample the best beer Moab has to offer. In fact, the Moab Brewery is the only microbrewery in Utah. Carl had 3 samples before making his mind up on which one he would have in a “grown up size”. And to finish off the day, we went to the movies to see “Rise Of The Planet Of The Apes”, a movie heavy in special effects but good ones. Andy Sirkus , Golem in the Lord Of The Rings trilogy, plays the lead and it’s the first movie Carl and I have ever seen where the “animal actors” got top billing over the “human” actors. We’re back on schedule for an early morning visit to the park. The alarm is set.

Day 66- Salt Lake or Bust

The road through Idaho was more or less uneventful so we started guessing what sorts of crops we passed. I thought I spotted Beets and Alfalfa but was delighted when my eyes picked out the now infamous Idaho Potato plants with their tell tale mounding of soil around them to stimulate more tubers. We did have two final impressions of Idaho. One was of a burned out car on the westbound brake down lane. That in itself should be noteworthy for I can’t see the highway department leaving an immobile hulk there for very long. It was the man sitting on the edge of the grill that caught both Carl’s and my attention. We were past it so quickly I couldn’t get a shot and since my mind was already on “did this just happen” or “where’s the rest of his belongings” and I think I even thought “where did the engine go” ? If not for the camper, I just know Carl and I would have turned around at the next exit to backtrack for the photo. Oh, well, you can’t have everything. I’ve gotten used to having the traveling bathroom with us. Sadly, the last impression of Idaho was two bad experiences with rest area toilets. The one in Twin Falls was so bad you felt you needed to wash your hand before you used it. Carl said, “It’s like they schedule a cleaning once a year and tomorrow’s it” . And the one after that was also bad. The ladies side reeked of chlorine to the point of burning my eyes and Carl said the urinal had no water running to it. Just before the Utah border we came upon an unnerving sight. In the meridian, facing the wrong way and almost into the east bound lane was a truck and travel trailer. It appeared to us, they were traveling west bound, perhaps passing another vehicle and caught the soft shoulder. What we couldn’t see was if a blowout was involved. We do know both people in the truck were out and walking around, shook up, I’m sure. And a few minutes later, we saw police responding to the scene. We hadn’t been in Utah very long before we saw our first pronghorns. Remember, they are not antelope as most people say. We learned that in Yellowstone. These were noteworthy because the small herd was grazing just a couple hundred feet from an irrigation line. I sure hope the farmer is a tolerant man. A visit to the Visitor Center got us information about Moab and a couple of other things to do besides visiting Arches National Park. He suggested a side trip to Antelope Island which is in the Great Salt Lake. I thought that would be a nice diversion and I could get photos of the lake while we were there but Carl didn’t see the value in the stop. Unbeknown to me, he had a plan to drive through Salt Lake City before rush hour so my impressions of this huge and sprawling city are just that. It’s huge and sprawling. There are gated communities where the church is built first and then the houses are built around it, much like in early settler times ( minus the gates, of course ) because the church was the center of all activities. I spotted a huge domed building which I made the assumption was the capitol building and I caught a glimpse of the Great Mormon Tabernacle high up a contour overlooking the city. Carl asked if that’s where “The Choir” sang and I had to admit I could only guess the answer was yes. One of more annoying novelties of our trip has been billboard watching. Since New Hampshire outlawed them on our few hundred miles of high speed roads, I don’t miss them. In our travels, they have been prevalent in many states. Carl spotted this one and we both laughed. The words “Eat More Chicken” were scrawled across the board. The last “n” had a paintbrush sticking out from it with a 3 dimensional Holstein cow trying to balance on the shoulders of another cow who was on a ladder. The whole affect was quite amusing to think cows would be suggesting another alternative. What most people probably missed from this cut little tableau was Holsteins are milking cows and not beef animals. I’m sure they used the characteristic black and white spots which most people use to illustrate the “cow idea”. I mentioned Salt Lake City is huge and sprawling. What I didn’t tell you was the temperature was low 90’s and I had been pushing the fluids. We were more than an hour into the cross town travel when I had to go. I waited, hoping to get out of the city so Carl could pull over easily but the city just kept on going and so did we. Eventually, it got too much for me and I had to ask him to get off the highway so I could go. The very next exit was a Wal-Mart so we took that opportunity to get the rest of our groceries for our desert stay and I went to the bathroom not once but twice. And then, the most amazing thing happened. Off in the distance, the sky looked ominous, clouds were building against the mountains and I could see wisps of rain falling. We’re in the desert and it’s raining. But, it was the lightening that grabbed my attention. I set out to capture it on film, no easy task in a moving vehicle I might add. After about 50 shots, I managed one photo and I’m very proud of it. As we moved closer to Moab, the landscape became way more impressive with tall pinnacles and huge cliffs of multicolored sedimentary rock, some heaved up at an angle from all the tectonic movement. The finish to the day was a gorgeous rainbow falling against an equally hued rock butte and a sunset like nothing I’ve seen during the 10 weeks we’ve been on the road. I grabbed a shot in the rear view mirror but Carl was the one who made the decision to stop on the side of the road and told me to get out and take the photo. It was well worth the few minutes we were delayed. I love that man!!!! We saw lots of flashing lights ahead of us and had to slow down for single lane traffic. A police officer was doing his best to be seen in the pitch black and controlling the traffic flow past an unrecognizable large object, perhaps a motor home or a tractor trailer, that was burnt on the side of the road. The emergency response people were still on scene pouring water on the skeletal remains of the vehicle. It certainly put a damper on the last 15 miles we had to travel to the Arch View RV Park. We almost missed it but Carl remembered the lady on the phone mentioning a Shell gas station.

