NORTH TO ALASKA

 

Approximate Geographic locations in order of visit

I have, in the past, been accused of being too longwinded with my epistles.  One kind sole even mentioned the term "verbal Diarrhea".  Soooo, out of respect for the more sensitive visitors to this site, I have, this time, included only pictures with very pithy subtitles. 

On with the pictures ...

Our first campsite was in Tok ... not a lot there so we headed to Palmer which is on the way to Anchorage.  In Texas, we met the owners of this site and thought we would visit them.  Mosquitoes there were the worst we encountered in Alaska	Beautiful scenery ... I guess
This is the Site in Anchorage.  Really nice spot and we stayed there on the way back from the Kenai Peninsula.   Almost no mosquitoes here.  Anchorage is a nice town!!	They were not kidding with this moose sign.  There was one that wandered around here as if he owned the place.  At his size ... who was going to argue?
Even in downtown Anchorage moose are present.  We were driving along a boulevard road and a moose came out of some bushes, looked at us heading towards him, waited until we passed and then crossed to the median where he repeated the process.  I have seen pedestrians with less developed traffic skills	Anchorage, like all Alaska, has a tourist season of 120 days.  The rest of the time is snow and ice so they go out of their way to entice visitors.  These figurines were outside a "tacky tourist souvenir spot"  Lots of people here from the cruise boats in Seward.
This sign warned of tugs pulling seaplanes across the road.  They claim to have more private pilot licenses and more seaplanes per capita then any other place in the world.  I believe it too as this road is a main one yet the planes have priority.	Family plane parking spot.  In the winter, they simply change the pontoons for skis and away they go.
This little lake is literally only minutes from downtown Anchorage	Everywhere you look more planes docked...
This is our first campsite in Seward on the Kenai Peninsula.  Note the dark shale type rock we are parked on.	On arriving in Homer, we stayed in one site that had a lot of shale rock as you pulled off the road.  Now ... does this tire look sick to you?
Well, it was very sick!!!  You can see just where the sharp bit of rock pierced the sidewall.	Seeing of course it is on the sidewall, there is no warranty on the tire.  Seward is a very small town so they had to order the tire shipped in from Anchorage.  I gasped several times when they told me that it would be 400.00 US plus 40.00 for mounting it.  They did not have a machine large enough to balance it so I would have to do it in Whitehorse.
This is the tire shop in Seward.  And that is the old tire waiting to be picked up by the local tug boat people who use these as buffers ... Nothing wasted , except our bank balance ...	This is June and the people next to us were from Anchorage on their summer holidays.  It did not matter that it is a cold as charity, they were determined to have a BBQ and a picnic.  I guess it is downright balmy now compared to the winter months and months and months
We did an 8 hour cruise out to see whales, glaciers etc while were were there.	This is Nanook of the frozen north as we were leaving the dock
This is Nanook as we return ... 8 hours later ... to the dock	We saw lots of Minke whales, killer whales, humpback whales, and porpoises on the way to the Holgate Glacier.
When we did the Alaska Cruise several years ago, we sailed up to glaciers, but on a boat the size of a cruise boat, you do not get very close.  This time we were very close and watched and listened to the groans and roars as the glacier calved.  We had never seen this before and it was truly impressive	The Captain of the boat worked his way VERY slowly up to the face of the glacier.  Any one of these ice bergs could take the bottom out of the boat we were in.  A little worrying ...
The Captain narrating at the face of the glacier.  You can see just how close we got ...	Nanook of the north was right there to advise the Captain
This is the second campsite we chose in Seward.  There is no shale rock here!!!	I turned around from the previous shot and took this one.  We were right on the water with beautiful views.  In fact, we sat and watched a family of sea otters float past swimming on their backs as they fed every day
This is looking to the right from Harvey.  It is the Celebrity Cruises ship, "The Summit".	We took these shots as it pulled out to continue its voyage.  Without these ships poor old Seward would be in real trouble
