Alaska Trip 2010........ Page 2
2010-07-29, 11:35 PM, Yukon time....
Right now I am in my car in the parking lot at Walmart, in Whitehorse.... I'm here with a parking lot full of travelers like me, in various types of
travel rigs... I am the smallest with a car!!! Now the fun part is that people were running inside just before 10 PM, cause this store closes at 10
PM... Now, for those in cars, we gotta hold it til the store opens in the morning!!!! :-)))
I think that the last update I sent was from the little place called Chicken, yesterday.. I cannot see the email I sent out, so I will have to guess
that I sent the message in the middle of the day, thinking I was leaving right away.. It did not happen that way.. After the tour I took in the
morning, I took down my tent, etc. then sent out the email, if memory serves me right.. Then I started to leave, but only got as far as the next set
of buildings in the area. There I saw other people panning for gold.. I took photos and moved on to the post office.. There I talked to the
postmaster, Robbin, mailed a few cards and took more photos. Somehow, I go the impression from Robbin that I should try my hand at panning
gold again, at the place where I stayed last night.. So, off I went.. While I was giving it another try, an older fellow, named Bill stopped by to
watch me.. Turns out he knew how to do this panning thing. So, he gave me lessons!!!!!!! I actually found a few flakes of the stuff... But then at
around 4:15 PM, I knew I had to get on the road, so I took off.. It was 66 miles of nothing, back to the highway.. However, just outside town, I
discovered I had not filled my water bottles.. So, back I go.. I fill my water bottles, then decide I am in the mood for some ice cream.. So, back in
the store I go.. I get my ice cream and sit out on the porch and enjoy it.. Somewhere in all this, I manage to get a few photos of the neat young
lady named Mary, I think, that has been helping with gas, camping, panning, information, etc... She is from South Dakota, I think.. She is here to
work for 60 days or so... With water bottles filled and a yummy ice cream in my tummy, I am off again.. This time I don't turn back ... I make it
back to the main highway and head east.. I drive until about 7 PM, and start looking for a campground.. I find one.. It is called Deadman Lake
Campground. Turns out it is free camping and spots are open.. But, it gets better, I am greeted by Karen, who is one of the campground hosts.
We talk a loooong time, then her husband comes and get in on the fun.. We talk til near 10, or later... This family lost their beach home to a
hurricane two years ago, down on the gulf.. They bought an RV and have been living in it since then.. They have been doing a lot of travel and
a lot of other fun things, but travel is the bigger thing.. They are thinking of settling down here sometime soon, in a small home of some kind,
and then do some hobbies, etc... But this is not the end.. I go to bed, get up this morning and as I start to make breakfast, Brian comes out and
brings me a big cup of coffee!!!!! So, now I can just eat my granola and drink his coffee, which was very good.. Of course we have to do some
talking.. Turns out that he and I both have stents in our hearts, both use CPAPs for sleeping, and both take cholesterol meds, etc, etc... We
had a great morning conversation... But, he had to get to work and I had to get on the road...
I stopped just before the Canada border, filled up with gas and headed east again.. Not much to tell about this drive, other than that it was back
through the messed up highway where the frost heave makes waves in the highway and makes it necessary for there to be a lot of repair work
being done... At one point I started getting extremely sleepy and had to pull over and take a nap.. Then back on the road.. As I drove I was
listening to a book on CD, which was doing a good job of keeping me awake most of the time. I stopped in a few places and took photos, etc. At
one point I thought I had found another moose and slowed to take its photo.. Turns out it was a horse and it was wearing a bell around its
neck!!!!!!!!! Odd.. But more odd was the fact that I had not seen any signs of humans for miles.. Who owned this horse???? Back to driving
and listening. Then, I come up behind a small RV, which is following a travel trailer.. The RV takes off to pass the trailer, and I set sail to do the
same, but when I get up beside the pickup pulling the trailer, I am near shocked to see and think this is just like the one the people I met three
weeks ago was driving.. I had met them three time in just about as many days. Now three weeks later, I think I see them again.. I wave as I go
by, not sure that I am correct, but then I see that the trailer is the same as the one these people had, so as I went around, I started flashing my
lights, to get them to notice me and maybe pull over.. They did pull over, and then their shock to see that it is me again.. They thought
someone was stopping them to tell them of a trailer issue or something.. They are headed to Whitehorse to camp in the Walmart parking lot. I
am invited to come along and share travel stories.. Not only stories, but once again, Mary insists that I join them for dinner.. So, I do.. She and
Dave are the best for this sort of thing. Mary suggests that everyone stay busy for 20 minutes and she will fix a bit to eat. The men and I go in
Walmart and look at fishing gear.. Dave did some awesome fishing on their trip.. He is bringing home a lot of fish that he caught along the way..
His trailer has a big freezer in it, so he freezes them there..
Mary fixes up a really nice meal, I write in her travel journal again, like I had when we ate together at Watson Lake.. Then we started taking
photos of the book and of each other, etc.. Mary and Dave's 39th anniversary will be on the 31st I think.. They tell me the stories of their trip
and show me the photos. WOW, they did some neat stuff, and they missed a lot of the rain. They took the trip to Prudhoe Bay, they did tours
and fishing in Seward, and in Valdez, they got to see the mama grizz and young cubs come out and eat on the salmon in the late evening.. This
is a well known event that takes place each evening about 9 or 10 pm.. They got to watch the bears for over an hour, or until around midnight..
I heard about this happening there each evening, but on the evenings I was there, it was raining too hard to be outside and see this happen..
So, this is another event that was rained out for me.. Seems like nearly all the neat stuff that I could have done or seen here was rained out.. I
did not see the Alaska that people talk about.. I saw the rain that people don't talk about... I just learned this afternoon that there is a sad side
to the rain story. When the road washed out above Chicken, on the highway to Dawson City, a customs officer or person in a similar position,
was killed when the road washed out.. Not sure how that happened, but he must have been in the wrong place at the wrong time and was killed
when the road gave way in the extreme rain... I did not get to see most of what I came here to see, due to rain, but at least I did not have
anything bad happen. Whether I will ever try to come back is a big mystery.. Some say the rain I experienced is near normal in Alaska, others
said no, this was a very unusual year.. I do know that when I look at the tour books and read the material, the rain issue is not shown or talked
about, except in small print, way down at the bottom of the page.. I have to assume it does not rain all the time, because someone was able to
get enough sun to take the photos that we see in the marketing material for the state.. In the marketing materials, it looks beautiful, but how
long do you have to sit in the rain before you get a few minutes of sun to see what is in the photos they show?????
It is about 30 minutes past midnight, and my computer battery is running low, so I guess it is time for me to stop and get some sleep.. Oddly
enough, it is almost dark here right now, and the moon is up.. It is going to be strange to get down south and have to use a flashlight at night,
again!!!!!!!!!
In the morning, I will get something to eat. I think there is a McDonalds in Walmart, which will serve fast food and coffee.. With that and a few
goodbye words to Dave, Mary, Ann, and Michael, I will be be off and on my way to Skagway to catch the ferry that will take me to Juneau..
Stay tuned for more stories from the road.. Hopefully, I will get to see more sun!!!! It has not rained on me for the last two days!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I
hardly know how to act!!!!!!!!!!
2010-07-30
Good morning from the public library here in Whitehorse, Yukon!!! This morning I woke up to another sunny day!!!!!Thank the great spirits!!!!
NO RAIN!!!!!!! Now, I do know that rain is a necessary part of life, but do we have to get it 24/7?????? NO, we do not need that much.. It may
be good for plants, but it kills people, well not really, it makes them want to kill themselves!!!!!! Geeeeeze! Sun is good!!!!
Ok, I awoke with the sun this morning, waited til the local Walmart opened, and went inside to use the bathroom and to eat at the McDonalds
they have inside.. Was good.. I had found Dave in the parking lot and offered to by his family breakfast at this wonderful place, but he said
Mary already had breakfast plans for them, so I still owe Mary and Dave a few meals... She has fed me twice so far! Can you believe it, I have
run on to this family four times in the period of a month!!!!! They are great people and have been the best to be around, but unless something
really different happens, this is the last town and place where we will be together.. They are headed on east to their home near Edmonton, and
I am headed south into the inside passage. Today I plan to make it to Skagway, where I will get a ticket for me and the car to ride the ferry to
Juneau. I hear it rains a lot there, so more rain is in my future, I guess... However, I am now mossed over and probably will not notice a few more
inches of the wet stuff. Since the photos I sent out from Chicken, I am not sure I have anything other photos to share.. I will look and see before
sending this..
Unless I think of something else, this is the end of this update. It is near 12 noon here in the Yukon... I will finish this and head for Skagway....
Stay tuned. Click HERE for images for this update
Click here to return to Page One
2010-07-31
I am long from being as young as I used to be, so I might be repeating myself, have I mentioned before that it rains in Alaska? Rain in Alaska,
what a novel thought... You have seen all the beautiful advertisement right, the sun is shining, people are running around in T-shirts and
shorts, going on tour boats, doing outdoor dining at fine eating places, doing the BBQ thing in the campground, etc.. Have you seen those
advertisements? If not, go online, or later you can see them in my books, I have lots of them, lots of booklets showing all the fun things people
are doing in Alaska. I have to wonder what day of the year they were out taking those photos. Only the people who live here have seen days
like that, and maybe a few tourists, you know the ones, the ones that also win the lottery, get lots of free money from a rich uncle, have three
homes, etc.. Some people just cannot get it wrong even when they try..
Ok, so you figured it out, rain is the topic of my update, again.. I have heard that people up here are never convicted of murder.. In fact, I don't
think anyone here has ever been charged with such a thing. The deal is that everyone understands that after months of staying indoors with
another person here, due to rain, snow, cold, or other, it is perfectly understood when one of the two people goes over the edge and
eliminates the other person. How long can you live in a small room with one person before one of you has to go??? Think about it, there are
two people and one gun, the rain comes, the snow comes, the cold comes, and misery sets in.. There is a loud bang, and one of the two
people now longer has to suffer with the issues. Its an act of mercy. Or is it, but whatever, it is acceptable.
Yesterday, after typing up an update and sending it out from the public library, I hit the streets looking for something to take a photo of, or a
place to do laundry, or a place to shower.. And, a place to camp.
Would be great if this all happened at one place. But you guessed it, it did not happen, not in Skagway. They even roll up the sidewalks at 7
PM.. The hand writing was on the wall, I was going to be doing without a shower again, and my clothes were going to get a little stiffer.. But,
what the heck, except for the tourist coming off the ships, I looked and smelled pretty much like everyone else... Better than some.. You can
tell when a person uses wood heat in their house, or cabin as it is. The smell arrives before they do.. They say a bear has a good nose, well, I
am becoming part bear. My sense of smell has gotten much better while up here... I am still thinking about the global warming thing, but for
sure, the brain does clear up here and the body things do improve.. Smell really does improve when you are out in the open like this for an
extended period of time, rain or no rain.
Since I had been here before, I knew where the campgrounds in the area were.. I drove outside of town with the intentions of going back to the
Forest Service Campground I had been to before, but as I went in that direction, I found things to take photos of. The light grew dim as night
started to sit in.. I knew of an area that was free camping, but there were bears there, so I was not sure I wanted to do that.. However, I would
go check it out anyway. The thinking was that I was most likely going to sleep in my car anyway, since I had to wake up at 0415 to go catch my
ferry to Juneau the next morning. One the way out, I got the feeling I should drive out onto the flats as they call them. This is an area that must
get covered with water sometimes of the year, and for now it is open to use as you like.. I start out to explore this area in the now semi-light of
day. I notice some people gathered near a wooden walk bridge. I go over to investigate.. I am told they are just fishing. I ask about bears. I was
told, sure, there are bears here every night... Great.. When? Anytime now. Then I see more people doing something further down the stream,
and these people are holding things up in front of their faces.. Looks like cameras and binocs to me. So, off I go to see what is happening..
Bear!! Big one... Catching fish.. Too cool... But, he catches one, then goes up and lays in the grass to eat it.. Hard to watch the show at this
time... So, we wait for the next time he fishes.. We think this is going to go on for hours, but he stops and become disinterested in the fishing..
Looks like he will take a nap in the grass.. We wait.. He comes back to fish some more.. I get a few nice shot of it standing on its hind legs to
look at us.. Then it goes back to fishing.. But the show it short.. It moves on.. We follow it and then, instead of it fishing, it starts eating grass,
like a cow would!!! I don't know bears, but this is strange, for a bear to stop fishing and start eating grass.. Must have been something here we
did not understand.. He finally moves on downstream and completely disappears... Finally we all head out.. But, I do not get far and I see
another one feeding.. Now mind ya, we are only about 15 yards from these thing at times, but it could care less. Most of the time we are about
50 yards away.
The one I see is headed upstream. I hurry to get ahead of it.. But, at this point I am back at the wooden bridge where I had been earlier.. And
the show I am about to see is is just too funny.. Wish you could have seen it.. The water is flowing down the stream, the bear, a smaller one, is
coming up the stream. I am making my way onto the wooden bridge to take photos of the approaching bear, thinking it will stop and fish below
the bridge. At the far end of the bridge stands a bunch of young locals. Further up the creek is another bunch of young locals standing
around a small campfire, consuming some cold beverages, etc. The young man still fishing off the bridge say something to me about coming
back, cause I had ask him earlier about the bears and he said, sure they come here everyday.. Now I am back and he asked if I saw any. I say
yes, and it is coming our way.. You would think this would cause an issue.. But no.. These people do little to nothing for a bit.. Then a bunch of
them get on the bridge to watch the approaching bear, which is actually trying to catch a fish as it works its way up to us..
Then for some reason, the bear acts like it wants to come to the bridge, go on it, under it, or something. I figure there is going to be something
happen here in a few minutes.. The young people who had been up by the fire came down to the bridge. At this point we have about 30 kids
standing on and around this little footbridge. We also have a dog or two on the group. I do some fast calculations and figure there is about to
be problems here, the bear is now about ready to get out of the water and come up on the land where I am standing.. I decide it is time to
head for the car.. Someone in the kids group tells everyone that if a bears comes close, they are supposed to put their hands in the air, wave
their hands, and holler out, YOO BEAR!! So the action starts, I am headed for he car to seek a safe place to hide, the kids have claimed the
bridge and are watching the bear come at them, while the dogs are just standing on the bridge watching all this as if they were at the movie.. I
a wee bit, the bear has made is move, he is coming up on the land to spot where I have been standing, in fact he crosses the spot where I had
been. The kids are hollering YOO BEAR, onlookers are taking photos. The bears runs up the bank of the creak, around the end of the bridge,
zooms by the dogs that are standing there, and then looks over at the 30 kids standing there waving their hands in the air.. He looked at them
like they were nuts!! :-)) The dogs did not bark or move, just watched!! The bear went around this mess and dived into the water on the
upstream side of the bridge, where is started fishing again.. It never looked back.. The fire was still burning, the one that the kids had left.. The
kids are all laughing and playing, and they want their fire back. So, they go back to their fire, and the bear continues to fish just a few feet from
their fire.. They quit watching the bear, the dogs have gone on to other things, the bear is being ignored as it fishes just feet away.. There was
one fellow, a bit older than the rest of the young people who was closer to me and started to talk to me somehow during all this. While we were
talking, the kids discovered they were late for a dance or party of some kind and started to leave.
