July 21, 2024 Travel to Portage Alaska

Another great travel day!

So we are now heading east - a little cloudy start to our day:

Past the Swan Lake Fire Scar - so sad:

The 2019 fire burned over 167,000 acres and it lasted for four months.

https://www.fws.gov/story/swan-lake-fire-burn-severity-story

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Swan_Lake_Fire

We went past the Russian and Kenai Rivers where the fishermen are starting to gather.  Within the next few weeks, there will be many more fisherman and bears trying to catch the salmon:

Rafting on the Kenai:

It is so green and lush:

Beautiful lakes:

Cute house - I don't know if someone lives there or it is a vacation home:

The access path to get to the house:

View from the access path:

Flowers along the path:

Here we are:

Up and over Turnagain Pass:

Near the end of Turnagain Arm:

Turnagain Arm is a is a long, narrow fjord south of Anchorage, Alaska.  

"Turnagain Arm was named by William Bligh of HMS Bounty fame. Bligh served as Cook's Sailing Master on his third and final voyage, the aim of which was discovery of the Northwest Passage. Upon reaching the head of Cook Inlet in 1778, Bligh was of the opinion that both Knik Arm and Turnagain Arm were the mouths of rivers and not the opening to the Northwest Passage. Under Cook's orders Bligh organized a party to travel up Knik Arm, which quickly returned to report Knik Arm indeed led only to a river.

Afterwards a second party was dispatched up Turnagain Arm and it too returned to report only a river lay ahead. As a result of this frustration the second body of water was given the disingenuous name "Turn Again". Early maps label Turnagain Arm as the "Turnagain River"."

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Turnagain_Arm

https://kmtacorridor.org/turnagain_arm_dangers/

We made our way to Williwaw Campground in the Chugach National Forest and set up.  One of the reasons we are here is to see the Bore Tide.  So once we set up, we went to check out the best places to watch the tide roll in.

The tide was going out.  The tide goes out fast and it comes in fast.  One of the viewpoints:

The mud flats:

In the center of the above picture is Portage Glacier.

Across the Turnagain Arm:

There are a few places to watch the tide, so tomorrow we have some options.

Back home, Gray wanted out again so I put the harness and leash on him (which he does not like) and took him out.

Bella watching him - she has no desire to go out:

Rolling around to get the harness off - he is a smart cat!  

His harness was custom made by a woman from England.  I tried so many different harnesses for him that just did not work out.  He is a large cat (not just heavy) and I could not find a cat harness to fit him.  None of the dog harnesses worked either.  So one day on one of the cat sites I found this person who designs these for different size cats or cats who get out of the regular harnesses and it does work.  He doesn't like it but it works.

We ended the evening with another great campfire.

We will be here for a few more days so stay tuned and enjoy today.

Stats for today:

Miles Traveled: 104 Miles

Routes Traveled:

Alaska: Suthard Blvd.; Delta Avenue; Kenai Spur Highway; Sterling Highway AK-3; Seward Highway AK-3; Portage Glacier Road

July 12 - 16, 2024 Travel to Soldotna and Hang Out

We woke today to more rain and clouds and just "yuck".  Andy went out early and put away some items.  At one point, the hard rain diminished and we were left with "sprinkles."  

We finished shutting down and the rain really tapered off so away we went.  Andy pulled around a corner and we hooked up the truck.  From there we headed to the dump station and dumped.  We did not fill with water because we are going to the Soldotna Elks that has water.

So away we went BUT, it was foggy, rainy and just "yuck"!

We made our way back to the Soldotna Elks and spent Saturday and Sunday, filling our supplies, charging all our electronics, fixing some things in the RV and, of course, doing some rearranging in the RV.  (Out with the old, in with the new - LOL!).

When we arrived on Saturday, the Lodge was having a private event so we did not go in until Sunday.  It was great to see folks we met a few weeks ago and talk about our adventures as well as meeting new folk!

