I awoke in the morning feeling like a tired roasted chicken. The ship stopped in Juneau at 2:00 am and the captain’s announcement kept me up till 4:00 am. The electric ceiling heat got cranked up and literally forced me out of my sleeping bag. It was like a little chick incubator. I have spent all summer waking up in weird places and spending the first few minutes trying to figure out where it was by rerunning the trip in fast-forwards in my mind. With this mornings view I was relieved of all those questions. The sun was out and all I could see was a beautiful ocean view. I stumbled around and made my way to the showers. When I got done cleaning up, the boat was just pulling into Sitka. I grabbed all my cameras and headed off the boat.
My phone rang and it was my wife Rebecca. Her return home had brought back all the stress of her residency. We talked for a while and I realized that I was really starting to miss home. This trip has been great and I can’t wait for the next one, but, I was starting to think about all the things at work and home that needed to be attended to. Most importantly, my wife was needing my support also.
After the call from my wife I explored Sitka. It was a fishing town. Like most of the land on the north west side of this continent it was owned and occupied by Russians. In the center of town is the oldest Russian Orthodox Church in North America. Outside of town is a park dedicated to the native culture called Totem Pole Park. A dozen totem poles were scattered along a 1.5 mile trail. The trail ran through an old black spruce forest. Walking the trail to the back of the park I saw a stream. Several people were talking and pointing at the water. Walking down to the stream to look I saw that it was totally full of pink salmon. I tried taking a picture but the sun was creating too many reflections. On the way back to the boat I noticed the Sitka College. It appeared to be closed. The only building that was open had touch tanks of local sea life for the tourist. While talking to my wife I was surprised to discover that she had applied and been except to this college back when she was in High School, Strange uh! This was by far one of the nicest towns on the ferry route to Bellingham.
I got back to the boat and decided that I would skip the chick incubator sleeping arrangements. I figured I would go ahead and pitch my tent. I know this sounds weird but it is really totally normal on this boat. The fantail of the boat on level six is where most of the tents were pitched. But as I mentioned, by the time I got my bike strapped down all the spots were taken. That is why I slept in the deck chairs the first night. Many of the new passengers were now pitching tents on the seventh floor. I set up my tent and threw all my gear inside. As I was getting everything squared away I noticed an older man sitting near the rail on the boat. He was polishing off a pint of vodka. With in minutes of this sighting he was laying on the deck of the boat pointing his finger up in the air and I believe talking to God. I have no interest in denying anyone's religious freedoms, however, I believe that most faiths don’t pray using a long string of profanity like this old man did. So I figured this might make it a problem getting any sleep if this method of worship were to continue into the night. I slipped down to the front desk and asked if they could send someone up to visit with him. I then went and took a shower. Returning to the top deck I found out that this older man tried to take on four deck hands. Damn, I always miss the cool stuff. After this he was escorted to his room and told that he had to stay there for 24 hours or he would be put in the brig. I didn’t see him around the rest of the trip.
Wednesday, August 4, 2010
Tuesday, August 3, 2010
Haines Aug 3
I woke up at 5:00 am to squawking ravens. Those birds sure talk a lot in the morning. The area around my tent was like a gang war between the gulls and the ravens. I guess they are hungry and need to talk about it.
I fell back to sleep and was awoken by my cell phone alarm. In a half awake stupor, I thought the ravens turned it on. I turned it off and listen to the ravens for another hour. I finally decided to get up. Sitting at a picnic table eating a breakfast bar I watched two ravens go at it over a hair tie. Several other campers were now stirring so I decided to break camp, washed the bike, and get a shower. Once my chores were finished I left all my gear packed up at the campground and walked into town for breakfast. Returning to the campground I and visited with all my fellow campers. John and Jason, a father and son set of riders from New Mexico. John is a 48 year old small business owner. Jason is 18 and leaving for college in the fall. Ray woke up and started complaining about his engine to Jon. While they visited a green van pulled up and asked me if they could play some music from their new album. They were called “Behind Safire”. Hoping that they would provide a little entertainment I said "Yes". They sang us three songs and I was impressed. They were very cool young kids with the artistic skill and drive to make a go of it in music. I bought a CD and then went to the beach to do some photography.