The fellow I have been talking talking to mentions Missouri. I ask about this. Turns out that he was raised in St. Peters, MO.. This is about 30
miles from my place.. As we talk, I learn that he his one of these rock climber types and has left home several years to pursue his love for rock
climbing.. At present he is working for the park service doing some type of carpenter work. He and his dog have been extremely calm through
all the bear stuff that just went on a wee bit ago.. I asked about this.. Turns out, he and all the other kids know this bear like they know the
neighbors dog.. This bear comes here everyday to eat, and it just so happened that we were just downstream from its favorite fishing spot..
Bill, the fellow I have been talking to tells me that the bear is a young one and has comes to its favorite fishing spot on the creek now for a
couple of years.. The kids accepts it, and it accepts them.. Not a pet for sure, but the whole bunch of them accept each other. Bill tells me that
at this time of year, the bears are not interested in biting people, just eating as much fish as they can, as fast as they can.. After Bill and I
chatted for awhile, and watched the bear feed until it was dark that I could hardly see it anymore, we both left.. Did not get Bill's dog's name,
but it is missing its right rear leg. Lost it when it was young, he thinks it was to a hit by a car...
Lots of people were out to see the bears feed, but now they are all gone and I need to get some sleep, it is near midnight. I go to one of the
free campsites and just sleep in the car. My alarms are set to get me up in about 5 hours.
The bear action all took place yesterday.. Now the alarm on my GPS is going off, and in a bit the alarm on my cell goes off.. Time to get
going.. Got to catch the ferry.. I have a fast granola breakfast, and take off.. But, I find things along the way to stop and take photos of, too
many things, I see that I am going to miss the ferry if I do not get going.. I have to be in lane 5 at 0550.. I make it, with 3 minutes to spare.. But
then, I find that we will not be boarding until about 0630ish... Now get this, I drive inside the ferry, set the brake and go to viewing area on the
ship deck, for more photos.. We shove off around 0710.. At 0713, it starts raining.. It is still raining, and right now it is 11:27 PM.. I am sitting in
my car at my campsite writing this note and listening to the rain beat on the roof of the car!!!!!!!!!!
Try riding the ferry in a rainstorm.. Not fun.. Back to those beautiful ferry boat pictures with people out on the deck living it up.. WRONG!!!!!!!!
Nobody is out there, they are hiding inside.. I do stick my head out from time to time to get a few memory shots, but no photos with sun and
blue skies. We travel at 19 miles per hour and go to Haines, where we drop off some, and pick up some, then we are gone again.. We arrive in
Juneau at 1:30 pm... We off load and cars.. I decide to head into town.. WOW, what a mess that is.. But, then, there were three cruise ships in
port.. Can you imagine, three ships full of people out walking in the rain!! I saw them.. Odd too is that two years ago, I rode the Carnival Spirit
from Mexico to Hawaii. Yesterday I saw it docked in Skagway. Last night while I was out bear watching, I saw it come up into the inlet and turn
around and leave.. Today when I got to Juneau, it was here.. I am not a fan of Carnival, but to ride that ship to Hawaii, and then see it twice
here generates a rather odd feeling..
It is 11:38 PM and it is dark outside!! Now I have to use a flashlight again!!!!!!!!!!!!
Actually at the moment, I am in the men's bathroom.. My computer battery was used up and this was the only electric I could find.. I'm plugged
into the socket for the shavers, etc!!!
Ok, so I got off the ferry and headed towards downtown, found it to be super crowded.. But here is the part you can relate to. I am getting
hungry.. Eating on the ferry did not seem the thing to do.. Also, for note, free showers on the ferry, while it is moving.. But, you have to have
your shower gear with ya.. I did not, so I had to pass.. You cannot get to your car except when the ferry is docked... On my way to town, I see a
Safeway.. Wanted to do a Subway, but Safeway will work... I go in. I get some apples, bananas, baby wipes, Doritos, pineapple, chili, etc, then I
head for the deli.. What a hoot.. This trip should be put into a book.. The people that work behind the deli counter are just too fun.. I go to the
counter, I wait.. I finally have a lady come offer to help me... I tell here I want Mesquite Turkey.. She acts like she does not know what I am
talking about.. I have to repeat it about 4 times. She gets it.. Then she tells me it might not be sliced.. I ask if that is a problem. She is not sure.
She tells me she might have to slice it.. This is repeated several times.. I ask her if she does not want to sell me the turkey? One of the dim
lights in her head comes on for a few seconds.. She comes out to my side of the counter.. She tries to decide which turkey it is that I want.. I
show here the package behind the glass.. Now she gets it.. She starts looking.. She discovers that she has some sliced.. She asks how much I
want.. I say 1/3 pound. She grabs a bunch and puts it in a bag.. Turns out is is .58 pounds, she wants to know if that is okay, it is a little bit
more, but will it be okay.. I tell here again, I want 1/3 pound. She takes out some and looks at the weight, it is now .42, she wants to know if that
will be okay.. I say sure!!! Just wrap it up!!!!!!!
I drove a short distance from the Safeway and pulled into a parking area that is used for by people walking up to the Mendenhall Glacier.. I
could actually see it when I parked, but it was not long until the rain and fog came, and the glacier disappeared, not to be see again while I
was sitting there...
For the driving.... Decided to continue down the road to its end.. That took several miles, but, I did find the end, and I learned people here live
in much better houses than in the other places I have been. At least the people on this road do. Once finished with the drive, I came back into
town and drove some of the streets. WOW, these things are narrow and steep!!!!!!! You have seen that steep street in Frisco??? These are
right up there with that one,, All these are that way.. The town is built on the side of a friggin mountain... With the miles and miles of interior
land, why here for a capitol city... NUTS people, NUTS!!!!!!! I finished my little drive and headed back towards the ferry dock, looking for a
campground that I had seen in my AAA book.. Was not easy, but I found it... Then as I was trying to decide hope to do the sign-in thing, I see
the campground host.. I got talk to him.. Turns out he is big well built man that looks a lot like Santa!! He is a retired school superintendent,
from Florida.. Came here to stay this summer and do this job.. He was raised in Fredericktown, MO!!!!!!!! We chat a big, and during this time I
learn that there are showers here as well!!!!!!!!! And he gives me the location of a laundry... So, off I go.. I find a site next to the showers..
Goooood site.. Number 38. Then I walk around the area to see what is between me and the lake.. This is when I know I am in a rain area..
MOSS, lots of it growing on trees, stumps, the ground, you name it.. There is lots of it here.
OH, and the rain, people here ignore it.. On the way to the campground, I saw people walking in the rain, jogging in the rain, walking the dog in
the rain, skateboarding in the rain, and I even say one little girl Rollerblading in the rain.. She acted as if the sun were shining!! This I got a
photo of, because I was stopped for something at the time.. Skating in the rain.. This was a new one on me!!!!!!!!
I set up my tent, go take a looooong shower, then head for the laundry that the host told me about. There I was able to do a load of laundry,
plus, do a few emails before I had to leave.. The laundry closed at 10, this place locked the gates at 10, so at 10, life stops!!!!
Now you would think this story would end there, but no, not even close. I see a liquor store across the stress and elect to go there and pick up
a cold beverage before heading back to camp. I get some refreshment, and hurry back to get in the campground just before it closes.. I start
the refreshment and writing this update... After awhile, the battery on the computer is drained, so I grab it and head for the bathroom, where I
know there is a plugin.. Nobody will be coming into the bathroom at near midnight, in the rain.. Wrong, a couple of guys do.. And while the
second one is waiting, we start talking.. I find out he is from Oregon, then state where I was born.. He has a roofing business in Salem.. The
conversation was mostly about business and quality of work.. We talked until after 2 AM!!!!!!!!! You would love the details of the conversation,
but I will save that for another day.. But, he will be in the area for a few days, so we may do dinner before we leave here.. And, I have been
invited to get with him on this trip when I go through Oregon, on my way south... So, now that is added to my do list!!!!!!
It now after 0900.. It is not raining, per se, so I best get some breakfast, and then try to see some of the sights. Will try to add some photos to
this before I send it... Before I go, I have to tell you that the way the locals camp here is to set up a few large tarps, then put your tent under
them!!!!!!!!!
It is now 5:45 PM.... I am sitting in the floor in a mini mall where I found some wifi... Spent the day at Mendenhall Glacier.. Awesome place, and
there was no rain.. Started as a mist, but that went away, then it was just clouds and fog.... I spent about 6 hours there taking photos and
chatting with people.. Also watched a little black bear do some fishing.. It did not do well, gave up and left!!!!!!!!
So, there is not much to tell.. I am downloading the images from today.. Will see if I can find a few to share, then I am off to eat dinner, etc...
Not sure what I will do tomorrow.. Need to read through my travel planner thing...
Stay tuned!!!!!!! Click HERE for images for this update.
2010-08-03
This is going to be a bit of a short update, cause the SUN IS SHINING outside... I had to come in and cool off.... I have been up since early
morning!!
Yesterday the Rain Gods lost their energy.. I out lasted them.. I won!! Well, for a few hours or days anyway!!! We had a great day here in
Juneau yesterday.. I drove the local highways, went to the tourism office, after I gave up on the visitor center ladies.. I've told you about
them.. I think they have to have help getting to and from work.. But, I got to a sales office that selling tour tickets.. The weather was great and
promised to be great for a few days.. I started signing up for everything... There was a zipline available yesterday evening, around 6 PM.. I
took it... 143 dollars for this little adventure... Worth it??? I don't think so.!! We only got to five real ziplines.. And they were short... Each zip
lasted about 10 seconds, or less! So one minute of zipping for 143 dollars, how much is that per hour??? It took about 1.5 hours to get
through that 1 minute of zipping... Then we were all gone. But, I had some fun people on the adventure, so that saved it....
Went running a round doing a few more photos after this, then hurried back to camp.. Had to get in before gate closed at 10 PM...
Yesterday, I also signed up for one of the better chopper tours.. Was able to get on the 0900 flight.. Actually it left later, but...... I signed up
for this trip at the tour office with others, yesterday.. OK, so I am up early, I shower, shave, get into clean clothes, etc.. Flying with others
demands consideration for the others!!!! :-))) I arrive ahead of time, do the paperwork, and wait.. I ask for front seat, but does not happen...
We are issued these funny ice walking boots, that work really well I learn later... We watch a safety film, then go get on the chopper.. I got the
back seat, on the right side... Was not bad, but was not good... We flew to the top of the icefields, which is something they seldom get to do,
because of the crappy weather here... Today, we did it... Lots of ice up there!!!!!!!! We fly 15 minutes, we land, we take photos, we walk
around.. We stay 15 minutes.. We fly again... We land, we take photos, we look, we ????, then we leave in 15 minutes.. We fly 15 minutes
back to the airport.. So, how does this calculate.. ??? We got 45 minutes of flying, and 30 minutes of standing on snow or ice.. The cost was
380 dollars... Was this a good deal???? Depends... But, there are the numbers... I will be trying to share a couple of images from the zip and
more from this chopper ride... Then, I am off to play in the sun, while it lasts.. Tomorrow, I have to be at the boat dock for a 10 hour tour in
what is called the Tracy Arm.. Should be a good time if this weather holds.!!!!!!!! Keep your fingers crossed....
OK, off I go.. Am at the library, doing this and getting caught up on some other computer stuff...
Stay tuned.. The weather is awesome.. Wish this whole trip could have been this nice!!!!!!!!!!!! Click HERE for images for this update.
This is going to be a bit of a short update, cause the SUN IS SHINING outside... I had to come in and cool off.... I have been up since early
morning!!
Yesterday the Rain Gods lost their energy.. I out lasted them.. I won!! Well, for a few hours or days anyway!!! We had a great day here in
Juneau yesterday.. I drove the local highways, went to the tourism office, after I gave up on the visitor center ladies.. I've told you about
them.. I think they have to have help getting to and from work.. But, I got to a sales office that selling tour tickets.. The weather was great and
promised to be great for a few days.. I started signing up for everything... There was a zipline available yesterday evening, around 6 PM.. I
took it... 143 dollars for this little adventure... Worth it??? I don't think so.!! We only got to five real ziplines.. And they were short... Each zip
lasted about 10 seconds, or less! So one minute of zipping for 143 dollars, how much is that per hour??? It took about 1.5 hours to get
through that 1 minute of zipping... Then we were all gone. But, I had some fun people on the adventure, so that saved it....
Went running a round doing a few more photos after this, then hurried back to camp.. Had to get in before gate closed at 10 PM...
Yesterday, I also signed up for one of the better chopper tours.. Was able to get on the 0900 flight.. Actually it left later, but...... I signed up
for this trip at the tour office with others, yesterday.. OK, so I am up early, I shower, shave, get into clean clothes, etc.. Flying with others
demands consideration for the others!!!! :-))) I arrive ahead of time, do the paperwork, and wait.. I ask for front seat, but does not happen...
We are issued these funny ice walking boots, that work really well I learn later... We watch a safety film, then go get on the chopper.. I got the
back seat, on the right side... Was not bad, but was not good... We flew to the top of the icefields, which is something they seldom get to do,
because of the crappy weather here... Today, we did it... Lots of ice up there!!!!!!!! We fly 15 minutes, we land, we take photos, we walk
around.. We stay 15 minutes.. We fly again... We land, we take photos, we look, we ????, then we leave in 15 minutes.. We fly 15 minutes
back to the airport.. So, how does this calculate.. ??? We got 45 minutes of flying, and 30 minutes of standing on snow or ice.. The cost was
380 dollars... Was this a good deal???? Depends... But, there are the numbers... I will be trying to share a couple of images from the zip and
more from this chopper ride... Then, I am off to play in the sun, while it lasts.. Tomorrow, I have to be at the boat dock for a 10 hour tour in
what is called the Tracy Arm.. Should be a good time if this weather holds.!!!!!!!! Keep your fingers crossed....
OK, off I go.. Am at the library, doing this and getting caught up on some other computer stuff...
Stay tuned.. The weather is awesome.. Wish this whole trip could have been this nice!!!!!!!!!!!! Click HERE for images for this update.
