Homer to Ninilchik

BEARFOOTING: On the Kenai Peninsula
South of Anchorage, it’s time to go “Bearfooting’: a verb that means having a good time on the road. Bit’s also a state of mind -- ‘when your journey becomes more important than your destination’. You’ll know it when you find yourself waking up in the morning and can’t remember the day of the week, where you are, and what your next stop is=what’s more, you don’t even care! Remember it’s the journey, not only the destination!

Homer to Ninilchik: Two days in Homer and time to move northward. Nice small villages, plenty of beautiful sights. Stopped along road to see the back end of moose running into plains area. Stayed overnight in Ninilchik State Park campground, overlooking Cook Inlet and when clouds cooperated we had view of Redoubt Volcano out our back window. The small village of Ninilchik hosted small fishing harbor, a collection of cute little homes and on top an adorable Russian church.

T got some fishing in with the local enthusiasts, a lot of hits all around but no one took anything home for dinner, always a chinese Sunday supper works at local ‘Wok’. So interesting to sit around and listen to the locas, out picking blueberries today and hoping the ?strawberries will ripen this week. A sweetheart of a child with her braids and grandfather discussing their blueberry harvest and her enthusiasm for hanging out with him charming!

Heading to McD’s to get our morning Java and E-mail! Chow!

Ninilchik is a census-designated place in Kenai Peninsula Borough, Alaska, United States. At the 2000 census the population was 772, on the west side of the Kenai Peninsula on the Sterling Highway, 61 km (38 miles) southwest of the Kenai, and 100 air miles southwest of Anchorage.
According to the United States Census Bureau, the CDP has a total area of 207.6 square miles (537.7 km²), of which, 207.6 square miles (537.6 km²) of it is land and 0.04 square miles (0.1 km²) of it (0.01%) is water.

AUGUST 25-26, 2010

8/25-26/10
On way to Valdez we passed thru Wrangell-St Elias National Park-the largest Ntl Park in US- (6 times size of Yellowstone). Onto Valdez, traveling past glacier mountains, along the Alaskan pipeline into the city. Scenery breathtaking at each turn in road, can’t get over the sights. (History lesson on glaciers for G-Kids to follow.)

Valdez was an interesting place to stop, have to mention a wonderful sea life ceramic installation/art at ferry dock, (check out post card pix). Boarded ferry for Whittier, the trip down Valdez bay was full of wonderful sights going into Prince William Sound-lots of I wouldn’t have expected-small icebergs and close up whale sightings. Departing the ferry in Whittier a picturesque town, but only exit out of Whittier thru a one lane train tunnel, seemed odd as cars/rvs are kept in line waiting till oncoming traffic and train are moved thru. Next direction to Kanai Peninsula and stayed overnight on Russian River state camp grounds at the junction of Kanai River, took a great (first one) hike along river loaded with salmon swimming upstream and laying eggs, and fly fishermen. So many interesting things to see, and trying hard to get them all in...

If this blog seems more like a log, it is due to the consistant amount of driving. We have a very bad habit of just moving to the next stop. Gotta slow down.................

Now that we have arrived at the furthest point of Kanai Peninsula, called the Homer spit, the end of the road, I hope we begin to slowly trace our way back. Across the Kachamack Bay we are looking out at wonderful snow covered and glacial mountains, just next to a commercial fishing dock, and enjoying the sights of a quaint fishing village.


TRIVIA: Homer is a city located in Kenai Peninsula Borough in the U.S. state of Alaska. According to 2005 Census Bureau estimates, the population was 5,364. One of Homer's nicknames is "the cosmic hamlet by the sea"; another is "the end of the road". Tiller digs indicate that early Alutiq people probably camped in the Homer area although their villages were on the far side of Kachemak Bay.
Coal was discovered in the area in the 1890s. The Cook Inlet Coal Fields Company built a town, dock, coal mine, and a railroad at Homer. Coal mining in the area continued until World War II. There are an estimated 400 million tons of coal deposits still in the area.
Homer was named for Homer Pennock, a gold mining company promoter, who arrived in 1896 on the Homer Spit and built living quarters for his crew of 50 men. However, gold mining was never profitable in the area.
Notable people from or living in Homer include:
Tom Bodett, writer, known for the Motel 6 "We'll leave the light on for you"
and book about Homer, As Far as You Can go Without a Passport.

