Haines--day 2

June 28, 2013

Today, we had a great time wandering around the town; this time by foot!  Found a few more places to volunteer—library and the museum.  Matt still wants to volunteer at the animal shelter here in town…I am hoping to steer him toward working at the Eagle Foundation instead.  (Expensive to get clothes laundered here, and I will be sneezing all night with his hairy clothes in the RV with us.)  I think the foundation might train us to work with the raptors—okay, that may be more of a WISH!  SMILES!

We are learning the town—not much to it really (as far as buildings and streets), but the people are overwhelmingly friendly and talkative.  I think Matt and I would be very comfortable here.  The only drawback is the isolation.  It is much more difficult to get to Anchorage---my wonderful cousin, Katy, and her family live there.  It is certainly beautiful here…

ANYWAY, we will take off for Anchorage soon and still check-out Homer before we make a “commitment” to a community.   

Okay, I MUST say—this is CRAZY!  Matt and I are sitting in the RV at Chilkoot River…it is a good spot to see bear.  Note, I said we are IN the RV.  I am seeing people go by on bikes, out strolling, and riding motorcycles…CRAZY!!!  Heck, I won’t even get out of the RV to put some things in the back.  (Maybe I am a bit over sensitive to being mauled and/or eaten, but I feel safer nurturing this possible paranoia!)

Great pictures today…

The totem outside the police/fire station/emergency vehicles building

 A small stream on the way to Chilkoot State Park--to watch for bear while IN THE RV!

The Welcome to Haines sign--two totem poles and Matt Man

A VERY upset young steller jay yelling for his/her mother! 

Chilkoot Lake--9:00 p.m.

The harbor in Haines

Looking out the RV door...

The totem carving room in the Native Art Center

Haines...a bit of heaven (the "lost" first day entry)

June 27, 2013

Woke up late this morning as we arrived to the campground around 1:00 a.m.  It was a wonderful sleep—no rocking!!!  Was greeted by a new friend (George, and his wife, Joan—met them on the ferry).  George let me know that the radio had just been announcing the need for volunteers.  So, off we go!  Matt and I scuttled up to the radio station (above the cultural center) to ask for the name and number of the contact person for volunteering.  Hmmm, I had not understood that they wanted volunteers FOR the radio station.  First, they asked if I would DJ on the radio—“What?!  Oh, no thank you!”  (Can you imagine what my voice volume and laughter would do to the sound system?!)  Instead, they will let me do some data entry and Matt will be cleaning their record collection. 

So, now the question is—When will we get to Homer?!  Isn’t it interesting how life changes during the living of it?!

Raining again today, so we stopped to visit with George and Joan. They are building their home—gorgeous!  So many people have such amazing talents!

Tonight, I am trying to catch up with email and the blog at the library.  In the next room, the community has gathered to watch a canoe building (native) film.  Quite a beautiful mix of people…Excuse me, I think Matt and I will join.

I will add photos when I connect with WiFi again...As you have noticed, my ability to connect is more often  a "miss" than a "hit".

Hope this finds you all well and happy!

Haines, Alaska

Our first CLOSE encounter--Bald Eagle

On the ferry and holdin' my own!

June 25-26

Yeah, you may laugh, but lolling on a ferry is NOT a happy experience for those of us with “weaker” stomachs.  However, Jen, you were right.  I pre-dosed on Bonine (one tablet 24 and one 12 hours ahead of boarding); that did the trick!  I was actually able to both function and enjoy being on the ferry!

We had a short stop in Ketchikan.  Matt and I did a walking tour around the ferry terminal and soaked up the local flavor.  Fascinating the things you hear and the people you meet.  (Matt has never known a stranger!)

While on the ride, we saw a number of humpback whales—backs and flukes only.  Sadly, they didn’t breach.  WHAT the heck am I saying?!  We saw WHALES!!!  We also watched porpoises play next to the boat and eagles soar overhead.  A good trip for marine and air animals! 

Most of the time, we stayed in the solarium watching the water and the mountains.  The mountains were almost magical—some were distant and filled with glaciers (such an amazing color of blue!).  Others, I swear, were right on top of you!  (I could not have taken a photo of the “close” mountains; I would have had to take pictures of SECTIONS of the mountains.  Quite a humbling experience.) 

While waiting for the vehicles and people to get settled on the ferry in Juneau, Matt and I were entertained by the ravens that tried to find “people food”.

It was interesting to be staying in a cabin this time around.  When Pacha and I took the ferry from the Kenai (way back in 1983), we slept in the solarium on the floor…I am fairly certain I do NOT want to sleep on the floor again.  Okay, well maybe…it did look like fun.

