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Alaska trip 2024

June - August 2024
Starting out for Alaska with the teardrop camper June 1, 2024. Will drive there and back Read more

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Camper, Camping, Family, Nature, Wildlife
  • 40.7kmiles traveled
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  • Alaska trip 2024
    1

    Ninilchek day 2

    June 28, 2024 in the United States ⋅ ☁️ 50 °F

    We moved into the cabin and had another pasta meal last night. Chicken with pasta, asparagus, and a couple of squirts of tomato paste, garlic paste, and Italian herbs in white wine. Very tasty!

    After great hot showers and a good sleep, Phil was off at 6:30 am. on his first day of fishing. My laundry detail was complicated by 1. Change machine not working. 2. Washing machine not working. 3. The office is not open to get assistance. At 9 a.m., when the office opened, I got a refund on my broken machine and change for the rest of the loads, but by then, a lady who had been traveling 2 weeks longer than me was using all washers. Finally, at 10 a.m., she relinquished one machine to me, so I began the slow, painful process of washing our clothes and bedding one load at a time...

    By the time my chores were finished, I had an excited text from Phil that they were on their way back. There were 8 fishing in his group plus the Captain and 1 deckhand. Two men caught very large fish weighing between 50 and 60 pounds. They were nearly 5 feet in length. The rest of the fish were smaller. The limit was one fish under 28 inches and one over. Phil had one of each.

    We watched them process the fish after photos were taken. Ours will be packaged in 1 pound packs and frozen and held in case Phil gets Salmon tomorrow. We'll ship that overnight to my Dad to hold until our return. He and Chris will be welcome to some fish for the bother.

    This afternoon, we are waiting to hear about tomorrow 's departure time. Phil is entitled to catch 6 Sockeye if he is able. Others in his party today caught a limit of salmon yesterday. He may go as early as 4 am.

    He got a little sick on the boat, so he's snacking now on grapes, and we'll have an early supper.    Read more

  • Alaska trip 2024
    3

    Ninilchek Day 3

    June 29, 2024 in the United States ⋅ ☁️ 55 °F

    For me, it was a day to check up on upcoming reservations, pay some bills, and read a good book about people who lived off the grid in Alaska.

    For Phil, it was a fishing day! He left the house at 7 am. to drive to meet his guide on the Kasilof River about 30 minutes away. He took his own chest waders as the resort had only hip waders, and the hostess told him he'd likely be warmer in his own gear. He wore extra heavy wool socks and some merino wool sweat pants/leggings under his regular pants. The temperature never got above 55 F today, and the water was quite cold. He did a fishing technique called flossing. Salmon don't eat after they begin their journey upstream to spawn, so you cast a line that will catch them in the mouth and hook them on their mouth like dental floss. He caught one by hooking in the abdomen and had to release it as that is illegal. He was only able to bring one fish to the bank legally, although he hooked several others that he could not land before they shook the hook. He said when you did hook one, it jumped out of the water.

    He fished about 8 hours with guide Ed and his wife Teri. Not everyone was catching fish where they were today. The guide and his wife did not catch any fish.

    We'll have the one fish packaged and frozen to ship with the Halibut by FedEx to Missouri, and it should reach my dad's house on Tuesday. Tomorrow, we'll know the total shipping weight.

    Just an aside, the hostess in the office, Michelle, said that she and her husband Captain Troy come up from Florida and do this for 5 months every summer. Michelle reminds me of my sister-in-law, Kaki Kahl. Similar looks, voice, and mannerisms and the same energy and attention to detail. We would recommend this service to others, too.    Read more

  • Alaska trip 2024
    112

    Homer Day 1

    Jun 30–Jul 3, 2024 in the United States ⋅ ☁️ 61 °F

    We packed up and settled up on our fish processing and shipping. Let me just say it was a great experience, but an expensive 18 pounds of fish! It will be shipped to my father overnight by FEDEX and arrive on Tuesday. Only a couple of pounds of salmon and the rest was Halibut.

    It was raining on and off all morning. As we approached the Homer Hill overlook, it cleared. I can honestly say it is one of the most beautiful views of the trip, and we've seen many.

    Our campsite is on the very end of Homer Spit, and because our camper is so tiny, we are on the row facing the beach. This time, the bigger campers are behind us one or two rows.

    The Spit is a complete tourist trap with bars, restaurants, and gift stores, but where we are is beyond that right at the end. So lovely.

    We went to Safeway for supplies again. There were no other big chain stores here, and it was quite crowded.

    We also stopped at the Marine National Wildlife Visitor's Center. While there, we saw a moose with very young twin calves. It would be another great place to volunteer someday.

    If it is raining tomorrow we'll go to the museum and maybe walk around the strip in our raincoats. If not, we'll hike a bit. Either way, we are on the beach and looking at mountains. The only drawback is if there is a tsunami, we might be goners...    Read more

  • Alaska trip 2024
    11

    Homer day 2

    July 1, 2024 in the United States ⋅ ☁️ 55 °F

    It was rainy and cold much of the day. We got up and went to the Duncan House Diner for breakfast. We arrived before 8 am. and by 9 a.m., people were waiting in line to get a table. Good hearty breakfast.