Homer has long been known as the "halibut fishing capital of the world" and halibut and salmon sport fishing, along with other tourism, commercial fishing, and logging are the dominant industries in the Homer area. Homer co-hosted the 2006 Arctic Winter Games. The Alaska Maritime National Wildlife Refuge and the Kachemak Bay Research Reserve co-host the visitor center with displays such as "Alaska Islands and Ocean Visitor Center"

GLACIERS - Glacier Heaven - Southeast Alaska
Alaska has hosted a glacier-favoring mixture of climate and topography for the last 12.5 million years. During the Pleistocene age, when the climate was 3 to 9 degrees Fahrenheit colder than it is today, an ice sheet covered a large expanse of the earth, including the islands of southeastern Alaska. Today there are still over 100,000 glaciers in Alaska, although ice covers only 5 percent of the state. The icefields and glaciers of the Tongass National Forest are some of the few remnants of the once-vast ice sheets.

In Southeast Alaska, maritime climate and coastal mountains work together to create favorable conditions for glaciation. The icefields straddle the Coast Mountain Range on the United States-Canadian border, directly in the path of the Pacific Ocean's prevailing winds. Moist air flows toward the mountains, rises, cools, and releases snow and rain. Annual snowfall on the Juneau Icefield exceeds 100 feet, and mild Southeast summers assure that winter snow accumulation exceeds summer snowmelt at higher elevations.
As the Earth Turns - Changes Affect Glaciers
Weather and terrain are not the only factors that make glaciation possible. One widely accepted theory suggests that Pleistocene glacial and inter-glacial periods resulted from the Earth's orbital-rotational cycles. Swings in the tilt of the Earth's spin axis and the shape of the Earth's orbit interact, varying the amount of seasonal sunshine that the Earth receives in certain areas. These changes in seasonal intensity may affect ocean currents that ultimately influence the climate.
What is a Glacier?
Glaciers, perennial accumulations of ice, snow, sediment, rock and water, respond to changes in temperature, snowfall and geologic forces. Several components make up a glacial system: the ice and sediment contained in the glacier; the valleys, fiords and rock features it flows over, on, or around; and the deposits left by its retreat or advance.
New snow layers create pressure on existing layers of snow and ice. This process, "firnification", changes snow to firn, a dense granular snow (like corn snow). After the first season's melt, snow becomes firn. As it is compressed further, firn becomes ice.
As the snow collects over many years, an ice field forms. Ice flows down the valleys and slopes of the mountains to the lower elevations, and glaciers are born.
Anatomy of a Glacier
Glaciers form where more snow falls than melts. A glacier's accumulation area, located at higher elevations, accrues a wealth of snow and ice. The ablation area, located at lower elevations, loses ice through melting (downwasting) or calving. A glacier's terminus or face advances when more snow and ice amass than melt, and it retreats when melt exceeds accumulation. When melt equals accumulation, a glacier achieves equilibrium and its face remains stationary. Whether the glacier's face is advancing or retreating, glacial ice persistently glides down-valley.
Coerced by gravity, ice pursues the path of least resistance. Ice depth and bedrock angle influence the rate of glacial flow. Glaciers contain two zones of ice flow. The zone of plastic flow, ice closest to the bedrock, experiences extreme pressure from the weight of the ice above and conforms to the anomalies in the bedrock. The zone of brittle flow, the upper 150 feet of glacial ice, lacks this pressure and reacts inelastically to the bedrock features, forming elongated cracks called crevasses which fluctuate with the glacier's flow. Tubular chutes or moulins drain surface meltwater, and formidable spires of ice called seracs reach skyward. Ice plummets over particularly steep terrain creating ice falls. One theory suggests that differences in seasonal flow rates over an icefall create the convex bands called ogives at the base of the falls, which undulate down glacier. The erosive power of glacial flow changes the landscape and scrapes much of the soil and rock from the valley walls that channel its irrepressible flow.


