Where In The World Is The Funmobile??: July 2014

Tuesday, July 29, 2014

To Haines & Back

Continuing down the Haines Highway Saturday but with a steady drizzle and low clouds. The plan was to spend a little time in Haines then catch the ferry to Skagway, but with the low visibility we didn't want to spend $250 for a two hour ride through a fog-bank. Forecast for Sunday was 80% rain.

So we backtracked from Haines (B) 150 miles up the Haines Highway to Haines Junction (C) and made our way to Whitehorse (D), then another 100 miles South to Skagway (E).

Now you know I'm mellow when I have to backtrack that far without complaint. Besides, the clouds had lifted a bit and the scenery along the whole route was as usual, spectacular.

A side note... We've crossed the border and time zones 4 times in three days. I currently have no idea what time it is or which currency I have loaded in my wallet. I'd also add that for the first time since I shaved my mustache of 47 years, someone noticed right away. (US Border Patrol)

This part of Canada is the summer range for trumpeter swans.

The road to Haines is a lonely road

Anyone want to guess what this contraption is?

YES!... A quilt ship in Haines

I waited outside.

Another road bear.

For the road to Skagway, the skies cleared nicely for most of the way.

The tundra at Whites Pass was especially cool.

The winter snow finally melted out from under these snowmobiles.

Skagway is designated as a National Historical Monument because of it's association with the Klondike gold rush of 1898. Prospectors arrived here by ship from Seattle or San Francisco and then walked up over Chilkoot Pass for a 200 mile hike to the Yukon River.

Glad we had the Funmobile

When we arrived in Skagway on Sunday afternoon, it was pretty quiet.and the 658 permanent residents must have been all asleep or fishing..

Nobody Home - However, by the next morning, four cruise ships
with 6,000 passengers had docked in the harbor.

She's got this thing for carved studly dudes.

Resident Harbor Seal

We headed for the woods to avoid the mobs.

Seven Weeks - And still friends.

Tomorrow (Tuesday 29 July) we again backtrack north and then head west into British Columbia for a trip down the Cassier Highway, which is supposed to be one of the most remote principal roads in British Columbia with exceptionally good wildlife opportunities.

Good Night from Skagway AK

Brad & Val

Friday, July 25, 2014

Travel Days

An uneventful several days. Left Seward on Monday am headed for Anchorage and a Tuesday am rear brake job on the Funmobile. (Probably shoulda had that done before we left Downers Grove. Would have been a WHOLE lot cheaper.).

Wednesday, started the trek back to Downers (via a somewhat round-about route. Went from Anchorage east to Glennallan AK then to Slana AK where we stayed at the Hart D Ranch.. Not a destination, just the only campgound in the area. Run by the widow of a professional trapper/hunter/Alaska adventure guide. Has lived at (and run by herself) the ranch/lodge for 60 some years and just put it up for sale for $800,000 if anyone is interested.

Matanuska Glacier east of Anchorage

Looking for wildlife on a non-discript road near Slana AK

No wildlife, but all of a sudden this HUGE mountain pops
out of the clouds for just a few minutes. Later determined
to be 16,000 ft Mt Sanford.

General scenery of the area.

Wednesday headed northwest from Slana towards Tok AK and then the Yukon via the ALCAN highway. Along the way spotted a very nice bull moose.

After a brutal ride over about 40 miles of gravel (mud) highway reconstruction, turned south on the Haines Highway for an overnight at Kathleen Lake Yukon Territory

Evening hike along the lake shore.

Tomorrow, heading down to Haines Alaska.

Good Night from Kathleen Lake

Brad & Val

Monday, July 21, 2014

Top Of The World

Spent another day in the Seward area to do laundry, restock and take a short walk at Exit Glacier in Kenai Fjord National Park. The walk was so nice, we decided to stay another day to take a longer hike up to the Harding Ice Field.

The hike was not particularly long (only about 3.2 miles up to the end) but was pretty steep at 1,000 feet elevation per mile for the final 2.5 miles up). The Harding Icefield is 300 square miles of ice and snow which is the source for over 40 glaciers in the National Park. Sounded like a worth while effort.

On the drive in we encountered a shy moose

"Oh No. You saw me!"

"Now you can't see me."

"I ate my cover. Gotta run."

The hike runs up the right side of the Exit Glacier

The toe of the glacier.

Just over the next ridge

Made It!

Wanna hear me yodel?

It looks like a Loonnnggg walk back down.

Just when I was feeling pretty good about our accomplishment, I read about the annual Seward Marathon. 400 runners run about the same distance and elevation gain as we did in 6 hours. But they do it in 43 minutes!!!! (Their race route is from about where this picture is taken, up the faint trail to the top of the mountain, and then back down.)

This one is for you Fran.

Good Night from Bird Creek Campground, Kenai Peninsula.

Brad & Val

Saturday, July 19, 2014

Sailing Sailing Over the Bounding Main

The past two days have involved a drive from Portage AK down to Seward on Friday and a full day's boat trip on Saturday into Kenai Fjords National Park. At the risk of being repetitive, the scenery on the way down to Seward was (as expected) awesome. I'm not even going to bore anyone with pictures.

I'm also not going to mumify your brains with over 200 photos of assorted wildlife and glaciers from the boat trip. But here are some of the highlights.