Day 60- To Somewhere , August 14, 2011

Our night at the Wal-Mart campground in Prince George was peaceful right up to the time when the murder of crows decided our camper looked like a good place to hang out. At first, it seemed as if a couple of children had been turned loose to run about and knock on the doors of the dozen or so campers resting up for their days’ travel, us included. I was getting ready to climb out of the sack to find those irresponsible parents. It was the squawking and gurgling that made me think otherwise. I’m not sure what time it was but I do know I’m glad I’m not I that parking area tonight. It was also right about that time, I realized I had an awful headache so I got up, tool some Tylenol and went back to bed. I heard Carl get, make his coffee and have some cereal and all I did was keep my eyes closed hoping it would go away. Carl planned to put another 350 miles behind us. Yesterday, he drove 444 miles on just a few hours’ sleep. We hit the road and immediately turned the wrong way. My sense of direction and navigational skill were way off. It was going to be a very long day. The countryside we drove through was pretty much the same as yesterday including the sulfurous odor of pulp mills. Carl pulled over for lunch and I crawled onto the couch and slept for 2 ½ hours. Then it was back on the road. We made it a few miles past a nice little town called Cache Creek and pulled into a long deep rest area where a couple already had their tent set up for the evening. The view outside our camper is more reminiscent of South Dakota with it’s rolling hill and scrubby trees. We even thought there might be a sunset so after the supper was finished and I’d done up “the crockery” as our friends across the pond might say, it was outside for about 20 minutes watching the sky turn a pale orange and then nothing but gray. It was a great idea for a sunset photo since this is our last night in British Columbia. I only have two notes of interest from today’s travel. The first is about a well maintained little gift shop we stopped at with signs boasting of their RV friendly circular drive. Off a ways from the parking area was the prettiest outhouse I’ve seen in a long time. There were flowers hanging from both sides of the door and planted around it as well. And the second item is we are more than 500 miles from the ocean but we have traveled over numerous creeks and streams with signage designating the water below us as salmon habitat and to use it wisely. Neither Carl nor I figure they mean to keep you from fishing those waters, just to remind you to use them responsibly. I know some salmon travel great distances up stream before they reach their spawning grounds. I just wasn’t prepared for all of this distance. Tomorrow is another boarder crossing back into the United States. I wonder if the other Carl Hill Jr is still at large.

Home Is Where You Keep Your Stuff.

We’ve seen it all on this trip, from the one room rustic cabin to the multilevel mausoleum, from the double wide mobile home to a beat up truck topper on concrete blocks in a Wal-Mart parking lot. We seen single containers with smoke stacks and we’ve seen stacks of containers with a roof over them. We’ve even seen mobile office units set up as motels. We’ve seen abandoned homes, homes for sale, homes with rivers running through them and even homes under construction. It doesn’t matter what you call home, it just matters that you have one. With the weather conditions as extreme as they are in the state of Alaska, there is still a large homeless population. When the weather turns bitter, the police and some church groups drive the back streets, looking under bridge overpasses and in parks for people who are at risk so they can get them in where it’s warm and maybe even get them a hot meal but they can’t make them stay. So what do you do? You thank God for what you have and make the best of the situation because no matter where you call home, there is always someone out there in worse shape than you. Oh, and there’s one more thing. I always wondered about the amount of “collectibles” there always seems to be around the average home in AK. Now, I’ve seen it first hand and the photos and television shows don’t exaggerate. There is stuff everywhere, left to deteriorate among the elements. And it’s not like there aren’t places to take the stuff but I heard one guy tell another at a gas station today, “ If I throw it away, that’s when I’ll need a part off it”. And so you have the universal reason why humans as a race have become packrats. It’s because they might need it some day.

