Day 52. Trip Mile: 7635. Homer, AK

Yesterday.

It was a nice scenic drive from Seward to Homer, rain held off until late afternoon but 7-day forecast is still for rain and temps in mid-50s. We’re boondocking on the Homer Spit for a couple nights; boondocking means no hookups or other amenities, okay for 2 nights.

The Spit has many cute, funky, touristy eateries and shops; commercial fishing facilities; large ship and small boat harbors and about a dozen RV campgrounds. It’s a beautiful setting, nearly surrounded by snowy mountains. There was a cruise ship here when we arrived, hundreds of people wandering about with that crazed gotta-get-pictures-and-souvenirs-right-now! look. The ship will likely pull out tonight so we can go do our tourist thing tomorrow when things aren’t so crowded.

It’s 5:45 PM as I write this, windy and raining, but I still plan to barbecue. Got the awning out but it’s getting whipped around pretty good so will retract it when I’m done. We don’t want it ripped apart which is not that uncommon I hear.

Today.

The sky is clear overhead but ringed with clouds at the horizon, brisk wind rocking the EDGE. Our first stop today will be the library to check email and do blog post, then the post office to see if our snail mail arrived; the rest of the day will be tourist stuff. The cruise ship pulled out, as expected.

Alaskans love their dogs and delight in applying canine handles to businesses, especially saloons. Prior posts have mentioned The Malamute Saloon, Howling Dog Saloon, and Red Dog Saloon. The most famous spot on Homer Spit is the Salty Dawg Saloon, made up of several old buildings cobbled together, including a water tower that resembles a lighthouse, a post office, and a school. It’s a mandatory stop cuz anybody who’s ever been here will ask us if we did the Dawg - would be downright embarrassing to say we didn’t. Heavy indeed is the burden of social pressure.

There will be Homer pix in the next post, haven’t been out and about to take any yet.

Day 50. Evening. Seward, AK

This is a an older post that was hiding in the drafts and never got posted. Sorry for the confusion.

Today we drove out to Exit Glacier, which is part of Kenai Fjords National Park, viewed the many outstanding murals around town, and had a great seafood lunch at Ray’s Boathouse. There’s a Ray’s Boathouse in Seattle, too, don’t know if there’s any connection.

The pix of puffins (one each: horned and tufted), jellyfish and the sea lion were taken at the Alaska SeaLife Center here in Seward. The Center is impressive: it’s an aquarium, sea bird aviary and marine research facility, a bit like the one in Newport, OR, but more research oriented.

The terrain and vegetation near Seward remind me of Switzerland a little, very scenic with mountains all around, most of them with snow in the valleys and on the north slopes.
It was raining and foggy in the morning but that tapered off later; it remained overcast but no rain for most of the day. We opted out of the excursion boat cruise.

I had one humdrum activity, re-anchoring one of the lag bolts that hold the RV awning framework to the upper edge of the sidewall. It was not done right in the first place, so I had to get a longer bolt and drill the hole deeper. We don’t use the awning much but it’s nice to have out when it’s raining, provides a covered ‘patio’ and entry area about 10’ x 14’. We both love the outdoors and get RV fever if we have to stay cooped up inside.

The other pix are of Exit Glacier and Resurrection Bay; Trish is going to do another guest blog that will include pix of several murals.

Day 49. Evening. Seward, AK

It rained all day as we drove from Trapper Creek to Seward. We stopped at the Chair 5 Restaurant in Girdwood for lunch – a nice hot bowl of chili. Girdwood is the home of Alyeska Ski Resort, which was owned by Alaska Airlines back in the day; I attended a seminar there about 100 years ago. We were looking for the old Red Dog Saloon which I visited back then but couldn’t find today. Perhaps it burned down or was a victim of non-urban renewal.

There were very scenic spots on today’s drive but the weather was too nasty for decent pix. Trish tried a few through the windshield anyway.

We’re in Resurrection campground, which overlooks Resurrection Bay, into which flows the Resurrection River. Yup, there’s a lot of resurrectin’ goin’ on hereabouts and we’re simply delighted to be a part of it. No: we have no idea who or what, if indeed anybody or anything, was resurrected.

