Merrill Field Inn Anchorage

... has already begun in Alaska and the yellow leaves of the birch trees illuminate the countryside. The bus had to stop several times because a bear or a moose were crossing the road which ends at the refuge built on a knoll that overlooks the Valley. After a quick picnic, we walked down right into the Valley and soon reached impressive layers of pumice through which the Utak River carved its way. You then ...

Took the train from Talkeetna to Anchorage yesterday...another nice ride. We saw a moose as we crossed through the grounds of Elmendorf Air Force Base. It was dark and rainy so no pictures of him.

I am now sitting at the Anchorage airport waiting for my flight home. It will be a little more pleasant as for an extra 10k frequent flier miles I was able to get first class seats for the return trip. That will be nice on a red eye ...

... full so we met them at the Snow Goose which was great. We had outdoor seating with a view of Mt McKinley.

Perfect!

The next day we just bummed around for a bit and went for a walk. We flew out at 20:30 to Denver going via Dallas. We missed our connection by minutes as the plane was still at the dock but made the next flight which was 2 hours later giving us time for breakfast. We arrived into Denver at 09:30 pretty tired!

... when the good Lord rearranges your schedule. Such is the current case. Our plans to travel to Soldotna were altered when Lois’ mother, who lives in Dallas, became seriously ill. Bill stayed behind and suggested we still visit, with the proviso that he, too, might have to leave if Lois’ mom gets worse. Now girls, I’m sure you can relate here…..staying with two guys who will spend most of the daylight hours fishing (in Alaska ...

The last night at Alaska. No specific schedule, just shopping, and easy short drive to the berry farm to see the chocolate fountain. Our flight was like 1:28 a.m., so we got to the airport around 10 p.m. Finally, the night fell. I was so glad to see the night. My eyes felt comfortable. No wonder we all felt sore for the eyes, the sun's been shining all day long!

... laughing today! Somehow, I doubt these Cordova guys (think the beautiful people) would never have noticed me at home, let alone been convinced by my hippy dress that I would know where to find some smoke. Mmmm, yep, def put a smile on my face -- thanks, boys! India darlin' -- here I come!! Namaste my friends! Next post will be from New Delhi, India, Gods willing :D We depart Anchorage Wednesday morning at 11:30 a.m. and its on, baby!! Cindy

... to call if they don't call in a week?" ---"she just called yesterday"-----"was that only yesterday?" vs. "wow, we have been here a week already". Jason hasn't even spent a summer in Anchorage in 15 years so he says things like "is there always that much snow on flattop in june?" And since we have never spent the summer together, part of us wants to run away into the ...

... takes. "Ooops" is all I can think. But really he is genuinely interested. He looks through the countries listed on our customs form. "wow, how did you do this?" "We saved up and quit our jobs" ----"cool, so where's all your bags?" "ummmm, this is it" (pointing to our back packs) "NO WAY!!! That is awesome man" stamps and lets us by. Giggling we rush to the security checkpoint. When one has to continue on, you can't dawdle in customs. You have to get your stuff checked back in ...

... we got back home. Not a lot of activity other than that, on this, our last day. Just a few more hours of time with the family before they gave us a ride back to our hotel, where we would pick up the rest of our bags, and take the hotel shuttle to the airport for our 10:40 PM flight out.

Thursday, July 7 - Denali Park Well, this was not a great day - not bad, just not great. We spent five hours on a crowded school bus, in the rain, trying to see out fogged windows. The scenery was nice, it would he been prettier if the sun had been out, and every time the driver said there is a sheep on that mountain at 11 o'clock - most of the time we could not see it. Obviously we did not get to see Mount McKinley due to the low clouds and rain. They told ...