August 24-ON THE ROAD AGAIN

On the road again, after two days in TOK and a bunch of trips across the road to RV Repair, three serpentine belts (first one flown in from Fairbanks didn’t work, and second two were brought back by Willard when overnighted to Fairbanks to tow a big rig that met up with a moose, +we have backup one in storage for emergency use). Willard and staff are more than helpful and the good news is there was no towing involved in this experience, also they kept smiling the whole time.

So back on the road and heading towards Valdez, lots of spectacular sights, and so many interesting little settlements. Pictures can’t even reflect the views. Stayed overnite at interesting lodge/rv park. Had a delightful Russian dinner with family starting out in Alaska and rehabing old lodge. Delicious Soldutana (fish chowder), and Blini (blintze) Quite an interesting evening-since it was election day and the bars can’t serve until 8PM a lot of the workers here had to sit and wait for there beer, and probably had a hard time staying awake.

On to Tok

¸.·´ (¸.*´Are we having fun yet? Alaska, the last frontier.. ·´ ¸.·*¨) ¸.·*¨) ¸.·*¨ ) (¸.·´ (¸.*´ ¸.·´ `·-* **´¨)*´¨. ·´ ¸.·*¨) ¸.·*¨) ¸.·*¨ ) (¸.·´ (¸.*´ ¸.·´ `·-* -
Crossing over the border back into the Good Ole US is a little less than expected. The sights in Yukon are most memorable and certainly more dramatic than imagined. Pix on last post of the tranquil smooth Lake Kluane, choppy windy morning lake-watching fishing boats bouncing.

Sunday 8/22/10-50 mi.before Alaska border -stopped for coffee, Jim and Dorothy Cooks’ store and gift shop in Koidern,YK after T was inside for about 20 minutes I decided to check to see if he heard the call of the wild and escaped thru the back door. Inside a delightful couple was giving him the rhubarb recipe her aunt left behind 40 years ago. With coffee (fresh perked) in hand along with rhubarb cake it took another 90 minutes to get out the door, after so many amusing stories and funny experiences under their belt.
(need any decorated railroad spikes or rocks we will gladly stop on our way back to pick some up for you) Leaving behind a few bulbs of our fresh garlic from NY state farm, we promised to stop on our way back.
T realized he shoulda helped grinding the 30lb. moose meat they were getting ready to grind for burgers. GREAT EXPERIENCE.

First moose sighting-momma and 2 offspring running thru rain into the woods. Evening stopover at TOK, weather sunny and warmish (60’s), nice evening meal and good sleeping. Maybe RV life isn’t so bad, lots of people doin-it?

Trivia- History/Geography facts:
Capital-Juneau*Largest city-Anchorage*Area-663,268 sq.mi.
Alaska is the largest state of the United States by area; it is situated in the northwest extremity of the North American continent, with Canada to the east, the Arctic Ocean to the north, and the Pacific Ocean to the west and south, with Russia further west across the Bering Strait. Approximately 1/2 of 698,473 live within the Anchorage metro area. As of 2009, Alaska remains the least densely populated state of the U.S
Alaska was purchased from the Russian Empire on March 30, 1867, for $7.2 million at about two cents per acre ($4.74/km²). They became an organized territory on May 11, 1912, and the 49th state of the U.S. on January 3, 1959.
The name "Alaska" (Аляска) was already introduced in the Russian colonial time, when it was used only for the peninsula and is derived from the Aleut alaxsxaq, meaning "the mainland" or more literally, "the object towards which the action of the sea is directed". It is also known as Alyeska, the "great land", an Aleut word derived from the same root.
Alaska with a longer coastline than all the other U.S. states combined. It is the only non-contiguous U.S. state on continental North America; about 500 miles of British Columbia separate Alaska from Washington state. Alaska is thus an exclave of the United States. It is technically part of the continental U.S. The capital city, Juneau, is situated on the mainland of the North American continent, but is not connected by road to the rest of the North American highway system.
The state is bordered by the Yukon Territory and British Columbia in Canada, to the east, the Gulf of Alaska and the Pacific Ocean to the south, the Bering Sea, Bering Strait, and Chukchi Sea to the west and the Arctic Ocean to the north. Alaska's territorial waters touch Russia's territorial waters in the Bering Strait, as the Russian Big Diomede Island and Alaskan Little Diomede Island are only 3 miles apart. As it extends into the eastern hemisphere, it is technically both the westernmost and easternmost state in the United States, as well as also being the northernmost.
It is the world's largest wildlife refuge, comprising 16 million acres. Alaska has more acres of public land owned by the federal government than any other state,approximately 65% of Alaska is owned and managed by the U.S. federal government as public lands, including a multitude of national forests, national parks, and national wildlife refuges

