So, we've started our trek home. and boy is it a trek!
instead of trying to post all the pictures to two places, check out my facebook album at:
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2170052&id=193306065&l=470f59aca6
enjoy! :-)
Showing posts with label Alaska. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Alaska. Show all posts
Sunday, July 04, 2010
Friday, July 02, 2010
It's been a very enjoyable experience. As I collected the exams today on the last day of class, I once again found the reward that keeps me in the classroom. (I just wish I didn't have to grade them all now!) Tomorrow after Sara finishes her class we will head out of town on our 3400 mile journey back to Wisconsin. Here's a picture of the area on campus where I taught my classes.
Monday, June 21, 2010
Sara and Dad to Kenai
This is Dad. Thought I'd get a word in before Sara writes a more colorful post. We just got back from three days of travelling through some of the most beautiful scenery in the world. Friday, we drove for 6 1/2 hours to Anchorage. Saturday we caught the 6:45 am train to Seward on the Kenai Peninsula. That's a 4 hour train ride south of Anchorage. We then took a four hour boat ride around Resurrection Bay looking at the Fjords and marine wildlife. We then caught the 6:00 pm train back to Anchorage. Today we got up, caught churchand then headed back to Fairbanks, arriving here at 9pm.
Here are some things we took pictures of and would like to post, however, after taking about 300 pictures I somehow managed to "format" the SD card (I was trying to answer a request by a nosy guy asking me what resolution pictures I was taking and must have pushed a few buttons in the dark while going through a tunnel because the next time I looked down, we had enough memory for 387 pictures and only had 13 pictures on the disk.) If any of you know how to salvage pictures from an SD card (the way they do on CSI) please let us know because it was a terribly tragic event that almost ruined the whole trip. However, I quickly remembered, that those pictures are like many other things in life--not nearly as important as the memories we have of family and friends--at least I haven't lost those (yet!!!!)Earthquake in Anchorage
Low tide at the Anchorage port
Fisherman in the mud
Sara by Captain Cook (monument)
Float planes landing in Lake Hood near Anchorage
Train loading
Bald eagle sitting on nest
Black bear crossing snow (great close-up)
Spencer glacier
Trail glacier
Grandview mountain pass and the train
Many other mountain views
Boarding the boat
Porpoises
Sea otter with a pup on its stomach
Pacific humpback whale
Stellar sea lions actively resting on the rocks
Two types of puffins
Mountain goats
A beautiful lake on Fox Island
The forest covered mountains lining the fjords.
Seward harbor
Dad's leg drenched by a wave
Sara wearing her new hat she bought for the cold, rainy day
Snow White Falls--seven tiered water fall
More snow covered mountains
Well you get the idea. And here are some pictures we did get after the loss.
Saturday, June 12, 2010
Up To Date in Alaska
Okay, and now i will finish our back log of posts, and hopefully be a little better and updating them on time.
June 6: Sunday
We both had church at 11. I at the Singles branch, and Dad at one of the 5 family wards. Church was... interesting... for both of us. Visiting a different ward always has it's excitements. We were gonna have potatoes and...... but there was nothing to have with mashed potatoes. so we had eggs and hash browns instead. haha. We watched the NBA finals game. haha Dad was super tense all day Sunday, not sure why.
June 7: Monday
We went grocery shopping and rented some movies. The frozen Lasagna we bought to cook wasn't cooking in the microwave, dad finished it in the oven. I went to singles branch FHE where i was lectured by a motivational speaker that everything in our lives is our choice. and we have no one to blame but ourselves if we dont like our life..... i had some major issues with this. buuuut that's okay. we wont go into it. OH we also planted flowers on one side of the institute building. i met some people. it was cool.
June 8: Tuesday
Dads eyes were bothering him all day, ending the day with a migrane. I also had a headache that wouldn't go away. We spent the evening nauseous and hurting. While trying to make our stomach safe meal of creamed corn and rice (again) we discovered unfortunately, that our microwave had died. to quote: "dad, the corn isn't heating. and something smells funny." lets just say, that was not what we wanted to happen on an already horrible tuesday. and then the lakers won game 3.
June 9: Wednesday
For dinner, I suggested we go eat at Aloha BBQ and Grill. The menu was exciting and took us back to the 'good ole days' haha but the food was the opposite. Dads terriyaki salmon was over frozen, undercooked, and drenched in terriyaki sauce. and full of bones. My 'BBQ pork' was full of grissle, and the chicken katsu just wasn't cooked right, the breading wouldn't stick to the meat. so, it was a pretty downer of a dinner. OH but this was extra sad, because dad had had a very eventful afternoon at the thrift store. he got us a new microwave for $12, computer speakers, some cords hoping to hook his tv glasses to the tv (no luck there), and a VHS to test the VCR in our TV. so after dinner we came home and bummed around. being bummed. Dads horrible dinner just wasn't sitting right with him. so i suggested we go get some Coldstone with the coupon we got. ice cream makes everything better. :-) ALSO, we had a huge thunderstorm, while dad and i were starting the blog, and i got some good shots of a beautiful rainbow. picture to be posted later.