I found an old pier area. As always, I was happy to be shooting. Haines is a great area to shoot; next I decided to head out of town to the end of route 2. I stopped on the way and got my tickets for the boat. The bay in front of Haines ends in a river. While wandering around, I met up with Stony and Marci. They were two other bikers I met at the campground. We talked about our trip and watched an eagle sit in a tree at the end of the bay. Yes, of course it was a beautiful day and I was glad to be on a bike. After shooting I ran back to the campground to load up. None of my fellow bikers were at the campground so I quickly strapped on the gear. On the way out of town I stop to get a little food for supper. I ended up with a 26-dollar order of fish and chips. Not cool, not cool at all.
So I proceeded out to the ferry dock and got in line. This was the wildest thing I have done during this whole trip. They ran us down a ramp into the side of the ship. Once inside we drove our bikes onto a freight elevator. This elevator held four bikes. We were lifted up one floor and drove the bikes to the very back of the ship. Several gentleman drug heavy chains out and hooked them into the floor all the way across the room. They then tighten them down and told us to strap our bikes down to the chains. It was crazy. All the bikers started digging through they’re gear pulling out rope and tie down scraps, most of the people put their bikes up on the center stand. Once finished I offered to help the guy next to me put his bike on a center stand. He looked at me for a minute and then smiled. "Dude, Harley's don’t have center stands. They’re too damn heavy for that shit." We both laughed.
After getting the bike strapped down I walked up stairs to find a place for my tent. The people riding two on a bike had the advantage of being able to split up and get their tent setup while the other did the bike. I was out of luck. I started asking around and found that the very top deck had an area for camping also. The top deck of this ship is called the Solaris deck. It turns out that this is the place to be. They actually have electric heaters mounted on the ceiling. I looked around and decided that instead of messing around with the tent I would just crash in the deck chairs. Half of the chairs were already being use as beds by the time I got up there. So I grabbed all my stuff and dropped it beside one of the chairs and rolled out my sleeping bag. The ferry left port and all seem good. I had made the ferry. Parked the bike and had a place to sleep. Life can still have some simple pleasures. The view pulling away was nice. A stream of people came to the upper deck and took pictures. It was fun to watch people be people. I found my friends John and his son Jason and went to the front of the boat to look for whales and dolphins. A musician that was traveling started playing in the bar while us. After about an hour our group went in to see what the guy was all about. Marci and Stony were hanging out and enjoy the music. They invite us to join them for awhile.
I fell back to sleep and was awoken by my cell phone alarm. In a half awake stupor, I thought the ravens turned it on. I turned it off and listen to the ravens for another hour. I finally decided to get up. Sitting at a picnic table eating a breakfast bar I watched two ravens go at it over a hair tie. Several other campers were now stirring so I decided to break camp, washed the bike, and get a shower. Once my chores were finished I left all my gear packed up at the campground and walked into town for breakfast. Returning to the campground I and visited with all my fellow campers. John and Jason, a father and son set of riders from New Mexico. John is a 48 year old small business owner. Jason is 18 and leaving for college in the fall. Ray woke up and started complaining about his engine to Jon. While they visited a green van pulled up and asked me if they could play some music from their new album. They were called “Behind Safire”. Hoping that they would provide a little entertainment I said "Yes". They sang us three songs and I was impressed. They were very cool young kids with the artistic skill and drive to make a go of it in music. I bought a CD and then went to the beach to do some photography.
