Anchoage Aug 1

We all slept late on Saturday. Traveling is tiring and all the new things we saw and the thought of ending our time together seemed to mentally wipe us all out. My daughters would be ending one vacation with us and starting another week long vacation with their Grandma Mary in Door County. My wife would be returning to her residency. I would be back on the bike to drive home. Ok, 2000 miles of it would be sitting on a ferryboat running along the coast. Regardless of the path that each of us was heading toward, we were all a little nervous about the change in the routine. I got up and started packing my stuff. It’s hard to do a good job of packing stuff on a bike. There just isn’t a hell of a lot of room. After being with my family at Denali all clothes were dirty. The tent and sleeping bag smelled like a foot from being stored damp. So I washed it all. My daughters woke up around eleven and both were in great moods. I finished packing and then we all went to the pool. On the way there the girls showed me how to run like mad caribou. The pool was freezing but I swam. A promise is a promise, Leaann reminded me. We spent about an hour swimming and then I decided it was time to get on the road. It was a bittersweet day. I must say it really sucks to watch your daughters cry. After countless hugs and goodbyes in the parking lot I was off for the boat. The first leg of the trip was to Tok, about 350 miles.