2010-08-05, Alaskan Challenge..
I just checked.. My last update was the 3rd... On the fourth, I hit "Pay-Dirt" again... I took the Tracy Arm tour.. WOW.. The gods were in my
favor for a second time!!!!!!! I had to get up early for this one!!!!!! I had to meet the tour boat downtown at 0715.. I got there more like
0645.. So did most of the other people, and so we blasted off a few minutes early. We were supposed to shove off at 0800, we actually left
around 0740.. It was a loooong day, but a goooood one.. My second one in a row.. If only they could have all been so good...
This trip was to be a 10 hour(?) boat trip up into a place called Tracy Arm.. You may have to look this one up and read about it, but it has to
be the place were they go to film all that ice falling off the end of the glacier..
We were on a boat that I think was about 54 ft long.. We wide open for three hours, then we stopped to chat with a couple of women in
kayaks. They were scheduled to be picked up by our boat.. They did not way to go at this time, so the captain said he would pick them up at
3:30 PM, and off we went again.. BEAUTIFUL country.. No RAIN!!! Perfect skies... We arrived the glacier at 12 noon.. The captain turned
the boat off and let us drift around in the pool area at the base of the glacier for two yours.. This was just the best.. We got the see two or
three BIG ice falls and several pretty big ones, and lots of little ones.. This place is very loud, with all the ice sounds. I had no idea how
much noise the glacier and glacier pool makes.. It is a bunch.. The ice that is falling sounds like big canons going off when it cracks off..
Then, the chunks that float around are also making noise as they crack up in the melting process.. Sounds a lot like rain in the area where
the little ones are melting... Then, there are the big pieces of ice that come shooting up out of the water.. They called them shooters.. I
would seem the glacier extends to about 1100 foot under the water. When the bottom pieces come loose, or whatever, they shoot to the top
and come flying out of o the water, kinda like a whale does when it breaches(?). Really neat..
The captain of the boat was also the owner.. He was the best ever I have seen at driving a boat like this, but he had the worst personality
for a tour person I have ever seen, and his old boat was just the worst for trying to find a place to stand to get good views and good
images.. He had converted an old fishing boat for this job, and he did not do well.. It was a mess.... He almost acted like he wish we had not
come on the trip.. He was an old sour person.. But he sure could drive that boat!!!!!!
We left the glacier at 2 PM. We stopped along the way back to see whales, seals, birds, waterfalls, and pickup the two kayaking women.
Then we could head back... Saw some big chunks of ice that were drifting around...
Got back to the dock at 6:10 PM.. Ran out for a walk around the tourist area of Juneau, went by the capital building, then off to get a
Subway sandwich for dinner.
Back at the campsite, I got things ready to leave early on the 5th, today.. I had to get up at 0400 to do my eating, showering, etc, then get to
the ferry and get checked in at 0600. We did not load until around 0700, then we left around 0800. This time we are traveling on a FAST
boat from Juneau to Sitka. We traveled at a speed of 36 knots, or I think that is about 46 miles per hour. Fast. But in my opinion, this boat,
the Fairweather is useless for people like me.. It is designed really BAD!!!!!!!!!! If all you want to do is get from point A to point B, this is the
boat, but for sightseeing, it is the worst.. You cannot stand outside on the back because of the saltwater spray, so you cannot do anything
there. There are no other outside viewing areas.. Then, on the inside, the design is such that you cannot take photos without a lot of
reflections on all the windows.. More later on all this, on my website, but this is a really bad boat for tourists.. I should have taken the slow
boat, but it did not leave until 2 PM tomorrow and would not get here until 11 PM tomorrow night, but I think it would have been worth
it!!!!!!!!!!! I suggest you never take the fast boats!!!!!!! They(it) sucks!!!!!!!
Got into Sitka about 12:40... Hurried to the local campground, got a site for 14 dollars, then headed downtown. Stopped at McDonalds for a
fast lunch, then on to the center of town to be a tourist.. Went to where the Totem Poles are on display.. That is a long story, but what if cool
is that I went in to the park building and watched a carve metal for bracelets etc.. Next thing I know we are chatting, and he teaches me how
to repair some jewelry I have at home.. So, I learned something, actually if I would have had the day, he would have continued to teach.. He
is paid by the hour to be there to work and talk to the visitors that come in, like me....
I stayed out out doing images until near dark, which it does get dark now.. The free light is gone.. Have to carry a flashlight now!!!!!!!!! :-(((
I will try to attach a few glacier images, then I am off to the campground to get some sleep.. I am tired today..!!!!!!!!!! Will be here a couple
of days, so stay tuned and see what I find here... Click HERE for images for this update.
I just checked.. My last update was the 3rd... On the fourth, I hit "Pay-Dirt" again... I took the Tracy Arm tour.. WOW.. The gods were in my
favor for a second time!!!!!!! I had to get up early for this one!!!!!! I had to meet the tour boat downtown at 0715.. I got there more like
0645.. So did most of the other people, and so we blasted off a few minutes early. We were supposed to shove off at 0800, we actually left
around 0740.. It was a loooong day, but a goooood one.. My second one in a row.. If only they could have all been so good...
This trip was to be a 10 hour(?) boat trip up into a place called Tracy Arm.. You may have to look this one up and read about it, but it has to
be the place were they go to film all that ice falling off the end of the glacier..
We were on a boat that I think was about 54 ft long.. We wide open for three hours, then we stopped to chat with a couple of women in
kayaks. They were scheduled to be picked up by our boat.. They did not way to go at this time, so the captain said he would pick them up at
3:30 PM, and off we went again.. BEAUTIFUL country.. No RAIN!!! Perfect skies... We arrived the glacier at 12 noon.. The captain turned
the boat off and let us drift around in the pool area at the base of the glacier for two yours.. This was just the best.. We got the see two or
three BIG ice falls and several pretty big ones, and lots of little ones.. This place is very loud, with all the ice sounds. I had no idea how
much noise the glacier and glacier pool makes.. It is a bunch.. The ice that is falling sounds like big canons going off when it cracks off..
Then, the chunks that float around are also making noise as they crack up in the melting process.. Sounds a lot like rain in the area where
the little ones are melting... Then, there are the big pieces of ice that come shooting up out of the water.. They called them shooters.. I
would seem the glacier extends to about 1100 foot under the water. When the bottom pieces come loose, or whatever, they shoot to the top
and come flying out of o the water, kinda like a whale does when it breaches(?). Really neat..
The captain of the boat was also the owner.. He was the best ever I have seen at driving a boat like this, but he had the worst personality
for a tour person I have ever seen, and his old boat was just the worst for trying to find a place to stand to get good views and good
images.. He had converted an old fishing boat for this job, and he did not do well.. It was a mess.... He almost acted like he wish we had not
come on the trip.. He was an old sour person.. But he sure could drive that boat!!!!!!
We left the glacier at 2 PM. We stopped along the way back to see whales, seals, birds, waterfalls, and pickup the two kayaking women.
Then we could head back... Saw some big chunks of ice that were drifting around...
Got back to the dock at 6:10 PM.. Ran out for a walk around the tourist area of Juneau, went by the capital building, then off to get a
Subway sandwich for dinner.
Back at the campsite, I got things ready to leave early on the 5th, today.. I had to get up at 0400 to do my eating, showering, etc, then get to
the ferry and get checked in at 0600. We did not load until around 0700, then we left around 0800. This time we are traveling on a FAST
boat from Juneau to Sitka. We traveled at a speed of 36 knots, or I think that is about 46 miles per hour. Fast. But in my opinion, this boat,
the Fairweather is useless for people like me.. It is designed really BAD!!!!!!!!!! If all you want to do is get from point A to point B, this is the
boat, but for sightseeing, it is the worst.. You cannot stand outside on the back because of the saltwater spray, so you cannot do anything
there. There are no other outside viewing areas.. Then, on the inside, the design is such that you cannot take photos without a lot of
reflections on all the windows.. More later on all this, on my website, but this is a really bad boat for tourists.. I should have taken the slow
boat, but it did not leave until 2 PM tomorrow and would not get here until 11 PM tomorrow night, but I think it would have been worth
it!!!!!!!!!!! I suggest you never take the fast boats!!!!!!! They(it) sucks!!!!!!!
Got into Sitka about 12:40... Hurried to the local campground, got a site for 14 dollars, then headed downtown. Stopped at McDonalds for a
fast lunch, then on to the center of town to be a tourist.. Went to where the Totem Poles are on display.. That is a long story, but what if cool
is that I went in to the park building and watched a carve metal for bracelets etc.. Next thing I know we are chatting, and he teaches me how
to repair some jewelry I have at home.. So, I learned something, actually if I would have had the day, he would have continued to teach.. He
is paid by the hour to be there to work and talk to the visitors that come in, like me....
I stayed out out doing images until near dark, which it does get dark now.. The free light is gone.. Have to carry a flashlight now!!!!!!!!! :-(((
I will try to attach a few glacier images, then I am off to the campground to get some sleep.. I am tired today..!!!!!!!!!! Will be here a couple
of days, so stay tuned and see what I find here... Click HERE for images for this update.
2010-08-07
Greetings from Sitka.. Now, I will bet you never thought of Sitka as a place where it might rain, right!!! Well, truth is, it rains in Sitka.. Does it
rain a lot?? Don't know, nobody bothers to measure it!!! It is just here all the friggin time.. Umbrella!! Nobody owns one.. Why? You cannot
do all the STUFF here if you have an umbrella in your hand... You learn to live with it, I think.. I am sitting in the library again.. When I got
here earlier, to download photos and back them up on disc, etc., there was a lady sitting outside on a bench eating a pizza with the same
attitude and joy we would if we were sitting in the sun back home, eating a pizza for lunch.. These people do not recognize rain as a wet
thing!!!!!
Lets start with the photos.. The last time I sent an update, I was tired and headed for bed.. Had just had a long day on the ferry and all the
other stuff one does on moving day!! Got my campsite, etc.. Then started running around.. Finally went to bed, and got some sleep.. On
the 6th, yesterday, I slept in.. Then I got up, but was in no mood to do breakfast in the rain.. So, I chose to head for McDonalds. Once
there, I chowed down on the healthy stuff.. Wrong, but, it was not in the rain.. Also had coffee and water.. Once finished, I went to the car,
got the computer and started doing some computer stuff, since I was not sure what I would do in the rain on this day..
In a few short minutes, a lady came over to ask me if I got some good photos of the whales from the ferry.. I had to tell her no, I had not
even tried to get the photos of the whales.. She had seen me running all over the ship or boat, with a camera and assumed I go the whale
photos.. Nope, did not even try.. Do you know how much of a whale you can see when you are above the waterline and it is below the
waterline??? Ain't much for sure.. I gave up on taking whale photos a long time ago.. That being said, she was a really nice lady to talk to,
and she had some pretty good photos of the whales on her iPhone!!! By now she is sitting down and I am learning a lot about this town and
the area around here, because she grew up here... She moved away in the early 80s to become micro-biology person in Juneau at the
hospital.. Her dad was a professional fisherman, and a hobby photographer.. She showed me some of his images she had stored on her
iphone.. He was either good or lucky, but the images were great.. He is now gone, and her mom is in the hospital, which is why she is here.
Her name is LeAnne and she had made a fast trip over from Juneau to check on her mom.. She and I started talking at about 1100, we
talked til after 1:30 PM.... Go figure.. We could have kept going, but she did have things to do.. She had briefed me on some things to do
here, and so I had those suggestions in my head..
Off I go to do the tourist thing.. I tour the bishops house, then I head for the church down the street.. I get there too late to get in, but, as I
am walking along the sidewalk, I notice two women with snorkel gear.. I have to stop and ask if they think they are in Florida!! Turns out, the
water here is not that cold, about 60 degrees.. With a dry suit on, you can snorkel and do scuba things.. And snorkeling is what they had
been up to, see photo. One lived on Wrangel Island and the other was visiting from the west coast of the lower 48.. The one from Wrangel
was an outdoor adventure leader...
Now it is time to tour some more, but it is only a few feet before I find a VFW hall, and the sign says the bar is open. I assume that is an
invitation.. So I go in and ask if I can get a beer here.. They as about my military background.. I don't have one, per-see.. But, being retired
from my career job is generally good enough to get me in.. We chat, I sign in, and I get to order my beer.. Alaskan Amber, on draft, for a
price of 4 dollars. One stool down from me is a lady having a beer of her own. She decides to be social, and so starts a conversation that
lasts the rest of the beer.. Then we both have to leave. I have given her one of my cards, and being very polite, she asks where I am
staying. I tell her I am camped near by.. She says that if I get tired of being wet, she can offer me floor space in her apartment to sleep..
And she insists that I take her number, just in case.. I do.. We leave, I go do my tour of town, etc.. Back at the library, later, I call her, just to
say thanks for the offer.. She is not there, but I leave a thank you message.. She calls the library and has them track me down. We chat,
but this time she says that if I am at the campground, then maybe I would desire a shower at her place.. I finally accept.. She tells me how to
get there, and off I go.. I never find it.. I have to call again. I am sooo lost.. She has to walk down to the church, meet me and give me
instructions again.. This time I get here.. She has really nice place in the middle of town. I had been by it earlier and taken photos in her
front yard.. Good landscaping job.. She offered to feed me, but I said that was too much trouble and suggested we go to the Subway, my
favorite, just down the street.. We go. We eat, and I learn more about her life.. She was also raised here, I think. She has lived here a long
time anyway, and knows everyone. Once we have eaten, we go back to her place, I shower.. That was a treat.. Then she offers a movie.. I
accept.. he is a he-man movie of some kind.. Was pretty good.. When it was over, we said bye and I was gone.. But, what a nice treat to be
adopted for a few hours.. Got to clean up, visit with a local, eat, and learn more about the town.. Good thing I had the combination to the
campground gate! It was locked long before I got back from the town visit... Speaking of late, on the way back to camp, I stopped at the
ferry terminal, cause it is open and I need to get my tickets for me and the car to go from here to Ketchikan.. The computer is down.. I
cannot get the deal done, but I get to chat with the ladies working in there.. One is named Vicky.. I guess she is the leader of the gang, so
to speak.. She says she will open again today, around 0930..