On To ALASKA 8/21-

GREETINGS, Just 150 miles to go to reach Alaskan border-the scenery is getting so dramatic, preparing us for things to come. Traveled most of the day in Yukon, the least populated province of Canada so far. What great spots for a weekend house, hopefully stays as pristine. Encountered stone sheep, buffalo herd grazing but no elk, maybe up the road. Finally slowed down to captured the beauty of this country with pictures and enjoy dinner at lakeside. Hooked up at Cottonwood RV campground on KLUANE Lake, Destruction Bay -within Kluane National Park & Preserve.

Life in a camper is always a learning experience, now I can see why people buy the bus sized (or super bus sized) campers. When reorganizing becomes the angst of the day, the best thing is to get on the road and proceed with your trip 'silently'.

ITS THE JOURNEY NOT ONLY THE DESTINATION

Yukon Factoids: (for those who need the geo/hist information)
Located in the Canadian Cordillera physiographic region
A total land mass of 482,443 km2 (about the size of Spain)
Yukon represents 4.8% of Canada's total land area. Of the 10 provinces and three territories, Yukon is the ninth largest.
As of December 2009, Yukon’s population is 34,157 of which about three-quarters live in the capital city of Whitehorse
Flora and Fauna
Yukon harbours some of the last true wild space, unscarred by human development, with a diversity of wildlife. Thriving within this habitat are resilient, adventurous and hospitable people who value their connection to the land. Yukon’s vegetation is classified as sub-arctic and alpine. Boreal forests cover 57 per cent of the territory. There are more than 200 species of wildflowers, including the tall magenta fireweed. Yukon is home to large mammals such as moose, caribou, Dall, Fannin and Stone sheep, grizzly and black bears, bison and wolf. It is also home to thousands of northern migratory birds such as Tundra and Trumpeter swans, ducks and geese that can be viewed when they stop along their journey to northern Yukon nesting grounds. Bald and golden eagles are common, while ptarmigan, grouse and at least 21 species of hawks and owls call Yukon home. Northern fish species such as arctic grayling, northern pike and lake trout are found in eddies and outflows of streams in lakes.
The Ice Age history of Yukon is unique in Canada. The massive Cordilleran ice sheet advanced over southern Yukon at least six times during the last 2.5 million years. This continental glacier eroded rocks and left behind debris and unique deposits. The earliest glacial advance changed the directional flow of the Yukon River while other glacial events diverted and dammed rivers, creating huge lakes.
Reduced global sea levels and the formation of the Bering land bridge linked Eurasia with North America. The towering St. Elias Mountains cut off precipitation bound for the interior and prevented ice sheets from forming in Beringia. Yukon’s Ice Age was distinct in that west-central and northern Yukon remained ice-free as part of the eastern area of Beringia. This ice-free refuge was a vast cold and arid grassland and home to woolly mammoths, horses and lions.
The ice ages and Beringia came to an end approximately 10,000 years ago. Global warming melted the glaciers and the water poured into the oceans. As sea levels rose, the Bering land bridge flooded. Extinction of many ice age mammals changed the face of Yukon forever.
About 10,000 to approximately 25,000 years ago: Yukon is home to the woolly mammoth, Yukon horse, steppe bison, scimitar cat and saiga antelope.
10,000 to approximately 5,000 years ago in the post-glacial period: Early occupants mainly hunt caribou with microlithic weapons at the end of spears propelled by throwing boards or atlatls.
1,200 years ago: A massive volcanic eruption along the Yukon-Alaska border blankets much of southern Yukon with thick deposits of volcanic ash. First appearance of the bow and arrow in Yukon.
1750 – 1890: The height of trade between coastal Tlingit middlemen and interior Yukon people supplying furs to markets in Asia, Europe and North America.
