After Anchorage, we headed south around the Turnagain Arm and onto the Kenai Peninsula, down into the small town of Seward. The Kenai peninsula is huge, about 150 miles long, and is bounded by the Cook Inlet to the west and Prince William Sound to the east.
Not a bad view from our campsite! We stayed at the Iditarod campground, one of several city-owned and operated campgrounds in Seward. It seems that the entire waterfront in Seward is filled up with campgrounds, most for RV’s, a couple for tents.
We loved this monument right next to the campground! Seward is the southernmost terminus of the Alaskan railroad that leads through Denali and up past Fairbanks.
The original Iditarod trail started in Seward and went north to Nome. The original purpose was not to race, but to deliver mail and much needed medicine.
We met up with a professional storyteller (no jokes, please…) at the local coffee shop. He was in town as the speaker at a library program so naturally we had to attend. Lots of fun and laughter!
The Alaska state flag, showing the big dipper and the north star, was designed by a 13 year old Native American boy with autism. His winning design won him a $1000 scholarship in 1926, but the flag was adopted for official use until 1959 when Alaska became the 49th state in the USA.
Seward is known as the town of murals. Each year, the city commissions a new mural and a group of artists is selected to design and execute a new work of art. This has been going on for decades so many of the downtown buildings display beautiful murals.
Each year on July 4th, Seward has it’s own version of a marathon. Mt Marathon, that is. Runners start in town, race to the hiking trail that leads up to the summit of the mountain, then race back down the trail into town. The record is 43 minutes, 38 up and 5 down. We were told that the fastest runner simply make large leaps to come down the side of the mountain. Given the 45-60 degree slopes, they must cover a lot of distance downward very quickly!
Hiking the Twin Lakes trail just outside of Seward. When hiking, it’s good to remember the Bear Aware guidelines: make noise, carry bear deterrents, and, if confronted by an angry grizzly bear, “don’t run, Stay Calm!” (right…)
The libraries in Alaska towns are amazing, large, centrally located, well lit with lots of programs. We’re told that’s because of the long, dark winters. We have certainly enjoyed the fast, free internet they provide.
It’s snagit season for Salmon in Alaska. No real technique needed. Simply throw a hook out, jerk it a bunch while reeling it in and snag a salmon anywhere. No need to entice the fish to bite, just jerk hard enough to set a hook anywhere.
But if not…
After Tok, we decided to go clockwise around the state. Our big reason is that we really want to see the Aurora Borealis while we’re here. That means being up in the north near Fairbanks as late as possible, probably late August or early Sept.
First really major road construction of the trip. Winters are so hard on roads that each summer brings massive construction projects. The projects are made more complicated than the lower 48 because there are so few roads in Alaska. So traffic has to drive through the middle of the construction site. We waited about 20 minutes for the pilot car to show up leading a batch of cars from the opposite direction. Then it was our turn. Through the gravel, the muddy trenches and squeezing past the equipment for about 13 miles before the next stretch of asphalt.
Thompson pass is the route through the mountains down into Valdez. Snow in Valdez can get pretty amazing and the pass can be impossible to drive. One woman in town told us about wearing “600 or bust” t-shirts once the snow passed the 500 inch mark for the season. They didn’t quite make it to 600 inches (yes – that’s 50 feet!!) but seemed to have a good sense of humor about it.
The Alaska pipeline.
Valdez is known for dozens of waterfalls. Given the snowfall and the near constant drizzle, it’s not at all surprising.
It drizzled the whole time we were in town. Locals called it Alaskan sunshine and said you get used to it.
Our campsite was right downtown across the street from the waterfront. The mountains surround Valdez on all sides so the view is amazing whichever way you turn.
All the different types of pelts. Much of Alaska’s history seems to revolve around furs of one type or another.
Ten or so years ago, we visited Valdez on a business trip during December. We drove up to the pass, parked alongside the road and snowshoed in to see the Worthington glacier. So naturally we had to stop and retrace our steps. The visitors area with telescopes and railings was a surprise – it was all completely under the snow on our last visit. We remembered stepping on something metal with our snowshoes as we hiked and think it might have been the telescope, but we couldn’t be sure.
We had heard that Lake Louise was beautiful so we asked about it. We were told the road was terrible, but that it was passable if we went slow.