June 10: Thursday
after classes we were on our way to Fred Meyer to get groceries, when we detoured and found a nice place for supper. Dad got a good veggie burger and i had a side salad and a side of fries. It was nice because we got to sit out on a deck right next to the river, and soak up some sun. After dinner we went and walked basically every single aisle of Fred Meyer, and got some food in the process. We came home and i was distraught because the Lakers/Celtics game was on and our cable was out, on that channel only! but we saw the 4th quarter, and the Celtics won, so everything was okay. haha Then i went to Institute and dad laid on the couch the whole time, literally did not move the whole time i was gone. haha love dad. :-D Dad also planned our trip for Fathers Day weekend.
OH so some cool things dad said on Thursday:
While we were at dinner by the river, he commented on how familiar the boats up here sound to him, with the shallow in-water motors, compared to the in-water motors that are meant for deep waters in Wisconsin. He also said he can tell, just by the sound, what kind of motor it is. crazy huh?! ALSO, he bought some A&W root beer, and he took a sip from the can and said 'A&W rootbeer always remind me of summer' it takes him back to when they were little and A&W would open in town, just for the summer. and they'd get a gallon of root beer in a glass jug. it's just cool to listen to dad talk about memories from when he was little. :-)
June 11: Friday
I got up at 6 am to watch the first game of the World Cup. TOTALLY WORTH IT. haha okay, it was a tie game, but still good. and then later we watched the second game. dad's eyes were bothering him so he took a contact out, so he really couldn't see much of the game. :-( The FedEx lady came, i got my birthday present from mommy!! she's awesome. :-D then i went to class and did a presentation thing. everybody loved my group, we were pretty hilarious. The whole time, i had to be bashing marriage, and how marriage just gives in to the patriarchal society and its just setting yourself up for a ball and chain life, i found it SO ironic. because it's so opposite from everything about BYU-I. Now, after updating the blog some more, dad is starting our dinner of pork katsu for me, and tofu katsu for him, with rice peas and corn. then tonight.... we'll probably watch tv. haha.
June 6: Sunday
We both had church at 11. I at the Singles branch, and Dad at one of the 5 family wards. Church was... interesting... for both of us. Visiting a different ward always has it's excitements. We were gonna have potatoes and...... but there was nothing to have with mashed potatoes. so we had eggs and hash browns instead. haha. We watched the NBA finals game. haha Dad was super tense all day Sunday, not sure why.
June 7: Monday
We went grocery shopping and rented some movies. The frozen Lasagna we bought to cook wasn't cooking in the microwave, dad finished it in the oven. I went to singles branch FHE where i was lectured by a motivational speaker that everything in our lives is our choice. and we have no one to blame but ourselves if we dont like our life..... i had some major issues with this. buuuut that's okay. we wont go into it. OH we also planted flowers on one side of the institute building. i met some people. it was cool.
June 8: Tuesday
Dads eyes were bothering him all day, ending the day with a migrane. I also had a headache that wouldn't go away. We spent the evening nauseous and hurting. While trying to make our stomach safe meal of creamed corn and rice (again) we discovered unfortunately, that our microwave had died. to quote: "dad, the corn isn't heating. and something smells funny." lets just say, that was not what we wanted to happen on an already horrible tuesday. and then the lakers won game 3.
June 9: Wednesday
For dinner, I suggested we go eat at Aloha BBQ and Grill. The menu was exciting and took us back to the 'good ole days' haha but the food was the opposite. Dads terriyaki salmon was over frozen, undercooked, and drenched in terriyaki sauce. and full of bones. My 'BBQ pork' was full of grissle, and the chicken katsu just wasn't cooked right, the breading wouldn't stick to the meat. so, it was a pretty downer of a dinner. OH but this was extra sad, because dad had had a very eventful afternoon at the thrift store. he got us a new microwave for $12, computer speakers, some cords hoping to hook his tv glasses to the tv (no luck there), and a VHS to test the VCR in our TV. so after dinner we came home and bummed around. being bummed. Dads horrible dinner just wasn't sitting right with him. so i suggested we go get some Coldstone with the coupon we got. ice cream makes everything better. :-) ALSO, we had a huge thunderstorm, while dad and i were starting the blog, and i got some good shots of a beautiful rainbow. picture to be posted later.
