...when Grandma comes to town

It's been a busy couple of weeks here in Nikiski. Grandma arrived on the 9th and we spent our time hiking, berry picking, bear dodging, eating out, beach combing, starting school, visiting friends, shopping for clothes, birthday partying, baking cookies and cakes, going to the Farmer's Market, and photographing. We saw a good portion of the Central Kenai Peninsula via automobiles and hiking shoes. It was loads of fun, which is usually the case...when Grandma comes to town.

Trail River Campground...again

A four night camping trip is comprised of many sub-activities including hiking, mountain biking, photographing, campfires, banana boats, and plenty of unstructured setting around time. That’s how we do it anyway and that’s exactly the way things went down on our recent trip to Trail River Campground.
On our first full day we decided to hike to Exit Glacier near Seward. The weather was grand and we enjoyed walking to the edge of the glacier with all the tourists, many of which were toting cameras with massive lenses. We had a picnic on the side of the trail and enjoyed views of the glacier and the braided river below us. We had a pleasant conversation with a volunteer ranger and then made our way back to the parking area and on to Seward where we bought a few provisions. Back at the campground we ate dinner and had banana boats for dessert.
The next day we drove to Anchorage in search of cameras. It was too difficult to make a good decision so we drove back empty handed. We did have a good lunch at New Sagaya.
The following day we drove to Lowell Point and hiked to Tonsina Creek. It’s a beautiful walk and includes some delightful switchbacks just before we reached the creek where we watched chum and pink salmon on their spawning grounds. We walked a bit further and then angled toward the beach where we ate our picnic lunch. As we were eating a frind of ours appeared with his dog Daisy. They had been camping at North Beach for three nights and were on their way out so they could be home in time to watch the Opening Ceremonies of the Summer Olympic Games in Beijing.
We returned to our camper and spent the evening enjoying some beautiful summer weather. The next morning we packed up and drove to Sunrise Inn in Cooper Landing for breakfast before returning home glad we had spent time at Trail River Campground...again

...camping at Tek

After landing in Anchorage in the middle of the night we slept in the airport and picked up our truck and trailer from storage as soon as we could in the morning and made tracks for Denali National Park. Yep, we tacked our annual trip to Teklanika Campground to the end of our month long road trip adventure.
It was a long drive to the park through heavy rain but we made it to the campground by late afternoon and after eating dinner we promptly fell asleep.
The next morning we awoke to beautiful weather and decided to spend the day recuperating at Tek. We did take a short walk down the Teklanika Riverbed and went to Ranger Casey's campfire presentation in the evening where we learned about hiking in Denali. Emily got to be the bear for the animal safety segment of the talk.
The next day we hopped the bus to Eielson Visitor Center to see the newly opened facility. During the ride we saw bears in Sable and Highway Passes. Eielson Visitor Center is a beauty set in the side of the hill and uses all sorts of different energy sources in order to reduce its environmental impact. We ate lunch next to a couple that could have been in a Woody Allen movie and then took a hike part way down the hill. Later in the evening we attended Ranger Melissa's campfire talk which was a clever presentation about what the animals of Denali like to eat.
On Sunday we had company and we spent the afternoon riding the bus to Toklat together. We didn't see any wildlife along the way but the driver was entertaining and we all had a good time looking at the fabulous views just outside the window.
It was raining heavily again on Monday so we decided to ride toward Eielson again in hopes of finding a dry area to hike. Along the way we saw a young bear on the road in Igloo canyon and a larger bear in the distance on Highway Pass. The rain became more intense the closer we got to Eielson so we stayed on the bus. When we got to the visitor center it was rainy/foggy and the views were obscured. We ate lunch, got back on the bus and rode back to Igloo Canyon where the rain had stopped. We decided to get off the bus at the Igloo Creek bridge and walk through the campground. Then we headed up the road just to stretch our legs a bit more and enjoy the dry air.
As we were walking a bus came around the corner and stopped beside us. The driver said there was a wolf coming down the road and if we waited quietly it would most likely pass by us on the riverbed. So, we hunkered down on the edge of the road and waited for about three minutes when suddenly the wolf appeared from around the corner. He kept coming until he was about 50 yards away and then he went into the brush toward the river. A few seconds later he appeared on the riverbed and trotted downstream. It was an awesome encounter and made for a great afternoon. Back at Tek that evening we attended Ranger Danica's talk about mountaineering on Denali.
The next morning we left Tek, made a brief stop at Riley Creek Mercantile to do some laundry, went to the Visitor Center to have our Junior Rangers sworn in, checked out the gift shop, and then hit the road for Byers Lake Campground. Two flat tires later we made it, but that's another story.
It was a great trip and we had a wonderful time...camping at Tek.

...lots of miles

It is a long drive from Healdsburg, California to Denver, Colorado. Especially when you are highway 50 which crosses Nevada and is well known to be the loneliest highway in the world. We drove to Ely, Nevada where we spent the first night and then on to Grand Junction, Colorado for the second night. When we got to Denver we returned our rental car and caught our flight back to Alaska. It was quite the road trip and we covered...lots of miles.

