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Day Eight in Alaska

July 2003

The highlight of today was going on a sightseeing/whale-watching trip on the Lu-Lu Belle.

We were the first ones on the boat, so were able to pick our seat. 

The view outside our window as we were leaving the harbor.

Sea Otters were playing just outside the harbor.

The captain stopped the boat for awhile so we could watch these seals.

We saw lots of birds.  I particularly enjoyed the Puffins.

The highlight of our day was seeing Killer Whales (Orca).

 We had about fifty sightings, but many were repeats.  We probably saw about twenty different whales.

The captain called this one “Floppy” because of his floppy dorsal fin.  We saw him several times.

On our way back toward Valdez, we headed toward the Columbia Glacier.

By this time in the trip it was very cold outside.

The captain took the boat into the ice bergs until he couldn’t go anymore.

As we approached the harbor, we saw these storage tanks for the Alaska Pipeline.

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This picture is for Jere and Kristen (in Texas).

We had a relaxing day, and the boys spent a  lot of time racing cars. 

Day Seven in Alaska

July 2003

This was the view outside our camper window when we woke up on July 30.

Travel scenery on the way to Valdez

I loved this sign – mostly because I was looking for it.  We wanted authentic Alaskan knives – not “store boughten” ones that may or may not have been made in Alaska.

One of the best things we purchased for this trip was the Milepost.  An Alaskan travel directory with details of everything that is located along every road.  We thought this place looked interesting – and it was!

Cerwin was a bit concerned about space for the motorhome, then saw “RV-U-Turn”, and felt more comfortable about turning in The Knifeman’s lane.

We immediately knew we would like this place.  This is his workshop.

And we were not disappointed.  I found the Ulu knive I was looking for, and Cerwin bought a hunting knife, however, not the one he really liked – the fourth from the right – with the carved handle.  It was way beyond our budget.

We entered their house through the kitchen, where a moose steak was thawing, and went to the living room (above) where the knives were displayed.

Bridal Veil Falls

Worthington Glacier

Our destination today was Valdez.  This was our view of the Harbor of Valdez – from the restaurant where we ate dinner.

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Back to the Present – March 7

Two of our young grandsons arrived this morning – for a nine-day visit – while their parents, and older siblings (Josh and Jana) fly to Texas. 

Ian enjoyed getting snacks for the animals that came to his “restaurant” window.

Jared likes helping the baby animals find their mothers.

They were quite content playing “school” on the computer while I prepared a chaplain’s newsletter for delivery to the post office today.

Alaska

Iditarod Update – Thursday Night

DeeDee Jonrowe is number one, however, the real leaders are on their twenty-four-hour break.  Our guide, Jessie Royer, is also on her twenty-four-hour, which puts her behind those who have not yet taken their break.  She is twenty-eighth on the current leader board.

An interesting note from the Iditarod website

CRIPPLE – Checkers huddled around the inflatable palm trees set up as a joke at this remote tent camp on Wolf Kill Slough were expecting Paul Gebhard as dawn broke this morning.  Instead, they heard a woman’s voice chirping across the snow-covered swamp speckled with black spruce. 

It was DeeDee Jonrowe, and nobody was more surprised than she to be the winner of the GCI Dorothy Page Halfway award, which comes with $3,000 in gold nuggets.  A stunned Jonrowe reportedly was thrilled, saying today was her husband, Mike’s birthday and she hadn’t  gotten him a gift yet.  The gold would do fine.

Iditarod Update – Friday Morning

The real leaders are beginning to show, as Lance Mackey, Jeff King, and Rick Swenson are off their twenty-four-hour break.

These yaks were enjoying the excess water from the past two days of rain.

We saw several long rows of mailboxes – indicating there were many homes in some of the roads that led into wilderness.

Our destination this day was Eldorado Gold Mine.

After buying our tickets for the short train ride through and around the mine, we enjoyed being entertained by the conductor.

He told stories, sang, and played several instruments until the train was ready to leave.

Dexter Clark, a gold miner, and interesting commentator, explained how gold is mined and panned.

Then it was our turn.  Everyone was given a little bag of dirt – to which a small amount of gold had been added.

Cerwin’s pan of dirt.

This is what was left in our two pans – $20.00 worth of gold.

We had it put into a small pin.

Later that day we went on a riverboat ride – in the Fairbanks area.  (This was the same riverboat where we met Jessie Royer, the musher we enjoy following in the Iditarod.)

Dixie, an Athabascan, woman was along the riverbank, and explained how to filet fish.  She had that fish ready for frying before I would have picked up the knife!

Later, when we left the riverboat and visited the village, this young girl showed us examples of Dixie’s beading.  Some of her beading is on display at the Smithsonian.

There were a lot of interesting houses in the Athabascan village that was set up to inform tourists how these Alaskans hunted and lived.

After leaving the Fairbanks area and heading south, we stopped at the Knotty Shop – an interesting tourist stop.