Where the hell is the astern button?????	They can turn these things in their own length.  It was impressive to watch just how maneuverable the actually are
Elsie thought I was looking at the women on board .... actually, I was following a couple of eagles as they soared past me.	This is our campsite in Homer.  Again right on the beach.  Just beyond the last rig is a circular fishing hole the size of a football field.  The authorities release salmon there; consequently, in June the salmon return to the spot to spawn.  Because it is so close to the actual ocean, the fish are still very edible.  The fishermen lining the shore were casting with treble hooks to snare the fish and pull them in.  I watched for about 20 minutes and saw 4 or 5 fish landed that were in the 20 to 25 pound range.  Even kids got in the act and I watched as one under the age of 8 worked to land his catch.
Not a bad view from here!!!	This is called the Homer Spit.  The campsite we were staying in was about 2/3 out on the spit itself.
Last Fall we were at Cape Spear NFLD which is the North America's most Easterly Highway Point.  We sure have put the miles on Harvey this year.	The Russian presence is still quite strong in Homer.  We headed out to Nikolaevsk for a drive.  It is a small Russian village that we were told had a very nice restaurant that specialized in Borscht Perrogies etc.  WOW, ... this is for us!!!  But it didn't open until June 15th which is the official start to the tourist season.  Sigh ................
Lots of fish boats.  This at the very tip of the spit.	A sign on the way into downtown Homer.
In Homer, we could sit inside Harvey and watch the eagles fight over the fish guts tossed out by the successful fishermen at the fishing hole.  At any one time, there would be 8 or more of them within 20 yards of our front window.	Truly, and impressive bird ...
We watched them for hours ....	This is the studio of a local chain saw artist between Homer and Anchorage
Elsie really felt small here.  This guy was talented, but the prices were very high.  We saw several things we wanted, but .... common sense prevailed	We took an 8 hour bus tour in Denali Park to look at the wildlife.  This is the end of the tour, Elieson, where the best view of Mount McKinley was supposed to be.  Every town in Alaska claimed to have a view of McKinley no matter how far away they were.
The obligatory, "I was there at Eielson looking at Mt McKinley" shot.  Actually though, the guide said that only about 10 days a year can they have such a clear view of the mountain.  We were very lucky!	We saw lots of animals.  Here are Dall Sheep out for a climb.  We saw Black bears, Lynx, Grizzly bears Caribou, eagles, etc. etc.
Grizzlies out for a walk on the side of the road	Hey ... there is a whole "flock" of them
Rather large things actually ...	This is the bus ... you can only drive about 4 miles into the park in your own vehicle.  The Park runs these so to protect the beasties and as the road is so narrow and steep, going by these buses saves lives.
Mount McKinley yet again ....	Another obligatory "I was there Shot"
Fairbanks Campsite.  The day this was taken, the temperature in Fairbanks was hotter then the temperature in Miami Florida.  The whole time we were there, it remained between 33 and 36 degrees.  A very strange summer ...	There is some controversy just where the Alaska highway begins and ends.  Fairbanks claims it to be the northern end but most people say it is Delta Junction ... about 50 miles south as the real end. This is mile 1523 from Dawson Creek.
It never really did get dark.  For over a month the sun never really set.  Even at midnight it was light	The Alaska Pipeline just north of Fairbanks.  Sort of makes you wonder just how vulnerable we are here in North America to the idiot fringe in the world.
As you can see, it is huge ..	This is a suburb of Fairbanks.  Ever wonder where the letters written by kids every Christmas end up?  Why right here at the North Pole!  All sorts of volunteers from many walks of life answer each letter.  It's really quite neat thing!!