Day 53- Captives Of The Rain, August 7, 2011

I never actually said it in yesterday’s post but we spent almost an hour at the base of the Meares glacier and observed almost no calving. There were several groans and cracks from it’s movement but that’s was it. I guess, if you look at it from another perspective, calving equals the death of a glacier so if the glacier isn’t putting too much ice into the bay, then there’s hope for it’s survival. I did mention the rain that began to fall as we returned to the dock and it has been raining steady all night, turning the footing on any of the trails we might have walked today into slippery, muddy messes and more. So, after a breakfast of Banana Pancakes, I’ve used the time to get caught up on editing photos, writing these blogs and posting everything on line. Later, we’ll hit the grocery store in town for the last few perishables we need. On Monday morning, Carl wants to hit the road early. It’s about 700 miles from Valdez to Haines where we will get the ferry which is part of an extensive Marine Highway system. There are so many places only reachable by either airplane or boat, the ferry system here is a lifeline to some of the more exotic islands like Unalaska or more mundane places like the state capital, Juneau. Anyway, in Haines, Carl may go fishing one more time. I’m going to try to get more bear photos and there is that inevitable laundry to be done. We’ll have 36 hours on the ferry and I plan to spend as much time as possible up on deck taking photos. I’ve always been interested in traveling the Inside Passage and this ferry trip will allow us that opportunity. Later today, if the weather clears, we’ll get out and explore a bit more of the land side of Valdez.

Day 52- On Prince William Sound

I don’t think I’m going to give an account of today’s 9 hour tour on Prince William Sound. The company offered pickup service from our RV Park so we took them up on their offer. The weather should have been partly cloudy and I think I figured out the part that was cloudy, about 99% of the trip. We sailed with a family owned company, Stan Stephens Tours who also boasts employees who are full time residents of the area. And it was Stan himself who had control of our boat today, the Valdez Spirit. The cruise covered about 140 miles and took us to Meares Glacier plus gave us a pretty good idea of what the Sound and the surrounding area is all about. Captain Stan gave us some geological history of the area as well as historical, including the 1964 earthquake that literally wiped out the town of Valdez, causing it to be rebuilt on another location and the 1989 oil spill from the Exxon Valdez. Even now, after all the clean up and the years, a really fierce storm will stir things up and oil can be found on shore. We heard about some of the mineral mining history, stories of prospectors, people who lost their livelihood or their lives at the whim of nature or man. It gave me a new and unexpected appreciation of how much damage, then and now, was done by these Good Friday events. We saw some really cool wildlife but others were missing like my favorites, orcas and dolphins. The cruise served us an adequate lunch of Chicken Alfredo on rice with vegetables and a crusty bread with Oreo cookies for dessert. This lunch, unlike the one we had on the tour in Seward, was brought to our table, seemed more organized and the cost of the meal was already figured into the price of the tour. They served complimentary coffee and tea all day and I had three cups of tea which meant several trips to the head. We also had our choice of a cup of Clam Chowder or Minestrone Soup ( Carl had the Clam and I had the Minestrone ) a few hours later which hit the spot after hours of really damp and cold weather out on deck. I thought I would miss the fact there wasn’t a ranger on board but Captain Stan gave us enough information as well as nautical bearings from time to time. We could follow our progress with the flyers one of the crew members handed out before we left the dock. It gave us an overview of the area, our route of travel, some information about the area and on the back was a pictorial of wildlife, both bird and mammal, we might expect to see. The crew was helpful and the tour showed us the overall beauty of the area and the Sound in particular. I would recommend them to anyone coming this way. Oh, and we were returned to the dock on time. It began raining as we entered the harbor and has continued ever since. The true plus to the day was when we got home and found our Crock Pot Roast Beef ready to eat.