Slow is a must. The road is mostly gravel and has major frost heaves the entire way. But we were determined. At least until we reached the lake. Then the swarms of mosquitos attacked the windshield looking for a way inside. They were so thick that there was no way we were getting out of the camper. So… we turned around and drove the 17 miles back down the frost heave filled road and continued on our way.
Another moose! We saw about a half dozen along the road leading down into Anchorage.
Anchorage. The largest city in Alaska. Locals say that the real Alaska is only about 30 minutes away from Anchorage.
But if not…
The road up from Skagway through the Yukon Territory was a study in contrasts. First the 11mile climb up through the pass filled with waterfalls and rocky maountain gorges. Then a real live desert, complete with sand dunes and arid landscape. Then into the first wilderness.
Back into Canada and back an hour in time. All of Alaska, including the inside passage is in one time zone. So going north into Canada changes zones.
The worlds largest wind vane. After parting out this old DC3, someone decided it would make a great wind vane.
Now come the dreaded frost heaves. Building a road on permafrost means it’s never completely permanent. Every winter, the road bed and the road on top of it moves, making for amazingly effective speed bumps. Hundreds of miles of very effective speed bumps…
Well, the moose is mythical no more!!
Roads are bilingual.
One in each country!
The first of many construction stretches where the asphalt is gone and the road is all gravel.
We made it!
Three Bears is sort of the wilderness version of Walmart.
We decided to do this trip mostly without reservations, figuring out future directions based on what we find as we travel. So each few days we dig out the books and weigh the various options. One of the best parts of that is being able to get advice from locals as we travel.
But if not…
The next, and last, stop on our ferry journey up the inside passage is Skagway. Skagway has an interesting history from the gold rush days of Alaska. Before gold was discovered in the Klondike in 1896, Skagway had just a few residents. That ballooned to over 30,000 within a year with over 1,000 miners passing through each week on their way to the gold fields, turning Skagway into the largest city in Alaska. After a couple years, the railroad was finished and the population plummeted again until the cruise ships discovered the town. Now there are about 1,000 full time residents and anywhere from 5,00-15,000 cruise ship visitors on any given day. The “town” is mostly a boardwalk lined with t-shirt shops and jewelry stores, not a very interesting place.
The list of equipment required for each miner to carry before being allowed through the pass into the Yukon was impressive and added up to “a ton of goods.” The mortality rate was so high that the Canadian Mounties only let people across the border if they had everything on the list. After driving up the 11 mile, 11% grade leading out of town and up into the Yukon, it’s easy to appreciate just how hardy those early miners were and how strong the lure of gold must have been.
We arrived in town at about 4:30 in the afternoon, settled into a campsite right next to the train station for the White Pass & Yukon Railroad and walked around town for a couple of hours. Then we settled in for the evening and spent some time prepping for the drive though Yukon and on to Tok, Alaska.
But if not…
Time for the next leg of our ferry journey. We headed out of Sitka bound for Juneau. The views were amazing passing snow capped mountains and lighthouses.
As we were coming into Juneau we could see the town and the Mendenhall glacier from the water side. The glacier was the real draw for us.
Since the glacier was the reason we wanted to go to Juneau, we got up and went first thing the next day, about 7:30 AM…arriving even before the visitor center opened. We were concerned because there were 6 cruise ships scheduled to be in town and we knew the crowds were coming!! We had almost an hour of peace and quiet to enjoy. As we were heading back to our RV the first bus showed up!!
We were able to FaceTime with all of our grands and show them a glacier!! It’s always a highlight of our day when we FaceTime with our grands!!
These posters show how glaciers are formed from white snow to blue ice. The interesting tidbit we learned is that the top of the glacial field averages 200 feet of snow each winter. That snow then compacts over decades into ice, slowly pressing all the oxygen out and turning the ice blue.
These posters show the entire ice cap…click to open and see better…the Mendenhall glacier is really a very small part and we don’t even see all of it!
We camped at the Tongass National Forest Recreation Area…Mendenhall Glacier.
The warning to be Bear Aware changed to “Caution Bears ARE here!!” Yikes! We saw bear scat in several places but no bears…thankfully! We do have our bear spray and bear bells for when we hike though!