I found an old pier area. As always, I was happy to be shooting. Haines is a great area to shoot; next I decided to head out of town to the end of route 2. I stopped on the way and got my tickets for the boat. The bay in front of Haines ends in a river. While wandering around, I met up with Stony and Marci. They were two other bikers I met at the campground. We talked about our trip and watched an eagle sit in a tree at the end of the bay. Yes, of course it was a beautiful day and I was glad to be on a bike. After shooting I ran back to the campground to load up. None of my fellow bikers were at the campground so I quickly strapped on the gear. On the way out of town I stop to get a little food for supper. I ended up with a 26-dollar order of fish and chips. Not cool, not cool at all.
So I proceeded out to the ferry dock and got in line. This was the wildest thing I have done during this whole trip. They ran us down a ramp into the side of the ship. Once inside we drove our bikes onto a freight elevator. This elevator held four bikes. We were lifted up one floor and drove the bikes to the very back of the ship. Several gentleman drug heavy chains out and hooked them into the floor all the way across the room. They then tighten them down and told us to strap our bikes down to the chains. It was crazy. All the bikers started digging through they’re gear pulling out rope and tie down scraps, most of the people put their bikes up on the center stand. Once finished I offered to help the guy next to me put his bike on a center stand. He looked at me for a minute and then smiled. "Dude, Harley's don’t have center stands. They’re too damn heavy for that shit." We both laughed.
After getting the bike strapped down I walked up stairs to find a place for my tent. The people riding two on a bike had the advantage of being able to split up and get their tent setup while the other did the bike. I was out of luck. I started asking around and found that the very top deck had an area for camping also. The top deck of this ship is called the Solaris deck. It turns out that this is the place to be. They actually have electric heaters mounted on the ceiling. I looked around and decided that instead of messing around with the tent I would just crash in the deck chairs. Half of the chairs were already being use as beds by the time I got up there. So I grabbed all my stuff and dropped it beside one of the chairs and rolled out my sleeping bag. The ferry left port and all seem good. I had made the ferry. Parked the bike and had a place to sleep. Life can still have some simple pleasures. The view pulling away was nice. A stream of people came to the upper deck and took pictures. It was fun to watch people be people. I found my friends John and his son Jason and went to the front of the boat to look for whales and dolphins. A musician that was traveling started playing in the bar while us. After about an hour our group went in to see what the guy was all about. Marci and Stony were hanging out and enjoy the music. They invite us to join them for awhile.
Monday, August 2, 2010
Haines Aug 2
The second leg would be from Tok to Haines where I would board the ferryboat. It was a total of over 700 miles. Saturday and Sunday were drive days and Monday I would board the boat at 8:00 pm. This would give me wiggle room if I had any problems. The road to Haines would include two border crossings,and passing through Destruction Bay. This area was some of the coldest and rainiest of my trip up. In addition to the weather, the 50 miles of roads after the Canada border crossing were really bad. Actually, this part of the road was the worst on the trip.
The border crossing was super easy the lady was really chatty and nice. Shortly after I left the border crossing I notice a bike riding along behind me. He pulled up next to me and motioned that I had a problem with my rear pack. We pulled over. and stuck up a conversation. We talked for about an hour, a long the road in the middle of nowhere. His name was David Klingensmith. He was also from Illinois. We continue riding together and stopped in Destruction Bay and had lunch together. David is programming consultant that develops database apps. We really hit it off. It always surprises me how open people are if they are out of their element. Most of the people I have met on this trip I would have never talked to. It blows me away every time it happens.
David had been traveling for 6 weeks solo and was cutting his trip short to help his wife with some pet problems. So we split ways at Haines Junction. I was on the edge of town and noticed a sign that said, "Next gas stop 120 miles". I looked at my gas gauge and immediately turned around to top off my tank. Thank god I did! The road to Haines is one of the emptiest roads I have ever seen. It is beautiful but it is totally void of people. About 90 miles into the trip, I top a hill and found six wild horses just walking down the road. I of course stop to take pictures. The first thing I thought was that I need to call someone and let them know that these horses got out. I drove and drove and drove, no houses. I finally got to the border crossing and mentioned the horses. They informed me "Those are wild horse sir". O yeah, boy I am glad I didn’t report all those buffalo in Yellowstone.