I get up this morning, it is raining.. Did I mention rain before?????????? I pass on fixing breakfast, and think McDonalds will have to do,
again.. But, my pill trays are empty.. I have to reload my pill boxes, take my meds, and then head out.. I stop at the ferry office, just as Vicky
is opening up the office.. The computer is still a bit weak, but working.. She manages to get me booked and charged for the next leg of my
Challenge!! I will leave here on the 9th, at 0300.. Will not camp tomorrow night, will just make a long day of it, then go to the ferry parking lot
and semi-camp there until the loading etc, starts.. Vicky says she will be in early, so I will have access to the bathrooms etc... Now for the
Vicky story.. Her photo is included.. In the early 80s, she was living and dating a guy in Seattle. His job moves to Fairbanks.. He wants her
to come up and be with him, later... She is dragging her feet.. He says he will pay her way, so she goes.. Somewhere in all this, he become
a bartender, and she is doing the waitress work.. One night, a stranger comes in to the bar for a drink.. She walks by him and the other
men.. She asks which one is wearing English Leather(I think), he says it is him!!!! She gives a big smile of approval!!!! Later he gets
another drink and they chat a bit.. The bar there closes and most everyone moves to another bar.. She and he, visit some more.. The next
night, he is back, and after a bit more chatting, and a couple of drinks, he asks her how long it would take for her to pack her stuff and
come move in with him.. She said about two minutes.. She did!!!!! Ten days later, they were married.. They have now been married for over
32 years.. She says it is still fun!!!!!!! They had a good life in the Fairbanks area, but on a hunting trip, her husband was introduced to
Sitka.. He liked it.. He got her to come check it out.. She loved it.. They sold out up north and moved here. Build a new home and have
been living the good life ever since.. She is 63 and he is 70.. Both are in good health, have raised some kids, have grandkids, and she tells
me that if she died today, she had a great life!!!!!! Is that a good story or what..
I left the ferry office, went to McDonalds, ate, did some emails and headed out to see the island.. Mostly I did the driving thing.. Went down
the highway towards Sawmill Creek.. Actually I crossed it and drove the dirt road, until it got boring.. I turned around and came back... But,
on the way, I did stop at what is most likely the smallest national cemetery in the world.. See photo. Also drove by the Raptor Center and the
place where the state troupers are trained.. Then I just drove around the homes to see how people lived.. Most of the people here live in
really nice homes... There are also a lot of trailer houses, like the other towns, but these are nicer... A lot of new homes are being built..
From the lady late yesterday, I learned that there would be a Seafood Festival here today.. Later I dropped by to see how it was going.. Got
to see the fish-head throwing contest. And, I managed to get a draft beer from the beer garden.. All this happens in the rain.. !!!!!!!!!!! See
photo.. Also, I took some flower photos in the rain.. And since I arrived, I found a few unique homes here.. See photos.. I took photos of the
newer homes, but for this, I am sharing the unique ones...
After the fish-head contest and the beer, I drifted over to the library so I could charge up my cell phone, my camera, and do backups of my
images.. Now, it is 5:290 PM, local time and the time of day when the light here is getting good for photos.. And with that, I best leave and
go see what I can find..
Tonight is my last campground night here.. Tomorrow I hang out at the ferry til it leaves at 0300, Monday morning..
Stay tuned!!!!!!! Click HERE for images for this update...
Greetings from Sitka.. Now, I will bet you never thought of Sitka as a place where it might rain, right!!! Well, truth is, it rains in Sitka.. Does it
rain a lot?? Don't know, nobody bothers to measure it!!! It is just here all the friggin time.. Umbrella!! Nobody owns one.. Why? You cannot
do all the STUFF here if you have an umbrella in your hand... You learn to live with it, I think.. I am sitting in the library again.. When I got
here earlier, to download photos and back them up on disc, etc., there was a lady sitting outside on a bench eating a pizza with the same
attitude and joy we would if we were sitting in the sun back home, eating a pizza for lunch.. These people do not recognize rain as a wet
thing!!!!!
Lets start with the photos.. The last time I sent an update, I was tired and headed for bed.. Had just had a long day on the ferry and all the
other stuff one does on moving day!! Got my campsite, etc.. Then started running around.. Finally went to bed, and got some sleep.. On
the 6th, yesterday, I slept in.. Then I got up, but was in no mood to do breakfast in the rain.. So, I chose to head for McDonalds. Once
there, I chowed down on the healthy stuff.. Wrong, but, it was not in the rain.. Also had coffee and water.. Once finished, I went to the car,
got the computer and started doing some computer stuff, since I was not sure what I would do in the rain on this day..
In a few short minutes, a lady came over to ask me if I got some good photos of the whales from the ferry.. I had to tell her no, I had not
even tried to get the photos of the whales.. She had seen me running all over the ship or boat, with a camera and assumed I go the whale
photos.. Nope, did not even try.. Do you know how much of a whale you can see when you are above the waterline and it is below the
waterline??? Ain't much for sure.. I gave up on taking whale photos a long time ago.. That being said, she was a really nice lady to talk to,
and she had some pretty good photos of the whales on her iPhone!!! By now she is sitting down and I am learning a lot about this town and
the area around here, because she grew up here... She moved away in the early 80s to become micro-biology person in Juneau at the
hospital.. Her dad was a professional fisherman, and a hobby photographer.. She showed me some of his images she had stored on her
iphone.. He was either good or lucky, but the images were great.. He is now gone, and her mom is in the hospital, which is why she is here.
Her name is LeAnne and she had made a fast trip over from Juneau to check on her mom.. She and I started talking at about 1100, we
talked til after 1:30 PM.... Go figure.. We could have kept going, but she did have things to do.. She had briefed me on some things to do
here, and so I had those suggestions in my head..
Off I go to do the tourist thing.. I tour the bishops house, then I head for the church down the street.. I get there too late to get in, but, as I
am walking along the sidewalk, I notice two women with snorkel gear.. I have to stop and ask if they think they are in Florida!! Turns out, the
water here is not that cold, about 60 degrees.. With a dry suit on, you can snorkel and do scuba things.. And snorkeling is what they had
been up to, see photo. One lived on Wrangel Island and the other was visiting from the west coast of the lower 48.. The one from Wrangel
was an outdoor adventure leader...
Now it is time to tour some more, but it is only a few feet before I find a VFW hall, and the sign says the bar is open. I assume that is an
invitation.. So I go in and ask if I can get a beer here.. They as about my military background.. I don't have one, per-see.. But, being retired
from my career job is generally good enough to get me in.. We chat, I sign in, and I get to order my beer.. Alaskan Amber, on draft, for a
price of 4 dollars. One stool down from me is a lady having a beer of her own. She decides to be social, and so starts a conversation that
lasts the rest of the beer.. Then we both have to leave. I have given her one of my cards, and being very polite, she asks where I am
staying. I tell her I am camped near by.. She says that if I get tired of being wet, she can offer me floor space in her apartment to sleep..
And she insists that I take her number, just in case.. I do.. We leave, I go do my tour of town, etc.. Back at the library, later, I call her, just to
say thanks for the offer.. She is not there, but I leave a thank you message.. She calls the library and has them track me down. We chat,
but this time she says that if I am at the campground, then maybe I would desire a shower at her place.. I finally accept.. She tells me how to
get there, and off I go.. I never find it.. I have to call again. I am sooo lost.. She has to walk down to the church, meet me and give me
instructions again.. This time I get here.. She has really nice place in the middle of town. I had been by it earlier and taken photos in her
front yard.. Good landscaping job.. She offered to feed me, but I said that was too much trouble and suggested we go to the Subway, my
favorite, just down the street.. We go. We eat, and I learn more about her life.. She was also raised here, I think. She has lived here a long
time anyway, and knows everyone. Once we have eaten, we go back to her place, I shower.. That was a treat.. Then she offers a movie.. I
accept.. he is a he-man movie of some kind.. Was pretty good.. When it was over, we said bye and I was gone.. But, what a nice treat to be
adopted for a few hours.. Got to clean up, visit with a local, eat, and learn more about the town.. Good thing I had the combination to the
campground gate! It was locked long before I got back from the town visit... Speaking of late, on the way back to camp, I stopped at the
ferry terminal, cause it is open and I need to get my tickets for me and the car to go from here to Ketchikan.. The computer is down.. I
cannot get the deal done, but I get to chat with the ladies working in there.. One is named Vicky.. I guess she is the leader of the gang, so
to speak.. She says she will open again today, around 0930..
I get up this morning, it is raining.. Did I mention rain before?????????? I pass on fixing breakfast, and think McDonalds will have to do,
again.. But, my pill trays are empty.. I have to reload my pill boxes, take my meds, and then head out.. I stop at the ferry office, just as Vicky
is opening up the office.. The computer is still a bit weak, but working.. She manages to get me booked and charged for the next leg of my
Challenge!! I will leave here on the 9th, at 0300.. Will not camp tomorrow night, will just make a long day of it, then go to the ferry parking lot
and semi-camp there until the loading etc, starts.. Vicky says she will be in early, so I will have access to the bathrooms etc... Now for the
Vicky story.. Her photo is included.. In the early 80s, she was living and dating a guy in Seattle. His job moves to Fairbanks.. He wants her
to come up and be with him, later... She is dragging her feet.. He says he will pay her way, so she goes.. Somewhere in all this, he become
a bartender, and she is doing the waitress work.. One night, a stranger comes in to the bar for a drink.. She walks by him and the other
men.. She asks which one is wearing English Leather(I think), he says it is him!!!! She gives a big smile of approval!!!! Later he gets
another drink and they chat a bit.. The bar there closes and most everyone moves to another bar.. She and he, visit some more.. The next
night, he is back, and after a bit more chatting, and a couple of drinks, he asks her how long it would take for her to pack her stuff and
come move in with him.. She said about two minutes.. She did!!!!! Ten days later, they were married.. They have now been married for over
32 years.. She says it is still fun!!!!!!! They had a good life in the Fairbanks area, but on a hunting trip, her husband was introduced to
Sitka.. He liked it.. He got her to come check it out.. She loved it.. They sold out up north and moved here. Build a new home and have
been living the good life ever since.. She is 63 and he is 70.. Both are in good health, have raised some kids, have grandkids, and she tells
me that if she died today, she had a great life!!!!!! Is that a good story or what..
I left the ferry office, went to McDonalds, ate, did some emails and headed out to see the island.. Mostly I did the driving thing.. Went down
the highway towards Sawmill Creek.. Actually I crossed it and drove the dirt road, until it got boring.. I turned around and came back... But,
on the way, I did stop at what is most likely the smallest national cemetery in the world.. See photo. Also drove by the Raptor Center and the
place where the state troupers are trained.. Then I just drove around the homes to see how people lived.. Most of the people here live in
really nice homes... There are also a lot of trailer houses, like the other towns, but these are nicer... A lot of new homes are being built..
From the lady late yesterday, I learned that there would be a Seafood Festival here today.. Later I dropped by to see how it was going.. Got
to see the fish-head throwing contest. And, I managed to get a draft beer from the beer garden.. All this happens in the rain.. !!!!!!!!!!! See
photo.. Also, I took some flower photos in the rain.. And since I arrived, I found a few unique homes here.. See photos.. I took photos of the
newer homes, but for this, I am sharing the unique ones...
After the fish-head contest and the beer, I drifted over to the library so I could charge up my cell phone, my camera, and do backups of my
images.. Now, it is 5:290 PM, local time and the time of day when the light here is getting good for photos.. And with that, I best leave and
go see what I can find..
Tonight is my last campground night here.. Tomorrow I hang out at the ferry til it leaves at 0300, Monday morning..
Stay tuned!!!!!!! Click HERE for images for this update...
2010-08-08,
All good things must come to an end... But it is not the rain!!!!!! Well, sort of.. I am back in the library, and when I came in a few minutes
ago, it was not raining outside... But, it had been most of the day..
This morning when I woke up, guess what the first thing I heard was!!! You got it!! You are fast!! It was rain drops on my tent!!! Actually it
was raining to beat hell when I woke up.. Later it eased off a bit and I got our and took a bathroom trip... But, it was raining too much for
me to fix breakfast at the campsite.. I elected to consume a food bar and a banana.. This would carry me til I could some real food, at
McDonalds.. I was expecting to go there for breakfast, but as you will find out here in a bit, that did not work out.
I emptied out my tent, this means the two sleeping pads, the pillow, the sleeping bag and that wonder, white, 5 dollar comforter, which has
been very good to me on this trip!!!!!! Works great... Once the tent was empty, I took it down, but did not put it in a stuff sack, as might be
normal.. This time, it went in a garbage bag, dripping wet.. In the trunk it went, and off I go.. My last trip to this campground.. Was nice
place, but time to move on...
On the way into town, I remembered that I had not driven the Harbor Mountain Road, or whatever it is called.. Took a couple of tries to
find it, but I did.. It started as payed road, then quickly turned into a dirt road, one lane wide.. Truth is, there were a few places for two
autos to pass, but these places were few.. I had to use one on the way down. On the way up, it got real steep, but was a fairly good road..
I have been on worse, and better.. Did I see a lot of good stuff as was promised by the man in town who told me about it??? Nope.. Rain
and fog all the way.. But it was a fair way to burn off some time on my last day.. At last, I reach the end of the road, which is almost the top
of the mountain.. At the end of the road is a tear drop shaped loop to circle people around and get them headed back.. I am not sure
exactly what was going on up there, but found big sacks of gravel in canvas bags, and a filler bucket, as might be used to move cement
during a construction project. Looked like a trail was being built.. I did see a sign for a trail, but not sure if this material was to update that
trail.. I would bet it is...
I checked the mileage coming back, and it was exactly 6 miles from the top back to the highway.. On the way back, I stopped along the
way and took some photos of the moss on the trees, and photos of some of the poor little trees that live up there.. They have had a hard
life!
Back on the highway, I go to McDonalds, but now it is too late for breakfast, so I do the lunch menu and work on this computer...
Once finished at McDonalds, I walked around town, doing the photo thing. Once that urge wore off, I headed for the Totem Pole Trail at
the park.. There I got out the tripod and hit the trail looking for some nice tree photos that I could use a long exposure on... I will throw this
in before I forget it.. As I was on my last circle of town, and was taking photos of some flowers, I noticed a man standing next to a building
watching me.. I passed this off and went on doing my photos.. If a little bit I heard him say some to me from my left side. I turned to look at
him.. He tried to hand me something, and at the same time, he said, Don't let this get into the wrong hands!!! I looked at what he was
trying to give me.. It was a pair of the cheap ear plugs that come from industrial places.. The kind you mash and stick in your ear.. What
the heck am I being given these for!!!! I continued to stare at him.. He asked me if I was okay. I said I was but wondered if he was okay..
He asked if my name was ????? ?????? .. I said no.. He was not convinced.. You are not ???? ????? , nope, I'm not... He mentions the
flowers and how nice they are, and off he goes.. !!!!!! So, what was that all about???? Strange things seem to find me, no matter where I
go..
I finished up the walk at the park and my photo thing, then it was time to get back to the car and to Subway for my last supper in Sitka.. It
was gooooood...