June 10: Thursday
after classes we were on our way to Fred Meyer to get groceries, when we detoured and found a nice place for supper. Dad got a good veggie burger and i had a side salad and a side of fries. It was nice because we got to sit out on a deck right next to the river, and soak up some sun. After dinner we went and walked basically every single aisle of Fred Meyer, and got some food in the process. We came home and i was distraught because the Lakers/Celtics game was on and our cable was out, on that channel only! but we saw the 4th quarter, and the Celtics won, so everything was okay. haha Then i went to Institute and dad laid on the couch the whole time, literally did not move the whole time i was gone. haha love dad. :-D Dad also planned our trip for Fathers Day weekend.
OH so some cool things dad said on Thursday:
While we were at dinner by the river, he commented on how familiar the boats up here sound to him, with the shallow in-water motors, compared to the in-water motors that are meant for deep waters in Wisconsin. He also said he can tell, just by the sound, what kind of motor it is. crazy huh?! ALSO, he bought some A&W root beer, and he took a sip from the can and said 'A&W rootbeer always remind me of summer' it takes him back to when they were little and A&W would open in town, just for the summer. and they'd get a gallon of root beer in a glass jug. it's just cool to listen to dad talk about memories from when he was little. :-)
June 11: Friday
I got up at 6 am to watch the first game of the World Cup. TOTALLY WORTH IT. haha okay, it was a tie game, but still good. and then later we watched the second game. dad's eyes were bothering him so he took a contact out, so he really couldn't see much of the game. :-( The FedEx lady came, i got my birthday present from mommy!! she's awesome. :-D then i went to class and did a presentation thing. everybody loved my group, we were pretty hilarious. The whole time, i had to be bashing marriage, and how marriage just gives in to the patriarchal society and its just setting yourself up for a ball and chain life, i found it SO ironic. because it's so opposite from everything about BYU-I. Now, after updating the blog some more, dad is starting our dinner of pork katsu for me, and tofu katsu for him, with rice peas and corn. then tonight.... we'll probably watch tv. haha.
Pictures from our day trip to the Arctic Circle
The Trans-Alaskan Pipeline.
Crossing the Yukon River.
The Highlander, at our lunch stop
The Highlander at the Yukon River Crossing on the way home.
The Highlander, home again
Dad studying the signs at the Yukon Crossing Site. Learning all this crazy awesome information
Pretty wild Flowers
aaannnnddd... that's how much we paid for gas out on the road. crazy huh?
Saturday Adventure: Arctic Circle
June 5: Saturday
(This is narrated by Dad, typed by Sara)
Our goal for day was t
o cross the Arctic Circle. Only a small percentage of people living on this earth can make that claim. To get there we had to drive up the Dalton Highway. Better known as 'The Haul Road.' That name describes the major purpose the road was built for. To accommodate the large semi-trucks that carry supplies to the oil fields in Prudhoe Bay. Highlighted cautions in the Mile Post warn motorists about encountering these large trucks on this gravel highway. So we were a little concerned about this adventure. The first 80 miles was paved. And then w
e started the actual Dalton Highway, which proceeds for 416 miles. Fortunately we only planned on driving 110 miles one way to the Arctic Circle. The road really wasn't that bad. Except where the water trucks made it all muddy. Some parts were actually paved, but they were harder to drive with 'tire busting potholes.' After 55 miles we crossed the Yukon River. and stopped for lunch. The cafe was not what we imagined from the Mile Post's description, but the burgers we
re still great. It was modular units left over from the pipeline construction, powered by a generator, with an outhouse and no running water. Back on the highway, the rest of the trip to the Arctic Circle was pretty uneventful, except for the black bear we saw cross the road a ways in front of us. After it crossed the road, it acquired an orange road cone of some sort, and went running through the woods with it. I pulled to the side of the road, as Sara pulled out the new camera. We were glad to see the pull off for the Arctic Circle, and stopped to take
some pictures. On our way back we stopped at the rest stop at the Yukon River to fill up with gas and visit the Yukon River Crossing Visitors Center. [input by sara: This is where learned about the construction of the Dalton Highway, the construction of the Trans-Alaskan Pipeline, and the Yukon River itself.] By the time we got back to Fairbanks we'd been on the road for 10 hours, with only a few rest stops. We finished the trip at a car wash. 