...it all happened in Healdsburg

We had a busy week in Healdsburg complete with live music, movies,road trips, beaches, canoes, and baseball games. It all started when we went to see Johnny Rawls as he performed with his band in the gazebo at the Healdsburg Plaza. It was packed with concert goers and the atmosphere was festive. It happens every Tuesday night during the summer and all of Healdsburg is there!

We went to the movies the next day and took a road trip to Occidental the day after that. Following lunch at Howard's we drove to the beach and played in the sand. The drive back to Healdsburg took us through the redwoods which are always magnificent.

On Friday we floated the Russian River in an aluminum canoe. It was great to see the turtles and vast amounts of bird life as we drifted along.

Saturday was game day so we rode the Larkspur Ferry to San Francisco to watch the Giants. Best of all, we sat next to one of the team's most fervent fans who frequently high fived everyone in the vicinity. On Sunday morning we went to Santa Rosa for brunch before pony and amusement rides at Howarth Park.

It was a big week and...it all happened in Healdsburg.

...nearly buffalo'd in Yellowstone National Park

After a final night’s rest in Yellowstone National Park we loaded our car and began our drive toward California. Leaving the Park was not without excitement, however, as we narrowly missed driving into a buffalo which was walking down the middle of the road on a blind corner in the Middle Geyser Basin area. To complicate matters a silver automobile was stopped beside it in our lane of traffic taking photos. It was inches from the buffalo and by the time I was able to stop our vehicle we were inches from the buffalo and car. It was a close call. I couldn’t get around the car and buffalo and we were still on a blind corner so I pulled into the ditch for safety. Fortunately no other cars appeared from behind and we were able to continue our journey unscathed. This, of course, was after the buffalo walked passed us rather unconcerned about the havoc he had caused.
Not too much further down the road we saw a traffic jam indicating another wildlife spotting along the road. Sure enough a herd of cow and calf elk were on both sides of the thoroughfare. We got some up close photos and continued driving out of the Park. After stopping in West Yellowstone, Montana, for gas we hit the open road.

We drove some…and some more…and some more. We drove to Twin Falls where we turned south on Highway 93 toward Wells, Nevada. At Wells, we got on Interstate 80 and drove toward Elko. Even though it was getting late we decided to keep driving in hopes of making it to Winnemucca…and we did! After checking in at the Holiday Inn Express Motel we drove to the edge of Winnemucca where we ate dinner Basque style. The Martin Hotel was built in 1898 and is on the National Register of Historic Sites. It has long been a Basque restaurant and the food was delicious, even the beef tongue. It is also a great place to talk with fellow diners as the food is served family style and you may share a table with complete strangers whom you will know very well by the end of your meal. Too bad all restaurants aren’t that way. We would probably learn to get along with one another much better.
This morning we loaded the car and lit out for California leaving Winnemucca until the next time we need a Basque meal. The drive across the remainder of Nevada was uneventful and we crossed the border into California around noon. We ate a picnic lunch in the Sierra Nevada mountains amidst the smoke of several wildfires. Back on the road the number of cars on the road grew exponentially as we traveled toward Sacramento. We eventually made our way to Healdsburg arriving just 7 ½ hours after leaving Winnemucca. It was quite a trip and it all started as we were...nearly buffalo'd in Yellowstone National Park.

...another day in Yellowstone National Park

This morning we woke and said, “Wouldn’t it be great if we could stay here at Grant Village in Yellowstone National Park for another night?” So Lizzie called the front desk and unbelievably they said our room was available for tonight. We thought that was funny since we had not been able to reserve it for two consecutive nights over a month ago when we made reservations. Nonetheless, we were elated and immediately jumped in our car and drove toward the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone.

Passing through the Hayden Valley along the way we saw lots of buffalo, elk, and waterfowl. We pulled into the parking lot at Artist Point and joined an overwhelming congregation of rental cars, SUVs, pickup trucks, and large tourist buses. We walked to the viewing area where we took some photos and went back to the car. We drove to a nearby picnic area and after lunch we took off down the Wapiti Lake Trail which passes through the open meadows of the Hayden Valley. There were very few hikers making it a stark contrast to the mass of people just two miles away. We made it about 1.3 miles down the trail to a place where we climbed a small knoll that gave us a commanding view of the area. In the far distance we could see many buffalo and elk. It was magnificent and on such beautiful day a difficult place to leave.
When we got back to the car and headed to Canyon Village for ice cream. Crawling with vehicles and tourists, their hands full of shopping bags, ice cream, and cell phones, it, too, was a vivid contrast to the immense wildness of the Yellowstone just a few steps away.
We joined the crowd and ate our ice cream. Then we drove through the campground before turning back to make the passage through Hayden Valley once again. This time it seemed like every buffalo in the world had decided to stand beside the road. They were everywhere. We dodged the hastily stopped vehicles as their drivers jumped out for photos and eventually arrived at Sulphur Cauldron where we walked the boardwalk and marveled at the boiling mud and water. Emily thought it smelled terrible and I had to agree that the rotten egg odor was a little rank but eventually we all got used to it.
Soon enough we got back in the car and drove toward Grant Village where we all decided the vibe is much more laid back. We ate a picnic dinner in our room and we were glad to to have spent...another day in Yellowstone National Park.