Day 51- First Day in Valdez, August 5, 2011

Neither of us slept well last night. Me, it was the medicine. I get weird dreams but also don’t feel like I’m actually asleep. Carl reported the same symptoms but I know he didn’t take my headache pills. We are both baffled by our inability to get consistent sleep. I mean it’s the same mattress, pillows and bedding. It’s just the place we park that’s different each night. Anyway, it was a late start to the morning and didn’t leave Tonsina River Lodge much before 10. Valdez was only 79 miles so we weren’t too concerned. In fact, we’re a whole day early so we hope the people at Eagle’s Rest Campground and RV Park will have room for us. The weather for the beginning of our drive today was wet but as we got closer to the Chugach National Forest, we could see some really impressive mountains in spite of the low ceiling. Up ahead of us was a break in the mountains. Later we learned it was Thompson Pass at 2,680 ft. We knew we had a long way down because Valdez is at sea level. We passed by Worthington Glacier, easily visible from the road, but still a couple miles from it’s terminus. There was a tiny community of businesses nearby specializing in ice climbing and treks to the glacier. We traveled several more miles, all downhill and arrived at Keystone Canyon. For just a brief second, I was whisked back to the Hawaiian Islands again. So many waterfalls everywhere you look. One of the most impressive drops is called Bridal Veil Falls followed closely by Horsetail Falls. Both have large volumes of water, both have a drop of more than 200 feet but Bridal Veil has several channels than fan down over the rock while Horsetail comes down more than half way before it divides into thin strands the rest of the way to the bottom. Some of the water cascading down is seasonal while others are year round glacial melt water and it’s difficult to tell which is which, especially with the large amount of rain this area gets. Once we’re checked in at the RV Park, the lady at the desk tells us about a Hatchery with a fish ladder over on the Dayville Road. She puts the icing on the cake by mentioning the area is frequently visited by bears. Sure enough, we head over about 6:00 and are amazed by the immense numbers of salmon waiting at the mouth to the weir. We’re told by a fellow who lives here the fish are being made to wait until the eggs are ripe. Normally this process would happen over the weeks it takes the salmon to travel from the ocean into the fresh water streams to the place where they were born, to the place where they will spawn the next generation. By the Hatchery creating a generational crop, they are assured of the fish returning to “their place of birth” to be harvested for canning. It’s an amazing process, a new form of aquaculture that is catching on in many places and it just makes sense to let nature feed and house your livestock for four or five years before they come home. They do have their natural perils such as eagles, gulls and bears. In fact, while we were sitting there, a small black bear came down from the mountains, walked under the bridge and proceeded to the water’s edge to grab a few fat salmon. Then, as easy as you please, he headed up to the bridge, crossed the river by using the pedestrian walkway and climbed two fences to get into the fish ladder for easier picking. Then it was up over one more fence and out onto a large rock in the bay surrounded by thousands of fish waiting for their turn at the ladder entrance. He fought off a flock of about 50 gulls and grabbed another couple of fish before heading off to another part of the shoreline. Apparently, he decided there were just too many humans around watching what he ate. It was getting late and I was hungry so we turned for home only to come up on a bear jam. On the right side of the road was about a dozen people all with cameras so I grabbed mine and asked what was up. I was informed there was a black bear sow with three cubs feeding at the base of a really pretty waterfall. There were hundreds of gulls and crows, all standing around making a racket and sure enough, out of the thick brush on one side of the creek, came Mama Bear. She would go to the creek, grab a salmon and take it back to the bushes. The scene was repeated several times and then she disappeared. I though the show was over but all of a sudden the sow burst from the bushes, sending a screaming cloud of gulls skyward. Behind her, we could see one of the cubs. I never did see all three. It was definitely a nice day. We’ve decided to go on a 9 hour Prince William Sound wildlife and Glacier tour tomorrow. I hope the weather will be good.

Day 50- Heading to Valdez

We’ve already traveled some of the mileage we covered today. In fact, over two hundred miles were repeated today. It wasn’t until we turned right onto the Richardson Highway outside of Anchorage that we found ourselves traveling “virgin territory. Before we left the Kenai, we had one more thing to do, visit Portage Glacier. We drove up to Portage Lake formed by melt water from three different glaciers as well as snow melt from the surrounding mountains. The water was a chalky gray, much like most of the rivers and creeks we‘ve encountered. Carl was surprised by how much the glaciers had receded since his visit in 1984. During his visit, he was able to stand on shore and watch Portage Glacier calving into Portage Lake, but now it has receded back around an outcropping of a smaller mountain and we were unable to see Portage from the Visitor Center. We did get an up close and personal view of Byrne Glacier and watched a very informative movie on the formation, life and even the death of a glacier. Then, the screen lifted, curtains parted and there on the other side of the glass was a marvelous view of Portage Lake and Byrne Glacier. Boat trips to the foot of Portage Glacier were available but Carl wanted to get going. He had miles to go before he slept. We did take an additional 15 minutes to listen to the ranger talk about the town of Portage and the devastation of the 1964 earthquake. I’m finding the devastation was not restricted to Anchorage although it’s there the news footage came from. Turnigan Arm dropped more than 20 feet and never rebounded. The Tsunami wiped out several towns on the coast and causing one to relocate 5 miles inland. As a result of this earth movement, the Arm or bay now has a bore tide of more than 4 feet. That’s a minimum of a four foot wave rolling in all at once instead of a slow and gradual rise of seawater twice each day. When the moon is full, the bore tide is even more. We drove though the Mat-Su valley, short for Matanuska Susitna. During the past 3 weeks, we’ve been driving by road signs shot full of holes. With more Alaskan residents carrying guns than not, it seems most have decided to use the highway department signage to get a bit of target practice in, including the one that reads “No discharge of firearms within 25 yards of the highway.” I knew Carl wanted to cover a lot of miles today but I wanted to stop at this one Scenic Overlook to get a really good look. The Matanuska River winds it’s way, in typical braided glacial fashion, filling in more than a dozen eroded pathways in the river bed. My attention was drawn upwards to catch a pair of dueling eagles mid-flight. As they got closer, I discovered they were juveniles practicing maneuvers that will aid in their hunting abilities. Matanuska Glacier was visible from the road so there was no need to park the truck and walk in. I was reminded of the Egyptians reverence for the pyramid when we drove by King Mountain. Once we reached Glenallen, it was time to find a gas station. We had fueled up in Anchorage for $3.84 a gallon. Here in Glenallen, it was $4.41 per gallen. So much difference in 186 miles. By this time, my head was pounding and I needed to take some medicine and go to bed. Carl insisted on driving a bit further. He’s done such a good job of keeping us on schedule, I hated to be a wet blanket. Eventually, shortly after a nice sighting of Mt Drum at 12, 010 feet, we found the Tonsina River Lodge. They advertised $10.00 campsite with free wi-fi. Carl pulled in, registered us and drove to a spot on the grounds with a fire ring only. We’d paid for a dry site, which basically means no amenities like water, electric or sewerage. The Lodge was run by a Russian family who offered a Russian/ American menu in their dining room. I opted for the Pilaff ( their way of spelling ), rice cooked in broth with meat and vegetables added, which sounded great but was told the last serving had just been given to the table before us. My second choice was a buffalo burger. It came with a heap of French fries, mushrooms and Swiss cheese. I know I would have enjoyed it much better without the headache. By 9:00PM, I was in bed with my eyes closed. Even free internet couldn’t keep me from getting my head on the pillow.