as a final FYI: if you click on any of the pictures shown here, you they will open larger, so you can see them better! :-)
(This is narrated by Dad, typed by Sara)
Our goal for day was t
o cross the Arctic Circle. Only a small percentage of people living on this earth can make that claim. To get there we had to drive up the Dalton Highway. Better known as 'The Haul Road.' That name describes the major purpose the road was built for. To accommodate the large semi-trucks that carry supplies to the oil fields in Prudhoe Bay. Highlighted cautions in the Mile Post warn motorists about encountering these large trucks on this gravel highway. So we were a little concerned about this adventure. The first 80 miles was paved. And then w
e started the actual Dalton Highway, which proceeds for 416 miles. Fortunately we only planned on driving 110 miles one way to the Arctic Circle. The road really wasn't that bad. Except where the water trucks made it all muddy. Some parts were actually paved, but they were harder to drive with 'tire busting potholes.' After 55 miles we crossed the Yukon River. and stopped for lunch. The cafe was not what we imagined from the Mile Post's description, but the burgers we
re still great. It was modular units left over from the pipeline construction, powered by a generator, with an outhouse and no running water. Back on the highway, the rest of the trip to the Arctic Circle was pretty uneventful, except for the black bear we saw cross the road a ways in front of us. After it crossed the road, it acquired an orange road cone of some sort, and went running through the woods with it. I pulled to the side of the road, as Sara pulled out the new camera. We were glad to see the pull off for the Arctic Circle, and stopped to take
some pictures. On our way back we stopped at the rest stop at the Yukon River to fill up with gas and visit the Yukon River Crossing Visitors Center. [input by sara: This is where learned about the construction of the Dalton Highway, the construction of the Trans-Alaskan Pipeline, and the Yukon River itself.] By the time we got back to Fairbanks we'd been on the road for 10 hours, with only a few rest stops. We finished the trip at a car wash. 
as a final FYI: if you click on any of the pictures shown here, you they will open larger, so you can see them better! :-)
Alaska Continues
First of all, lets all give a big round of applause to Lynn for this AMAZING face-lift! you have an eye for this Lynn, we love it!
Okay. continuing our adventures...
June 1: Tuesday
Dad had class and lab, it was my first day of class. i was very nervous and unsure of what the class would be, since the title of the sociology class is Love, Sex and Heartbreak. and as I sat in the class I kept going back and forth in my head, "okay i'm gonna leave and drop the class and get my money back" " no, this is a new and different experience i need to keep with it" blah blah blah. well, I stayed with the class and have really enjoyed it thus far. Later we went and registered for a Blockbuster membership thing, since there's no redbox in alaska. LAME-O.
June 2: WEDNESDAY
SARA'S BIRTHDAY! it was actually a pretty slow day. I did homework in the morning while dad was at class. we honestly can't remember what we did for lunch. then i went to my class. After class dad had made reservations for my requested steak dinner. We went and got to sit on the patio next to the Chena River. The sun was shining, there was a gentle breeze, it was perfect. and then as i walked to the car to get the camera so we could document this awesome birthday dinner. The winds changed, these dark storms clouds started rolling in, the fountain behind me started 'peeing on us' as dad likes to say. and it just got crummy. as you can see from the picture. OH and this stupid old lady at the table behind me just kept saying 'it'll blow over, it'll be okay in a few minutes.' So, much to the annoyance of the waiters, dad and i request to move
into the covered patio so when the rain did come (the weather pessimists that we are) we wouldn't get soaked. (dad's new favorite quote is: A pessimist is an optimist with experience; quoted from a dove bar wrapper.) The dinner was nice, dad got crab cakes and i got my 16 oz alder-smoked bone-in ribeye. it was DELICIOUS! And for your information, the storm DID hit. rain, wind, the whole works. So bad, that the decorative wind spinners were flying horizontally and kept hitting the windows of the covered patio. After the amazing dinner, i wanted to explore the 'mall.' turns out, it really is a mall. no department stores, but it's got my necessities. American Eagle, Pacsun, Zumies, and 3-4 other stores. haha. yep, it's itty bitty one. (but there's also an Old Navy in town w00t). then we went home and watched tv, espn probably, or our cbs nightly shows. Dads eyes were bothing him all day, so he went to bed about 10. aaannnndddd that's my birthday! OH. and about the cake. before dinner (horrible idea) we went to Coldstone and i got Birthday Cake Remix, which is pretty much as good as birthday cake, with out the cake. tee hee.
June 4: Friday
We planned our trip for Saturday, aka dad spent a couple hours looking at The Mile Post and maps. it was pretty uneventful. Dad was a little nervous about this upcoming trip because the Mile Post says that everyone should bring two regular spare tires and extra gas. But after studying the Mile Post and since we weren't driving all the way to Prudhoe Bay dad decided it would be okay with ONE regular spare tire, and no extra gas.
OKAY, this is a flashback to last week. After buying the Highlander, dad realized there was no spare tire. And between the day trips we would take, and the whole drive home, he knew we needed a spare. So he followed a sign in the woods that said 'Tires.' the drive way to a rundown house was lined with piles and piles of old tires and rims, just piled into the woods. One of the workers rummaged through the piles and found a rim and a tire that he thought would work. So after fixing 4 tires on another car, they jacked up the highlander and tested the rim to see if it would fit. it did, so they put the used tire on that rib and sold it to dad for $60. Well a new rim alone is over $100 and a new tire would $75-$100. aka, it was an awesome deal. Dad was even pleased that the full size spare fit into the wheel well where the temporary spare was supposed to be.