    Then we came back to the campground to shower. I watched Marine Life while Phil was puttering around in the bathroom. I saw several otters and seals as well as a dolphin and some kind of smaller whale. It was too far away to identify. Mostly, there is a lot of boat traffic from small boats taking people fishing.

    It began to rain so we went to the local museum. Very nice combination of art, history, and wildlife exhibits. They also have a beautiful garden.

    We had a late lunch at Three Olives. We both had a cup of tomato basil soup (yum), and we split a Nonna's Salad, which had apples, candidied pecans, and goat cheese on a bed of spinach and mixed lettuces. We also ordered a plate with three different spreads and ended up bringing most of that home for a light supper tonight.

    We walked a short trail on the Beluga Slough next to the wildlife Visitor's Center. Saw some sand hill cranes with chick's and a variety of ducks and birds.

    On the way back to the campground, after stopping at the pharmacy for prescription refills and the post office to mail cards, we saw the moose we saw yesterday happily browsing near the road. Hope she and her babies stay safe.

    Late this afternoon, Phil and I walked to the Salty Dawg Saloon. It is a bar and kind of a tacky one, so we skipped having a drink as it was crowded. It is one of the oldest buildings on Homer Spit and was at one time a post office. It has apparently cleaned up a little. A neighbor in a nearby camper said she came here as a child, and there were pictures of naked women on the walls. None of that today.    Read more

  • Alaska trip 2024
    11

    Homer Day 3

    July 2, 2024 in the United States ⋅ ☀️ 55 °F

    It was cold and windy this morning. Feels odd to wear winter coats, hats, and gloves while drinking our coffee.

    We watched the sea, and the day began to warm. There were a few otters and saw some fish jumping, but no whales this morning.

    After some yogurt, poptarts, and a bowl of hot cereal for Phil, we took our showers. They do have good showers here for $2 each. We bought ice for the cooler and headed out for the day.

    Our hike today was at the Carl Wynn Nature Center. We intended to do the 1.4 mile hike, but turned the wrong way and ended up going a 1/4 mile in the wrong direction first, so with the backtrack, it was a 2 mile hike. At the nature center HQ, we looked at pictures of the plants and flowers we had seen. There are lots of wild flowers right now. There was a young moose in the parking lot, but it ambled off before I could take his picture. Phil bought a new ball cap there.

    After the hike, we ate outside at a drive-through fish and chips place. It was sunny but windy.

    Now, I am charging up all our batteries while Phil is off doing laundry. Our next week or so we'll have limited services at the campsites we've selected. We head toward Whittier tomorrow for 2 nights, and we'll be in a USFS campground. After that, we head towards Denali, although yesterday there was a fire there that closed the park entrance and other services. We will keep an eye on that in case we need to alter our plans.    Read more

  • Alaska trip 2024
    11

    Whittier- Wallawaw Campground

    Jul 3–5, 2024 in the United States ⋅ ☁️ 61 °F

    We got up and went to a hearty
    breakfast at Duncan House. On the way back, we stopped at Safeway. Then, back to the campground to shower and pack up. The sea was like glass this morning, and it was the first day it felt even remotely warm. Last night, I had my winter jacket, gloves, a buff, and my wool stocking cap on. Today my long sleeved T-shirt felt too warm at 60 degrees.

    We both enjoyed Homer, but we agreed that the busy touristy Spit was not as nice as the town except for the views.

    Out 190 mile trip today was again filled with great views of the volcanos across Cook's Inlet and then later the Kenai River and finally the mountains.

    We are at a large but very private National Forest campground. Lots of trees and the sites are nice.
    We are near a nature trail, and we can see a glacier on the nearby mountain.

    Tomorrow, we will go through the "tunnel" to the town of Whittier. It is a deepwater port and was constructed as a secret military base. More on it tomorrow. We are taking a brief marine wildlife viewing cruise. I don't want to be seasick, so I picked a shorter one with a no seasickness guarantee. I am also taking some Dramamine, and I think Phil will, too, after his bout of illness while fishing for Halibut earlier in the trip.    Read more

  • Alaska trip 2024

    Whittier day 2-part 1

    July 4, 2024 in the United States ⋅ ☁️ 48 °F

    Our first stop this morning was at the Partage Glacier Visitors Center outside on our side of the tunnel to Whittier. Very nice place. Normally, it was a $5 entrance fee, but the computers were down, so admission was free. The ranger said we should hurry to Whittier since today was the July 4 parade. Her fears were unfounded as we zipped right through the tunnel.

    6.5 minutes later, we were in Whittier. We drove through the one lane tunnel on top of the rail tracks. Once in Whittier, we found a budget parking place and spent the morning walking around. This post was initially established in 1941 as a deepwater port, and the train tunnel was completed in 1943. It was used to get supplies to military posts.

    There are several military buildings remaining. One is now a condo for residents, and about half of the people live there. It was bought by the city in 1972.