Now I am at the library, trying to get this completed and prepare a few photos for sending.. My photo editing program has chosen to go
nuts on me, so I am not sure I will be able to get this completed as planned this evening, but I will try.. The library closes at 9 PM, and that
is only 20 minutes from now, but I can use the internet from the outside.. I'm puzzled when the editor is going nuts.. But, it happens.. So,
I'll send this when the photo thingie get going again...
If I did say so earlier, and I think I did, my ride out of here leaves at 0300 on the 9th.. I will go from here to the ferry office and hang out
there until time to go.. They will issue us boarding passes around 0100, then we board with our cars at around 0200, then we push off at
0300.. I forget when we get to Ketchikan..
OK, I will wrap this up and send when the photos are ready... Stay tuned...
2010-08-09, 9:25 PM.
WOW, what a day.. This update is being written while I sit in the dining room on board the Matanuska, one of the Alaskan Ferry boats.
This is a nice one.. Actually I think this is a ship.. This thing is over 400 foot long and over 70 feet wide!!!!! I think that makes it a ship...
The only thing that keeps it from being rated a cruise ship is the meals and the entertainment.. More on this later, if I am still awake later...
I just looked back at my last update, and I was headed to the ferry terminal to semi-camp-out in the terminal parking lot, or in the terminal,
if it was open.. I was pretty sure it would be open, because when I mentioned not having a home for my last night on Sitka, and planning
to come to the terminal for hangout until the boat loaded, Vicky, the lady I told you about earlier, said she would have the terminal open
early, so come on in..
I sent the last message from outside the Sitka library, then headed for the ferry terminal. Luck is with me. The terminal is open and there
are already people being put in the loading lines. Looks like all I have to do is get checked in and get my lane assignment. When you
check in at the terminal, they issue you a lane number for boarding. The parking lot in the loading area has lanes painted in it, and in
each lane is a number. You are assigned a lane based on how they plan to load and unload the boat based on the length of your auto,
and when you will get off.. This time I am in lane 4. I have gone into the terminal, chatted with Vicky, and got my lane assignment. I moved
the car to the assigned lane.
Once I have the car parked, I get my computer, camera, and all the chargers and other STUFF I carry to stay in touch.. This is the cell
phone and charger, the computer and charger, the hard-drive, and the camera and the charger, and then there is the extra AA batteries
and their chargers. I think I have five AA battery chargers with me.. I drag all my stuff into the terminal, chat with Vicky again, then sit up
my work place near a plugin.. Gotta have power!!!! Then slowly, other people start coming in and getting their assignments, etc.. At
about 11:30, this boat called in and said it was one hour away. This is standard practice. Seems several people started getting ready to
go somewhere, but not me, I am working away on the photos, etc. According to the plan, the boat is supposed to leave at 0300. This
means that they want to start loading at 0200. Which also means that the require all the passengers to be there and checked it at 0100..
Since I am already checked in, there is nothing to do but wait..
Then, to my surprise, Vicky comes over and asks me if I am going or am I staying here?? :-)) I say I plan to go, but it is not time.. She
says it is.. I say it is not even 0100 yet.. She says it does not matter, they start loading the boat again as soon as the the other cars are
off.. Well, I guess there was not many to get off, cause it is now close to 0100 and they are ready to load.. I hurry and gather up my
mobile office and go for the car.. In the parking lot I meet Vicky again.. I go over and tell her again that she is now famous, and give her a
big hug.. She wants to know what she is famous for, I tell her it is her story and that I have shared it with everyone.. She gives me a big
happy smile and off I go.. I stash my stuff in the car, jump in the seat, start it up and make a mad dash for the ramp into the ship.. Nearly
ran over the security guy who was trying to stop me.. Thinking I was late, I was in a hurry!! He got me stopped, wanted my ticket and my
ID.. Got that done, then took off.. The people inside directed me to my parking spot.. The inside of this thing is big, but the autos, etc are
packed in.. They take everything. RVs, Semis, Big boats, and the list goes on..
Once parked, I got out my mobile office and some goodies to take a shower.. I learned from riding the sister ship, that there are free
showers on board.. I climbed the stairs, and started looking for a place to settle in for the night.. I soon learned I was among
pro-travelers. The Reclining Lounge area of the ship has some really big chairs that you can relax in, but there is no foot rest to flip up to
give you that full resting position.. So, what do the pros do, they bring a sleeping pad, and a sleeping bag, and they camp in between the
rows. The seats are in rows, kinda like in a plane. And the room is semi lighted, but the darkest areas are up against the walls.. So the
pros have staked their claim on the floor space that allows them to put their head near the wall and their feet toward the walking area..
Pretty neat.. I did not bring a pad and bag up. I thought about going back after one, but elected to just tough it out..
I started by getting as close as I could to the pros, then just leaning back in one of the recliners. That worked for about 10 minutes.. I
repositioned about 3 times, which meant I lasted about 30 minutes. Then I was off to find a better place to spend the night.. Luck is with
me again.. In the forward viewing lounge, I find some long padded benches.. Perfect.. One area is rather dark.. I tie my two day packs
together, put my camera strap around my neck, lay down, and adjust the day packs until a reasonably usable pillow position is
established. And, within minutes, I am asleep!!!!! I never heard the ship leave.. I'm guessing I fell asleep around 0200. The ship was to
leave at 0300.. The next time I am aware of anything, it is 0730.. I look out from under the hood of my parka.. I see daylight. I feel no
need to get up and move around. I pull the hood of the parka back down to a position that shuts out the light, and I continue to sleep until
about 0830.. But, this time, I am not alone!! The room is starting to fill up with people!!! It would seem that some of these early birds are
wanting to see where the darn ship is going... I finally decide to get up, brush my hair, and try to join the party!! But, I will need caffeine.. I
head to the dining room and get a cup of coffee.
I review the menu in the dining hall and see nothing but the greasy stuff you might expect from a fast food place.. I decide my food bars
are a better option than bacon and potatoes. I eat, drink the coffee. Now I am awake.. I need to go find the showers and check them out..
I find the men's showers.. Looks like everything is in order, so I check for hot water.. Got it. Time to dive in.. I do.. Awesome.. The shower
felt GREAT.. About the showers.. They are free on the ship, and seldom used, as far as I could tell, but, they are to only be used while
the ship is out to sea.. The sign says they release the shower water while at sea, but cannot if they are docked.. They have to store the
shower water if it is used in the port, and that they do not want to do.. Not a problem.. The ship is out to sea for long period of times.
It is now 10:15 PM.. Still got about three hours to go.. So, I'll keep typing. What might be of interest to some is the path that we have
taken. We left Sitka. Traveled through the night, and arrived at a little place called Petersburg at around 12:30 PM, I think it was.. This is
the first chance we have had to get to our cars.. Several people are getting off for good, but several people like me just want to get to
their cars.. The ones with dogs in the cars are really in a hurry to get to the dogs.. They get their dog, then take them off the ship to go to
the bathroom all over everything in sight!!!!!! Me, I go to the car, put my days packs(2), in the car, get out my partially eaten bag of
Doritos, and start the process of finishing off the bag, as I head out the ship door.. Good eating!!!!! By the time I get to the terminal, the
chips are gone and I ditch the bag in the trash can at the terminal. There is another reason for getting off the ship. I want to be able to
say I have been on Petersburg.. I have about 30 minutes to explore. I have to be back on the ship at 1:15. The doors close at 1:30 we
set sail at 1:45, or something like that.. Anyway, I do my walk and head back for the ship.. I am following some people who have two dogs.
These are dogs that have now pottied on Petersburg. When we get to the security gate, the man there opens the gate as if to let up in..
The dog people go marching in as if they own the place, and I expect to join them, but no. The man stops me and tells me I have to go
through the terminal. I say WHAT. Dogs rank higher than people here. Yes. I am two feet from being through the gate with the dog
people, but cannot go in.. I am told I have to walk around the building, through the building, then back to within 2 feet of where I was must
standing.. I get it done, but do you think I am happy?? Think about it.
I have to do the security thing with my ticket and etc. Only thing is, when I had the lady my ticket and ID, she says she cannot be bribed to
get on the ship.. I must have looked puzzled, then looked at the card she was handing back to me.. It was my credit card.!!!!! Dogs, they
messed up my mind.. I take the credit card, give her my drivers license, get checked though and off I go..
The next leg of our trip is much more fun. We have to run the Narrows in this thing.. You talk about tight, the little bit of water that they
squeezed this thing through was not much.. The driver did a great job.. We did not scrape anywhere along the route.. Took about an
hour to wiggle through. For this event, there were lots of people out on the deck to watch.. Not much to take photos of, but was neat to
get close up with the trees and rocks!!!!!! Once through, they threw the coals to it and we headed to Wrangel. I think we landed around
2:30 pm.. They gave us another chance to get to our cars and go off the ship to run around a bit, which I did.. Had to be back on the ship
at 3:30 PM. I was back at 3:15 PM. The ship took off again at 3:45 PM.. Was not long before everyone was getting ready for dinner, etc..
They have a cafeteria on board, and a rather large number of people eat there, but I chose to eat the food I brought. The foods they
have are not the type of thing I would eat, plus the prices are very high. For lunch, they gave people a bowl of pasta with some meat
sauce poured over it, for $10.95. OH, I think you got some garlic bread with it.
With only a couple of hours left, I could work on my photos, or go take a nap.. I would like to work on my photos, but this laptop monitor is
not good enough for photo editing. It is good enough to for a few things, but for the most part, I will have to wait until I get home to do the
better stuff. I realize though that my Alaskan Challenge is quickly coming to an end. I have already gotten out the maps for the drive
through Canada, down along the west coast. Not sure how far south I will be able to get, but I am determined to get to the Redwoods
National Park. This has been on my do-list for years, and with any luck, I will get there on this trip. I hear the drive along the west coast is
really neat. I hope the battle I have had with the rain is over by the time I get there.. Speaking of rain, it did rain on us today, so I have
had another rain day!!!!! I spoke to a local this afternoon, and he says rain is the norm here. I had to wonder how long the photo people
have to wait to get those sunny pictures they put in the advertisement.. I think the sun only shines up here about 3 days per year.
Someone thinks that eating fish keeps you from missing the sunlight. They eat a lot of fish!!!!!!!!! I do not like fish, of any kind, so , I have
to have sun!!!!!!!!!! I would not rate Alaska as a tourist destination unless you like fish.. Fish they have a lot of.. Too bad I do not like the
stuff. Also, if you plan visit Alaska, bring lots of money. They only way to see Alaska is either by boat or my air. Being in a car will not get
it done. And, even in a boat or a plane, you may not see anything, due to weather.. That is just how it is.. If you want good photos of
Alaska, buy them from someone who lives here and has the time to wait for the sun to shine!!!! :-))) I have some good photos from this
trip, and I have seen some good photos taken by other people, but it is all a matter of luck.. Just being here is not enough.. I have seen a
lot of cruise ships parked in the rain, and I have seen a lot of cruise customers who were dripping wet. The ones that were in the
shopping places did not notice the rain, and the ones that were trying to do tours of the great outdoors were listening to the tour guide
trying to put a positive spin on the rain issue.. I think I have said this before, but just for the record, I will mention it again, there is times of
hard rain, just like back home, but most of the time the rain here is a mist.. You will get wet, but it just takes a little longer.. And as
reminder, rain is no reason for the locals to stop doing anything. They Rollerblade in it, sit and eat pizza in it, play basketball in it, and the
list goes on.. Most everyone is wearing rubber boots and wearing a hoody, or whatever it is called.. And this one is nearly the best.
Yesterday I think it was, I was coming across the suspension bridge in Sitka. Walking towards me on the bridge was a man and a woman,
chatting away as they walked. Each was carrying and umbrella, and it was raining, but neither of them was using the umbrellas, they were
just carrying them. For what!!!!!!!!! To ward off the sun, in case it came out!!!!!!!! Can you image that. These people carrying umbrellas
to shield themselves from the sun!!!!!!!! Well, I do not know the truth about that one, but to be carrying the umbrellas by their side, while
walking in the rain, was just the best of memories I have of that day.
11:00 PM.. I think I will go take a nap. Also, I need to think about my issue coming up.. We are supposed to land at 0130.. That being the
case, where am I supposed to camp at that time of day.. Looks like I am going to have to be creative!!!!!!!!
................. Update to Update... It is now almost 1100 on 2010-08-10.. I am in Ketchikan. I got my nap last night.. Slept until about 0115,
when the intercom on the ship woke everyone up. I was sleeping on the couch thing again.. Everyone is up and moving soon.. We are
supposed to land in about 20 minutes. We do. At 0140 we touch land, so to speak. By 0200 hundred, they are letting up off the ship..
Now, here is the problem, what does one do at 0200 in a strange place.. No campsite, no hotels, no nothing.. I circle the parking lot for
awhile, and find a likely spot to spend the night, if allowed.. I go in the terminal and talk to the man behind the counter.. I tell him of my
issue.. He says the office will be open all night, so just camp where I am.. Meaning, it is okay to sleep in my car in the parking lot, as long
as I am not in the loading lanes.. I go to the bathroom, get some travel booklets and head for the car.. In short time I have set me up for
sleeping and have drifted off... The man in the terminal had told me one of my camping options was to go to the Walmart store up the
street!!!! Walmart!! In Ketchikan!!! I must be getting close to home!!
Before long it was daylight and my watch said it was 0730.. I get up, go in the terminal to use the bathroom.. The boat I came in on has
just left.. It left at 0700.. I do my business and head back to the car.. Now it is time to go check out the Walmart!! I do. Walmart I did find,
but it is a mini-thing compared to the ones back home. But, they have Doritos!! Have to eat Doritos in each major town!!
Now it is time to eat.. I head down the street.. On the way, I spy a gas station.. Its a Safeway station and the gas is now going for 3.129, or
something like that.. I fill up.. Then I ask about food.. The question and answer session with the clerk leads me to where I am sitting right
now.. McDonalds.. I eat, I pick out some photos to send, I finish the last update, and now it is time to send it, go to the bathroom, and go
find the visitor center, to work out a tourist plan for the next few days... I can leave here on the 13th or the 15th.. The weather is
supposed to be good for the next few days, so I have more options.. Stay tuned to see what I end up doing!!!
The photos attached will be of our sister ship as it meets us, then Petersburg, Wrangel, and points in between...
WOW, what a day.. This update is being written while I sit in the dining room on board the Matanuska, one of the Alaskan Ferry boats.
This is a nice one.. Actually I think this is a ship.. This thing is over 400 foot long and over 70 feet wide!!!!! I think that makes it a ship...
The only thing that keeps it from being rated a cruise ship is the meals and the entertainment.. More on this later, if I am still awake later...