That night, Sara wasn't feeling very well so dad went out to run some errands in preparation for our trip tomorrow. He bought a cooler bag thing, and A CAMERA. (early fathers day present) From my standpoint, he was gone for a very very long time, to come back with two items. Reason being: the service counter at Sams club couldn't unlock the cabinet that had the cameras in it. Dad also went to Fred Meyer and got ANOTHER cooler. yeah, he went cooler happy. :-P But chose not to get a five gallon gas can and bungee cords to strap to the top of the highlander for the trip. and that's our friday. OH, and another caution for not going saturday, was that i spent most of friday evening nauseous and vomiting. yaaay fun for me. (shakes head)
Okay. continuing our adventures...
June 1: Tuesday
Dad had class and lab, it was my first day of class. i was very nervous and unsure of what the class would be, since the title of the sociology class is Love, Sex and Heartbreak. and as I sat in the class I kept going back and forth in my head, "okay i'm gonna leave and drop the class and get my money back" " no, this is a new and different experience i need to keep with it" blah blah blah. well, I stayed with the class and have really enjoyed it thus far. Later we went and registered for a Blockbuster membership thing, since there's no redbox in alaska. LAME-O.
June 2: WEDNESDAY
SARA'S BIRTHDAY! it was actually a pretty slow day. I did homework in the morning while dad was at class. we honestly can't remember what we did for lunch. then i went to my class. After class dad had made reservations for my requested steak dinner. We went and got to sit on the patio next to the Chena River. The sun was shining, there was a gentle breeze, it was perfect. and then as i walked to the car to get the camera so we could document this awesome birthday dinner. The winds changed, these dark storms clouds started rolling in, the fountain behind me started 'peeing on us' as dad likes to say. and it just got crummy. as you can see from the picture. OH and this stupid old lady at the table behind me just kept saying 'it'll blow over, it'll be okay in a few minutes.' So, much to the annoyance of the waiters, dad and i request to move
into the covered patio so when the rain did come (the weather pessimists that we are) we wouldn't get soaked. (dad's new favorite quote is: A pessimist is an optimist with experience; quoted from a dove bar wrapper.) The dinner was nice, dad got crab cakes and i got my 16 oz alder-smoked bone-in ribeye. it was DELICIOUS! And for your information, the storm DID hit. rain, wind, the whole works. So bad, that the decorative wind spinners were flying horizontally and kept hitting the windows of the covered patio. After the amazing dinner, i wanted to explore the 'mall.' turns out, it really is a mall. no department stores, but it's got my necessities. American Eagle, Pacsun, Zumies, and 3-4 other stores. haha. yep, it's itty bitty one. (but there's also an Old Navy in town w00t). then we went home and watched tv, espn probably, or our cbs nightly shows. Dads eyes were bothing him all day, so he went to bed about 10. aaannnndddd that's my birthday! OH. and about the cake. before dinner (horrible idea) we went to Coldstone and i got Birthday Cake Remix, which is pretty much as good as birthday cake, with out the cake. tee hee.June 4: Friday
We planned our trip for Saturday, aka dad spent a couple hours looking at The Mile Post and maps. it was pretty uneventful. Dad was a little nervous about this upcoming trip because the Mile Post says that everyone should bring two regular spare tires and extra gas. But after studying the Mile Post and since we weren't driving all the way to Prudhoe Bay dad decided it would be okay with ONE regular spare tire, and no extra gas.
OKAY, this is a flashback to last week. After buying the Highlander, dad realized there was no spare tire. And between the day trips we would take, and the whole drive home, he knew we needed a spare. So he followed a sign in the woods that said 'Tires.' the drive way to a rundown house was lined with piles and piles of old tires and rims, just piled into the woods. One of the workers rummaged through the piles and found a rim and a tire that he thought would work. So after fixing 4 tires on another car, they jacked up the highlander and tested the rim to see if it would fit. it did, so they put the used tire on that rib and sold it to dad for $60. Well a new rim alone is over $100 and a new tire would $75-$100. aka, it was an awesome deal. Dad was even pleased that the full size spare fit into the wheel well where the temporary spare was supposed to be.
That night, Sara wasn't feeling very well so dad went out to run some errands in preparation for our trip tomorrow. He bought a cooler bag thing, and A CAMERA. (early fathers day present) From my standpoint, he was gone for a very very long time, to come back with two items. Reason being: the service counter at Sams club couldn't unlock the cabinet that had the cameras in it. Dad also went to Fred Meyer and got ANOTHER cooler. yeah, he went cooler happy. :-P But chose not to get a five gallon gas can and bungee cords to strap to the top of the highlander for the trip. and that's our friday. OH, and another caution for not going saturday, was that i spent most of friday evening nauseous and vomiting. yaaay fun for me. (shakes head)
Thursday, June 10, 2010
hellloooooo blog world!
so, this is sara. i've hacked into, okay not hacked, we all just know how mom and dad work. i'm on their blog. and... here we are. starting the blog that needed to be started.
dad keeps saying we should start a blog for our travels in ALASKA. so... here starts!