Once over the border the canyon walls seemed to shoot straight up. It was 34 miles into Haines from the border and it was awesome. If I had it to do again I would do the trip in reverse. I drove into town and found a great campground right on the shoreline. I pulled in and talked to the manager. This has to be one of the nicest ladies I have met since I started the trip. I actually was able to pitch my tent on the shoreline for fifteen dollars. NOW THAT IS VERY REASONABLE FOR ALASKA. While setting up camp I met a Ray and Holly who were bike trailer camping. They were from New York and were having bike problems to the max. He told me that it was only running on one cylinder. He believed that he had snapped the connecting rod to the cylinder. Ray was really worked up about his bike. I felt his pain. Traveling on a motorcycle is hard work and stressful. A major engine problem is what all bikers fear during a long journey. The point of the trip is to see and enjoy new areas not to be pre-occupied with mechanical problems. I was relieved to be in Haines myself.
The border crossing was super easy the lady was really chatty and nice. Shortly after I left the border crossing I notice a bike riding along behind me. He pulled up next to me and motioned that I had a problem with my rear pack. We pulled over. and stuck up a conversation. We talked for about an hour, a long the road in the middle of nowhere. His name was David Klingensmith. He was also from Illinois. We continue riding together and stopped in Destruction Bay and had lunch together. David is programming consultant that develops database apps. We really hit it off. It always surprises me how open people are if they are out of their element. Most of the people I have met on this trip I would have never talked to. It blows me away every time it happens.
David had been traveling for 6 weeks solo and was cutting his trip short to help his wife with some pet problems. So we split ways at Haines Junction. I was on the edge of town and noticed a sign that said, "Next gas stop 120 miles". I looked at my gas gauge and immediately turned around to top off my tank. Thank god I did! The road to Haines is one of the emptiest roads I have ever seen. It is beautiful but it is totally void of people. About 90 miles into the trip, I top a hill and found six wild horses just walking down the road. I of course stop to take pictures. The first thing I thought was that I need to call someone and let them know that these horses got out. I drove and drove and drove, no houses. I finally got to the border crossing and mentioned the horses. They informed me "Those are wild horse sir". O yeah, boy I am glad I didn’t report all those buffalo in Yellowstone.
Once over the border the canyon walls seemed to shoot straight up. It was 34 miles into Haines from the border and it was awesome. If I had it to do again I would do the trip in reverse. I drove into town and found a great campground right on the shoreline. I pulled in and talked to the manager. This has to be one of the nicest ladies I have met since I started the trip. I actually was able to pitch my tent on the shoreline for fifteen dollars. NOW THAT IS VERY REASONABLE FOR ALASKA. While setting up camp I met a Ray and Holly who were bike trailer camping. They were from New York and were having bike problems to the max. He told me that it was only running on one cylinder. He believed that he had snapped the connecting rod to the cylinder. Ray was really worked up about his bike. I felt his pain. Traveling on a motorcycle is hard work and stressful. A major engine problem is what all bikers fear during a long journey. The point of the trip is to see and enjoy new areas not to be pre-occupied with mechanical problems. I was relieved to be in Haines myself.
Sunday, August 1, 2010
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.
Saturday, July 31, 2010
Back to Anchorage July 31
The train ride back to Anchorage was really nice. The girls got to run around and my wife and I got to visit. We snapped few more photos of the mountains, rivers and marshlands. The only problem was at the very end of the trip a sad accident forced the train to stop about 40 minutes outside of Anchorage. The train track runs next to the Air force Base runway. A huge cargo jet missed the runway and hit the train tracks instead. All four men flying the plane were all killed in the crash. The railroad track was damaged and the plane wreckage blocked the tracks. So we were off loaded on to buses and driven to the train station.