Our cabin on the Matanuska Ferry

Ketchican 

Solarium on the top level of the ferry

Mountains coming out of Juneau

Our raven buddy

The last day at Prince Rupert

June 24, 2013

GREAT day!!!  I love these “double days” (2 days in one place)!!!  We moved slowly this morning and enjoyed a second cup of coffee.  Once in Prince Rupert (our campground is closer to Port Edwards—15km away), we stopped at the First Nations Museum (what the native/aboriginal people of all tribes label themselves in Canada—similar to Native Americans here in the States.)  The exhibits were well done.  The 30-45 minute tour through the highlights of the museum was very informative.

Lunch was sitting on the benches with the locals…SMILES!  Believe it or not, our bench was graced by one (if not “the”) town drunk!  Well, at least lunch was interesting.  Heck, just keeping his spittle off my food was entertaining!!!

Then, we hiked on the Butze Rapids trail.  Okay, mind you, the sign SAID the trail was “easy”.  Maybe the sign should say—“The path is graveled, but you will go up hill three times as often as you down hill, and 1 km is a LOT longer than 1 mile!!!!” (Yes, I know that is not true, but dang it, it felt like it!!!)  Oh, and on top of that, the sign suggested that you leave your dogs in the car (never mind the heat or lack of water).  Why you ask?  BECAUSE bear and wolves frequent the area and tend to eat available four-legged friends! (And here we are without our bear spray!)

That being said, the trail was beautiful, and Matt did an excellent job leading!

Tonight, it is raining again, so we are enjoying books and techno things.  Oh, the good news, we are in clean clothes!!!  So nice to clean up every once in awhile!  I figure the people on the ferry will appreciate it!

The drive into Prince Rupert

A gorgeous contemporary First Nations drum

While slogging on the trail--my excuse for a break!

Prince Rupert

June 23

The last 150-200 miles to Prince Rupert—WOW!  It was like motoring through one of those mountain landscape reproductions that grandparents have on the wall behind their couch.  The mountains are massive, jagged, and snow-capped.  The sky and mountains are layered shades of vibrant blues.  The greens…oh, the greens—I swear lime green to the deep blue-green of old pines…Not to forget the water!   We drove parallel to a river with personality!  That thing changed color, current strength, and shoreline characteristic (trees, rocks, sand…).  Hmmm, I will add a few pictures, but know that they don’t do justice to the view.

Once in Prince Rupert, we set camp, and drove into town to “look around”.  We are back at the ocean, and it feels GREAT!  Decided to eat a nice seafood meal…and I made THE rookie mistake—I ate where other tourists were eating.  The food was terrible.  I am certain they bought the salmon from the nearest Walmart AND they didn’t cook it well.  (I am marking this restaurant down as a NO!  Oh, the name—Smiles Seafood Café.) 

The wander around town was good—a bald eagle pair were flying above “playing games”, the locals were sitting on ocean-view benches scattered in the park, the breeze was cool, and the sounds of the business-end of a port town were rhythmically fun.

Slept well—decided to try sleeping with my head at the back door.  Dang, had I but known, I would have switched sooner.  Matt wants to try it tonight!

Okay, it was something like this only MUCH better!

Getting closer, but missing the amazing river...

Prince Rupert harbor

Chugging across BC (British Columbia, Canada)

June 22, 2013

I have found a Mercedes flaw—the speed is only shown in MPH.  I guess I shouldn’t complain; it keeps me math-fluid…maybe.  The line of cars impatiently chugging behind me may indicate that I am not as competent with my calculations as I assume!  SMILES!  (Yes, of course I pull over to let them by!)

We made it into Prince George today.  Matt got to see his favorite kind of museum—trains!!!  We poked around and took pictures of Matt-at-the-controls in numerous cars and engines.  (He is so photogenic when he is genuinely happy!)  On the way out of town, we stopped to get photos of the famous Mr. PG—the symbol for this Canadian town.

I have NO idea where we are tonight.  It is a free campground in a small town close to a lake…sadly, “small” and “lake” are identifying markers for most of the towns on this stretch of the Canadian highway.  Our gas tank is almost full, so I figure we can just get back on the highway and head west…we should run into Prince Rupert tomorrow. 

Train museum in Prince George

Matt the train engineer!

Mr. PG's best side--smiles!

Mr. PG!

Wet days and nights

June 18-19

Seems Washington really is wet, foggy, and cold.  At least it was for us the few days we were there.  The highlight of WA was seeing my goddaughter, Amanda.  SMILES!  Matt and I were able to go out with her to a great little Thai restaurant.  We weren’t there long enough to site-see, but that wasn’t the point.  It is amazing to think of her as a curly-headed infant; she has become such an amazing and inspiring young woman.  On the way back through, we will be able to spend a bit more time.  Then, Matt and I will get to tease her steady, Jacob.  See you two in October!