MAY 21; Friday
Dad starts his day at 4 am in Marshfield (midnight Alaska time); gets to the apartment in Fairbanks at 5pm; goes out to get things for the apartment: basic foods, pillows, etc; didn't settle into the apartment till 9:30 Alaska time (p.s. that makes for a very, VERY long day)
dad keeps saying we should start a blog for our travels in ALASKA. so... here starts!
MAY 21; Friday
Dad starts his day at 4 am in Marshfield (midnight Alaska time); gets to the apartment in Fairbanks at 5pm; goes out to get things for the apartment: basic foods, pillows, etc; didn't settle into the apartment till 9:30 Alaska time (p.s. that makes for a very, VERY long day)
MAY 22 ; Saturday
dad goes to the free fair and gets us 2 tv's, a microwave, a 'tv stand' laundry basket, and some dishes; did some other shopping; drove around Fairbanks, kind of getting to know the major roads of town
dad goes to the free fair and gets us 2 tv's, a microwave, a 'tv stand' laundry basket, and some dishes; did some other shopping; drove around Fairbanks, kind of getting to know the major roads of town
MAY 23; Sunday
dad found a chapel, got to go to church; but only stayed for Sacrament mtg because his eyes were recovering from all of the traveling on friday; Dad returned the rental car in the afternoon. he was going to ride the bus back to campus but the buses dont run on sunday. so he got a $20 taxi ride home.
dad found a chapel, got to go to church; but only stayed for Sacrament mtg because his eyes were recovering from all of the traveling on friday; Dad returned the rental car in the afternoon. he was going to ride the bus back to campus but the buses dont run on sunday. so he got a $20 taxi ride home.
MAY 24; Monday
Dad started class today! Dad got another rental car today, so he could drive to North Pole to test drive a car.
Dad started class today! Dad got another rental car today, so he could drive to North Pole to test drive a car.
MAY 25; Tuesday
Class and lab for dad. Dad returned the second rental car.
Class and lab for dad. Dad returned the second rental car.
MAY 26; Wednesday
Class for dad. Dad bought a Highlander today!
Class for dad. Dad bought a Highlander today!
May 27; Thursday
Sara flies in!! i flew in at like 9:30 pm and was blown away by how light it was outside! we make a stop at Fred Meyer to get a few essentials for me (like hair product) lol we get back to our apartment and just sit around talking till bout 12:30. i think dad was just super happy to have someone to talk to again. :-)
Sara flies in!! i flew in at like 9:30 pm and was blown away by how light it was outside! we make a stop at Fred Meyer to get a few essentials for me (like hair product) lol we get back to our apartment and just sit around talking till bout 12:30. i think dad was just super happy to have someone to talk to again. :-)May 28; Friday
got settled (that took like 30 minutes); we went to Walmart. that was nice to see a little more of Fairbanks. then we started planning our Memorial Day weekend
May 29; Saturday
Dad and I drove to Healy, Alaska. it was a 3 hour drive.
we checked into our motel room.
RIGHT after we left our hotel to head to Denali, we passed these two 'young' moosen (yes, like brian regan) on the side of the road. basically blew my mind!
got settled (that took like 30 minutes); we went to Walmart. that was nice to see a little more of Fairbanks. then we started planning our Memorial Day weekend
May 29; Saturday
Dad and I drove to Healy, Alaska. it was a 3 hour drive.
we checked into our motel room.
RIGHT after we left our hotel to head to Denali, we passed these two 'young' moosen (yes, like brian regan) on the side of the road. basically blew my mind!
then we drove to "Glitter Gulch" which is a road full of big gaudy hotels for the cruise lines. and they have lots of little tourist trap shops that are way over priced. we had lunch at a lil fish fry place. Dad got Halibut. i tried it! while sitting at lunch, i asked dad some questions about his time salmon fishing. He explained how they would use their nets to catch their salmon, he just explained the general process. it was neat to hear. then we continued down the road and got to Denali National Park.