The islands of the inside passage are a rain forest and the forest floor was either a thick brown moss or thick bright green ferns that paths had been worn through.
We did drive through down town Juneau one afternoon and it was massively crowded because of the 6 cruise ships!! We spent most of the time looking out for jaywalkers and trying to find a place to turn the camper around to get back out of town. Instead we found an overlook we read about where we would be able to see whales , we did see the backs and tales of several humpback whales as they dove but didn’t get any good pictures. Hopefully next time!
He quieted the sea with His power
After Ketchikan, we rode another ferry to Sitka. It was our longest ferry ride – 24 hrs – unfortunately, our departure and arrivals were both at 1:00 am. We went to the ferry terminal early, checked in and then slept for a couple hours in the staging lanes. After boarding the ferry we found a booth in the upper lounge and settled in for another couple of hours rest. Sort of like being off watch during an offshore passage, only less bouncy.
We considered making a few more stops at Wrangell, Petersburg and Kake, but the cost would have been much, much higher. So we settled for seeing the towns/islands from the ferry dock. After seeing them, we decided we made the right choice. The ferry schedules were such that stopping at any of them would have meant about a week long stay, and there wasn’t much town at any of them.
Loading and offloading from the ferries was one of the big unknowns. Given the 12-15 foot tides in Alaska, we had read that the angle of the deck to the ramp could cause problems. Fortunately, all of our loads and unloads were at mid-tide or higher, with a couple of the more worrisome spots right at high tide, so we never scraped or had any issues.
Whenever possible, we seek out a local church to worship with on Sundays. Grace Harbor was a great find! We met some incredibly hospitable folks who even had us over to their house to do laundry – always a chore when traveling. They have a Wed evening potluck and Bible study that was great and they also have a Sat evening service so we were able to worship with them again before boarding a Sunday morning ferry.
Sitka had a public library with free wifi and an amazing view. It was hard to stop staring out the window and focus on the chores. Might have been a good idea to pick a different place to sit, but…
The QEII visited while we were there. It’s huge!
We stayed at the Starrigavan National Forest campground. It was a beautiful spot with a nice walking trail. We were told that there were frequent brown bear sightings in the campground, but none while we were there – or at least none that we knew about.
We went to a bear rescue center where they have 9 bears in residence, 6 brown and 3 black.
This is why they say not to climb a tree to get away from a bear. They like to climb trees and are very fast at doing so.
Alaskan natives in this region were part of the Klingit people. In Sitka, there is a replica Klingit clan house where they demonstrate several of their dances and tell the stories behind the dances.
$7.2 million – not a bad price!!
Alaska was sold to the USA by Russia and Sitka was the capital of Russian America. There are still vestiges of Russian heritage around the town, including a group of women who banded together in 1969 to keep the old Russian dances alive. Today, there are 35 women in the troupe, only 1 of which has any actual Russian heritage. But the dances are fun to watch!
The Raptor center is for rescuing and rehabilitating eagles, hawks and owls. Those that can’t be rehabbed completely (usually due to severe injuries) get to live out their lives at the center. Turns out the good thing about having a cruise ship visit is that the raptor center puts on educational presentations just for the cruise passengers. So we were able to tag along with them.
Bald Eagles are everywhere in the inside passage – we started to think of them like seagulls in Annapolis. This bird flew in and sat in a tree overlooking the eagles in the raptor center that were injured. The injured birds were not happy and were squawking like mad. The folks at the center told us that was a territorial cry telling the interlopers to stay away!
Bear Aware is the big watchword. There are signs everywhere along with educational posters about how to tell the difference between a curious bear and an aggressive/defensive bear. Turns out that each should be handled differently. The big lesson stressed over and over again is to stay calm. Right!
Where’s Waldo(Greg)? This was an amazing little shelter on the hike, just a spot to sit and watch the birds and other wildlife in the wetlands.
Back on the Malaspina for the next leg up to Juneau!
But if not…
As soon as the ferry left Prince Rupert and started through the Inside Passage, known locally as the SouthEast, it became obvious why it’s one of the most visited cruise ship areas in the world. The views are breathtaking! Between snowcapped mountains, rugged hillsides, remote lodges and small towns, it’s hard to stop staring out the windows.
The Inside Passage is filled with small towns accessible only by boat or plane. Surprisingly, there is very little snow. Most of the region is actually rain forest so cool, drizzly weather is the rule.