I just looked back at my last update, and I was headed to the ferry terminal to semi-camp-out in the terminal parking lot, or in the terminal,
if it was open.. I was pretty sure it would be open, because when I mentioned not having a home for my last night on Sitka, and planning
to come to the terminal for hangout until the boat loaded, Vicky, the lady I told you about earlier, said she would have the terminal open
early, so come on in..
I sent the last message from outside the Sitka library, then headed for the ferry terminal. Luck is with me. The terminal is open and there
are already people being put in the loading lines. Looks like all I have to do is get checked in and get my lane assignment. When you
check in at the terminal, they issue you a lane number for boarding. The parking lot in the loading area has lanes painted in it, and in
each lane is a number. You are assigned a lane based on how they plan to load and unload the boat based on the length of your auto,
and when you will get off.. This time I am in lane 4. I have gone into the terminal, chatted with Vicky, and got my lane assignment. I moved
the car to the assigned lane.
Once I have the car parked, I get my computer, camera, and all the chargers and other STUFF I carry to stay in touch.. This is the cell
phone and charger, the computer and charger, the hard-drive, and the camera and the charger, and then there is the extra AA batteries
and their chargers. I think I have five AA battery chargers with me.. I drag all my stuff into the terminal, chat with Vicky again, then sit up
my work place near a plugin.. Gotta have power!!!! Then slowly, other people start coming in and getting their assignments, etc.. At
about 11:30, this boat called in and said it was one hour away. This is standard practice. Seems several people started getting ready to
go somewhere, but not me, I am working away on the photos, etc. According to the plan, the boat is supposed to leave at 0300. This
means that they want to start loading at 0200. Which also means that the require all the passengers to be there and checked it at 0100..
Since I am already checked in, there is nothing to do but wait..
Then, to my surprise, Vicky comes over and asks me if I am going or am I staying here?? :-)) I say I plan to go, but it is not time.. She
says it is.. I say it is not even 0100 yet.. She says it does not matter, they start loading the boat again as soon as the the other cars are
off.. Well, I guess there was not many to get off, cause it is now close to 0100 and they are ready to load.. I hurry and gather up my
mobile office and go for the car.. In the parking lot I meet Vicky again.. I go over and tell her again that she is now famous, and give her a
big hug.. She wants to know what she is famous for, I tell her it is her story and that I have shared it with everyone.. She gives me a big
happy smile and off I go.. I stash my stuff in the car, jump in the seat, start it up and make a mad dash for the ramp into the ship.. Nearly
ran over the security guy who was trying to stop me.. Thinking I was late, I was in a hurry!! He got me stopped, wanted my ticket and my
ID.. Got that done, then took off.. The people inside directed me to my parking spot.. The inside of this thing is big, but the autos, etc are
packed in.. They take everything. RVs, Semis, Big boats, and the list goes on..
Once parked, I got out my mobile office and some goodies to take a shower.. I learned from riding the sister ship, that there are free
showers on board.. I climbed the stairs, and started looking for a place to settle in for the night.. I soon learned I was among
pro-travelers. The Reclining Lounge area of the ship has some really big chairs that you can relax in, but there is no foot rest to flip up to
give you that full resting position.. So, what do the pros do, they bring a sleeping pad, and a sleeping bag, and they camp in between the
rows. The seats are in rows, kinda like in a plane. And the room is semi lighted, but the darkest areas are up against the walls.. So the
pros have staked their claim on the floor space that allows them to put their head near the wall and their feet toward the walking area..
Pretty neat.. I did not bring a pad and bag up. I thought about going back after one, but elected to just tough it out..
I started by getting as close as I could to the pros, then just leaning back in one of the recliners. That worked for about 10 minutes.. I
repositioned about 3 times, which meant I lasted about 30 minutes. Then I was off to find a better place to spend the night.. Luck is with
me again.. In the forward viewing lounge, I find some long padded benches.. Perfect.. One area is rather dark.. I tie my two day packs
together, put my camera strap around my neck, lay down, and adjust the day packs until a reasonably usable pillow position is
established. And, within minutes, I am asleep!!!!! I never heard the ship leave.. I'm guessing I fell asleep around 0200. The ship was to
leave at 0300.. The next time I am aware of anything, it is 0730.. I look out from under the hood of my parka.. I see daylight. I feel no
need to get up and move around. I pull the hood of the parka back down to a position that shuts out the light, and I continue to sleep until
about 0830.. But, this time, I am not alone!! The room is starting to fill up with people!!! It would seem that some of these early birds are
wanting to see where the darn ship is going... I finally decide to get up, brush my hair, and try to join the party!! But, I will need caffeine.. I
head to the dining room and get a cup of coffee.
I review the menu in the dining hall and see nothing but the greasy stuff you might expect from a fast food place.. I decide my food bars
are a better option than bacon and potatoes. I eat, drink the coffee. Now I am awake.. I need to go find the showers and check them out..
I find the men's showers.. Looks like everything is in order, so I check for hot water.. Got it. Time to dive in.. I do.. Awesome.. The shower
felt GREAT.. About the showers.. They are free on the ship, and seldom used, as far as I could tell, but, they are to only be used while
the ship is out to sea.. The sign says they release the shower water while at sea, but cannot if they are docked.. They have to store the
shower water if it is used in the port, and that they do not want to do.. Not a problem.. The ship is out to sea for long period of times.
It is now 10:15 PM.. Still got about three hours to go.. So, I'll keep typing. What might be of interest to some is the path that we have
taken. We left Sitka. Traveled through the night, and arrived at a little place called Petersburg at around 12:30 PM, I think it was.. This is
the first chance we have had to get to our cars.. Several people are getting off for good, but several people like me just want to get to
their cars.. The ones with dogs in the cars are really in a hurry to get to the dogs.. They get their dog, then take them off the ship to go to
the bathroom all over everything in sight!!!!!! Me, I go to the car, put my days packs(2), in the car, get out my partially eaten bag of
Doritos, and start the process of finishing off the bag, as I head out the ship door.. Good eating!!!!! By the time I get to the terminal, the
chips are gone and I ditch the bag in the trash can at the terminal. There is another reason for getting off the ship. I want to be able to
say I have been on Petersburg.. I have about 30 minutes to explore. I have to be back on the ship at 1:15. The doors close at 1:30 we
set sail at 1:45, or something like that.. Anyway, I do my walk and head back for the ship.. I am following some people who have two dogs.
These are dogs that have now pottied on Petersburg. When we get to the security gate, the man there opens the gate as if to let up in..
The dog people go marching in as if they own the place, and I expect to join them, but no. The man stops me and tells me I have to go
through the terminal. I say WHAT. Dogs rank higher than people here. Yes. I am two feet from being through the gate with the dog
people, but cannot go in.. I am told I have to walk around the building, through the building, then back to within 2 feet of where I was must
standing.. I get it done, but do you think I am happy?? Think about it.
I have to do the security thing with my ticket and etc. Only thing is, when I had the lady my ticket and ID, she says she cannot be bribed to
get on the ship.. I must have looked puzzled, then looked at the card she was handing back to me.. It was my credit card.!!!!! Dogs, they
messed up my mind.. I take the credit card, give her my drivers license, get checked though and off I go..
The next leg of our trip is much more fun. We have to run the Narrows in this thing.. You talk about tight, the little bit of water that they
squeezed this thing through was not much.. The driver did a great job.. We did not scrape anywhere along the route.. Took about an
hour to wiggle through. For this event, there were lots of people out on the deck to watch.. Not much to take photos of, but was neat to
get close up with the trees and rocks!!!!!! Once through, they threw the coals to it and we headed to Wrangel. I think we landed around
2:30 pm.. They gave us another chance to get to our cars and go off the ship to run around a bit, which I did.. Had to be back on the ship
at 3:30 PM. I was back at 3:15 PM. The ship took off again at 3:45 PM.. Was not long before everyone was getting ready for dinner, etc..
They have a cafeteria on board, and a rather large number of people eat there, but I chose to eat the food I brought. The foods they
have are not the type of thing I would eat, plus the prices are very high. For lunch, they gave people a bowl of pasta with some meat
sauce poured over it, for $10.95. OH, I think you got some garlic bread with it.
With only a couple of hours left, I could work on my photos, or go take a nap.. I would like to work on my photos, but this laptop monitor is
not good enough for photo editing. It is good enough to for a few things, but for the most part, I will have to wait until I get home to do the
better stuff. I realize though that my Alaskan Challenge is quickly coming to an end. I have already gotten out the maps for the drive
through Canada, down along the west coast. Not sure how far south I will be able to get, but I am determined to get to the Redwoods
National Park. This has been on my do-list for years, and with any luck, I will get there on this trip. I hear the drive along the west coast is
really neat. I hope the battle I have had with the rain is over by the time I get there.. Speaking of rain, it did rain on us today, so I have
had another rain day!!!!! I spoke to a local this afternoon, and he says rain is the norm here. I had to wonder how long the photo people
have to wait to get those sunny pictures they put in the advertisement.. I think the sun only shines up here about 3 days per year.
Someone thinks that eating fish keeps you from missing the sunlight. They eat a lot of fish!!!!!!!!! I do not like fish, of any kind, so , I have
to have sun!!!!!!!!!! I would not rate Alaska as a tourist destination unless you like fish.. Fish they have a lot of.. Too bad I do not like the
stuff. Also, if you plan visit Alaska, bring lots of money. They only way to see Alaska is either by boat or my air. Being in a car will not get
it done. And, even in a boat or a plane, you may not see anything, due to weather.. That is just how it is.. If you want good photos of
Alaska, buy them from someone who lives here and has the time to wait for the sun to shine!!!! :-))) I have some good photos from this
trip, and I have seen some good photos taken by other people, but it is all a matter of luck.. Just being here is not enough.. I have seen a
lot of cruise ships parked in the rain, and I have seen a lot of cruise customers who were dripping wet. The ones that were in the
shopping places did not notice the rain, and the ones that were trying to do tours of the great outdoors were listening to the tour guide
trying to put a positive spin on the rain issue.. I think I have said this before, but just for the record, I will mention it again, there is times of
hard rain, just like back home, but most of the time the rain here is a mist.. You will get wet, but it just takes a little longer.. And as
reminder, rain is no reason for the locals to stop doing anything. They Rollerblade in it, sit and eat pizza in it, play basketball in it, and the
list goes on.. Most everyone is wearing rubber boots and wearing a hoody, or whatever it is called.. And this one is nearly the best.
Yesterday I think it was, I was coming across the suspension bridge in Sitka. Walking towards me on the bridge was a man and a woman,
chatting away as they walked. Each was carrying and umbrella, and it was raining, but neither of them was using the umbrellas, they were
just carrying them. For what!!!!!!!!! To ward off the sun, in case it came out!!!!!!!! Can you image that. These people carrying umbrellas
to shield themselves from the sun!!!!!!!! Well, I do not know the truth about that one, but to be carrying the umbrellas by their side, while
walking in the rain, was just the best of memories I have of that day.
11:00 PM.. I think I will go take a nap. Also, I need to think about my issue coming up.. We are supposed to land at 0130.. That being the
case, where am I supposed to camp at that time of day.. Looks like I am going to have to be creative!!!!!!!!
................. Update to Update... It is now almost 1100 on 2010-08-10.. I am in Ketchikan. I got my nap last night.. Slept until about 0115,
when the intercom on the ship woke everyone up. I was sleeping on the couch thing again.. Everyone is up and moving soon.. We are
supposed to land in about 20 minutes. We do. At 0140 we touch land, so to speak. By 0200 hundred, they are letting up off the ship..
Now, here is the problem, what does one do at 0200 in a strange place.. No campsite, no hotels, no nothing.. I circle the parking lot for
awhile, and find a likely spot to spend the night, if allowed.. I go in the terminal and talk to the man behind the counter.. I tell him of my
issue.. He says the office will be open all night, so just camp where I am.. Meaning, it is okay to sleep in my car in the parking lot, as long
as I am not in the loading lanes.. I go to the bathroom, get some travel booklets and head for the car.. In short time I have set me up for
sleeping and have drifted off... The man in the terminal had told me one of my camping options was to go to the Walmart store up the
street!!!! Walmart!! In Ketchikan!!! I must be getting close to home!!
Before long it was daylight and my watch said it was 0730.. I get up, go in the terminal to use the bathroom.. The boat I came in on has
just left.. It left at 0700.. I do my business and head back to the car.. Now it is time to go check out the Walmart!! I do. Walmart I did find,
but it is a mini-thing compared to the ones back home. But, they have Doritos!! Have to eat Doritos in each major town!!
Now it is time to eat.. I head down the street.. On the way, I spy a gas station.. Its a Safeway station and the gas is now going for 3.129, or
something like that.. I fill up.. Then I ask about food.. The question and answer session with the clerk leads me to where I am sitting right
now.. McDonalds.. I eat, I pick out some photos to send, I finish the last update, and now it is time to send it, go to the bathroom, and go
find the visitor center, to work out a tourist plan for the next few days... I can leave here on the 13th or the 15th.. The weather is
supposed to be good for the next few days, so I have more options.. Stay tuned to see what I end up doing!!!
The photos attached will be of our sister ship as it meets us, then Petersburg, Wrangel, and points in between...
Click here to go to Page Three
2010-08-10, Alaska Update, Late Edition
Does the water go all the way around this island? I did not hear this question myself, but I was told about it!!! Now why start talking about this
adventure with a question? Cause I am still puzzled by some of the things I do see and hear.. Kinda stops you in your tracks.. The one occasion
that comes to mind was yesterday.. I was in my office here, McDonalds, one of the wifi hotpots in town.. There are not many.. Even the library
here does not have wifi!! This town needs a lot of upgrading... More on that later... But back to the story. And, it is a true story.. I come into my
office, I am eating lunch and I start to overhear a conversation between a tall blonde and a heavy set brunette. I gather from the conversation
that the blonde and her man, whatever that is, is looking to rent an apartment. The brunette is trying to help. The blonde and her man seem to
be short on money. They think they have work here in town.. They have no references other that her parents.. And, it would seem money is an
issue.. The man is supposed to have some money coming in soon, that is owed to him.. He is supposed to be going to work in the canneries!! ??
He finally comes in.. He is a winner!! Way overweight, tattoos, and the list goes on.. He should have stayed in school a few more years, from
what I am gathering in the conversation.. For two people trying to get an apartment, they are way out on the edge... I am surprised the brunette
did not just get up and leave.. I had finally laughed enough inside my mind and needed a break, so I left to go look for other things to do.. Now
you would think the story would end there, but it does not... That will come later...