So people have fought to keep Denali as preserved and natural as it could be (aka, not lame-o like Yellowstone and such) so only a certain portion of the one road that goes into the park is open for the public to travel. so dad and i drove those 15 or so miles. while on the drive we saw a grizzly bear! we could only see it through the binoculars. but we were THRILLED to have seen one that 'close'. haha we commented that that made the whole drive and trip worth it. (we had no idea what was in store for us)
So we did a little touring of the visitor centers, watched a short video about the park, and the highlight of that stop was finding out that there had been this Hotel in the park that burned down in 72 and they made it seem like this big historical moment a LONG time ago. well, last time dad was here... that hotel was still standing. Dad and Gary came to Denali when dad was in jr high. g-ma and g-pa were in Fairbanks teaching students taht were gonna go teach out in the bush. so they were all living up here (dad can even point out the different houses they stayed in on campus) and Gary and Dad rode the train down to Denali and camped out for two nights in a little pup tent. They did the same type of bus tour we did (that'll come later of our experience). Dad says when they came before the train was pretty much the only way to get to the park. and he was super confused this time looking for the hotel, until we read the info board about the fire. totally cracked me up. He figured that they came the summer of '70 or '71.
that night we got our dinner from a gas station (worst idea ever) and we bought things for our sack lunches the next day.
as you can see: we had 2 packages of microwave cooked chinese, tortilla chips, trail mix, chips ahoy, and soda. it was the best meal yet. HA.
later that night we went back to glitter gulch and got ice creams. most expensive icecreams ever. $5 for a two scoop and $3 for a SMALL single. mind blown? it should be. lol
OH and as you can see, we were watching the NBA finals as well.
then dad and i just layed in our beds looking at maps. FOREVER. we're the crazy travelers like that.
MAY 30; SUNDAY
we get up SUUUPER early (okay, i really mean like, 6am) and pack the backpack and get to the park for our 8 am bus departure. our drive started out AWESOME. the driver welcomed us to 'Mesa Verde National Park' dad was the ONLY person to pick up on that. the driver told us he was applying for the guided tour bus trips (not the silent driver tour bus trips, which we paid for) so we actually got to learn a lot about the trees, and the tundra, and cool stuff. well, to us. but by the end of our whole tour with him, he'd stopped the bus to take some tylenol, and he'd almost driven away without half a family. but anyway, enough about Wayne. the first (and last) part of the bus tour we'd already driven the
day before. but after a little while driving this family of 5, got on at a camp ground (the kids were 5, 3, and 18 mos; yeah.. we thought 'crazy' too!) hahah and dad helped the lady buckle one of the 3 car seats (required by the park) to the bus seat. the 7 hour round trip was eventful! the first animal sighting was a Ptarmigan; the state bird. (seen pictured on left)
MAY 30; SUNDAY
we get up SUUUPER early (okay, i really mean like, 6am) and pack the backpack and get to the park for our 8 am bus departure. our drive started out AWESOME. the driver welcomed us to 'Mesa Verde National Park' dad was the ONLY person to pick up on that. the driver told us he was applying for the guided tour bus trips (not the silent driver tour bus trips, which we paid for) so we actually got to learn a lot about the trees, and the tundra, and cool stuff. well, to us. but by the end of our whole tour with him, he'd stopped the bus to take some tylenol, and he'd almost driven away without half a family. but anyway, enough about Wayne. the first (and last) part of the bus tour we'd already driven the
day before. but after a little while driving this family of 5, got on at a camp ground (the kids were 5, 3, and 18 mos; yeah.. we thought 'crazy' too!) hahah and dad helped the lady buckle one of the 3 car seats (required by the park) to the bus seat. the 7 hour round trip was eventful! the first animal sighting was a Ptarmigan; the state bird. (seen pictured on left)it was at this "Animal Sighting" that we learned the strict bus rule of needing to be absolutely SILENT or the driver would drive away.
After the Ptarmigan we saw a fox! now remember, we'd just gotten lectured on being SILENT. then a 5 yr old girl sees her FAVORITE ANIMAL in real life. (it matches the stuffed animal in her arms) yeah... silent wasn't really gonna happen. but we got some pictures and laughed at the stupid Magpie playing chicken. (in the picture, note the magpie on the left)
OH side note. the driver told us 'you watch for animals, i'll watch the road' so if we saw animals we literally had to scream STOP at him. (this drove me crazy)
so after a while, the guy behind us yelled STOP THERE'S BEARS UP THERE! sure enough, there's a momma bear and her
two cubs comin straight down the mountain toward us! it was crazy awesome. so cute watching the cubs scramble down the hill. then they moved in front of the bus. and just took a leisure walk down the road in front of us. by now... we'd started a traffic jam with a professional photographer and another bus. cuz we couldn't move, cuz the bears were in the road. (taht's a traffic jam you've never had) After driving for another long period of time. we stopped for another outhouse break and saw some Dall sheep up close and personal. it was amazing to us because we'd seen a bunch of 'Dall dots' hiiiiggghhhhh up on the m
ountain. and now..... we were above them! it was cool. after the Dall sheep we went through "Polychrome pass" it was a bright colored mountain side, with very steep drops and a very narrow road. and a very fast bus. yep. scary. eventually we got to our turnaround point. we got out, broke the rules, then left. haha i jokes. the bus driver told us 'not to feed the animals' this included our crumbs! we weren't supposed to eat off the bus. so we ate off the bus anyways. but we didn't leave crumbs... i think. Well, after lunch we turned around... and did the whole drive again, the opposite direction! On the way back we saw a Co
yote, the same Dall sheep (in basically the exact same place)(hahah dad just said, oh you should probably put a picture of the three old men, i mean dall sheep. can you see the old men resemblance too?), and Caribou. then we were back at the visitors center. we went for a walk on a trail back to our car. then back to the hotel. now, remember that it's still sunday. and as the hotel kindly had information about; we were able to go to church! a little branch in Healy, Alaska. we went in jeans! it was only slightly REALLY awkward for dad. nobody there seemed to care. the exciting part: church started at 5:30 pm! sacrament meeting starting at 7:30! how exciting!! haha oh, but before church we went to Rosie's Cafe for dinner. MUCH better than the microwaved chinese. it was muy bueno. then off to bed. we went. no, really, more map searching. planning for the next days ADVENTURE.
