Well, I am having a lot of trouble loading photos, so they will be few and far between.  It seems I can load them ok from my iPad but not from the computer, where the good ones are.  Life goes on as we make our way back home.

DAY 36, SUNDAY, August 18th

Mountain Ash Tree

It got cold last night - the temperature in the trailer this morning was 49 degrees.  We weren't very far from our destination, Seward and according to my travel bible, The Milepost, there was a no reservations campground on the waterfront, so we felt our chances were pretty good for getting one of those.  Resurrection Waterfront Campground.  It was like playing a game of musical chairs to camp there.  As one RV pulled out, another was waiting to pull in.  We were one of the lucky ones to get a spot right on the Port of Seward.

Waterfront view from our campsite

Woke up to this view

We immediately noticed the smell of smoke and a haze in their air from a fire that was a mile and 1/2 away (at least that is what we were told).  After we got settled in, we set out to explore Seward.  One of the first signs we happened onto was one for Chugah National Forest and the Chugah National Park.  We thought, what the heck, let's check it out.  Keep in mind, we were not equipped for a hike.  No backpack and water and most importantly, no hiking boots.  The park ranger told us if we walked .5 mile in there was a telescope to view Exit Glacier.  Easy peasy.  But that wasn't enogh.  We had to get closer.  So we kept walking.  By the time the path became incredibly steep with large rocks to climb on and over, we were too far in to give up.  Once we got to the viewing spot, I would have given anything to trade my tennis shoes in for a pair of hiking boots and a bottle of water.  Incredibly, some were wearing flip flops.  It was definitely worth the hike!


DAY 37, Monday, August 19th

It is nice to wake up to the sounds and smell of water.  Both the smell of smoke and the haze had lifted.  We are really enjoying our camp spot on the waterfront.  We had an easy morning in downtown Seward.  The Sea Bean Coffee Shop was the WiFi hangout, with everyone sitting and staring at their phones.  We browsed through the shops and bought a colorful print as a souvenir of our trip.


In the afternoon we hopped on a boat with Major Marine Tours to do some wildlife viewing with the National Park Service.  The scenery was great and we saw a number of glaciers.  The highlight of the trip was two or three hump back whales who put on a show for us.  One would go under and another would blow and raise it's back out of the water and do a tail flip.  At one point two raised out of the water at the exact same time as if they were doing synchronized swimming.  There were sea otters, seals, a mountain goat, an Eagle and Puffins.  I've seen Puffins in Zoos before, but let me tell you, they are cool to see in the wild.  They glide along the water and fly onto rocks so easily.  They reminded me  of a big bumble bee - with their large body and tiny wings, one has to wonder how they can fly.

Back to the camper for a relaxing evening.

DAYS 37, 38, 39 - Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, August 20, 21, and 22

Our next stop, and biggest disappointment of the trip so far, was Homer.  Sterling Hwy to Homer was closed due to the forest fires.  We were really looking forward to the Kenai Peninsula.  We heard the salmon were running and bear watching was at its prime.  But it wasn't meant to be.

It is time to start backtracking to complete the loop.  The days are overcast or hazy because of the fires, we are never quite sure which.  Often the mountains in the distance were obscured.  Glenn Hwy took us to Road House Lodge in Palmer, the oldest lodge on Glenn Hwy.  A young couple had taken it over seven years ago and were in the process of fixing it up.  Karen, the lady of the lodge, offered up road kill, aka muskrat chili.  When I requested a glass of wine she asked if I would like to see the wine list, then promptly set four travel size bottles of Sutter Home wine on the counter top for me to choose from.  Now that is service.  Her husband, Andy, showed us the "Comfort Stations" and admonished us not to leave water on the floors if we showered.  I really hope they make a go of it.

At Glennallen we got on the Richardson Hwy, which reminded us of a roller coaster with all of the unexpected dips in the road.  Our expectation of the scenery on Richardson Hwy wasn't much.  It was just a means of getting to where we needed to go.  Boy were we wrong.  The first many miles were a trial, but towards the end we noticed the Alaskan Pipeline had been running along it the entire way, over creek beds, up mountains.  Fascinating.  Then we came to Rainbow Ridge and Rainbow Mtn, Isabelle Pass and the Gulcana Glacier.


Lesson learned:  Expect the unexpected

Thursday we continued backtracking through Alaska and the Yukon and BC, crossing into Canada at Beaver Creek.  Every time we thought the roads couldn't get any worse, we were proven wrong.  These rough Yukon roads were about as unpredictable as they came.  Mostly the dips were so extreme,  I was afraid something was going to come lose on the trailer.  An interesting site along the way.... a stove with the oven door open sitting on the side of the road with an "OPEN RANGE" sign propped on it.

We stopped to get gas at Kluane Lake, a gorgeous body of water that goes on for many miles.  The gas station attendant said the purity of the water is what makes it look the way it does.  We spent the night at the Otter Falls RV Park in Burwash Landing.  Not much of a park, but folks were nice and there was electricity.

Fall comes early in Alaska.  Since we have been here we have noticed a sharp decline in temperatures with the days barely rising to the 50's and nightimes dipping to the low 40's or less.  The leaves on the bushes and trees are changing colors and dropping their leaves.

Fall in Alaska

We've decided Alaskans have a strange sense of humor when naming their places of businesses.  Here are some examples:

Mug Shot Saloon
Skinny Dicks Halfway Inn
Nauti Otter Inn
Pit Bar
Tournagen Arm Pit BBQ
Moose Run Golf Course
Noisy Goose Cafe
Purple Moose Espresso
The Sudzy Salmon Car Wash
Morning Wood Hotel
I'll just leave it there.