Day 49- Last Day In Soldotna

The weather is a bit better today. It’s only occasionally raining but it poured last night. They have issued flash flood watches for some areas. I don’t really want any more gray day photos but I may never get back this way again so we head off. First to the Soldotna Landfill to get rid of the fish guts and carcasses and to find the eagles the guy at the Kenai River Boardwalk told us about. Getting rid of the fish stuff was the easy part. There was thousands of gulls and ravens all over the place and try as we might, we couldn’t find any eagles. Then, just as we were headed for the exit, I spotted one in a tree. Carl grabbed the tripod and I got set to get some great eagle shots. We watched the bird at the very top of a spruce tree for about 20 minutes. I muttered under my breath that it was time for him to fluff up those wings and take off. And sure enough, about 5 minutes later, that’s exactly what the eagle did. The shot turned out okay but would have been much better with a blue sky and a few puffy white clouds in the background. A photographer like skiers are never satisfied. There is some prime moose habitat between Soldotna and Homer. It’s too bad the moose haven’t heard about it. In fact, I am very disappointed by the lack of moose sightings since we’ve been in Alaska. We saw the cow and calf and another cow on the Dalton Highway and then two distant bulls in Denali. That’s it! I keep looking though. The high point of the day came when I spotted not one but two nests with fledgling eagles on them. Of course, I have to stop and take pictures even though the trees make it difficult to get just the right shot. Eventually the road turned towards the Cook Inlet and we arrived at a beautiful overlook. In the distance, there was the merest hint of the high mountains in the Katmai National Forest, cloud shrouded, of course. And somewhere in the distance is three of the most active volcanoes in North America, Spur, Redoubt and Illiamna. I know where I should be looking thanks to a carving of the panorama before me that someone made, painted and numbered years ago. The weather is taking it’s toll but I get the general direction I should be looking. And while I’m on the subject of sky conditions, every so often, there is the smallest hint of blue that pops through and the sun threatens to show itself but then the clouds prevail once more and it starts to rain. The run into Homer and out onto Homer Spit doesn’t take any time at all from the Scenic Overlook. We go all the way to the end, looking for the commercial pier in hopes the Time Bandit, one of the crab fishing boats from The Deadliest Catch, is in port today. I asked the silly tourist question of our server at lunch and she replied it was true but she hadn’t seen them all summer. They must be at their other home port. There are, however, two shops with the words “Time Bandit” over the door so I wander over to one of them and find an 8 foot by 8 foot crab pot on it’s side by the front door. Carl leans against it for one more cheesy tourist photo and I set out to find the one thing our son, Dylan, asked for- a sticker that reads “eat crab“. He saw it on the wall of the Hillstrand wheelhouse. Can’t find it there but the shopkeeper does tell us where we can find it or something like it. While on the way to Redden Marine to see about the sticker, I spot a third nest with fledgling eagles in it and I mention to Carl we’ll stop on the way back. Unfortunately, I couldn’t find it going in the opposite direction and when we pass by the nest nearest the road where one of the youngsters had been testing it’s wings, it was gone. We missed his first flight and the one remaining juvenile was looking pretty lonely. So all together, that was four nests, two with two juveniles, one with three juveniles and one empty nest and three single adults all day. It was a pretty good eagle day. Tomorrow, we head for Valdez. Carl says it’s a very long drive so we will probably stop in a parking area for the night. I wonder where it will be this time. It certainly won’t have internet so this will be my last post for a couple of days. I’ll catch you up later, though. Oh and it’s the end of our 7th week and we’ve traveled 8,555 miles and loved every minute of it.