Made it across the Canadian border today at Sumas.  Not too long a wait, and we weren’t asked to pull over for an inspection…however, there were a number of vans, cars, and trucks parked at the side.  Happily, I mailed the only item with which I felt uncomfortable—bear spray.  So, at least my cousin, Kate, will be “safe” from bears in Anchorage—SMILES!  Now, mind you, WE will be travelling through bear country armed only with a fog-horn.  Personally, I am not sure how deafening a bear protects a person, but than I am not sure how spraying a chemical to irritate its eyes and nose does either.  I think Matt and I will just stay in crowded areas or in the RV.  I guess we could also make some slow-moving friends and have them accompany us on hiking trails!  (I am only kidding…mostly…kinda)

Tonight we are staying in a quiet little campground near a lake—very nice.  Both campers on either side have fires.  I love the smell of campfires.  Hopefully, when we get to a site before bedtime (and it is not threatening rain) we can have one.  Matt is really looking forward to that. 

Hmmm, raining again.  Time to get Matt ready for bed.

Quiet little campground

Oh, the little campground...

We are in our campground close to Seattle, WA…again, another beautiful day.   I am intrigued by the different camping facilities.  There are those campgrounds that seem to cater to wealthier full-timers and others that seem to be home to full-timers with less money.  Okay, maybe this is not an insightful note, nor will this next one be, but the people in each are dramatically different.

In our last RV park (home to campers with less in the bank) people talked to one another.  The owner came by our van and yakked through the window—welcoming us and talking about issues with the internet service.  Shortly thereafter, another “neighbor” dropped by to return Matt’s high school ring (Matt had left it in the bathroom).  Another invited us over for coffee “anytime”.  One family invited Matt to play with their dogs; they didn’t have to ask him twice!  SMILES. 

So far, given the same amount of time and a similar number of “people out and about”, we have spoken with no one at this obviously more affluent campground.  (The cost to stay here is about four times that of the other campground.)  That being said, we will enjoy wandering the grounds and gawking at the huge and beautiful RV/homes.  The yurt in the next lane over is worth stalking…Do you think the owners will let us see inside?  You never know, maybe all of this “judgment” is full of poo.  But right now, I miss our little RV park in Sunnyside, WA.  I wonder if Marty’s wife is feeling better today?  AND I know that Matthew misses Moose—the little toy poodle.

I will be excited to get into some more traveler/hiker campgrounds—state and national parks, and national forests. Those are different too.  The one northwest of Boulder was great—no people to talk with (other than our friend, Parvati), but the commune with nature—AWESOME!

A Little Later...

Okay, spoke with a dynamic couple.  They too are "over-nighters" (such fun having new labels!) Discussed how to get into Seattle, to look around, without driving"the rigs" or getting stuck in traffic...Decided to take a bus. 

Okay, but at least ours is "cute".

Where in the world is Matthew Trucano?

Answer--in the Seattle,WA RV park--didn't say it wasn't gorgeous!

Earlier while driving across WA...

Seriously, I give up!  Matthew and I have a game.  Instead of “slug bug” we “hit for Hummers”.  He has beaten me EVERYDAY since the trip started.  That boy has an eye for Hummers!  He wants me to call him “Hawkeye”, but I think it will just encourage him.  Who wants that?!  SMILES.






                                                                         Matthew the Hummer Spotter--WATCH OUT!

Days driving...and driving...

As the title states--
Driving, driving and more driving!  The last few days have been "covering miles".  Matt has loved it--I swear he is more like his grandfather everyday; he too loves to cruise distances!  Me?  I need respite from the "drive-push", so we stopped at Payette River (Hwy 55 north to McCall, Idaho--very scenic) to take pictures and watch the rafters.  I suggested a rafting adventure...believe it or not, Matt said, "No thanks."  Although he would love to kayak, he draws the line at getting into a floating rubber boat...go figure.
The river is gorgeous--note photos below.  It is a light green color--refreshing looking.
While driving along the southern part of Idaho, Matt drew a picture.  I will try to attach it below too. (Hmmm, unsuccessful at this time--poo, it was well done.)
Additionally, we stopped at Hagerman, ID to see the Hagerman Horse (actually more closely related to a zebra, but the name stuck).  Matt did a bit of paleontology--smiles!!! I think we could do some archaeological volunteering; that boy is amazingly patient.
The fields of rape in Washington are out-of-this-world yellow!!! Unfortunately, it doesn't appear to be as intense a color in the photo, but trust me, the rape flowers SCREAMED, "I am YELLOW gosh dang it, Y-E-L-L-O-W!!!"
Last night we stayed in Sunnyside, WA.  Nope, it is not sunny; it rained all night long and most of the morning.  A perfect day to do laundry, clean-up a bit, write email, etc.  I am loving this "etc. day".