Prince Rupert BC was the starting point for our ferry rides. We needed to get measured (30′), clear customs (Canada to the USA), and figure out the answers to lots of questions about getting the RV onto and off of the ferry. Given the horrid turning radius of the RV, we were more than a little concerned. Turns out the crew is used to much longer rigs including pull-behind trailers. For them it was no big deal. For us, we just needed to trust them and follow their guidance.
“Our” ferry – the Malaspina, one of the original Alaska Marine Highway vessels, has been serving for 40 years. We like good old boats!
The biggest challenge with the ferries is actually the tides, which vary by 15 feet. The angle of the ramp to the dock and to the deck can pose problems. One of the crew stands at the back of the rig (or lays alongside it) to watch carefully. They have boards available just in case.
The view out the front of the ship!
Hmm – we’ve got a boarding ladder like this one, maybe just a bit smaller…
Whales feeding!
There are chart plotter screens posted at various places to keep track of our progress.
Our first view of Ketchikan – just after 10pm. Still enough light to see. By the time we unloaded and drove to Signal Creek National Park campground, it was 11 pm and finally getting dark. Makes finding our site, backing in and getting level more interesting.
The town seems to be perched precariously along the edge of the water. Sometimes that means steep stairs to access the houses. In other cases, the building are built on pilings and hang over the water.
Hmm…..
These are scenes from Creek Street – literally a street built along a tidal creek. The first time we walked it was at low tide. Then we went back to see it at high tide a couple days later. Locals told that salmon do fill the creek.
They take bear safety very seriously. Each campsite has it’s own bear proof food locker, all trash containers are bear proof and there are signs everywhere warning about leaving food outside.
We stayed at Signal Creek National Forest Campground. Besides the camping, there was a beautiful hike around the lake.
Totems are a main attraction in Ketchikan. There are several around town and then 2 parks devoted to them. Totems are not objects of worship or idols. Instead, each Totem tells a story, usually one about the family or a piece of the oral history of the clan. The story comes first, then a carver would sketch the figures on the pole. Once everyone agrees that the sketch tells the story, the pole is carved. Poles are carved from a single tree that is felled, carved and then hoisted back up into place.
This is a replica of a clan house showing how and where the Tlingit people lived. This clan house would have housed 30-50 people from 6-8 families.
The bald eagle wasn’t part of the exhibit, but he found a good perch to enjoy his fresh-caught lunch. Bald eagles are actually pretty common here.
The hats atop the poles are called Potlatch hats. Potlatches are fetes, days long gatherings to honor guests. Poles were often carved to commemorate the event and to honor the guest. The rings on the hats marked how many potlatches were held for a particular guest.
Float planes are everywhere. Many seemed to be just to take cruise ship passengers for rides, but they are also very utilitarian given the terrain.
A picture of a Tlingit village – each family had their own house and family totem.
Before the harbor was dredged, it was a large mudflat, where baseball games were held at low tide.
We found the Ketchikan Yacht Club, hoping to find a hat or shirt as a souvenir. No such luck!
After checking the ferry schedules and the various towns along the inside passage, we decided to a week in Ketchikan and then catch a ferry to Sitka.
But if not…
Our journey north and west to Alaska includes several forays through Canada. First from Montana to Prince Rupert. Another from Skagway up to to Tok, then a third when we leave Alaska and head back to the lower 48 (route yet to be determined). Our first trip found the scenery amazing, the people friendly, and the gas breathtakingly expensive – especially at 9 mpg.
One snag that we didn’t think about: our hotspot didn’t work on the Canadian cell system, so internet was limited to places we stopped along the way. Thus this post covers from the border to Prince Rupert.
Crossing the border into Canada.
Sights from the site of the Calgary olympics.
Common signs we saw driving across Canada and up through the Canadian rockies on Highway 16.
Driving up into the Canadian Rockies. Absolutely, stunningly beautiful!
Talking about glaciers with other RVers.
The view from our camper at Columbia Ice Fields.
YES!!! It was COLD at the glaciers!
There was a group of six that set up tents in the grass in front of our camper at Columbia Ice Fields campground then spent the evening going through their ice climbing gear and packing their sleds. We heard them take their camping gear down and pack their cars at 4AM and drive away.