two cubs comin straight down the mountain toward us! it was crazy awesome. so cute watching the cubs scramble down the hill. then they moved in front of the bus. and just took a leisure walk down the road in front of us. by now... we'd started a traffic jam with a professional photographer and another bus. cuz we couldn't move, cuz the bears were in the road. (taht's a traffic jam you've never had) After driving for another long period of time. we stopped for another outhouse break and saw some Dall sheep up close and personal. it was amazing to us because we'd seen a bunch of 'Dall dots' hiiiiggghhhhh up on the m
ountain. and now..... we were above them! it was cool. after the Dall sheep we went through "Polychrome pass" it was a bright colored mountain side, with very steep drops and a very narrow road. and a very fast bus. yep. scary. eventually we got to our turnaround point. we got out, broke the rules, then left. haha i jokes. the bus driver told us 'not to feed the animals' this included our crumbs! we weren't supposed to eat off the bus. so we ate off the bus anyways. but we didn't leave crumbs... i think. Well, after lunch we turned around... and did the whole drive again, the opposite direction! On the way back we saw a Co
yote, the same Dall sheep (in basically the exact same place)(hahah dad just said, oh you should probably put a picture of the three old men, i mean dall sheep. can you see the old men resemblance too?), and Caribou. then we were back at the visitors center. we went for a walk on a trail back to our car. then back to the hotel. now, remember that it's still sunday. and as the hotel kindly had information about; we were able to go to church! a little branch in Healy, Alaska. we went in jeans! it was only slightly REALLY awkward for dad. nobody there seemed to care. the exciting part: church started at 5:30 pm! sacrament meeting starting at 7:30! how exciting!! haha oh, but before church we went to Rosie's Cafe for dinner. MUCH better than the microwaved chinese. it was muy bueno. then off to bed. we went. no, really, more map searching. planning for the next days ADVENTURE.MAY 31; Monday
We drove the Denali Highway. but first! we got gas. for $4.00 a gallon. RIDICULOUS. Now to tell you a little bit about the Denali Highway. it's 110 miles of gravel road. yep. but it's SO worth it. the mountains are absolutely beautiful. we passed lots of little rivers and creeks, camping areas (i even saw some tents set up!)
dad would point out the glaciers. the day before we'd learned about the difference between valleys formed by river erosion verses glaciers. (rivers cause V shaped valleys. glaciers cause U shaped valleys) we saw lots of both on our adventures. eventually we saw some Caribou, up close! so NOW i'll show you a picture of them. Eventually we stopped for lunch at the Paxson lodge, where the Denali Hwy meets Alaska 2 Hwy. This is where dads eyes went bad, after a couple AWESOME days of good eyes (which is a major blessing). so i drove the three hours home. we followed the Alaska Pipeline the whole way (more to come on that in a later post). on the way home, we stopped in North Pole, Alaska. yep, taht's the town name! and had meh, okay Chinese food. lol then we got home and went to bed.
We drove the Denali Highway. but first! we got gas. for $4.00 a gallon. RIDICULOUS. Now to tell you a little bit about the Denali Highway. it's 110 miles of gravel road. yep. but it's SO worth it. the mountains are absolutely beautiful. we passed lots of little rivers and creeks, camping areas (i even saw some tents set up!)
dad would point out the glaciers. the day before we'd learned about the difference between valleys formed by river erosion verses glaciers. (rivers cause V shaped valleys. glaciers cause U shaped valleys) we saw lots of both on our adventures. eventually we saw some Caribou, up close! so NOW i'll show you a picture of them. Eventually we stopped for lunch at the Paxson lodge, where the Denali Hwy meets Alaska 2 Hwy. This is where dads eyes went bad, after a couple AWESOME days of good eyes (which is a major blessing). so i drove the three hours home. we followed the Alaska Pipeline the whole way (more to come on that in a later post). on the way home, we stopped in North Pole, Alaska. yep, taht's the town name! and had meh, okay Chinese food. lol then we got home and went to bed.
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