1825: Sir John Franklin begins searching for the Northwest Passage and maps the Arctic coastline from the mouth of the Mackenzie River to the Alaskan North Slope.
1848: Robert Campbell establishes Fort Selkirk, for the Hudson’s Bay Company at the mouth of the Pelly River.
1852: Coastal Tlingit traders run the Hudson’s Bay Company traders out, abandoning Fort Selkirk.
1867: The Dominion of Canada came into being July 1. Parliament outlines its conditions for accepting the Hudson’s Bay Company land to thewest of the old Upper and Lower Canadas. Russia sells Alaska to the United States.
1882: A party of prospectors crosses the Chilkoot Pass for the first time and prospects the Sixtymile and Fortymile rivers during the next year.
1883: American Lieutenant Frederick Schwatka creates the first modern survey of the Yukon River.
1886: More than 200 prospectors arrive in Yukon’s interior and establish a trading post at the mouth of the Stewart River. A strike of coarse gold on the Fortymile River draws attention away from other areas.
1887: A trading post is erected at the Fortymile River mouth and becomes the first gold rush town.
1888: Coal for Yukon use is mined near present-day Carmacks.
1889: Alaska whalers establish a winter base at Herschel Island in Yukon’s Arctic waters.
1895: Inspector Constantine of the North-West Mounted Police and 20 men are sent to uphold Canadian sovereignty and maintain law and order in Yukon. The police act as Dominion land agents, custom collectors, magistrates and represent all government departments.
1896: Skookum Jim, George Carmack and Dawson Charlie strike gold on Bonanza Creek in the Klondike River drainage. Word spreads and creates the world-famous
1898 Klondike Gold Rush.
1898: Ottawa passes the Yukon Territory Act to constitute Yukon as separate and distinct from the North-West Territories. Dawson City becomes the territorial capital city and is the largest Canadian city west of Winnipeg.
1900: White Pass & Yukon Route railway establishes the town of Closeleigh (later called Whitehorse) and connects to Skagway, Alaska. Their steam-powered sternwheelers travel the Yukon River and its major tributaries carrying people, mail and supplies.
1902: A winter road is built to link Dawson City and Whitehorse.
1906: The first silver ore is shipped from the Mayo region. Gold production falls in the Dawson City region.
1914: Silver King mine in the Mayo district ships out over 1,000 tons of ore.
1919: Keno Hill Mine is discovered and in production by the end of 1920.
1935: Martha Black runs for Parliament and wins after her elected husband, George Black, falls ill. She is the second Canadian woman to sit in the House of Commons.
1942–43: More than 10,000 American military and civilian personnel arrive to construct the Alaska Highway.
1953: Yukon’s capital city moves south from Dawson City to Whitehorse.

1973 - present
1973: Elijah Smith and a delegation of Yukon First Nation chiefs travel to Ottawa with the document Together Today for our Children Tomorrow and begin working on Yukon land claims.
1993: A final version of the Umbrella Final Agreement was signed by the governments of Canada and Yukon, and Yukon First Nations as represented by the Council for Yukon Indians (now named Council of Yukon First Nations).
1995: The first Yukon First Nation Final (land claim) and Self-Government Agreements take effect.
2003: A new Yukon Act comes into effect April 1 and confirms the provisions of the Devolution Transfer Agreement. It gives the Government of Yukon direct control over a much wider variety of provincial-type programs, responsibilities and powers.
Find it fast

Alaska: It’s the journey, not only the destination! (motto)

Traveling on 4th day.

We had the same feeling as we did when traveling with our boys, we would sing a silly little song about ‘the gypsy life’. Don’t remember the words but hope I can find em!
So I included this link from a 'Good Buddy'
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f8vSrm7Y-Kw&feature=player_embedded#.