Day 47- Moving to Soldotna

Everyone’s heard of the Big Bang Theory, right? Well, when we checked into the Seward Military Reserve Campground a few days ago, we heard a big bang when the slide out room came to a stop. I didn’t think anything more about it after making a comment about not hearing that noise before. I should have paid more attention. When it came time to bring the room in so we could leave this morning, nothing moved. Carl found out the bang was one of the bolts that connects the motor to the auger which moves the room in and out. He grabbed the one good bolt and headed to the local hardware store. They fixed him right up and we were on our way after only a half hour delay. I can just imagine how difficult it would have been to get fixed if that had happened on the Alaska highway 300 miles from anywhere. The move over to Soldotna or more specifically Sterling which is just outside Soldotna took a few hours. We got a cozy little site and then set down to figure out our grocery needs for the next few days. What we discovered is I needed to shop for all of the days between today and the 11th when we get on the ferry. And, I needed to have enough things to eat most of our meals on the ferry by sandwich or microwave, Thursday supper and all three meals on Friday. We’ll be off the ferry in Prince Rupert about 5:00AM on the 13th. We’ll get breakfast on the road. Anyway, back to Sterling. The place we’re camping at is the Alaska Canoe and Campground right on the Sterling Highway. It’s only a 15 minute drive from where we need to get the float plane in the morning. The people seem quite friendly and they have free internet and showers here as well. The laundry is on the honor system, too. We had some of Carl’s freshly caught halibut for supper and I didn’t find it much different than haddock. So, I’m now officially happy he caught them. He did give away the cod to our neighbors in Seward after finding out they “loved it”. We shopped at the Fred Meyer store. It’s sort of like a super Wal-Mart but bigger and it has more satellite stores in and around it. The prices were proportionately higher here than in Anchorage which is what you’d expect and gas prices are hovering around the $4.17 per gallon mark although you can still find stations with a much higher price the further from town you get.

Day 46- Two Lakes Trail

The hard drive on my new laptop is about 240 GB of memory. The last time I checked, I had filled about half of it so I’ve begun burning my images to DVD. It’s a good back up system in case something happens to my laptop as we travel, too. Now, you might think I should just back off from taking as many photos. That thought never crossed my mind. That’s why I brought 39 blank DVDs with me. Earlier today, I watched the RED SOX play the white sox. The game started at 10:00 here in Seward. That is so cool, I still get a kick out of it. It took us a while to find the Two Lakes Trail after we had lunch. The trail head was behind a technical school building with no signage to direct us. The first lake and a nice picnic area was within sight of where we parked the truck. The easily laid out pathway led us around the second little pond as well as a rather marshy depression. The forest on either side of the trail was thick with vegetation, mosses, bushy ferns, skunk cabbage and lots of other mid level browse. The canopy was made up of several types of spruces with some smaller deciduous trees mixed in. We not only heard but saw numerous red squirrels although we would have known they were in the area anyway because of the huge piles of cones collected at the bases of many of the trees. They’ve been gathered as a winter cache. The squirrels with gather thousands of cones, hauling them underground so they can be found when the snows come. We even saw evidence of where millions of seeds had been eaten as they worked. A ranger in Denali described it as “ if it looks as if a Spruce tree exploded” which is exactly what it looked like. Those ranger talks are starting to pay off. We actually knew what we were looking at. Those squirrels were the only wildlife we saw during the 2 mile round trip although we found quite a few clear impressions of moose hoof prints in the mud and lots of scat in and along side of the trail. I have to confess I am not an expert on scat but if I were asked, I’d have to say I saw lots of dog and even some horse manure. The trail was perfectly adapted to be ridden with horses with the possible exception of low limbs in one section. Even though the day was overcast, I mentioned the other path, the Tonsina Point trail and Carl said okay. Unfortunately, we still couldn’t find where it began. We found ourselves on the beach near Lowell Point watching about a dozen people salmon fishing in the low surf. We splurged and had some really great ice cream downtown across from the Major Marine office and then we fueled up for our trip to Soldotna tomorrow. Supper was fresh salmon caught on Carl’s trip yesterday. He didn’t catch it but when no one claimed it, he decided to give it a good home. I hope we’ll have plenty of our own caught on Tuesday.

Day 43- Late Start To A Gorgeous Day

Can’t believe we slept so late. Carl got up at 8:15 and I didn’t climb out of bed until almost 9:00. The sun was streaming through our night shades like they weren’t even there. Now, it’s so late, I’m not sure what we’re doing today but it will be a shame to waste it. A visit to the Chamber office in town gave us a couple of ideas. Just beyond town, on a dirt road, is Lowell Falls, a melt water creek and waterfall from the Lowell Glacier. It was such a beautiful day, my plan was to get photos of the falls. And when I got there, I was disappointed to see the heavy electric lines running across the face. Carl suggested we go under the bridge and get a different perspective so that’s just where we headed. It was the right idea but the spray coming off the water’s surface overwhelmed the lens very quickly. We continued our drive along the western shore of Resurrection Bay out to Lowell Point, home of a vast RV / tent / backpackers campground. It’s also the trailhead for a couple of walking trails the people at the chamber suggested. Sadly, it’s also a fee usage area connected with the Lowell Point State Park. It isn’t much of a fee, $5.00 per day or $40.00 for a yearly pass. I think it’s just the idea of it. We may go back there another day. Today, there were no parking spots. There was one other walking trail that was suggested, the Two Lakes trail, a 2 mile loop around two different lakes. I remember seeing the sign and so we headed out of town to where I thought it was. We drove 40 miles round trip and didn’t find it. We did have lunch in a pull out along the Kenai Lake which was a brilliant turquoise in the sunshine. Then, upon returning to the camper, I discover the trail is in the opposite direction. I hate it when I’m wrong. Carl has a fishing trip lined up, connected with the resort we’re staying at. I might have gone but there was only one space left on the boat and, well, I’m not much into fishing and I don’t figure these guys will be looking for much wildlife. I may do that Two Lakes trail or I may go to the Library where they have a movie on the 1964 Good Friday earthquake which measured 9.2 and just about wiped Seward and Homer off the map.

