Fall is here!

8/28/10

Glacier made lakes, Denali Hwy

Rainy day today. Bosco checked the weather forecast for the area and it looks like rain for the next 5 days. Again?! We were just getting dried out and thinking life is good without all that rain. Did a little shopping earlier today and then we took a drive that one of the fellows Bosco met suggested. Drove the Richardson Highway to Paxton and then the Denali Highway almost to Tangle Lakes. What beautiful country!

Summer flowers and Fall foliage!

Kept our eyes peeled for wildlife but didn't seen any. Ate a late lunch at Paxton Lodge, Restaurant and Saloon--population 9. Round trip total mileage 188 miles, and got 27 miles to the gallon. The downside news is that our refrigerator in the trailer is not working. When we packed up this am there was standing water in the freezer.
We cleaned it up and fiddled with it changing it from auto back to gas as it had worked well at Quartz Lake. Don't really know who we can get to look into it out here in the middle of nowhere.

Fall in Alaska-- Follow the yellow lined road!

Quartz Lake

8/27/10

Quartz Lake

Quartz Lake is a small lake somewhere south of Harding Lake and a mite north of Delta Junction, AK. We stayed there for 4 nights. This is a State of Alaska campground with no hookups of any kind, so we had to run the generator periodically to keep the freezer cold and the trailer warm. The price was right though at $10 a night. The temp during the day 50's and 60's and down to the high 40's at night. The weather was wonderful; a scatter of rain some nights and the last day but sunshine a lot.

Bosco on the Quartz Lake hike

Lunch break on the Quartz Lake hike

We hiked the trails; making a 3 1/2 mile loop one day, along the lake, up a hill and along side Little Lost Lake and Lost Lake campground and back to Quartz Lake campground. We took the big dog but not Maggie, her long hike days are done.

We got to fish! Quartz lake has landlocked Silver salmon. The first day that we fished we didn't keep any. We really didn't have the hang of it but the second day we did, winding up with 9 Silvers. A very kind lady gave us bait to use and it was terrific. The little Sea Eagle boat worked well except in the wind and it is so light the wind took us for a ride, drifting us off our fishing hole. As we didn't bring an anchor with us, Bosco improvised by using the stinger off the truck and it worked superbly.

Bosco's fishing buddy!!!!
Who is this woman??????

Leaving Fairbanks

8/21/10
Left Fairbanks, sad to leave our site at River's Edge, headed sort of south, to the grand town of North Pole, AK. We stopped a bit to say hi to the old guy and get some bells and then headed down the road to Harding Lake State Recreation Area. We're in campsite 74, although we have no hookups, we are nestled in the woods and it is quiet and peaceful here.  We are staying 2 nights and then down the road a piece to find a fishing lake.

Here we are at Santa's House in North Pole, AK

Artic Circle or bust

8/18/10, 8/19/10 & 8/20/10

   On the 18th we made a trip to Chena Hot Springs. We had heard of the hot springs and an ice hotel; missing our hot tub we decided to drive there and look around. On the way we saw moose  by the side of the road. The hot springs was outstanding! The water is 165* before they cool it to put it in the outside pool. It is hot and all those aches and pains drift away. Problem is you still have to drive home. We had a great lunch there and headed home. We stopped at a gravel pit (again) with a small lake to let the dogs run a bit and happened on another moose.

grazing in the pond

Yukon river bridge

   On the 19th we made a trip of a different kind. A marathon drive to the Artic Circle : loaded up the dogs, packed a lunch and set off. It was a trip of 425 miles over a road that was a bit of everything from smooth pavement to greasy mud. We wanted to see the tundra and to be able to say we made it. WE MADE IT! Along the way we stopped at a visitor center at the Yukon River bridge; quite and engineering feat. It was built to carry traffic and the pipeline over the river in less than ideal conditions. Lunch was at Hot Spot just down the road and then off to the Circle.

Pipeline stretching into the distance

Pond in the perma-frost

Artic Circle! We made it!

The trip to the Artic Circle was hard on us so we decided to spend another day in Fairbanks recovering and doing chores like the laundry (again). Bosco had the oil changed in the truck; but first he had to wash it as it was covered in mud. People looked at the truck and said "been to the Artic Circle; have you?". He had quite a job finding a place to get the oil changed as with our oil and filter some places wanted $100 to change the oil. He found various prices like $45 but finally at a friendly Chevron station they charged $25 and he had it done. When our chores were done we decided to take a little bike ride; riding the Farmer's loop road trail. Wow!, 18.5 miles door to door. Over dinner later Bosco said "Gee, if we'd just gone a mile and a half more we'd have made another 20 miles!". Time to leave Fairbanks, we know our way around here too well. Which translates we found the ice cream store, Hot Licks. Ice cream is expensive here. Headed to find a little lake to do some fishing for grayling and Northern Pike.

Fairbanks; the golden heart of Alaska!