Found this on a drive north of Fairbanks, Chatanika Lodge.  Neat place with the wall covered with all sorts of "treasures" almost like a museum.  There is even a 1957 TBird inside.  Apparently the car was bought by the owner new ... how it survived the gravel roads in the 50's and 60' God alone knows.  Definitely worth a visit.  We went further north from here toward Circle and actually got within 100 miles of the arctic circle before we ran out out paved road.  We were tired of gravel by that point and were quite pleased to head back to Fairbanks.	We got ambitious and took a Chena River Tour.  The Chena flows through Fairbanks and joins the Yukon in the west.  This is the smaller sister ship of the boat we are on.  both are paddle wheelers, replicas of the original gold rush means of transportation.
Today, of course, they use special aircraft that can take off and land in an amazingly short space.  This was a demonstration put on as we sailed past.   You can see the little bit of runway this guy actually used before he was airborne.	He is about to land beside the boat we are on.
Again, you can see the little bit of  runway he used.	Oh Gosh ... reindeer.  Really they are of the caribou family.  We are on our way to visit a reconstructed Indian village.
The easy way to catch salmon.  This wheel constantly turns and any luckless fish that are caught up in the wheel are quickly thrown into a net.	At the Indian Village.  Traditional Alaskan food cache building.  Apparently, Grizzlies can not climb ladders.
This lady is FAMOUS!  The work she does with leather is unbelievable!	The coat and dress on either side of her door are examples of her work.  The coat was commissioned by the Smithsonian and its mate is on constant display there.
The girl holding the coat and dress is one of the local guides.  She is a university student who works here for the summer.  Her goal is to become a Doctor	Unbelievable craftsman ship
These guys are really "gnarly" eh	This guy is "really horny"
I included this garden shot because the seeds were only planted less that 6 weeks ago.  One of the benefits of having nearly 24 hours of sun is that plants grow amazingly quickly!	Chief's house
Salmon drying on the banks of the Chena in the traditional way	This guy is a three times winner of the Iditarod Dog Sled Race.  This is his place to train the dogs
Here they hitched the dogs onto a non-functioning 4 wheel motorcycle for a spin around his property.	These dogs sure could move
His triumphant return.  The dogs seemed to love their job!	This is the original Malamute Saloon ... see Robert Service.  We went there for dinner and the show.  By the way, it is after 10:00 PM when we took this shot.
Elsie had to get on stage and examine the curtain.	The picture on the curtain is Robert Service
Delta Junction ... the "Official" northern end of the Alaska Highway	The obligatory I was there shot.  We actually made the entire Alaska Highway almost in one piece
Basic Information as my memory is really bad	I love this sign.  The score ... Buffalo 1 ... Truck 0
This is what Harvey looks like from the rear after his two radiators have been removed.  Note the dust ... the radiators had to be sent out to a Rad Shop for cleaning.  They were completely solid.  It took 12 hours labour to take them out and replace them.  Not an easy job ...	This is in Whitehorse at Inland Kenworth.  Hourly cost was 99.00.  Total bill for the cleaning was over 1400.00 Cdn.  Thank goodness Caterpillar pick up the tab ... I persuaded them that it must be a design flaw ... but we were there for 4 extra days as this job was done.
Not sure what this is but it was on the side of Robert Service Way ... the main road going into Whitehorse.	This is Whitehorse Campground.  Notice the sun ... The Platters were right ... "Smoke does get in your eyes".  The forests to the south were alight ...
Suffice it to say we made it through the forest fires just north of Watson Lake and the one just south of Watson Lake.  Strange feeling driving along and looking at  the trees smoldering on either side of the road.	This is the road to Tok as we headed into Alaska.  I include them here as an example of the torture we put poor old Harvey through.  This construction section went on for over 40 miles.
They have to wet the road so the graders can do their job.  5 Feet below the surface is the permafrost.	The rocks were "a flying" ..... 50 yards behind the guy in front of you was too close.
And the dust gets everywhere .....	This looks like a nice piece of road ... but don't be fooled.  The maximum speed for a Motorhome here is 30 miles per hour due to the constant frost heaves.  Any faster and you can get the front wheels off the ground.  They are exceptionally hard to spot ...
Whitehorse Campsite	Harvey Too ... Elsie's attack bunny who protects Harvey when we areaway

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