Stats for July 12th, 2024

Miles Traveled: 82 Miles

Routes Traveled:

Alaska: Sterling Highway (AK-1, I think.),  Kenai Spur Highway; Delta Avenue; Suthard Blvd.

Monday, July 15th, we started the day with a video conference with Andy's VA doctor.  After that. Laundry which I love - NOT.  But I will have to say, the Laundry in Soldotna is clean and reasonable and only a mile away.

After getting home, having lunch and putting away everything, we decided to do a road trip to Discovery Campground.  We stayed here in 2007 and 2009 and I called it the "End of the Road Campground" and that is what it is.  The road ends and there is the campground.  

But, it truly is not.  Many folk live beyond this campground but park their vehicles near here and continue to their home on ATVs, etc.  In the winter, they continue to their homes on Snowmobiles.  Darn!  I love Alaska.

We wanted to see the campground because we will be heading here next.  So after doing our tour, we checked out the views.:

This beach is also known for it's agates.  So when we are here, I will be looking:

Heading back, we stopped at another overlook - fishing boat:

There are many oil rigs in the Cook Inlet as well as oil refineries:

View of the mountains that can't be seen:

Cute little park at the overlook:

We made our way back to the Elks and just hung out.

Today, July 16th is still very rainy and wet so we decided to stay here another day to do some planning for the next few weeks.

The weather is supposed to be better later this week so I do want to do to Discovery Campground for a few days and check for agates.  

Beyond that, we are going to Williwaw Campground for a few days and hope to see the bore tide on Turnagain Arm.  Then we will head to Seward where I was able to snag a site on the Bay - YAHOO!!!  Then we will head to the Anchorage area.  

So much to see, so little time before the winter...

We finished the day at Happy Hour at the Elks.

Stay tuned for our next adventure and enjoy today.

June 20th, 2024 (thru July 7th), 2024 - Time with Friends and Touring.

We left our spot at the Elks and stopped at the Tesoro station that has a free RV dump.  We dumped and then fueled up there.  So grateful for places like this.

Along the way - yes, it was a cloudy, rainy day:

These mountains are part of the ring of fire.  I will say more in a future blog:

Today is the solstice - How about this for Alaska!:

We have been asked about the daylight and sleeping and how we are handling.  So a question I have to ask back is - "Do you ever take naps?"  It is the same - LOL!

We do have blackout shades in the bedroom but our shower has a sky light that is next to the bedroom.  For us, we have had no problems.

We arrived at our friends' place and will be here for a little while.

The next few blogs will be a little different or much like when we spend time with family.  I will blog the highlights but the day to day - no.

We are so very grateful for the chance to spend some time with our friends: talking, laughing, shopping, sharing meals, girls day, road trips and getting to know each other a little better. We are also so grateful for the excursions and new experiences for us.  We are so blessed to call you our friends - Thank you so much.

It has also been nice for us to have a little much needed down time.

So with that stay tuned for some of our travels and experiences and sights.

June 18 - 19, 2024 Travel to Soldotna/Kenai and Resupply

We left our nice little place at Quartz Creek, dumped our tanks, filled with water and away we went.  (We will be back in the area next month to explore more.)

Past those beautiful rivers and lakes:

Cloudy day today:

Past burned areas:

(There was another fire in this area later in the month - so sad.)

We made our way to the Soldotna Elks where we will be for two days.

This is our resupply place since the Soldotna/Kenai area has Walmart, Fred Meyers, Safeway, Petco, and a host of others.  Our panty is very empty!  Many of the small towns we have visited since Quesnel, BC have grocery stores but, my oh my, the prices are high.  So we did the best we could until here.

And that is what I did for two days - shop and fill our pantry and get other items we needed.

We had dinner at the Elks on June 18th and had Happy Hour both days.  We met some really nice people and had a great time.

Tomorrow we continue our journey so stay tuned and enjoy today.

Stats for today:

Miles Traveled: 51 Miles

Alaska: Quartz Creek Road; Sterling Highway - AK-3; Kenai Spur Highway; Delta Avenue; Suthard Blvd.