Once off the bus, we took a taxi to the hotel. We checked into the hotel and I got the shuttle to drive me to the pay parking lot to pickup my bike. I actually caught myself smiling when I saw it in the lot. Granted, I was worried that it might have been stolen. I have to admit that it was almost like seeing a family member. This is weird I thought and the roller coaster ride continuous.
I removed the cover and hit the starter button. It was totally dead, no lights or anything. This family reunion is starting to make me feel panic. Like an uncle that burns the house down while smoking in bed or runs your car out of oil. The only thing I could think of was “This Blows”. So, I am in Alaska, in a pay parking lot with a dead battery. I spent about 5 minutes wiggling wires and turning the key on and off. This was fun but I wasn’t getting any closer to the hotel. I spotted some people about 3 blocks away. I walked over and found an old Vietnam Vet in a van. I explain my situation and was relieved to find out that he had a set of jumper cables and he would help me. So I ran back to the bike and started pushing it. Since I was in a pay parking lot, it cost me 60 bucks to get it out. Now this bike is feeling like an uncle that I just had to bail out of jail. FYI, a 1200 cc bike doesn’t push worth a damn.
I got the bike over to the guy and by now he was starting to really open up to me. He explains to me that he makes spiders. Yeah, WOW, spiders. So of course he wants to show me one of them. He produces from his silver spray painted 1980 Van a spider made from two bolts and 8 pieces of wire. I showered him with compliments on the design and craftsmanship. So of course he had to tell me his process. You know, it’s amazing to me just how interested you can act about two 5/8 nuts and eight pieces of coat hanger welded together when you really need help. Having a motorcycle is hard on me, the feelings of being betrayed, plus having to manipulate total strangers just to get back on the road.
Thank god it started right up. I was so relieved, then the thought sprang to mind that I should buy one of his spiders. Just as I was about to say something I realized that I was going to have to figure out how to strap a 10 inch spider on to my bike and drive all the way back home. This sounded too goofy even for me - I mean this thing was yard art. I might as well by gnome or a birdbath and strap it on to the bike. Suddenly, the image of the guy in the parade with the monkey suit flashed into my mind. I wondered if this was a gateway moment. Perhaps, the monkey bike rider started off normal and then sometime like this set him on the wrong path. A little voice in my head said “No this is wrong”. So I gave him 10 bucks and headed back to the hotel.
Once off the bus, we took a taxi to the hotel. We checked into the hotel and I got the shuttle to drive me to the pay parking lot to pickup my bike. I actually caught myself smiling when I saw it in the lot. Granted, I was worried that it might have been stolen. I have to admit that it was almost like seeing a family member. This is weird I thought and the roller coaster ride continuous.
I removed the cover and hit the starter button. It was totally dead, no lights or anything. This family reunion is starting to make me feel panic. Like an uncle that burns the house down while smoking in bed or runs your car out of oil. The only thing I could think of was “This Blows”. So, I am in Alaska, in a pay parking lot with a dead battery. I spent about 5 minutes wiggling wires and turning the key on and off. This was fun but I wasn’t getting any closer to the hotel. I spotted some people about 3 blocks away. I walked over and found an old Vietnam Vet in a van. I explain my situation and was relieved to find out that he had a set of jumper cables and he would help me. So I ran back to the bike and started pushing it. Since I was in a pay parking lot, it cost me 60 bucks to get it out. Now this bike is feeling like an uncle that I just had to bail out of jail. FYI, a 1200 cc bike doesn’t push worth a damn.
I got the bike over to the guy and by now he was starting to really open up to me. He explains to me that he makes spiders. Yeah, WOW, spiders. So of course he wants to show me one of them. He produces from his silver spray painted 1980 Van a spider made from two bolts and 8 pieces of wire. I showered him with compliments on the design and craftsmanship. So of course he had to tell me his process. You know, it’s amazing to me just how interested you can act about two 5/8 nuts and eight pieces of coat hanger welded together when you really need help. Having a motorcycle is hard on me, the feelings of being betrayed, plus having to manipulate total strangers just to get back on the road.