Payette River

The paleontologist 

Our campground in Whitebird, ID

field of rape in WA

Capitol Reef National Park

June 14, 2013

We made it, AND we were able to get a spot in the Fruita campground.  Highlight—hiking the Grand Wash Trail through the narrows.  Matt carried the pack and “blazed the trail”.  Smiles! It was so nice to come off the trail and already be “home”.  I fried up some egg sandwiches, and we went back to the campground to sweat-out the heat of the afternoon.  (Temperature yesterday in Moab was 102, and today was similar.)

A friend suggested something fun. (I have amazingly talented and creative friends!)  If you want to join the game, don’t look at the title of the related blog.  I will take pictures of Matthew (of course) in interesting places/cities and at unique events.  All you need to do is to guess—“Where in the world is Matthew Trucano?!”  We don’t yet have a weird hat or sunglasses, but it is on my list.  If anyone has suggestions, just let me know.

I may have spoken too soon...not sure how to attach photos...Please hold for my technical difficulties! SMILES!

I figured it out!!!!!  Matt is lower mid-right.  We were on the Grand Wash Trail in the Narrows.

Hummer hilarity!

June 13, 2013(yes, again)

During our exploration of Moab and the surrounding area, Matt fell into conversation with a ranger.  Somehow, the dude managed to ask if he would be allowed to drive the four-wheelers he’d seen on the trails.  Thank heavens the ranger told him, “No, sorry.”  Unfortunately, she did manage to convey that there was an adventure outfit that had the “best” Hummer excursions.  Coming back from the bathroom, I meet my eager-to-have-a-Hummer-experience son.  Soooo, we did the sunset tour by Hummer.  I thought, silly me, that it would be a dignified Hummer ride off into the sunset.  Nope, it was a Hummer-dare-devil opportunity!  We climbed the Devil’s Spine, Oprah’s Butt (yes, seriously),…hmm, not remembering many of the other names. (After “Oprah’s Butt”, what’s to remember?!)  Once the initial “what-the-hell-am-I-doing, I just retired” wore off, we had a blast!  The Slick Rock Trail glowed—gold, tan, red, green, blue, yellow, and rose just to name a few of the rock colors.  The sunset was, well, do you remember the Lifesavers commercial--a father and daughter were watching the sunset--"Going, going, gone." Then, the little girl reverently tells her father,“Do it again, Daddy." It felt like that. We were exhausted when we got back home; we slept well.

The quick-catch-up summary

Okay, I am starting with a summary-- 

Matt and I finally started out June 3, 2013.  The RV was repaired--how anyone could have backed into the huge granny-support-hoses-colored RV is beyond me, but at least his insurance company paid for the repairs.

First stop--North Platte, NE.  What can I say, the storm clouds demanded that we stop and set-up.

After that, we were fortunate enough to have some quality time with great friends--Jen and Tom and the girls (Cocoa and Barley) in Colorado Springs, CO.  We spent time walking and talking--for those of you who know me, that shouldn't be a surprise.  For those of you who know Jen, it is a given!  The trip to the mining museum and rock shop was EXCELLENT.  I had to remind Matt that we couldn't buy any rocks.  No wait, that is what I was telling myself!  The food was FANTASTIC too; my tummy (and Matt's) still remember...

For the weekend, Matt and I went to Sunshine Canyon (northwest of Boulder) to visit another friend, Parvati.  Parvati, a self-proclaimed hippie, introduced us to the world of living large on very little (money).  Thank you!  We, again, took long walks and explored the historic little town of Gold Hill.  One evening we visited the neighboring ashram and participated in the service--definitely an interesting first.  After dropping her off at the library, on our return to Colorado Springs, I remembered again how much I enjoyed the alternative city of Boulder...It is staying on my list of places to revisit.  As for Parvati, we will meet again--either in this country or another!

Jen deployed on Monday--Matt and I send love daily, dear one.  

Tom took two days to make sure our RV was outfitted with all the necessary safety gear...Okay, seriously, he was amazingly successful given that I fought against adding even another ounce to our supplies.  Thank you, Tom.  You are the best!

We left Wednesday morning, the 12^th.  The four forest fires in Colorado were blazing; fortunately, Tom had already started the list of evacuation gear and goods.  I understand, from Jen that the area in which they live is at “pre-evacuation” stage…I hope the wind stays in your favor, Tom.

The trip down to Moab was a delightful surprise!  I decided to take Hwy 128—excellent and absolutely gorgeous! There were numerous national forest camping areas (those closest to Moab were bustling, but the others quiet and unpopulated); I inked-in these campgrounds as “definite stays”.  Nope, no pictures, it was too grand to capture digitally. 

Our first night HOME--Matt was happy about the RV...not so much about the salad for dinner. SMILES!