7 29 12 Palmer AK

Started our Sunday out very leisurely.  I cooked !!!  Rick and I had bacon, eggs and toast this morning.  He finished watching a dvd and I just fooled around on the computer. Decided to go on a venture.  Along the way we stopped at a pull out that was very picturesque.

 We went for a trip to the "Musk Ox Farm".  These animals are back from the ice age and are next to extinction.  They are being raised on a farm.  The tour was very interesting in how the personalities of these animals emerge.  We really enjoyed the tour. The tour guide seemed very knowledgeable about the musk ox.

We then stopped and got some bug and tar remover for the truck and 5th wheel.  Rick was so good today I treated him to Dairy Queen and his foot long chili cheese dog !!  Of course, I didn't suffer myself...I had the mushroom swiss burger !  Rick worked on getting the tar and bugs off the truck and of course I played with the computer.  We then went to Walmart and home to cook dinner.  While I was cooking the lasagna and garlic bread Rick went back to get something at Walmart and came back and said I had been a good girl today too so......he bought me a lemon meringue pie !!  You will never believe this.....We ate dinner at 8:30 and I was to full to have any pie afterwards.  Fell asleep watching tv and went to bed at 10:30 and NEVER ate any pie !  Unbelievable. huh ? 

7 28 12 Palmer AK

Wifi service is very sketchy from this campground.  I may or may not be able to post this coming week.  All is well and will post whenever we get a chance.  We are now at the Big Bear Campground in Palmer, Ak.  We are much closer to Wasilla, AK.  There are several large stores here, super Walmart and Fred Meyers.  They also have a Chevy dealer at which Rick says he is going to take the truck in for an oil change.  Will write when I can......Till then....

7 27 12 Palmer AK

We had an uneventful day.  Did the necessities today....laundry and cleaning.  Looked around and found another campground to stay at.  We are currently at the Fox Run Campground but not a full hookup.  Saturday we will move to the Big Bear Campground for a week's stay.  We are about 40 miles north of Anchorage.  Went to dinner at a local restaurant in Palmer called the Noisy Goose.  It was a little noisy with everyone there, popular place, but the food was very good.  After dinner we took a ride into town and stopped at the Dairy Queen.  Rick said I had been a good girl today so I deserved a sundae !!!  We all know he really wanted one !  That climaxed our day....home watch a  movie and of course fall asleep doing that.   Have a great weekend all !

7 26 12 Palmer AK

Very interesting day.  Drove to Anchorage , had breakfast at good ole Denny's, then drove through the Golden Nugget Campground.  We went to the train depot and made reservations to take a train from Anchorage to Seward.  It will be just a day trip.  Leave at 6:45 and get back to Anchorage at 10:15, next month!  Decided to go to Girdwood and look at a campsite  that we have reserved for early next month.  Oh my....such beautiful scenery you have never seen.  The road curved around mountain after mountain with the water all along the side.  In the distance you could see snow capped mountains, one after the other.  The campground is in the Chugach National Forest which compromises the largest national forest in the world.  Found several sites that we like.  No one available to talk to so will have to decide what to do later.

 See how the road curves around the mountain

Beauty to behold
 

Clicking on picture will enlarge it
 

 More beautiful scenery

 Rick at Willawa Campground

 Rick along Turnagain Arm

 Trina along Turnagain Arm

 Trina at the Kenai Peninsula visitor center

 Just another great view

 Look at those snow capped mountains

 Mountains along Turnagain Arm

 More beauty

Would you say we like mountains ?

7 25 12
Just some pictures from our trip over to Palmer:

 Snow capped mountains in the distance

 Just beautiful scenery

 Road right up beside mountains

 And a river runs beside it

 Rode beside river for quite a ways

Beautiful snow capped mountains

7 25 12  Palmer AK

One of the most scenic drives today that we have had.  We rode along the valley between many mountains and climbed over and around many more for over 189 miles today.  Palmer is surrounded by both farms and residential areas that stretch westward through the valley .  Palmer is set in the Matanuska Valley.  The highlight of the trip was seeing the Matanuska Glacier descending out of the Chugach mountains to the south a visible from view points on the mountains.  Several 6 and 7 percent steep grades.  Then the road took on an ole country lane atmosphere....very narrow and very very winding.  It was just a beautiful ride....except for the frost heaves for several miles and patches in the road from construction.  There are lots of establishments that are along the roads that are no longer open for business. We got settled into our site at the Fox Run RV Park and then went into the town to Fred Meyers  and got some groceries.  We are staying here for two days....yeah two days of wifi !!!  Will include some pictures once I get them downloaded.  Wifi slow to do that. 

7 24 12 Glenn Allen AK

 The maintenance man's job is never done !