    One building is no longer used due to asbestos, but it initially housed 1000 people. Other buildings also remained.

    We also saw the July 4 parade. Most vehicles, but most of the residents were in the parade. Phil and I watched from the original Signsl Corps building (now a hotel and restaurant. )    Read more

  • Alaska trip 2024

    Whittier day- 2 Part 2

    July 4, 2024 in the United States ⋅ ☁️ 54 °F

    We boarded our Capt Phillips Marine tour at 12:45 pm. We were at table 5 near the front of the craft with two ladies from Texas. One comes to Alaska often. For the other, it was her first time. We also sat near a man from Los Angeles.

    We saw numerous glaciers on the cruise and stopped for any wildlife. It was a 3 hr 45-minute cruise. Both Phil and I took a dramamine (actually meclizine) an hour ahead of time. I also wore those little seasickness bands. Frankly, the medication gave me a "stupid" feeling after a while. I could think of things to say, but I could not say them. The good part is that I did not get sick and was eventually able to walk around and take photos instead of huddling motionless in my seat.

    We saw our first Glacier, and in a short time, we also had several whale spouts! There was a humpback cow and calf feeding, and we watched them for quite a while. Then we saw some sea otters. Finally, we saw another whale as we were making our way to one of two tidewater glaciers. These glaciers still come right to the sea. Many others in this area no longer touch the sea.

    We went to each tidewater glacier. One was actively calving or shedding ice into the sea. Some of the youngsters on board, with the help of the crew, gathered some of the ice for passengers to put in their drinks!

    We saw some harbor seals at one of the glaciers. At another place, there were Stellar Sea Lions resting on a bouy. We also visited a Kittiwake rookery where black footed gulls were nesting. More otters there there.

    Overall, I know it was a chance that we saw the whales. The Capt. said that not many had returned due to the low numbers of herring since the Exon-Valdez oil spill more than 30 years ago.

    I would recommend this cruise as it was short. I didn't get sick. I saw lots of cool stuff. They even served a light lunch of chowder or vegetarian chili.

    It is cold tonight. Phil and I had bowls of chicken and noodle soup (thanks to Packet Gourmet). We are going to pack up tonight and head out tomorrow to find breakfast on our way back through Anchorage and to Talkeetna 190 miles away.    Read more

  • Alaska trip 2024

    Montana Creek Campground, Talkeetna, AK

    July 5, 2024 in the United States ⋅ ☁️ 63 °F

    Really, this is just a travel and restock day as we head toward Denali. We had everything packed since rain was threatening, and we drove up the road 10 miles or so ro Girdqood for breakfast. Excellent coffee and good eats at the Hightower Pub. Girdwood was celebrating its "Forest Festival" and had many hippies young and old there to celebrate.

    We found the Laundromall, which is an all-purpose laundromat with pay showers and a Cannabis store in the front. Showers were $8 and lasted 8 minutes. Money we'll spent we decided! We did not use the laundry or Cannabis services but pressed on to Amchorage.

    We stopped for a few hours at the PX (more bug repelling stuff) and the commissisary. Phil called Fairbanks to get an appt to have the wheel bearings on the camper repacked there. We struck out so far on scheduling an oil change though. The Chevy dealer was booked out until July 23. We'll try Midas when we get cell service again.

    Overall, it was a pretty regular travel day. It is supposed to rain overnight and most of the day tomorrow, so we'll head out early in search of breakfast in Talkeetna a few miles up the road.    Read more

  • Alaska trip 2024

    Denali-sort of Day 1

    July 6, 2024 in the United States ⋅ ☁️ 54 °F

    It's been a disappointing day. We woke up to steady rain, and after a 150-mile drive, we arrived to find Denali NP closed. I thought I had been keeping up but had mistaken their "full operations" to mean the park was open. Apparently, none of the park is open at all. So we have 4 nights and a bus trip out of our itinerary.

    On the brighter side, we had breakfast at The Flying Squirrel bakery in Talkeetna, AK. I had a delicious freshly smoked salmon breakfast sandwich with cream cheese, red onions, and tomato on fresh baked whole grain bread. Phil had the breakfast burrito. I bought a T-shirt and cookies and extra coffee to go.

    We stopped a few times in the rain to stretch our legs and go to the bathroom. I watched a state park employee try to start his weed eater as he was apparently planning to work in the pouring rain. (These Alaskans are pretty tough!)

    At Cantwell, a mother moose and her twin calves darted across the road, but Phil was able to slow for their crossing.

    I commented to Phil on the surprisingly low number of campers we were seeing. Apparently, I was the only one who didn't get the memo... So now we are camped 6 miles from the park entrance at Grizzly Paw Cabins and RV park while we regroup. It's noisy, but we have a big space with room for our bug hooch so we can also escape the rain, which is forecast for the next 2 days. We have electricity, flush toilets, and showers. It's pricey, but better than we would have had in the park.

    I am grateful for a place to go at this point. Others have told us they were really disappointed at Denali, and we may never know now if we love it or not. (Edit: The park is closed for wildfires. 25% contained right now.)    Read more

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