At some point, I go to the place downtown to look for the visitor center.. I let some fast talking sales people talk me into doing the seaplane ride
this day instead of later when there might be more sun.. I was hoping to do this on a sunny day, but they were trying to fill a plane and I saved
about 70?? dollars by going this day.. I know I mentioned some of this earlier, but now I have more info to share.. I paid for the flight, hurried and
drove to the place where I was to fly. Now mind ya, I paid for the flight as a last minute deal, now I have to find the place.. That is not easy in this
town.. I need to write a book on this town.. It will tell you things the tour books never mention.. One of the items is parking.. There is none, for all
practical purposes.. But, I find the place, park, join the other riders and take off.. I am thinking the plane I am flying in is a Cessna.. because the
man at the sales off tells me that they are trying to fill a small plane.. So off we go.. Our pilot is a guy named Steve.. Real nice guy, and as it
turns out, he and his wife own the plane and the flying service. This is my first float plane ride, and was not sure what to expect, but Steve made
if seem like the most natural thing in the world to do.. Zoom, we were off the water and gone.. I was sitting behind the pilot.. Now this is no big
deal, but I am here because I was the last to get on the plane.. Takes about 22 minutes to reach the Fjords and start the tour through the hills.. I
really wanted to be here when there were sunny skies, but now I find that the bigger issue is that I cannot see out of this darn thing.. It is like
looking at the world through a soda straw. These planes are not made for tourist to take photos from.. These things are for hauling freight.. The
windows are small, the glass is deformed, my head is higher than the top of the door, the strut is in the way, and the list goes on.. I would have
thought that for all the tourists coming to these type places, a special plane would have been designed just for flying tours.. With any luck,
someday, someone will design a tourist friendly plane!!!!!!!! We land on a small mountain lake, spend about 15 minutes taking some memory
shots, and then we are off again.. We circle a few hills and head back to the office.. Was a nice flight, but hard to see anything from this method
of travel..
Now back to the renters story!!! Don't want to miss this.. I am at the campground last night, not long before dark.. A man and woman are out
looking for wood to burn.. I think I hear the woman tell the man that she has stepped in some dog poop.. Now they-she has a mess to deal with.
Such is life!! But, I forget about it and get on with my life.. I need to do some housekeeping on the car.. And I do.. I straighten things up.. An act
called Vogelizing the car, that is another story.. But, once the car is straightened, I decide to go over the tour books and see what I should do on
the 11th, that is today.
While I am there, the man, from the renter story comes by, stops to visit.. Asks me how it is going, I say pretty good, but struggling with the rain..
He tells me he can handle the rain and everything else. He has spent years in the scouts.. And he knows how to survive in this area. He tells me
he is here to go work in the canneries, or maybe Safeway, cause they want him back. He tells me is looking for wood to cook dinner for his
wife!!! He is looking for wood.. He finally goes on with his mission of finding wood and I have made some hot coffee on the little stove I have with
me.. He had asked about the type of fuel I was using.. I tell him.. Isn't long til he is gone.. He has got to use his skills to do dinner.. I am drinking
my coffee and reading the tour books when he shows up again.. This time he has an old rusty can with him and he wants some of my stove fuel
to start a fire.. He has tried everything and nothing works on his rainforest wood!!!!! :-)) I can just see me pouring the fuel in this can, then him
burning himself to death with it.. !!!!!!!!! I tell him I am against anyone using this fuel for starting fires, too dangerous, but that I have something
better.. I dig in my stash of stuff and get for him a piece of firestarter material that is much safer... I tell him how to use it, and off he goes.. Never
saw him again.. I hope it all worked out!!!!
Now back to the flying story.. This morning, the 11th, I come into town for breakfast. I am sitting in very spot eating and playing on the computer
when I start talking to some older men who are here for their morning coffee.. I learn that one of them flies and I tell them I went flying yesterday..
In the conversation I mention the problem of downdrafts in the mountains and how I am surprised there are not a lot of crashes here.. They said
there are.. But, people keep flying.. Then one man tells me of a man who was flying a Beaver a few years ago, when a downdraft got it and
caused it to crash. Several people were killed and the pilot, who got out alive, was burned pretty bad on his face and hands as he tried to get
people out of the fire.. I tell them that my pilot was scarred pretty bad and looked like he had been burned.. We talk more and they tell me my
pilot was the same pilot that was flying the plane that went down. Was a horrible thing to have happen.. I am surprised he went back into the air,
but he did, and I flew with him yesterday.. He seemed like he was really good, so it would be hard to think of the crash as pilot error...
Today, the 11th was pretty unique in that after the men left, a woman joined me and started telling me about her life in Alaska. She is one of
those live off the land experts.. Nice looking lady, smart, has done a lot of things, and at around the late 50s, she still has a lot to do.. She and
her ex had a dogsled tour company for awhile. Then after the divorce she went on to other things.. The list of jobs and travels were many, but
the latest, from what I could gather was being an underwater photographer in the tropics for people who were there on vacation.. We would still
be talking but she had a ferry to catch, so she took off. She was headed to Prince of Wales island, where she has some property to deal with..
When she was gone, I finished up a few things and went to the Lunberjack show, which was pretty good, then I walked around town.. After the
walk, I did a drive on the road south, the end.. Then came back here to eat and do this typing...
Now I am out of time.. Got to wind this up and get to the campground before they close the gates... I am sending extra photos because I could
not decide which ones to drop..
Stay tuned.. I will be exploring some tomorrow, then I am not sure.. I was planning to leave on the 15, may move that up to the 13th....
Click here to see images from today.
Does the water go all the way around this island? I did not hear this question myself, but I was told about it!!! Now why start talking about this
adventure with a question? Cause I am still puzzled by some of the things I do see and hear.. Kinda stops you in your tracks.. The one occasion
that comes to mind was yesterday.. I was in my office here, McDonalds, one of the wifi hotpots in town.. There are not many.. Even the library
here does not have wifi!! This town needs a lot of upgrading... More on that later... But back to the story. And, it is a true story.. I come into my
office, I am eating lunch and I start to overhear a conversation between a tall blonde and a heavy set brunette. I gather from the conversation
that the blonde and her man, whatever that is, is looking to rent an apartment. The brunette is trying to help. The blonde and her man seem to
be short on money. They think they have work here in town.. They have no references other that her parents.. And, it would seem money is an
issue.. The man is supposed to have some money coming in soon, that is owed to him.. He is supposed to be going to work in the canneries!! ??
He finally comes in.. He is a winner!! Way overweight, tattoos, and the list goes on.. He should have stayed in school a few more years, from
what I am gathering in the conversation.. For two people trying to get an apartment, they are way out on the edge... I am surprised the brunette
did not just get up and leave.. I had finally laughed enough inside my mind and needed a break, so I left to go look for other things to do.. Now
you would think the story would end there, but it does not... That will come later...
At some point, I go to the place downtown to look for the visitor center.. I let some fast talking sales people talk me into doing the seaplane ride
this day instead of later when there might be more sun.. I was hoping to do this on a sunny day, but they were trying to fill a plane and I saved
about 70?? dollars by going this day.. I know I mentioned some of this earlier, but now I have more info to share.. I paid for the flight, hurried and
drove to the place where I was to fly. Now mind ya, I paid for the flight as a last minute deal, now I have to find the place.. That is not easy in this
town.. I need to write a book on this town.. It will tell you things the tour books never mention.. One of the items is parking.. There is none, for all
practical purposes.. But, I find the place, park, join the other riders and take off.. I am thinking the plane I am flying in is a Cessna.. because the
man at the sales off tells me that they are trying to fill a small plane.. So off we go.. Our pilot is a guy named Steve.. Real nice guy, and as it
turns out, he and his wife own the plane and the flying service. This is my first float plane ride, and was not sure what to expect, but Steve made
if seem like the most natural thing in the world to do.. Zoom, we were off the water and gone.. I was sitting behind the pilot.. Now this is no big
deal, but I am here because I was the last to get on the plane.. Takes about 22 minutes to reach the Fjords and start the tour through the hills.. I
really wanted to be here when there were sunny skies, but now I find that the bigger issue is that I cannot see out of this darn thing.. It is like
looking at the world through a soda straw. These planes are not made for tourist to take photos from.. These things are for hauling freight.. The
windows are small, the glass is deformed, my head is higher than the top of the door, the strut is in the way, and the list goes on.. I would have
thought that for all the tourists coming to these type places, a special plane would have been designed just for flying tours.. With any luck,
someday, someone will design a tourist friendly plane!!!!!!!! We land on a small mountain lake, spend about 15 minutes taking some memory
shots, and then we are off again.. We circle a few hills and head back to the office.. Was a nice flight, but hard to see anything from this method
of travel..
Now back to the renters story!!! Don't want to miss this.. I am at the campground last night, not long before dark.. A man and woman are out
looking for wood to burn.. I think I hear the woman tell the man that she has stepped in some dog poop.. Now they-she has a mess to deal with.
Such is life!! But, I forget about it and get on with my life.. I need to do some housekeeping on the car.. And I do.. I straighten things up.. An act
called Vogelizing the car, that is another story.. But, once the car is straightened, I decide to go over the tour books and see what I should do on
the 11th, that is today.
While I am there, the man, from the renter story comes by, stops to visit.. Asks me how it is going, I say pretty good, but struggling with the rain..
He tells me he can handle the rain and everything else. He has spent years in the scouts.. And he knows how to survive in this area. He tells me
he is here to go work in the canneries, or maybe Safeway, cause they want him back. He tells me is looking for wood to cook dinner for his
wife!!! He is looking for wood.. He finally goes on with his mission of finding wood and I have made some hot coffee on the little stove I have with
me.. He had asked about the type of fuel I was using.. I tell him.. Isn't long til he is gone.. He has got to use his skills to do dinner.. I am drinking
my coffee and reading the tour books when he shows up again.. This time he has an old rusty can with him and he wants some of my stove fuel
to start a fire.. He has tried everything and nothing works on his rainforest wood!!!!! :-)) I can just see me pouring the fuel in this can, then him
burning himself to death with it.. !!!!!!!!! I tell him I am against anyone using this fuel for starting fires, too dangerous, but that I have something
better.. I dig in my stash of stuff and get for him a piece of firestarter material that is much safer... I tell him how to use it, and off he goes.. Never
saw him again.. I hope it all worked out!!!!
Now back to the flying story.. This morning, the 11th, I come into town for breakfast. I am sitting in very spot eating and playing on the computer
when I start talking to some older men who are here for their morning coffee.. I learn that one of them flies and I tell them I went flying yesterday..
In the conversation I mention the problem of downdrafts in the mountains and how I am surprised there are not a lot of crashes here.. They said
there are.. But, people keep flying.. Then one man tells me of a man who was flying a Beaver a few years ago, when a downdraft got it and
caused it to crash. Several people were killed and the pilot, who got out alive, was burned pretty bad on his face and hands as he tried to get
people out of the fire.. I tell them that my pilot was scarred pretty bad and looked like he had been burned.. We talk more and they tell me my
pilot was the same pilot that was flying the plane that went down. Was a horrible thing to have happen.. I am surprised he went back into the air,
but he did, and I flew with him yesterday.. He seemed like he was really good, so it would be hard to think of the crash as pilot error...
Today, the 11th was pretty unique in that after the men left, a woman joined me and started telling me about her life in Alaska. She is one of
those live off the land experts.. Nice looking lady, smart, has done a lot of things, and at around the late 50s, she still has a lot to do.. She and
her ex had a dogsled tour company for awhile. Then after the divorce she went on to other things.. The list of jobs and travels were many, but
the latest, from what I could gather was being an underwater photographer in the tropics for people who were there on vacation.. We would still
be talking but she had a ferry to catch, so she took off. She was headed to Prince of Wales island, where she has some property to deal with..
When she was gone, I finished up a few things and went to the Lunberjack show, which was pretty good, then I walked around town.. After the
walk, I did a drive on the road south, the end.. Then came back here to eat and do this typing...
Now I am out of time.. Got to wind this up and get to the campground before they close the gates... I am sending extra photos because I could
not decide which ones to drop..
Stay tuned.. I will be exploring some tomorrow, then I am not sure.. I was planning to leave on the 15, may move that up to the 13th....
Click here to see images from today.
2010-08-11,
Greetings from Ketchikan , Alaska .. This is going to be a short update, because I got off to a late start today, then had a laptop with a
dead battery, etc, etc.. Then, at McDonalds, my new office, I ran into a few people to talk to.. The last one was a lady who had lived a
full life here in the area, doing dog team tours, etc, then ended up in the tropics being an underwater photographer, etc... Interesting
person, to be sure.. She just left to catch her ferry ride to the Island called Prince of Wales, where she had property of some kind, to
check on....
I just finished lunch, here at McDonalds, and will be heading off to see the LumberJack Show in a few minutes... It is 1:30.. I called the
show people. The next show is at 3:15 pm.. Supposed to be a good show.. I do have stories to tell from yesterday's adventure, so, I'll
include those with the next update... I am doing this update mostly so that I can share a few images from the plane ride to the Misty
Fjords yesterday... Was cloudy, but got it done...
Greetings from Ketchikan , Alaska .. This is going to be a short update, because I got off to a late start today, then had a laptop with a
dead battery, etc, etc.. Then, at McDonalds, my new office, I ran into a few people to talk to.. The last one was a lady who had lived a
full life here in the area, doing dog team tours, etc, then ended up in the tropics being an underwater photographer, etc... Interesting
person, to be sure.. She just left to catch her ferry ride to the Island called Prince of Wales, where she had property of some kind, to
check on....
I just finished lunch, here at McDonalds, and will be heading off to see the LumberJack Show in a few minutes... It is 1:30.. I called the
show people. The next show is at 3:15 pm.. Supposed to be a good show.. I do have stories to tell from yesterday's adventure, so, I'll
include those with the next update... I am doing this update mostly so that I can share a few images from the plane ride to the Misty
Fjords yesterday... Was cloudy, but got it done...
2010-08-12,
It is now 1 PM here in Ketchikan. The message I am sending below was written last night after I got back to the camp... There are no
photos this time.. I will share photos later.. I just finished lunch at McD, again.. I got up this morning, ate at the campground, then
headed out to drive to some lakes and explore what seemed to be some old log roads.. The sun is out in force, so I want to see a much
as I can.. Will be back later to share images..
Note.. The Alaska Challenge is getting close to the end.. I stopped by the ferry office awhile ago and purchased my last ticket.. I will
leave on the 13th at 9:45 PM from here and arrive in Prince Rupert at 5:15 AM on the 14th.... From there I will start the land segment of
the trip home.. Will head for Seattle and points along the coast, going south.. Plan to be back in STL on Sept 01.
Written last night.............................................................