8/18/10

Plaza at old visitor center

Biked to the Fairbanks Visitors Center

We're in sunny Fairbanks, although yesterday was overcast and a walloping rainstorm started as we were getting ready to go square dancing. It's overcast and drizzling today. BUT we had 4 glorious days of sun shine. They set a record high for one of those days hitting 91*. We've been biking; trips of 10, 6 and 4.5 miles, went to a Vaudeville show at Pioneer Park, danced with the Santa Squares (mainstream), and the Prospector Squares (plus), rode the Riverboat Discovery III up the Chena river to the confluence with the Tanana River.

Palace theater, Pioneer Park

The talented crew at the Palace

• Bush pilot landing on Chena River

Hanna modeling traditional Athabascan
winter parka with sunshine hood

Athabaskcan cabin, traditional dress

Chena Village stop Riverboat Trip

Kantishna Experience

8/12/10

Polychrome mountain

Smallest bull moose--best picture

This was our big trip to the end of the paved road in Denali. It was to be a 12 hour day and we'd had a mite of trouble getting the dogs taken care of. We finally talked to Carl, a worker at the RV park and he said he would do it himself with his wife's help or find someone to do it. So we handed him a key and a list of instructions, put the dogs in their big kennels and set out at 06:45 to board our bus. We had to meet up at the Wilderness Access center; where we found Joe and his big green bus, or rather he found us. Each seat had a sack with our snack portions of our meal and seat belts which were required. So we set off to see the park and it's critters. We did very well in that department: a sow grizzley and her 3 cubs, 3 bull moose and 2 cows and 3 calves, numerous wolves including pups, Dall sheep in large numbers and Caribou both bulls and cows with some amazing racks. At one time we saw a couple of wolf pups playing with a walking stick someone had forgotten. It was a game of keep away and lots of fun to watch.


The Moose and the Griz walk where they want with no regard to buses of people in their way.The park is huge with wide vistas; rivers that they call braided as they run in the flat bottoms where they will, and dizzying heights. We felt very fortunate as we had seen the mountain, Denali, and on this bus trip we never saw the whole mountain, just tantilizing glimpses.

Visitor center views at Eielson

The last visitor center in the park is Eielson.

Near the end of the road, at Wonder Lake Ranger Station, we picked up a Park Ranger, Jamie, who told us about the history of the people who came to Kantishna hunting for gold and then stayed on.We stopped at Wonder Lake first before heading to the end of the road and Kantishna. She related the story of one woman in particular, Fannie Quiqley. We visited her last home, and saw the place on the mountain where she and her husband worked their mine.

The ride out was much more relaxed--people slept and it rained. We saw animals and Joe talked about the park and other things. We saw wolves and moose again, but the Dall sheep were dots on the hillsides.
We got back to the trailer about 8:00 pm, and the dogs were very happy to see us. John ended up taking care of the dogs and they were in good shape. We traveled 12 miles south to get some great pizza as we did not want to cook after a long day on a bus!

The Boslers at Wonder Lake

Beaver! Dams and harvesting

8/12/10

Walking the shops at Rainbow Village

We decided to look through the shops where we were staying. Mostly local crafts and arts. We bought a print from a gentleman, and local fudge. Hey, we're helping the local economy if not our waist lines!
We saved the afternoon to take a hike to Horseshoe lake. They told us at the Visitor Center that there were beaver ponds and that the hike was a nice one. There aren't a lot of formal trails in Denali, you can actually walk anywhere,but there are a few, Horseshoe Lake being one of them. So we loaded the dogs into the truck and headed for Denali and the Horseshoe loop. Dogs aren't allowed on the formal trails but they stay in the truck; sometimes in the back and sometimes we leave them inside. This trail starts at the train tracks. So we got to see the Alaska train headed to Fairbanks as we started.

Bosco at the start of the trail.

Kathy at the lake!

We didn't realize the trail was such a drastic change in elevation. It moved steadily down hill until we reached the lake. What a beautiful place. The beavers had obviously been working hard. Saw one swimming in the lake; also spotted a Merlin, a falcon, working the area. We sat by the lake in a couple of places and then started back up the hill. I walked in the lead; our hill climbing techniques are vastly different. I speed up then stop to rest while Bosco hits low gear and keeps on trudging. As I topped one rise I saw the most astounding sight, so I froze and told Bosco to get his camera out and come on up. Coming down the trail ahead of me was the biggest beaver I've ever seen with an Aspen branch in his mouth. He seem to think I was just an obstacle in his way. His body must have measured 3 feet not counting the tail, this per Bosco. He was at least 250 yards uphill from the lake and he had slide trails down the hill that he used. We decided he had a pregant wife who only could eat hillside Aspen. This wasn't his first trip down the hill as his slide area had been used before.