Thank god it started right up. I was so relieved, then the thought sprang to mind that I should buy one of his spiders. Just as I was about to say something I realized that I was going to have to figure out how to strap a 10 inch spider on to my bike and drive all the way back home. This sounded too goofy even for me - I mean this thing was yard art. I might as well by gnome or a birdbath and strap it on to the bike. Suddenly, the image of the guy in the parade with the monkey suit flashed into my mind. I wondered if this was a gateway moment. Perhaps, the monkey bike rider started off normal and then sometime like this set him on the wrong path. A little voice in my head said “No this is wrong”. So I gave him 10 bucks and headed back to the hotel.
Friday, July 30, 2010
Denali July 30
Last day in Denali
We got the morning started early. We discovered that the taxi was running a little later. When we inquired about the taxi they said that the newest driver didn’t show up. I guess the Prudhoe Bay truck driver hung it up, or maybe just over slept. The goal was to get checked out and then find the Denali Sled Dog Kennels.
Denali Park is the only National Park to have an active Dog Sled team. This is a historical left over from the original rangers that created and manned this park. They used the dogs to patrol the park grounds in the winter to stop poachers from killing the Dall sheep and other park wild life. Given a choice, this stop would not have been on my list of must see. I would have probably been more interested in a boring hike that would have resulted in me getting mauled by a bear or an uptight moose. But I must say that it was really pretty cool. The ranger allowed us to walk through the kennel area and even pet some of the friendlier dogs of the team. The main building in the kennel area was actually the original dog kennel structure, which is around 85 years old. The female ranger gave a great presentation on the dog team and end it by hooking up the team to a summer wheeled sled and ran it around a small track in the kennel area. Overall the presentation was very well done.
Now it’s back to the train to go to Anchorage. My wife and daughters will be flying out on Sunday morning. I will be back on my bike tomorrow (Saturday) and headed for Haines to catch the ferry which leaves Monday evening for Bellingham WA. This will take 5 days and shave about 2000 miles off my trip. While on the ferry I will be going through: Juneau, Prince Rupert, Wrangle, and some other small ocean towns. More later!! I hope it will be a time when I can shoot some coastal wildlife photos. I became interested in doing the ferry trip down the coast while talking to a guy at the Bozeman Gas Station. He was a fellow BMW bike owner and said he had made the trip up and camped on the ferryboat on the way back. He described the communal camping environment as an awesome part of the trip. Shortly after that brief discussion my wife told me that she was going to need me back home ASAP after the vacation. Driving more than 500 miles a day can be a big drag so she came up with this as an alternative. I am sure the drive from Bellingham to Morton will be a pay back, but its all good.
It has just occurred to me that many of you may not have any idea why in the heck I am even doing this trip. Well its kind of a combination of a dream bike trip, family vacation and volunteering at a Baptist mission. It all stems from the fact that my parents are retired and spend almost every summer in Alaska. About 10 years ago they were on the island of Kodiak exploring. They were attending a Baptist Church one Sunday and met a guy by the name of Evan Jones. He was a minister that ran the Kodiak Baptist Mission. Him and my dad hit it off and Evan asked him to volunteer at the mission by teaching some classes and help working on the equipment and buildings. That was the start of the whole thing. My parents had found a new home. They came home that fall and told me all about the wonderful people and work they had done while at the mission. The mission origin is as an orphanage. The state helped to fund the operation until the they started questioning if they were forcing the orphans to pray and attend church. This was a situation that got to the point were the mission felt they weren’t able to do anything with the kids. As a result of this problem the mission closed the orphanage and stop taking the states money. They reorganized and decided to run the whole mission on donations. The people like my parents that are willing to spend there summer or work parties that come up for a couple of weeks have made the operation and growth of the mission possible.
We got the morning started early. We discovered that the taxi was running a little later. When we inquired about the taxi they said that the newest driver didn’t show up. I guess the Prudhoe Bay truck driver hung it up, or maybe just over slept. The goal was to get checked out and then find the Denali Sled Dog Kennels.