We’re planning on doing a short cruise of Kenai Fjords NP tomorrow to view glaciers, whales, porpoises and otters. That’s dependent on the weather improving a bit. At the moment (5 PM) it’s 54 degrees, overcast and raining, can’t see diddley squat, and the forecast is for more of the same. Speaking of cruises, there’s a Holland America cruise ship in the harbor.

Later. Hey, I found the resurrection history in The Milepost: in 1792 a Russian explorer sheltered in the bay on Resurrection Sunday, aka Easter Sunday.

Day 49. Morning. Trapper Creek, AK

Rain. How refreshing. We've had rain/showers every day since we hit Alaska and the 10-day forecast for the Kenai is - you guessed it - rain, every single day. Today's forecast for LHC is 120 degrees. Okay, we can handle rain.

Our last night in the Fairbanks area was spent at the Silver Gulch Saloon, the northernmost brewpub in the US. It's located in Fox, about 10 miles north of Fairbanks. We shared a great meal of halibut and chips, tasted 3 of the brews and declared them very palatable. It's an upscale but sterile place, huge, popular, and crowded.

Across the road is the Howling Dog Saloon, a funky old place with lots of character - and a line up of 10 rough-looking dudes sitting at the bar but nobody sitting at the tables. We liked the ambience but it looked iffy for getting a good meal (hint: everybody drinking, nobody eating), hence the Silver Gulch.

We left Fairbanks at 12:15 yesterday after another check at the post office for our mail which still wasn't there, told them to forward it to Homer if they ever find it; priority mail, 2-3 days anywhere in the US! Uh-huh. We didn't stop at Danali, no hope of seeing the biggy with all the clouds, but still some great scenery along the drive. Today's destination is Seward.

Trapper Creek is 100 miles north of Anchorage. They had a live concert here in the middle of the campground last night, a woman who sang and played guitar under a large gazebo. We got in late and were busy getting set up, doing laundry, and cooking dinner so didn't go sit and listen. We're only 100' away, so could hear it fine anyway.

Pix of saloons, Trapper Creek gazebo, pipeline north of Fairbanks, undercover dog. Those burled posts are real popular here. Trish doesn't like 'em, reminds her of rheumatoid arthritis.

Day 47. Morning. Fairbanks.

Thanks, Trish! Nicely done. We look forward to more guest posts.

It rained most of yesterday but we took advantage of a brief sun break and cleaned up the EDGE exterior. The rest of the day was spent running errands and attempting to pick up our 2nd batch of mail. Priority Mail is supposed to take 2 days but it was sent from LHC on Monday and still hadn't arrived yesterday, 4 days later. Obviously, it takes longer for AK; we'll get it today, hopefully.

My favorite thing to do in the Fairbanks area, mentioned in an earlier post, was going to the Malamute Saloon to listen to Robert Service readings. Alas, it is closed and up for sale. Bummer.

Today is tourist day and Trish has a list of sites to visit, including the museum and LARS (Large Animal Research Station) at the University of Alaska Fairbanks. Gotta go pet the musk ox and caribou, aka reindeer. The weather's supposed to be good so we may have a campfire tonight; too many nights without campfires and Trish suffers severe marshmallow/chocolate withdrawal, flops around on the ground whining piteously - not a pretty sight.

Later. No mail today either; parcel pickup opens at noon tomorrow (Saturday) so will check one last time before we beat feet for the Keen Eye peninsula. Weather's better today but with sporadic showers so no campfire; we need socialization anyway so will find a funky old pub for suds and chow.

Pix are of musk ox and museum at UAF, and the old log cabin in front of the Cultural Center. UAF has 9000 students and a large impressive campus. I don't know why they named the LARS after a bird: bobwhites are fine but naming an entire branch of a university after them?

Guest Blogger Trish; Whitehorse, YT

GUEST BLOGGER!
It is my great pleasure to introduce Guest Blogger for a Day, Trish! She went into the big city (Whitehorse), saw and did all sorts of fantastic things, took some fun pix and is anxious to share this with y’all.