Leaving Moose Jaw all seeeeeeemd well until that funny noise in the engine. Well to make a longish story short (saving the gory details), needed a generator belt, towed to Saskatoon VW and 6 hours later on our way. Having moved thru Alberta and now BC.
Started at Grand Prairie, BC on Milepost 0, we stopped at 147 in Pink Mountain RV park. Roughly 900 or so miles to go,at this point a lot of things are a blur, especially this morning when I thought I lost my eyesight, but only to find I picked up T’s glasses.

Still enjoying great scenery, and having made new friends in Saskatoon got to ask some questions: What are the beautiful massive farms planted with: answer-wheat, canola, flax, mustard and peas. Need to know what is flying by! Bison are plentiful and the fields are being cut so you can see little dust ground clouds in the far distance.
That leads to another experience, while reaching the foothills to Rockies, we noticed it was overcast, realizing it was smoke, we assume from the forest fires in BC.
There are so many beautiful sights, and by the time you have passed it, it should have been a kodak moment.

We woke up to rain and gratefully realized we are not in a tent, weather is cool in the mountains @ 3000+ elevation. A tremendous amount of oil and gas exploration up here so there are loads of work camps set up all over, kind of seems like it is a modern day gold rush. A little disconcerting to find among the wonderful sights abounding.

Day 3 to Alaska

Made it through the border and stopped at Moose Jaw, Canada.
Beautiful landscape, but continue moving. First time we crossed into Canada that they searched vehicle, and I didn't think we look suspicious. Thru IL, of WI, MN not much more than corn and cut wheat. 'A lot of corn', however northern section of North Dakota had loads of sunflower fields, a beautiful sight.
We passed half way mark to Anchorage so we slept at hotel for evening and dined out, not that camper 'lil wnnie' is bad just needed to shower up and sleep in bed. Space gets cramped and a bit confined........
Moose Jaw is jumping off point near Trans Canadian Hwy in So. Saskatchewan and Moose Jaw Bone Creek, there are two theories as to how the city got its name. The first one is that it comes from the Plains Cree name moscâstani-sîpiy meaning "a warm place by the river", indicative of the protection from the weather that the Coteau Range provides to the river valley containing the city and also the Plains Cree word Moose Gaw meaning warm breezes. The other is that on the map of the city the Moose Jaw river is shaped like a moose's jaw.
Will try not to give too many geography/history lessons.
Hope to send pix thru Picasa as post card/collage so not to bore all with too many pix. If you notice any of interest let just ask for info.
Time to shower-up and get on road.
Caio for now!

Day two to Alaska

Made it thru Chicago morning rush hour yesterday, only to move into Wisconsin-long trek thru and landed in Minnesota to experience the afternoon St Paul rush hour. So these people in the midwest are as frantic as us easterners.
Loads of corn fields, that is about all we could see in fields, so far. Didn't even see a lot of dairy in WI, so where does the cheese come from? Overnight in Alexandria WI rest area went well-didn't hear a thing till 5AM.
On the road, next target Fargo ND and than head straight for Canadian Border, whooooopee. Under 3000 miles to go!!!!!!!!!!

Day one to ALASKA

Wow we have almost 700 miles behind us, slept in RV first night at truck outside Chicago. Didn't see a lot of anything but corn and not many spots to take us off the straight and narrow. Rest areas have the sameold, sameold. All kinds of weather thru PA, OH, IN and now IL. Beautiful skies and exciting rain storm, actually pulled over and got some great pixs. Well at least for us it was 'exciting' for a few minutes. 

OFF TO ALASKA

After a year of planning, and changes to plans we are finally leaving for Alaska Sunday 8/15/10.
With 'bucket list ' at hand T has always talked about heading to Alaska, and after Australia, Central America, Peru, Japan, China and many great trips to Mexico, we are finally getting around to Alaska.
With a lot o travel books and Milepost book the departure is at hand in RV. Of course the AAA Triptik and GPS is going to be the bible.