2010-08-11, Special Edition
It is still the 11th of the month, but after sending the last update, a few minutes ago, from my office at McDonalds, I hurried to get to the
campground.. I think they close the gate at 10 PM.. Most of these places do.. I am in a Forest Service campground and all, or at least
most of them, close the gate, and lock it, at 10 PM.. This one opens at 0600, others open at 0700.That being said, when a person
needs out earlier, such as to catch a ferry, they give you the combination so you can get out.. Also, I am chatting away here because I
am full of soda and the computer battery is charged! This would be a good time to tell you more about Ketchikan.. The basic statement
about Ketchikan is that it is not a car friendly town, actually, I do not see it as a visitor friendly town. All that being said, I am sure it does
what it is here to do, serve the fishing industry.. My guess is that this town was started because of the fishing, and maybe some other
stuff, but the tourist had to have been an after-thought. If you come in on a cruise ship, and there are many here, all the time, then you
are in pretty good shape.. But, if you arrive by car or other mode of transportation, you are out of luck... In fact, things are such a mess
here, I can tell you that I do not remember seeing an RV anywhere around here.. By RV, I mean the big boy types. There are a few of
the little things here, but not the big monsters that I seen in all the other places.. The streets here are not built for anything larger than
my car, and there is no public parking that I could find.. Even the people at the visitor center could not tell me where to park.
When I arrived in town, I went straight to this campground and secured a campsite.. Campsites here cost 10 dollars per night. There is
a pit toilet and there is a water source for potable water. Nothing else. It is a nice place, so all is well with the camping. After getting my
site, and paying for two nights, I set up my tent, posted my PAID tab on the post, etc, and headed into town. I drove around for about 30
minutes before I found a place to park.. I did park twice before, but discovered I was illegally parked and had to move. The best I could
do was get in an area that indicated it was a two hour parking zone. With the car secure, I headed to the visitor center. There I talked to
Larry, who worked the info desk.. Before anything else, I asked about the parking.. Where is the public parking lot.. He tells me there
are none.. Two hours at a time is the best he knows of, except for the people that work downtown. They pay for parking, somewhere.
Larry says he pays 30 dollars a month to park in some little lot there in the wharf area. Now, last night, I look in the Milepost book, and
look for parking.. The info there suggests that there are two areas that a person can park for 5 dollars per day, and gave some info..
Today I ask the men in the McDonalds about these areas and they never heard of them.. So, who knows.
Now speaking of parking, here is more.. The lumberjack show, which I wanted to see, is downtown, not far from the visitor center.. I have
seen it and did not see parking for it. So, instead of driving down there this evening with the thought of parking, going in to inquire
about the show, I call on my cell. I ask the basic questions about price and times, etc,.. Then, I ask where I park, the girl tells me I can
park in their lot.. I say to her, “you have a parking lot?”, she says yes.. I say “great”. I drive down and start looking for their lot.. I do not
find one. I park illegally again, I go inside the office-giftshop, and ask again about the price-times-and parking.. I am told, the price, the
time, and that there is no parking!!!!!!!!!! Go figure.. I say where do your other customers park if they have cars.. They say all their
customers come from the ship, and do not need parking.. I ask again about the pay parking lot I have read about.. They never heard of
it.. They tell me the show is only one hour long, so just park in the two hour slots and come on in.. Sounds great, right, but now the trick
is to find one.. I get my car and start driving. I do find one, a few blocks away.. I park, I walk around until I have about 20 minutes 30
minutes left, then I move the car again.. This time I find a place fairly close to the show place.. Lucky boy!!!!!
The show as pretty good.. This show, along with a lot of the other shows and tours is taken up with talk.. Kinda like watching a football
game.. Four hours to see 3 minutes of action.. But it was good.. Now here is another twist.. When I go to pay my way in, I give the lady
my credit card, which I use for everything, even in Canada.I ask her if there are any discounts for anything,.. We are talking about old
age, AAA, AARP, etc.. Nope, no discounts.. So she continues to ring up my charge.. I am supposed to be charged 37 dollars for this
show, or so I have been told.. I sign the paper thingie, get my receipt and my ticket.. Later, for whatever reason, I found that receipt and
from the best I can tell, she charged me 5 dollars and 30 cents.. !!!!!!!! Now what.. Guess I will study on it later.. Maybe it was a parking
discount!!!!!!!!!!!! Or and apology for the bad info I got earlier about the parking lot.. You know, without getting into a whole different
subject, I should get a free ticket into heaven just for putting up with some of the people I meet in my life!!!!!!!!!! Some have indicated
they feel the same way about dealing with me, so the books may be balanced here somewhere, but I will have to give it more thought.
Bottom line, I would not encourage you to rush to Ketchikan, unless you are on a tour boat. If you are on a tour boat, you will feel love.
Otherwise, you probably won't, no, let me say, you will not feel loved.
Space here.. This place is packed as tight as a can of ???????, those little smelly fish in a can... This town has outgrown its
boundaries.. It is locked in.. It has the water in front and the solid rock mountain behind it.. There is nowhere to go.. I have seen, in
several places, where people are blasting and digging away at the mountain to make more room.. I think it is wasted effort.. The
mountain is big, and the rock that I have seen is what you and I would call SOLID!!!!!! I looked around on the south end of town for
space. In fact, I drove to the end of the road, going south, there is no more room for people. There is water, road, mountain, in that
order!!! On the 12th, I plan to drive north as far as I can, plus as many of the other roads as I can find.. With that, I think I am done
here, unless I want to shop for diamonds.. Every store sells diamonds. There is lots of stuff that claims to be made by natives, but I
would worry about that being true. What is a native.. Never saw one working on anything.. And, when you ask, you are told the person
actually lives and works in Fairbanks, or Anchorage, etc.. Could be China or Mexico.. Whatever they are selling, it is selling well or else
the doors would not be staying open.!!!!!!!!!
When I arrived here, I had a temp plan to leave on the 15th, which would get me to Prince Rupert at about 2:45 in the afternoon.. With
all that I have shared with ya about this place, I am thinking maybe I could wind this visit up and get out of here on the 13th, which is an
option, given the ferry schedule, provided they have room.. This would also help me with my travel plans further south. I have people in
Seattle that I would like to see for a few hours each, and one of the people I met lives in Oregon. The Oregon man wants me to stop by
for a chat when I come through.. So, by getting out of here, I have more social time further south.. Will have to decide tomorrow, the
12th.
IT DID NOT RAIN here today!!!!!!!!!!! And, I saw people swimming in the friggin water!!!!!! First it was two guys jumping off of a bridge in
town, then in was two guys and a gal, swimming in the open ocean, near a beach.. I did not check the water temp, but I may before I
leave.. I have to think it is darn cold!!!!!!!!!
OK, it is just after 1 PM, local time, and I want to look at my tour maps, etc for a few minutes before heading to bed.. Have to think about
when to leave this little fishing village!!! :-))
Note, one of my readers tells me to get a stamp canceled here, as Ketchikan has the longest(??) zip code in the system!!! I'll check that
out...
Stay tuned..
Click here for Update Photos
It is now 1 PM here in Ketchikan. The message I am sending below was written last night after I got back to the camp... There are no
photos this time.. I will share photos later.. I just finished lunch at McD, again.. I got up this morning, ate at the campground, then
headed out to drive to some lakes and explore what seemed to be some old log roads.. The sun is out in force, so I want to see a much
as I can.. Will be back later to share images..
Note.. The Alaska Challenge is getting close to the end.. I stopped by the ferry office awhile ago and purchased my last ticket.. I will
leave on the 13th at 9:45 PM from here and arrive in Prince Rupert at 5:15 AM on the 14th.... From there I will start the land segment of
the trip home.. Will head for Seattle and points along the coast, going south.. Plan to be back in STL on Sept 01.
Written last night.............................................................
2010-08-11, Special Edition
It is still the 11th of the month, but after sending the last update, a few minutes ago, from my office at McDonalds, I hurried to get to the
campground.. I think they close the gate at 10 PM.. Most of these places do.. I am in a Forest Service campground and all, or at least
most of them, close the gate, and lock it, at 10 PM.. This one opens at 0600, others open at 0700.That being said, when a person
needs out earlier, such as to catch a ferry, they give you the combination so you can get out.. Also, I am chatting away here because I
am full of soda and the computer battery is charged! This would be a good time to tell you more about Ketchikan.. The basic statement
about Ketchikan is that it is not a car friendly town, actually, I do not see it as a visitor friendly town. All that being said, I am sure it does
what it is here to do, serve the fishing industry.. My guess is that this town was started because of the fishing, and maybe some other
stuff, but the tourist had to have been an after-thought. If you come in on a cruise ship, and there are many here, all the time, then you
are in pretty good shape.. But, if you arrive by car or other mode of transportation, you are out of luck... In fact, things are such a mess
here, I can tell you that I do not remember seeing an RV anywhere around here.. By RV, I mean the big boy types. There are a few of
the little things here, but not the big monsters that I seen in all the other places.. The streets here are not built for anything larger than
my car, and there is no public parking that I could find.. Even the people at the visitor center could not tell me where to park.
When I arrived in town, I went straight to this campground and secured a campsite.. Campsites here cost 10 dollars per night. There is
a pit toilet and there is a water source for potable water. Nothing else. It is a nice place, so all is well with the camping. After getting my
site, and paying for two nights, I set up my tent, posted my PAID tab on the post, etc, and headed into town. I drove around for about 30
minutes before I found a place to park.. I did park twice before, but discovered I was illegally parked and had to move. The best I could
do was get in an area that indicated it was a two hour parking zone. With the car secure, I headed to the visitor center. There I talked to
Larry, who worked the info desk.. Before anything else, I asked about the parking.. Where is the public parking lot.. He tells me there
are none.. Two hours at a time is the best he knows of, except for the people that work downtown. They pay for parking, somewhere.
Larry says he pays 30 dollars a month to park in some little lot there in the wharf area. Now, last night, I look in the Milepost book, and
look for parking.. The info there suggests that there are two areas that a person can park for 5 dollars per day, and gave some info..
Today I ask the men in the McDonalds about these areas and they never heard of them.. So, who knows.
Now speaking of parking, here is more.. The lumberjack show, which I wanted to see, is downtown, not far from the visitor center.. I have
seen it and did not see parking for it. So, instead of driving down there this evening with the thought of parking, going in to inquire
about the show, I call on my cell. I ask the basic questions about price and times, etc,.. Then, I ask where I park, the girl tells me I can
park in their lot.. I say to her, “you have a parking lot?”, she says yes.. I say “great”. I drive down and start looking for their lot.. I do not
find one. I park illegally again, I go inside the office-giftshop, and ask again about the price-times-and parking.. I am told, the price, the
time, and that there is no parking!!!!!!!!!! Go figure.. I say where do your other customers park if they have cars.. They say all their
customers come from the ship, and do not need parking.. I ask again about the pay parking lot I have read about.. They never heard of
it.. They tell me the show is only one hour long, so just park in the two hour slots and come on in.. Sounds great, right, but now the trick
is to find one.. I get my car and start driving. I do find one, a few blocks away.. I park, I walk around until I have about 20 minutes 30
minutes left, then I move the car again.. This time I find a place fairly close to the show place.. Lucky boy!!!!!
The show as pretty good.. This show, along with a lot of the other shows and tours is taken up with talk.. Kinda like watching a football
game.. Four hours to see 3 minutes of action.. But it was good.. Now here is another twist.. When I go to pay my way in, I give the lady
my credit card, which I use for everything, even in Canada.I ask her if there are any discounts for anything,.. We are talking about old
age, AAA, AARP, etc.. Nope, no discounts.. So she continues to ring up my charge.. I am supposed to be charged 37 dollars for this
show, or so I have been told.. I sign the paper thingie, get my receipt and my ticket.. Later, for whatever reason, I found that receipt and
from the best I can tell, she charged me 5 dollars and 30 cents.. !!!!!!!! Now what.. Guess I will study on it later.. Maybe it was a parking
discount!!!!!!!!!!!! Or and apology for the bad info I got earlier about the parking lot.. You know, without getting into a whole different
subject, I should get a free ticket into heaven just for putting up with some of the people I meet in my life!!!!!!!!!! Some have indicated
they feel the same way about dealing with me, so the books may be balanced here somewhere, but I will have to give it more thought.
Bottom line, I would not encourage you to rush to Ketchikan, unless you are on a tour boat. If you are on a tour boat, you will feel love.
Otherwise, you probably won't, no, let me say, you will not feel loved.
Space here.. This place is packed as tight as a can of ???????, those little smelly fish in a can... This town has outgrown its
boundaries.. It is locked in.. It has the water in front and the solid rock mountain behind it.. There is nowhere to go.. I have seen, in
several places, where people are blasting and digging away at the mountain to make more room.. I think it is wasted effort.. The
mountain is big, and the rock that I have seen is what you and I would call SOLID!!!!!! I looked around on the south end of town for
space. In fact, I drove to the end of the road, going south, there is no more room for people. There is water, road, mountain, in that
order!!! On the 12th, I plan to drive north as far as I can, plus as many of the other roads as I can find.. With that, I think I am done
here, unless I want to shop for diamonds.. Every store sells diamonds. There is lots of stuff that claims to be made by natives, but I
would worry about that being true. What is a native.. Never saw one working on anything.. And, when you ask, you are told the person
actually lives and works in Fairbanks, or Anchorage, etc.. Could be China or Mexico.. Whatever they are selling, it is selling well or else
the doors would not be staying open.!!!!!!!!!
When I arrived here, I had a temp plan to leave on the 15th, which would get me to Prince Rupert at about 2:45 in the afternoon.. With
all that I have shared with ya about this place, I am thinking maybe I could wind this visit up and get out of here on the 13th, which is an
option, given the ferry schedule, provided they have room.. This would also help me with my travel plans further south. I have people in
Seattle that I would like to see for a few hours each, and one of the people I met lives in Oregon. The Oregon man wants me to stop by
for a chat when I come through.. So, by getting out of here, I have more social time further south.. Will have to decide tomorrow, the
12th.
IT DID NOT RAIN here today!!!!!!!!!!! And, I saw people swimming in the friggin water!!!!!! First it was two guys jumping off of a bridge in
town, then in was two guys and a gal, swimming in the open ocean, near a beach.. I did not check the water temp, but I may before I
leave.. I have to think it is darn cold!!!!!!!!!
OK, it is just after 1 PM, local time, and I want to look at my tour maps, etc for a few minutes before heading to bed.. Have to think about
when to leave this little fishing village!!! :-))
Note, one of my readers tells me to get a stamp canceled here, as Ketchikan has the longest(??) zip code in the system!!! I'll check that
out...
Stay tuned..
Click here for Update Photos
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Tom Ballard Photography
| A window in Tom's universe. This is more than a website of photos, it is a place to share photos, adventures, stories, opinions, and information. I hope you enjoy the time you spend here. |