Day 42- Soldotna and Exit Glacier

By yesterday’s standards, today was a quiet one but don’t be fooled by my opening statement. We traveled about 100 miles over to Soldatna, through some more of Chugach National Forest. Our main reason for heading over there was to book Carl’s fishing trip and my bear watching trip. Lucky for us there are several companies that offer qualified guides to do both. Right after we turned off the Seward Highway, Alaska State Highway 9 and onto The Sterling Highway, Alaska State Highway 1 on our left was Tern Lake. On the lake was a single Tundra Swan feeding on the abundant aquatic life. Then things started getting busy. I’m not familiar with the area but apparently Carl was. He knew we were approaching the Kenai River, the Salmon fishing Mecca of Alaska. And sure enough, there were campers and boat trailers in every turnout, parking lane, rest area, picnic area and even at the Visitor’s Center. There were people in the river on both sides as far as the eye could see. There are 5 types of Salmon that leave the Pacific Ocean and head up the streams of this area. Right now, 3 of the Salmon species are working their way from salt water into the waters of their birth. It’s the responsibility of every good angler to stop as many of them as possible. And then, there are the bears who do their fair share to eat as many of them as they can possibly catch to put on the much needed fat layer that will see them through the winter. In very heavily used area of the river, the town of Soldatna has erected a boardwalk for people to use to access the river. They’ve provided picnic tables along the way for families to enjoy the out of doors while the parents fish. Behind the visitor’s center is also a table with running water where you can clean your catch and toss the bones and entrails back into the river. All of the unwanted parts of the salmon provide valuable nutrients for the river ecosystem which includes birds, bears and even other fish. I guess I came away a bit perplexed by the actions of these “anglers”. Each stream or river has certain rules and regulations. It’s the angler’s responsibility to know what they are on the section of water they are fishing. They have a rod and reel in their hands but may not be able to use bait, lures or weights so they thrash the water over and over hoping to hook a fish as it swims by. There is no skill in this, only luck and that luck extends to any fish that are snagged. You must hook them in the mouth or gills, not snag them on fins or in the body. The guy next to you could be Fish and Game. They’re out there “fishing” too. The decision to use Talon Air was made after visiting their operation and asking a few questions. Our pilot will fly us out to a gravel bar on the Cook Inlet. We’ll be met by our guide who will take just 4 of us out in an 18 foot boat. We’ll fish, take wildlife photos and with luck, while Carl is fishing, there will be both Brown and Black bears fishing in the same place. We’ll have lunch cooked right there on the beach and then do a bit more fishing and photography. On the flight back there will be photo opportunities for other wildlife and two of the most active volcanoes in Alaska, Mt Redoubt and Mt Spur, both more than 10,000 feet high. With any luck, I’ll have some awesome photos to post next week and we’ll be looking for a place to flash freeze and ship Carl’s fish back to NH. It will be my first trip in a float plane. The weather here is even more crazy than in New England. Out the window of the truck is a bright sunlit sky but it’s raining. Off in the distance, there are black clouds piling up against the mountains but to our right is blue sky. One minute the tops of the mountains are obscured and then I’m experiencing one of those jaw dropping moments when I’m struck by the sheer beauty of the area we’re driving through. Part way back to Seward is this little place called Moose Pass, population 90. Next to the coffee shop / gift shop / grocery store is this operating water wheel. When I get out to take a few photos, I notice what’s really going on here. Someone is making a political statement. I notice a long belt coming of the wheel turning a grind stone very slowly. The sign next to this set up says “Moose Pass is a peaceful little town. If you have an axe to grind, do it here.” I think that’s pretty cool. It’s still early when we get back into Seward so we head off to Exit Glacier. Along the approach to the Visitor’s Center are dated signs posted every so often. I didn’t think anything of the first couple but noticed the numbers going up, 1815, 1849, 1894, etc. It’s Carl who figures out the dates reflect where geologists estimate the glacier was during that year. It’s a visual reference to how far the glacier has receded in just under 200 years. The hike in was just about a mile and was well worth the effort and strain on my knee. Carl pointed out where the bedrock had been scoured quite deeply from trapped rocks caught up in the ice as it retreated and even though the glacier is one of the smaller in the area, it was still pretty cool, both literally and figuratively. We could feel the cold coming off the glistening surface. The path took us close enough to hear the melt water pouring off it in little rivulets. But it also brought us close enough so we could see the gravel and dirt imbedded in the ice. So many of us have this impression the ice from a glacier is crystal clear and it’s anything but. Bottom line, Exit Glacier has retreated more than 10 miles in the past 200 years and shrunk in width as well. There may come a time when there is nothing left of the glacier in the valley. The Harding Ice Sheet is still immense but all glaciers around the world are receding. As we were leaving, we spotted Mountain Goats above the glacier. The wind was pretty stiff but I managed to get one good photo. Before I left the camper this morning, I through a pot roast into our little crock pot. The camper smelled so good when we walked in and best of all, supper was ready and all I had to do was get out a couple of plates. Now, that’s called planning!