Horseshoe Lake

The determined beaver

A close encounter of the "Sheep Kind"

8/10/10

Old Ram, Dall sheep

Young Ram

We headed out to do a hike on the Savage River loop trail. More people than I would have liked, but we have to share. We had a great hike starting with seeing some willow ptarmigan not far from the starting point. The willow ptarmigan is the Alaska state bird, and one we have never seen. They have feathers all the way down their legs to keep warm in the winter. The hike is a 2 mile loop, and I thought it would be short. But, at the farthest point there was a trail that went even father. We saw 2 Dall sheep skylined on a ridge above us. Watching them, I decided they were coming down into a valley over the next hill, so off we went. They ended up being 2 rams--one old with a huge curl and one younger. We went too far on the trail, and the older ram came down behind us. Everyone taking pictures and getting excited, until I realized that he was coming up the trail we were standing on. He got so close to Kathy that I was concerned for her. She stepped out of the way as he past with a look of "Move or get the horns". The young ram came down later--he was a little more nervous about us being so close, 20 yards and less. We watched as they grazed and completely ignored us--even butting heads once but not the real get back and run buts. It was really exciting! On the way out I got close enough to get some pictures of the ptarmigan. The wind was blowing down the valley so hard it was hard to walk forward sometimes. What a great hike!!

Willow Ptarmigan

Our day went to the dogs

8/9/10

Idaho Musher!

Lazy day about all we got accomplished was a visit to the Park sled dog demonstrations. What a kick!

Visit the Williams Clan

The Williams home in Cantwell

8/8/10

Lance, Dana, Amelia, and Reid

About 4pm we headed south to Cantwell to visit and dine with the Williams family. Lance and Scott are the same age and went to school together. Lance, his wife Dana, and their two children, Amelia (age 5) and Reid (age 3) live on 3  1/2 acres just south of the Park.  Lance's dad, Jim, and brother, Troy were there also as they had just arrived from their gold mining. We all ate Dana's homemade Salmon chowder and bread. A meal fit for a king! Dana not only fixed the meal but she caught the salmon too! We finished the evening off with cake and conversation. Bosco made use of Lance's shop to rotate the tires on the truck and Kathy got a tour of the place; from the spring in the back, to the hot houses, to the river, to the pig and duck pens. It was truly a wonderful evening to reminise about the past and talk of the future, especially in such a beautiful setting. Thanks for the invitation to your home! They promised to stop by when they come to Midvale; Amelia wants to see us square dance.

Denali: The Great One!

8/8/10

We got a day of sunshine so we headed into Denali Park to see what we could see. They say that you can only see the whole mountain about 20% of the time in the summer. WELL WE GOT LUCKY! We could only drive in 15 miles to the stopping point in the summer--only park buses can go further--but got to see Denali! What a sight! We even got to see 3 caribou laying on river gravel in the Savage River. The pictures we took are probably still 40 miles or more from Denali, but to just view it gives you chills. Sure makes you feel small.

After the drive, we got the bikes out and managed to go 6 miles. There were hills. We need to bike more, but doing it in the rain is not our style! Had a great ride!

Left the Kenai

8/6/10

Shotgun Cove, Whittier

Well we are finally headed for Denali. We are in Anchorage in the Golden Nugget RV Park. Had planned to leave yesterday, but when I woke up the world was not standing still. It was spinning very fast, and I could not get it to stop. Needless to say, the nurse made me go to a "doc in a box" to tell me the same thing she told me--I have an infection in my ear or nose (hard to believe with all of this rain, mold, and wet weather)!

While at Portage Valley RV Park, we went on to Whittier, which meant going through a train tunnel with traffic going one way changing on the half-hour. The tunnel was not the highlight for Kathy! Still rain, and it made Whittier not as much fun as it should have been. Just tired of walking around in the rain. Still, it was a neat place to go!

Came back to Anchorage on Wednesday, and went to the Anchorage Museum. We did the usual, walked and looked. They had some amazing displays!

Today we are headed to Palmer to get mail, and then on up the Parks Highway towards Denali. Talked to Lance Williams, a Midvale boy of Scott's age, who is living in Cantwell, just outside of Denali. We plan to see him and his family tomorrow evening. If he can get in from flying early enough, maybe we can take a flight with him!

WATCH OUT DENALI, HERE WE COME!

Hiking in the rain, Whittier, AK

c

Watching the water, Shotgun Cove 

Will the real fisherman step forward?

Halibut weighed 135 lbs.

8/1/10
Bosco decided to go out fishing, one more time, with Captain Steve Button. He got a beautiful day; winds calm, and seas calmer. They were able to go out to the Ling cod spots and to the bigger Halilbut spots. What the difference a day or two makes. Look at the pictures! They don't lie. The big Halibut was caught by the Big B! 135#, the halibut not Big B. He caught a hugh yellow-eye (at least that is what Captain Steve said) that weighed ten pounds or better, and also caught two big ling cod and one other halibut. He caught so many fish he was almost to pooped to pop, but he was really happy.

The whole crew and our catch--fish everywhere!