Denali Park is the only National Park to have an active Dog Sled team. This is a historical left over from the original rangers that created and manned this park. They used the dogs to patrol the park grounds in the winter to stop poachers from killing the Dall sheep and other park wild life. Given a choice, this stop would not have been on my list of must see. I would have probably been more interested in a boring hike that would have resulted in me getting mauled by a bear or an uptight moose. But I must say that it was really pretty cool. The ranger allowed us to walk through the kennel area and even pet some of the friendlier dogs of the team. The main building in the kennel area was actually the original dog kennel structure, which is around 85 years old. The female ranger gave a great presentation on the dog team and end it by hooking up the team to a summer wheeled sled and ran it around a small track in the kennel area. Overall the presentation was very well done.
Now it’s back to the train to go to Anchorage. My wife and daughters will be flying out on Sunday morning. I will be back on my bike tomorrow (Saturday) and headed for Haines to catch the ferry which leaves Monday evening for Bellingham WA. This will take 5 days and shave about 2000 miles off my trip. While on the ferry I will be going through: Juneau, Prince Rupert, Wrangle, and some other small ocean towns. More later!! I hope it will be a time when I can shoot some coastal wildlife photos. I became interested in doing the ferry trip down the coast while talking to a guy at the Bozeman Gas Station. He was a fellow BMW bike owner and said he had made the trip up and camped on the ferryboat on the way back. He described the communal camping environment as an awesome part of the trip. Shortly after that brief discussion my wife told me that she was going to need me back home ASAP after the vacation. Driving more than 500 miles a day can be a big drag so she came up with this as an alternative. I am sure the drive from Bellingham to Morton will be a pay back, but its all good.
It has just occurred to me that many of you may not have any idea why in the heck I am even doing this trip. Well its kind of a combination of a dream bike trip, family vacation and volunteering at a Baptist mission. It all stems from the fact that my parents are retired and spend almost every summer in Alaska. About 10 years ago they were on the island of Kodiak exploring. They were attending a Baptist Church one Sunday and met a guy by the name of Evan Jones. He was a minister that ran the Kodiak Baptist Mission. Him and my dad hit it off and Evan asked him to volunteer at the mission by teaching some classes and help working on the equipment and buildings. That was the start of the whole thing. My parents had found a new home. They came home that fall and told me all about the wonderful people and work they had done while at the mission. The mission origin is as an orphanage. The state helped to fund the operation until the they started questioning if they were forcing the orphans to pray and attend church. This was a situation that got to the point were the mission felt they weren’t able to do anything with the kids. As a result of this problem the mission closed the orphanage and stop taking the states money. They reorganized and decided to run the whole mission on donations. The people like my parents that are willing to spend there summer or work parties that come up for a couple of weeks have made the operation and growth of the mission possible.
Thursday, July 29, 2010
Denali July 29
We got up early and made it to the park for the 8:30 shuttle into the interior. It's a 60-mile bus ride in. The weather was cloudy, which meant that Mount McKinley wouldn’t be visible. I knew this from a visit my wife and I made here shortly after getting married. We both remember an 8-hour rainy ride on the bus to see one wet bear. This was no honeymoon, for the bear or us.
This trip with my daughters was a MUCH better time. The weather was as good as it gets for Denali, a little sun, rain and cool wind. It’s a tough place to hang. The ride out to the main viewing area of Denali was about 90 miles. We had a good driver that pointed out all the interesting parts of the park and stopped for wildlife sightings. You’d better bring binoculars with you. The animals aren’t running along side the bus like some Mutual of Omaha Wild Kingdom TV show. If that’s what you're wanting, you better stay home and watch TV. Towards the end of the day it seemed a lot a like "where’s Waldo". The clouds did clear enough to get a slight view of the mountain. We hiked around the visitor center. The scale and view of the mountains was awesome. I was glad to be able to do this. I hope the girls remember something from this trip. Thinking back to 9, I highly doubt it, but a parent has to try.
