Traveling the Denali Highway

The Denali Highway is a 130 mile long, mostly gravel, road through the interior of Alaska that was the original road into Denali National Park. It goes along the Alaska range and the views are truly breathtaking.  The drive getting there from Fairbanks is really pretty too!  Here's a shot through the windshield.  I bet that motorcyclist is really enjoying this gorgeous day where temps were in the 70's and may have hit low 80's.

I've always loved crossing the Tanana River and seeing the pipeline crossing along side the car bridge.

The first 20 miles of the Denali Highway is paved and we stopped to camp overnight just beyond the end of the paved road at Tangle Lakes Campground.

We were camped along side the river, this was our view and our dinner cooking.  I use a lot of throw away foil when camping as it is difficult to wash dishes in the RV, I am afraid I'll clog up the system.  Ha ha, the dogs are the first line of defense, i. e. they lick the plates  clean before we wash.  😁

The weather ever since we arrived in Alaska has been beyond spectacular.  WOW we never had weather this nice when we lived here.  It has been in the 70's and low 80's the whole time we've been here with an occasional rain shower that didn't last long.

The next morning was  beautiful and the views beyond description!  This is what I'm seeing out my window all along the highway to the north.

Here's a short video clip I made while at the Maclaren Summit, the 2nd highest road summit in Alaska.  The elevation is just 4086' which isn't all that high but you are into permanent snow and glaciers when you get much higher than that.

This is a beaver lodge, lots of these along the road.

This is a nice view of a beaver made dam.  One time when we lived here, we stopped at a campground beside a creek that we had not been to before.  So we set up our camper, (we had a truck camper back in those days), set up our lawn chairs and "cocktail" table, poured ourselves a drink, and sat down to enjoy the evening.  We gazed out at the creek and WOW there were beavers there right in front of us just beginning construction of a new dam.  We watched then for the longest time and were so amazed at how they lodged tree branches into the creek bottom and packed the dam with mud.  It was really a sight to see.  We returned to this spot several time to check the progress over time and as I recall the dam eventually was at least 2' high. 

This was a really cool sight, a bald eagle just sitting on top of a beaver lodge.

The 2nd night we stopped near the other end of the Denali Highway at a favorite campground that was  also beside a creek but OMG, the mosquitos were beyond terrible.  No way could we stay outside without being eaten alive!  We had planned to stay there 2 nights but promptly ditched that idea and headed to Denali National Park.

We got a quick glimpse of Denali (formerly known as Mt. McKinley) before the clouds closed in and was no longer in view.  It is said that only about 15 - 25% (depends on who you are talking to) of all visitors to Alaska actually see the mountain.  Denali has its own weather system and while it may be clear and beautiful all around the mountain, Denali will be weathered in.  Denali is an Athabaskan word for The Great One.

We only spent a few hours at Denali NP as we spent 6 weeks there in 2010 campground hosting.  But we were treated to a very close view of this moose along the side of the road into the park.  Sorry for the poor photo, shooting thru a very dirty windshield!

A fond memory - Another time when were were at Denali, this moose was walking down the middle of the road and not moving for anyone.  There was a long string of buses and cars behind her but she sure didn't care!

That night we stopped at another campground, this time beside the Nenana River.  We cooked out, shared a bottle of champagne and enjoyed to glorious weather and view.

    

The next day we drove into Fairbanks to get some repairs done to the RV.  Not too exciting!

Thanks for following our journey.  More to come in the days ahead.

Old cars and vintage clothes

There is an antique automobile in Fairbanks, Fountainhead Antique Auto Museum,  that is truly amazing, especially that it is located near the top of the world in Fairbanks, Alaska!  Dick really enjoyed  seeing all the rare antique cars and I enjoyed their fabulous collection of vintage clothing.  

I couldn't help but think of Graphic 45 and their vintage collections that often include vintage fashions.  I think Diane Schultz would have loved the clothing!

Ha ha, me "driving" a vintage car!

These photos really don't do justice to these fashion displays.  I really like the dress on the left.  See the next photo for a look at the front of the dress.

Wow, the details are just stunning.  Note, these are not replicas, these are original fashions.

I could ride around in this!!

Be sure and read the description of this cloak below.  Just click on the photo for a larger view so you can read the type.

The detail on this "afternoon dress" is mind  boggling!  I also thought a lot about the beautiful fashions in Downton  Abbey while perusing all these vintage things.

Mustn't forget the gents!

And the kids.....

Loved this outfit, I can see Mary from Downton in it!

And this was a favorite, I just love the yellow with the bold black accents.

Take a close look at the back of the dress on the right.  Those are feathers, OMG, I guess you don't sit down in that dress!

One of the things that struck me about these dresses is how tiny they were.  Holy hell, even 12 year olds of today would have a hard time fitting into them.  Well I suppose if you are all corseted up, you might fit if you're petite!  LOL, no way I'd fit, I'm giant sized compared to these dresses!

That evening we visited a gin distillery with two owners of the CPA firm I worked for when we lived here.  I loved that firm, best job I ever had and the greatest bosses!

So Dick is checking out the drink menu at the distillery.

Girls being silly!

The day after all this fun, we left for a great road trip in the vast wilderness of Alaska.  Next post I will share photos of that trip.

Enjoying Fairbanks, Alaska!

Our first destination in Alaska was Fairbanks where we lived from 1995 - 2000.  We drove 4168 miles to get here over a period of  11 days.