I have been invited to post a guest entry on the Edge blog, and have accepted with some hesitation. I only hope I can do an adequate job, and not disappoint the distinguished readership. This is Trish. In an earlier installment Mike introduced me as the navigator. My primary responsibility during this epic journey of the Edge, is to inform the driver when the destination we seek is 180˚ in the opposite direction from the way we’re going. The driver usually makes a correction within a mile or two, once he has satisfied himself the information he’s been given is, in fact, correct. As you can see, being the navigator is an important job.

After leaving a terrific campsite at Muncho Lake, Yukon Territory (YT), we continued north and west to Whitehorse, YT. The clouds moving across the mountain tops made for wonderful plays of light; first a collision of dark clouds, soon replaced by a thick tumble of snow white cumulus. I’ve included a couple of pictures taken through the windshield while I was supposed to be navigating.

Since it was once again time for laundry, we camped for 2 nights in a private RV park 16 km south of Whitehorse. Upon rising the first morning, Mike declared he was going to perform a day of RV maintenance and improvements. (He is a great guy to travel with.) He and I both knew the best way for me to help was to get out of the way. Ranger and I loaded up into the truck with camera and guidebooks and set out to explore Whitehorse. Here are some of the highlights of what we saw:

· Miles Canyon – This is a narrow canyon on the Yukon River just east of the town of Whitehorse. Since the construction of a dam in 1959, the water is calm as it flows through the canyon. It was a different story during the Klondike gold rush. Supplies being brought down river had to be transferred to tramways on either side of the river and then loaded into boats waiting below the canyon.

· Colorful Floatplanes – They’re everywhere: in the air, gliding on the water, tied to docks, lining roadways near docks. They are a happy sight.

· The Klondike – This stern-wheeler was built in 1929 and is a National Historic Site. With a capacity of over 300 tons, it was the largest cargo vessel on the Yukon.

· Bearclaw Quilt Shop and No Knot Yarn Shop – While I’m neither an accomplished quilter nor knitter, I have a long standing passion for fabric and fiber. Both shops were a treat. A real quilter might never leave the Bearclaw – lots and lots of creativity is present in that place. While I enjoyed the colors and textures, Ranger basked in the petting and affection he received. He was provided a handmade quilt to lie on while I shopped. Those people have the right attitude. Sorry, no pictures. Ranger and I were having too much fun.
· Murals Around Town – My favorite is on the backside of a row of city businesses fronting a surface parking lot. The rear of each building has been painted to look like a building of years gone by.

· 400 Pound Beaver– A life size resin replicate delighted me on a nature trail outside the Yukon Beringia Interpretive Center. These creatures lived along with the wooly mammoths during the Yukon ice age. (Note to John H. – Canada is Mecca for us OSU grads. Beavers abound.)

· World Largest Weathervane – Some clever Canadian decided to recycle an old DC 3. After the interior components were scrapped, the exterior was repainted, and the plane is now mounted on a pivot. Darn if it doesn’t spin right around so its nose is always pointed into the wind. I’d like one just like it for the top ridge of our garage.

It’s been fun to share with you blog readers. Thanks for your indulgence. I’ll now relinquish the computer keys and return to my responsibilities as navigator.
Signing off,
Trish

Day 46. Trip miles: 6795. Fairbanks, AK

We made it to the end of Trip Leg Number Two!

We’re at a state campground in the heart of town, a bit too close to the heart perhaps. The campground happens to be on the final approach to Fairbanks International and is beside a main arterial to boot. The location is very convenient though and has good wifi, so we’re good here for a 3-day breather, cleanup and resupply.

I spent most of one summer here in the mid 70s when I worked for Alaska Airlines. They owned a lot of rental properties here at the time and the local manager left suddenly so I came up to fill the gap until a new manager was hired. It wasn’t just me: my wife Mary and our two sons, Tod and Adam, were here also. We lived in a new double wide mobile home for a couple months and had an enjoyable time.

The place has grown and changed a lot in the interim of course, hardly recognize anything. I’m hoping that the Malamute Saloon is open and still doing the nightly readings of Robert Service poetry like The Cremation of Sam McGee. It was closed for awhile for renovation, may still be, will find out today.

Pix were taken in Delta Junction, AK, which is the official end of TAH, and North Pole, AK.