The driver on the way back didn’t talk much, so the trip seemed longer. The whole family dozed off a couple of times. The scenery was just as pretty the second time but the lack of monolog reminded me of riding the detention bus. I think you get the idea. It’s a strong memory for me even now. I think I’m digressing.
The highlight of the return trip was a restroom break. No, I am not kidding. We pulled onto a side road lined with porta-potties and found a bear waiting in line. The bear was eating blue berries on a hillside right next to the toilets and walked over to the bus when we pulled up to see what was going on. We were all busy watching him and taking pictures of course, and forgot to tell the poor guy cleaning the toilet about the bear. In fact, we were all whispering so that we wouldn’t scare him off. The bear walked right on by us and headed directly in the campground across the road. The bus driver got on the CB and started trying to warn the rangers. The guy cleaning the toilets finally overhears the bus driver and boy was he pissed. I don’t know why he didn’t say anything but you could sure tell he was hot.
To wind up the day we grabbed an Alaskan jumbo hotdog. I really don’t know why they were different than a normal hotdog. They did have bear meat hotdogs - I can only imagine how tasty that was. Probably tasted like an old camper. The ride back to the cabin was with a native guy that had only been working with tourists for two weeks. His normal job was a truck driver for the Prudhoe Bay oil company. He had been driving since 1981. He had been only driving for tourist for two weeks. The oil industry had slowed down and laid him off. He said he only had one more year and he was going to retire. I asked him what the land was like up in Prudhoe Bay. He said “Boring”. No sugar coating from this guy, that's for sure.
This trip with my daughters was a MUCH better time. The weather was as good as it gets for Denali, a little sun, rain and cool wind. It’s a tough place to hang. The ride out to the main viewing area of Denali was about 90 miles. We had a good driver that pointed out all the interesting parts of the park and stopped for wildlife sightings. You’d better bring binoculars with you. The animals aren’t running along side the bus like some Mutual of Omaha Wild Kingdom TV show. If that’s what you're wanting, you better stay home and watch TV. Towards the end of the day it seemed a lot a like "where’s Waldo". The clouds did clear enough to get a slight view of the mountain. We hiked around the visitor center. The scale and view of the mountains was awesome. I was glad to be able to do this. I hope the girls remember something from this trip. Thinking back to 9, I highly doubt it, but a parent has to try.
The driver on the way back didn’t talk much, so the trip seemed longer. The whole family dozed off a couple of times. The scenery was just as pretty the second time but the lack of monolog reminded me of riding the detention bus. I think you get the idea. It’s a strong memory for me even now. I think I’m digressing.
The highlight of the return trip was a restroom break. No, I am not kidding. We pulled onto a side road lined with porta-potties and found a bear waiting in line. The bear was eating blue berries on a hillside right next to the toilets and walked over to the bus when we pulled up to see what was going on. We were all busy watching him and taking pictures of course, and forgot to tell the poor guy cleaning the toilet about the bear. In fact, we were all whispering so that we wouldn’t scare him off. The bear walked right on by us and headed directly in the campground across the road. The bus driver got on the CB and started trying to warn the rangers. The guy cleaning the toilets finally overhears the bus driver and boy was he pissed. I don’t know why he didn’t say anything but you could sure tell he was hot.
To wind up the day we grabbed an Alaskan jumbo hotdog. I really don’t know why they were different than a normal hotdog. They did have bear meat hotdogs - I can only imagine how tasty that was. Probably tasted like an old camper. The ride back to the cabin was with a native guy that had only been working with tourists for two weeks. His normal job was a truck driver for the Prudhoe Bay oil company. He had been driving since 1981. He had been only driving for tourist for two weeks. The oil industry had slowed down and laid him off. He said he only had one more year and he was going to retire. I asked him what the land was like up in Prudhoe Bay. He said “Boring”. No sugar coating from this guy, that's for sure.
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