Not to offend any of my Texan friends, but everything is bigger in Alaska!  The flowers, oh my gosh, I have never seen such beautiful flowers.  Because of the constant daylight the flowers generally grow bigger.  Here is a hanging basket of tuberous begonias and some other flowers.  The begonia flowerheads are 2" or more across and so beautiful.  Of course, the cool climate also helps.  Fuschia is another of my favorite flowers and they are spectacular here.  Haven't seen any to photo yet but when I do, I will share with you.

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Our first night in Fairbanks we had dinner at a favorite restaurant, The Turtle Club, with a great friend that I worked with.  The Turtle Club has been in Fairbanks forever!  It's actually out of town, in a little community called Fox, has a gravel parking lot and generally is always full of hungry patrons.  Their menu is not extensive but what they do, they do right.  Prime rib and halibut, I think there's something else on the menu but I don't know what it is.  Maybe prawns?

My friend Kathy, I love that she's taller than me, LOL!!

Snapped this picture on the way home at 9:45.  Notice the bright sun shining on the median.  Sunset is not for another 3 hours.  The sun travels in a circle when you are this far north, rather than the east to west arc that you see in the lower 48.  So, the sun travels in it's circle and dips below the horizon for just a little over 2 hours this time of the year.  Even though the sun is not above the horizon, it is still light outside, you really don't need headlights to drive.  You can cut the grass at midnight if you want!  

Ohhh, when we first moved here we lived in an apartment in town and the kids were outside playing, i.e. screaming as kids  do, at midnight.  Sleeping with the light and the noise was about impossible!  Once I adjusted to the constant daylight, I loved it though we did have blackout shades in our bedroom.  Right now I am having trouble as there is a sky light over the shower and the light shines right in my eyes.  Gotta get something to cover that!

I have been very fortunate in my life and worked for some really great people but no one has been as wonderful as the CPA firm I worked for in Fairbanks, Walsh, Kelliher & Sharp.  We had dinner and drinks outside on a deck at The Pump House beside the Chena River with two of the principals from the firm.  Loved catching up with them!

Here's the inside of The Pump House.  It's on the National Historic Register and is great restaurant with its vintage Alaska interior decor.

We've spent much of our time in Fairbanks  visiting with friends going to places that we enjoyed when we lived here.  Sunday champagne brunch at Pike's Landing was definitely a favorite, especially on a nice summer day like we had this past Sunday.  This was our view!

Hope everyone at home is doing well!  Sending love and hugs from the far north to you all.

We're in Alaska

We made it to Alaska on June 12, so 10 days of driving.  Not bad!  Most days we drove 8 hours, sometimes a bit more, sometimes less.  Interesting side note, we came to Alaska in 2010 and crossed into Alaska on June 12,2010.  Isn't that just ironic, to cross on exactly the same day?

Of course we had to stop at the border and have a family portrait!  The girls have been wonderful travelers.  Nika sleeps all day and Tisha watches the road and sleeps occasionally.  She is much like Chena in that regard, too busy to sleep.

Backing up a few days, this is what we saw on our way across Minnesota, North and  South Dakota and the Canadian plains.  Wow, the wind NEVER stops  blowing.  I thought we were going to be blown off the road a few times!

This was a really cool sight to see.  It's the 2nd longest RR trestle bridge in the world. (Just click on any photo to see a larger, more detailed view.)

Relaxing by the fire after a long day on the road in Whitehorse, YT.

Pardon the bad photo, it was taken thru the windshield while driving down the road, (as were most of my photos).  It's always exciting to see a Mom moose with twin calves!

We slowed down to take a better photo but she hustled her family into the woods.  I think that is just glare on her side rather than a white patch.

We were not yet in Alaska when I snapped this photo but I believe it is the Wrangall-St Elias mountain range in Alaska.

Returning to the US at the Alaska border.

 At the official end of the Alaska Highway in Delta Junction.

And finally the "homeward" stretch on the Richardson Highway heading to Fairbanks from Delta Junction.  That's the beautiful Alaska Range in the background.

Traveling from Delta Junction to Fairbanks, there are places where you can see the pipeline.  This is the pipeline crossing the Tanana River.  The pipeline stretches some 800 miles from Prudhoe Bay to Valdez, Alaska.  Fairbanks was a sleepy town until the pipeline construction began.  Then it was a boom town bursting at the seams.  There are lots of interesting stories and photos from the pipeline.  One of my fave photos that I've see is of a bear sitting in a worker's truck enjoying the worker's lunch!

When we lived in Fairbanks there were no big box stores.  I think there was a Kmart and there was a Sears but it closed while we were here.  Then there was a Penney's but that closed too.  So if we wanted to do any shopping, off we went to Anchorage,  That's just a short 360 miles from here, LOL!  We thought nothing of it really.  For serious shopping, especially for work clothes, I went "Outside" as the lower 48 is referred to by Alaskans.  I flew to Seattle a couple of times and of course everytime we went home to NC, I went shopping.  

There were local hardware and building supply stores but like everything here, they were expensive.  When we were building a garage,  (imagine no garage when it's 40 below! Yeah, we did that for one winter.) we drove to Anchorage to buy bulk building materials.  AND we were so EXCITED when Home Depot moved into Anchorage.  

Now Fairbanks is like many of the places in the lower 48 with chain stores.  There's Lowe's, Home Depot, Barnes & Noble, Wal-Mart, Sportsman's Warehouse,  Ulta Beauty,  Pier 1, Old Navy, Michaels, and Costco.  When we lived here, we did have Sam's but they closed up shop in Alaska several years ago so Costco moved in. 

We are having a blast, the weather has been fabulous in Fairbanks, highs in the 70's lows in the 50's.  Doesn't get much better than that as far as I am concerned!