Burlington, Washington

It's good to be back in the USA. Here are the girls enjoying some much missed Mexican Food in Burlington, Washington.

Hudson's Hope, BC

We left Skagway at noon on Thursday and traveled about 500 miles, spending the night at a rest stop near Watson Lake (took about 12 hours).

Yesterday we traveled another 500 miles (12 hours) and spent last night at a great little RV Park in Hudson's Hope, BC.  The Dupont Ent. RV Park is the nicest park we've stayed in.  The facilities are immaculate and each site has a lush, landscaped yard.  And the owners, Jean and Carmen, are great.  Makes me wish we weren't just passing through.

We'll be getting back on the road within the hour, 700 miles to go to be back in the lower 48.  That should put us in Washington fairly early on Sunday.

Skagway, Alaska

Overlook at Skagway, Alaska

We left Anchorage Sunday, August 8th and arrived in Skagway on Monday.  We made better time than expected, only stopping to sleep along Lake Kluane in Yukon Territory. 

Skagway was the port used by stampeders during the Klondike Gold Rush in 1897 and 1898.  It has a large collection of period buildings (mostly restored by the Parks Service).  Above is a picture of Mickey and the girls at the overlook above Skagway.  Note the cruise ships.  Today Skagway relies primarily on tourism, with a 5 month tourist season.  During those months the town has a population of about 3000 (not counting tourist).  During the winter, the population shrinks to roughly 800. 

Downtown Skagway shopping district

Being a nurse, I found the medical care situation really interesting.  They have recently built a medical clinic here in Skagway, but still do not have a full time physician.  The clinic is staffed by a PA and nurses.  The closest hospital is in Juneau, a 6 hour ferry ride or 1 hour flight in a small plane.  Transportation by either route costs approximately $100.  For emergent cases (heart attach, stroke, etc) medic-vac service cost $15,000.  Expectant mothers go to Juneau about two weeks before their due date and stay until the baby is a couple of weeks old.  That's something you expect to hear about in some foreign country. 

We've gone on a tour of Skagway in a classic car (1946 Cadillac limo), visited the Skagway Museum, shopped, and explored.  We found the Chilkoot Trail head (the first trail used during the gold rush).  We also spent two evening at the Tidal Flats near the old Dyea town site.  We were looking for bear feeding on salmon.  The first night they arrived after we left, and last night we were just about the last folks to leave and still didn't see any.  But we did see beautiful bald eagles and enjoyed gorgeous views of the mountains and Harding Glacier.

We're leaving Skagway this afternoon.  It will take us a few days to get through Canada.  There's been a forest fire burning along the route we need to take South, so we're not sure how much delay that will cause.  We are headed for Washington State and will try to post along the way.  If you don't see anything new, it's because we don't have service.  We'll be in touch as soon as we can.

Family Time and Fishing Trips

 Kids getting ready to board the plane Tuesday morning.

We had a great visit with family this week.  Andy, Austin, and Michael Austin flew in to Anchorage Monday night.  We got up at 5:30am Tuesday morning to be at Trail Ridge Air (http://www.trailridgeair.com/) for our fly in fishing trip.  We took two float planes into the Alaskan bush for 3 days of fishing at Lake Alexander.

 Mickey, Katy, Hannah, Michael Austin, and I took one plane, while Andy and Austin took another smaller plane. Here's a picture of us right before take off.  Mickey took this picture from the co-pilot's seat. 

Just before take off.

The plane was really loud, but we all wore ear plugs and did fine. Well, except Sophie, she hated it.  She shook and her little heart raced the whole time.  But she was fine as soon as we landed.  The kids really enjoyed the flight and watched out the windows constantly.

Austin and Andy taking off.

Mickey's view of the bush from the co-pilot's seat.

Our float plane touching down on Lake Alexander.

As soon as we landed and the gear was unloaded, the fishing began.  Mickey rigged up the poles and the kids couldn't wait to get started.  Here's Michael Austin reeling in the first fish with Uncle Andy's help.

Learning to cast by himself.

As usual, it rained.  Seems like we've had rain for at least a month.  But, we made the most of it and went out on the water when it was pretty ( and sometimes when it wasn't).  Below is a view of the lake with the mountains in the background.  This was taken on the water near our cabins.

We stayed in these cabins at Lake Alexander Lodge.  They were simple but nice and even had electricity during the day when the generator was running. 

Michael Austin showing off the bunk beds complete with mosquito nets.  The mosquitoes here in Alaska are huge.   We all smelled like Off within 10 minutes of being in camp.  The mosquito nets sure helped.

Michael Austin and Aunt Hannah

 

  Above is a picture of our group with Hans, the lodge's caretaker.  It was a pleasure meeting you Hans and thanks so much for the warm fires and use of the kitchen.  Look us up if you're ever back in Texas.

Fisher-woman, Katy

The guys spent most of their time fishing, while the kids and I fished (but not as seriously) and enjoyed time relaxing, reading, and playing games.

During dinner our last night, this moose appeared across the creek from the lodge.  She eventually swam across the creek and trotted up the bank right at our front door.  What a treat!

Our ride back to Anchorage.