 Our site at Tok Alaska

 Rick at the pipeline

Trina straddling the pipeline
 

Heaters that are used in the winter on the pipeline
 
The day started out with a light drizzle.  Our truck and 5th wheel are so nasty due to the construction on the roads up here.  The 5th wheel has tar stuck to it.  We had to ride over fifteen miles behind a lead car through a construction zone, that they were paving the highway.  Messy !!! Rick got up this morning and decided drizzle or no drizzle he was washing the truck and the front of the 5th wheel.  Oh my....The front of the 5th wheel was covered with bugs, good thing they washed off easily.  Truck came pretty clean too for all that was on it.  The bottom of the 5th wheel will need a lot more to get the tar off it.  Will deal  with that one later.  The road from here to Anchorage is very bad with construction and frost heaves, so we took an alternate route....sure glad we did as the scenery was breath taking in some spots.  To take a picture does not do it justice.....some you just have to see.  We came to Glenn Allen and then will head toward Anchorage tomorrow.  Let me tell you one thing......the mosquito is KING here.  They swarm like flies at a bbq !!  Feel tired early here , not use to their being four hours behind what we are use to.  The high today was 61, stayed around 58 or 59 most of the day!!  It seems so strange to go to bed at 10:30 and it is still daylight outside.  We are so exhausted though that we fall right off to sleep.  Till the next time I have wifi .......

 Out our window in Haines Junction

 Driving to Glenn Allen
 

7 23 12 Tok Alaska

We finally made it here !!!  The roads were terrible in the Yukon.  First good size town we came to we stopped for the night..  There is a FOUR hour difference now in the time then back from our home.  I am still not adjusted to it.  We had a nice feast at "Fast Eddies" !  All the salad bar we could eat and a huge bowl of  spaggetti and meatballs.  The meatballs were many and very large.  We had enough to bring some back and save for tomorrow evenings dinner.  How's that for economizing.  Lost three screws from the fender of the trailer on the rough roads.  We found a hardware store though and Rick bought some screws with nuts to secure them better.

We did real good as we came across the border......went into the line for commercial trucks and buses.  Boy did we get yelled at !!!!  The boarder patrol was having Rick back up and get in the other line....but at the end he let us stay there , with the knowledge that it really screwed up his paper work !! Then when we left the port of entry, we were so shaken up that we did not even get to stop and get a picture with the Welcome to Alaska sign.  The sign was on the opposite side of the road anyways....for whee you are leaving.....what good is it there ?  Oh well...tomorrow is another day !

7 21 12
Watson Lake, Yukon

One great day....This was a day you come north for !!

After we drove awhile we decided to stop at this lodge and have some breakfast.  Beautiful place and now I know how they keep it so....$15.95 each for breakfast !!  We did enjoy it though.  Along our way we were blessed today with sighting 2 black bear, two different herd of bison and I saw a small mule deer !! We also saw one lone bison, Rick said he must have got kicked out of the herd. It was just a beautiful day.

 We passed into the Yukon today also.

 The water in the lakes and river is just absolutely gorgeous !! 
We stopped for the night in Watson Lake.  Took in the Northern Lights Experience.  It was like a planetarium viewing.  360 degree overhead viewing...stars, planets, and of course the aurora borealis !! , then to the sign forest park to make our mark on this journey..

 Guess this is it for now...Don't have any idea where we are stopping tonight so may or may not have any wifi.  Enjoy your Sunday....

 Sorry about some of the photo's.  Rick didn't know it was on video instead of pictures.  I have done that myself !!

 Bye from Watson Lake, Yukon Territory !!

7 20 12
Toad River Lodge, BC

Took a later start today as we knew we were not going to be traveling as far.  What a day and am I ever glad we weren't going any further up the road today, although we did stop early.  We were stopped for over 30 minutes in construction waiting for traffic from the other end.  When it was finally our turn, it was with a escort truck in front and gravel and dirt roads for about 15 miles !! 

Thank God I was the second in line as the dust was so bad , that at times I could not even see the truck in front of me.  The gravel was pinging really bad and I stayed back quite a ways from that truck.  Sure would have hated being at the end of the lines.  Crossing the Northern Canadian Rockies was really a white knuckle, hair raising incident.
 The grades were 6 and 7 % !!  They would go on for like over 6.5 miles, however there were several of them..  This was the highest elevation on the Alaska Highway, 4,250 feet.
The scenery is beginning to be really mountainous and very beautiful.  It is all up hill and down hill with lots of curves in the road now. 

Must say I was ready to stop when we got here.  This is only a small campground with a small restaurant .  Everyone stops here as there has been nothing for miles and nothing after here for miles.
Rick got us set up, and today decided since we were only over night we are just going to leave the camper hooked up as all is level.

  This is the scene sitting at our picnic table.

Until tomorrow from Toad River......