Sunny and beautiful the next morning…but still cold!!
By 6AM when we got up we could see the ice climbers across the street and going up the glacier. Touch on the picture to make it larger and see the climbers.
Bighorn sheep along the side of the road.
We have passed THREE time zone boundaries in three weeks…and we’re in the northwest where the days are really long! So we go to bed with daylight and wake up at 5AM to day light!! When we get to Alaska it’s called the land of the midnight sun in the summer so I guess we better get used to it!!
Driving through the Canadian Rockies was stunningly beautiful!!
This is an actual bear sighting…not like the moose sightings!! We’ve seen more the farther north we get.
Caribou sighting…we’ve seen several of these too.
Our first moose sighting…sad but true! People keep telling us that we’ll see lots of them in Alaska…we’ll see. One person told us that the increasing grizzly bear population has resulted in a decreasing moose population…
Yep, we’ve had some big storms too!
We’re in the area where Melville fished for whales. There is a Melville island too.
Caribou crossing…
He quieted the sea with His power
The Badlands mark an abrupt change from the geology and scenery on all the roads leading there.
Every turn in the road provided another amazing vista.
Prairie dog colony – sort of like a modern office…
South Dakota seemed to be the place to go for the places we wanted to see. Top of the list was Mt Rushmore. It’s amusing that locals initially thought the idea was crazy. But after it was completed, the grandeur was evident and the naysayers changed their minds.
All the state flags lined up along the path makes a dramatic walkway
The ‘in-process’ sculpture of Crazy Horse. Several years of effort to go. Amazing how long term some people are able to think.
Our initial view of the snow capped Tetons off in the distance. Beautiful! But had to be discouraging for the first settlers who traveled this route on foot. Roads seem to go forever. Neighbors are a long way off.
The Little Bighorn cemetery – now a US Cemetery for veterans killed in various wars.
Where Custer’s remains were found and originally buried.
Sites where Indian warriors fell during the battle were also marked.
A somber place to walk around. But well worth the time and effort to get there.
But if not…
I know, I know, how many blogs are you allowed to post in one day?!?!? Well, we haven’t had wifi to upload pictures to the blog until now. I know…Excuses, Excuses!!! We do have an instagram account if you want more…you know…instant visuals more often!! It’s www.instagram.com/GregLynLong/.
We left our sons house in Annapolis and drove to PA to our daughters house and spent the night and went to church with them the next morning then left heading west.
We’ve had many adventures already and seen so much it’s hard to remember it all…so here are a LOT of pictures to catch you up on what we’ve seen, done and experienced!
Getting propane at a beer distributor, car wash and propane vendor when a truck stop was out of it and a Tractor Supply had their tanks installed backwards so couldn’t fill one that’s built in like ours!
We’ve had LOTS of wind to deal with for a couple of days…we didn’t leave watching out for the wind behind when we got off the boat!
Got to meet and catch up with several of Greg’s cousins when we drove through IL.
Route 36 through Kansas is the route the Pony Express followed waaaay back in the day.
I love the churches in the small towns we drive through.
We saw this army tank on a semi in Nebraska headed for Ft Kearney. Greg said it’s the first time he’s ever seen a tank on the highway!
We stopped at the Great Platte River Archway for the night in Kearney Nebraska. This horse with 2 brothers (12 and 15) was about how they narrowly escaped an indian attach where they were shot with arrows one that actually pinned them together. They both survived and grew up and had families of their own.
This is a sod house. There were no building materials on the prairie so they figured out how to use sod to make bricks for their houses.
The Mississippi, Missouri and other major rivers out west have caused serious flooding!
One thing we’ve learned is that the weather can NOT sneak up on you out here!
We got to Wall South Dakota yesterday. We walked around Main Street and went into the famous Wall Drug Store.
This monument was put up on Memorial Day May 30 1939 to honor the memory of those from Wall and vicinity who were called to serve their country during The World War.
We were blessed to worship with the very friendly people of Evangelical Free Bible Church of Wall South Dakota today. We praise God everyday for the opportunity we have to make this trip. We ask you to pray for our safety on the roads and to bless our actions and words that we will be worthy ambassadors for Christ as we interact with those around us as we continue west.
He quieted the sea with His power