 

Michael Austin trying not to miss a thing on the flight back to Anchorage.

On Friday, the men went on a day trip, while the kids and I went shopping.  They had a great time.  But you'll have to ask them who caught the fish.

 

We were entertained by Michael Austin at dinner before they caught their flight back to Texas.  Like his Papa says, he doesn't let the facts get in the way of a good story.

It was a great few days spent with family.  Thanks so much for coming to see us. 

Family's Here

Andy, Austin, and Michael Austin arrived safety this evening.  We had dinner and will be turning in early.  Up at 5:30am for our fly in fishing trip in the morning.  We'll be gone to a remote lake for 3 days of fishing and fun.  No electricity or other services, so I'll post again at the end of the week.

Arctic Thunder Air Show

Blue Angels

              
We're back in Anchorage at Elmendorf AFB.  The Arctic Thunder Air Show was here on base this weekend  (http://www.alaskaairshow.org/2009/12/08/welcome-to-arctic-thunder-2010/).  We went on Saturday and were fortunate to have the cloud cover lift enough to enjoy the show.  We saw the Canadian Snow Birds and the Navy Blue Angels,  just to name a few.  I must admit, Mickey was excited about going while the girls and I were skeptical.  But, we all agreed it was a great show.

Snow Birds

Snow Birds

Blue Angels

Blue Angels

Fairbanks and Denali

On Tuesday morning, July 27th, we went to the North Pole.  Yes, it is real.  We saw Santa's house and the reindeer.  The entire town has candy cane lamp posts and even the McDonald's arches sit atop candy cane posts. It's Christmas all year long and so pretty with the cool weather and tall trees everywhere.

We spent Tuesday afternoon on the campus of the University of Alaska Fairbanks.  We visited the University of Alaska Museum of the North ( http://www.uaf.edu/museum/).  It was a great place to learn more about the native people and World War II's effect on their culture.

We also spent some time at the university's Large Animal Research Station (http://lars.iab.uaf.edu/index.php).  They do research with musk ox, caribou, and reindeer.  The musk ox shed Qiviut every Spring. It's one of the rarest fibers on earth and is currently valued at $25.00 per ounce.  An average musk ox will produce 5 pounds of Qiviut per year.  The native people use it for knitting to make hats, scarves, and sweaters.

We learned the difference between caribou and reindeer.  Reindeer are a subspecies of caribou and originated in Siberia.  Reindeer are domesticated and used for hauling freight or portage. Caribou, on the other hand, are not domesticated.  The photo is of a caribou.  Caribou have long thin legs that consist of bone and tendon, no muscle.  The lack of muscle in their legs allow their leg temperature to remain in the 50s while their body core temp is 105.  Very useful for running through thick snow.  The tendons in their legs make a clicking sound when they walk.  Caribou love to eat willow.

Tuesday evening we took a dinner cruise aboard a steamboat in the Chinook River at Fairbanks.  We had a nice meal of prime rib and salmon.  The picture below is of a traditional fish camp along the river.  There is a large fish trap in the river and salmon hanging to dry in the shelter to the left of the cabin. 

On Wednesday we did some shopping in downtown Fairbanks.  Now this is absolutely the place to find cold weather gear.  Hats and gloves and boots and coats of all kinds.   We're finding that it's really interesting to shop in places where the climate is so different from our own.  You see so many new things.

While in downtown Fairbanks, we went to the Ice Museum  

(http://www.icemuseum.com/).  We saw numerous ice sculptures and watched a film about the World Ice Art Championship held each year in Fairbanks (http://www.icealaska.com/).  We also watched a demonstration by one of the sculptors.

The girls and I spent some time at the Farthest North Girl Scout Council office.  We visited with the staff, bought some Farthest North Council patches, and received information on some of their badges.  For example, they have badges for ice fishing and dog mushing, just to name a few. The girls are working on the dog mushing badge now.  They thought it was really interesting to see the different badges available in this area. I think it has helped to renew their interest in badge work.

We did the El Dorado Gold Mine Tour outside Fairbanks (http://www.eldoradogoldmine.com/) on Wednesday evening.   This was a great tour with a train that took you through the mine where you could see the different layers and old gold mining equipment.  We also saw an operating sleuth.  The material that's left at the end of the sleuth process is called concentrate.  This concentrate is what we're using to pan for gold in the picture below.  By using concentrate, they guarantee that you'll find gold in your pan or they give you more concentrate. And sure enough, we all found gold.  Hannah did the best, she found $ 21.00 worth.

On Thursday we visited Denali National Park.  It was cloudy again, as it usually is here.  And you can only drive in 15 miles along the park road in your own vehicle.  There are bus tours that take you in farther, but with the weather, we opted not to do that.  It was disappointing to be here for a second time and still not get to see Mount McKinley.  It's been so rainy here that even the locals are saying "It's like we didn't even get a summer."

We did see a moose in Denali and that was exciting.  Sure made me wish for a larger zoom lens though.

Sophie continues to be a great little traveler.  She enjoys going and is very disappointed whenever she does have to stay behind.  Here's a picture of her settling in for a nap in the back seat.