Day 41- Kenai Fjord Tour

Webster and his dictionary did not have enough superlatives to describe this day. The day began like so many on this trip, gray and dreary but every once in a while we were being teased with the smallest imaginable glimpse of blue. Our ship, the Kenai Star was only about half it’s usual occupancy and this too was a good thing. Right off the bat, just out of the harbor, our first animal encounter, a sea otter paddling on it’s back munching on a crab. The sound of it’s teeth tearing into that crab is hard to describe but what it reminded me of most was a dog chewing on a big beef knuckle bone. A little further out in the bay, the boat, accompanied by a Kenai Fjords Park ranger, came upon a lone humpback whale cruising along. Everyone watched for several minutes jostling for position at the rail to get the best pictures possible from a moving platform. This procedure would be repeated many times during the day. Of course, the photos were only of an occasional blow hole, the telltale hump with the tiny fin and the inevitable tail end of the large marine mammal, the fluke. And while I don’t usually subscribe to the use of puns, I got a pretty nice picture which Carl says is no fluke. The route the cruise took varied from the plan based on wildlife sightings but generally speaking, we left Resurrection Bay for the Gulf Of Alaska by motoring along the western shoreline passing by Bear Glacier which is actually a collision sight of three glaciers. The ranger spotted a bald eagle up in a tree and a little further down the shore line another was spotted, probably it’s mate. Ranger Mark kept up a running commentary about the geology of the region, the forces at work to make such a spectacular coastline and as he spoke, we could almost see the process at work. He was very passionate about all subjects and was a big hit with the kids. He ran a junior ranger program for the 8 or 9 kids on board, keeping them not only busy but involved with the whole process. At the end of the trip, he held a “ceremony” and gave them a junior ranger oath which basically pledges them to visit national parks often and care for the environment with one final caveat, to never be mean to Park Rangers. That cracked everyone up on board, even the kids. Among the other wildlife we saw were a small pod of orcas, a fleeting glance at a couple of Dall Porpoises, several more humpbacks, a black dot in the distance attributed to a black bear and a few white specks high up on the basalt cliffs that people insisted where mountain goats. I couldn’t tell even through the camera. I’ve never been able to focus through binoculars. I think it’s got something to do with the fact that I am near and far sighted. My trifocal glasses are tough to line up with the optics of the device. Sounds good, doesn’t it? The skies began to brighten just about the same time the seas began to develop a mild chop to it, signaling our departure from the protection of the bay. By the time we had traveled the few miles to Aialik Bay, several people were feeling the effects of motion sickness. The crew served a less than sumptuous buffet which did include the advertised salmon and a prime rib with the rib. The sides consisted of a green salad, some sort of rice that vegetables had been dragged through and a complimentary beverage that was already included in the $20.00 price of the meal. And just about the time I got to the buffet line, we passed a beautiful and naturally carved triple arch called the Three Gates. And then, we saw the Holgate glacier in the distance. We were miles away but could already feel the distinct change in the air. Somehow the already cool day had become much cooler and there was a heavy mist in the air. Some places call that rain. I call it a minor inconvenience and go get my lens cloth. Then it’s back on deck where I’ve spent most of my time. Call it the place where photographers should be or you could call it the best place to be if you’re feeling even slightly queasy. Diesel fumes have always bothered me even when I worked at the trucking company. Never mind about that. There was the glacier ahead. We approached slowly, spying small bits of ice in the water. The bits became chunks which turned into small floes. Captain Nicole announced she would come close to the glacier and then kill the engines so we could listen to it’s movement. I knew there would be sounds but I was still amazed by the groans and cracks coming from the 500 foot tall wall of blue fractured ice in front of us. Small bits were breaking off here and there. We listened intently to where the louder cracks might be coming from in hopes of getting some sort of heads up on where the next chunks might fall from. After more than a half hour, the boat regrettably had to leave with most of the passengers agreeing what they had just witness was incredible and saying how they could have stay for hours to listen and watch. Me, too! Once back into the gulf, the skies had turned bright blue and we were blessed with bright sunshine for a good part of the crossing to Cape resurrection. The way back to Seward brought us past tons of waterfowl, gulls, puffins, murres and cormorants as well as a brief sighting of another bald eagle pair and one rather erratic juvenile humpback. And there was one more haul out beach for Stellar Sea Lions. Ranger Mark told us how the Stellar population was dropping off markedly. Researchers at the Seal Life Center are involved in a multi year study to find out what is the cause. They have marked hundreds of Stellar Sea Lion pups and will follow them to adulthood, if they make it. As we approached the harbor, the clouds thickened once more and rain began falling by the time we got to the dock. All in all, it was a great day and the all you can eat desert buffet was better than the actual meal. Hope you like the pictures.