A trip through SE Alaska

Hard at work in Wrangell. At least I can wear blue jeans and sweaters here and keep the scruffy look.

What an interesting life. Hats off to you Soferdig!

This is how I announce my arrival. The word of mouth spreads my arrival to the remote parts of the island. Good value in advertising.

Lots and lots of whales, in this photo Humpback but Killer, and Grey whales are often seen.

I really want to take the ferry from Bellingham, WA to Petersburg, and then drive back on the Alaska highway. Sofer, the photos are wonderful.

Now we are moving to Wrangell. Here I had a motorcycle so got to see the island more. This is a view from a remote campsite provided by Tongass Forest. This is looking North back to Wrangell. The islands below are a fun short after work Kayak trip.

Judi taking the car is quite expensive. You need to get reservations sometimes over a year ahead. I would just ride the ferry and any travel you would want to do in the small towns is simple with the taxi and a cell phone. Flying back is quite cheap and Alaska lets you do one way without penality. I too want to do the AL-Can and plan on it next summer when I take my motorcycle home.
This is Anita Bay and I sit up here watching the gill-net fishermen below after work. The views to the right and left are wonderful and sunsets here are warm and fuzzy.

The moisture is causing this refraction of sunset off the warm rock I am sitting in during the sunset.

I looked at the ferry website and yes, taking a car onboard is the most expensive part of the fare. however, I really would like to explore along the Alaska highway and wander a bit. Otherwise I would take my bicycle instead and peddle around the town. I have always wanted to explore along the highway and taking the ferry one way seems just right.

I do a lot of flying in small planes to get to the small villages I work at. I often see Humpbacks diving from above. The bubbles are many from the air leaking from their feeding. The views from small plane flight are quite wonderful.

Looking down at Juneau and the Mendenall Glacier.

I've been lurking here, Soferdig, enjoying your experiences and your great photos.

Saw a great sign for a vet's office:

The vet will be with you in a few minutes. Sit, stay!

Judi, several years ago my husband and I took the ferry up to Haines, then rented a car up there for tooling around. Our original plan was to drive from Haines to Anchorage, then fly home from there. The car people somehow convinced us it was too expensive to do that. There WAS a hefty fee for returning the car in a different location, but I still wish we would have done so. While exploring, I just wanted to keep driving north but instead we had to turn around to catch our plane home from Haines. If you do take the ferry, consider camping out on the back deck. We didn't know about the camping and rented an inside cabin, but it looked way more fun to rough it out back. Beautiful trip, we went in the fall.

I too camp out, but that is for the young and hearty. Rather firm deck and great neighbors! Friendships are instant and when traveling on foot you run into them many times. The great thing about the ferry is you don't have to schedule you can jump off anywhere you want and get back on at your prefrence. No additional fees. With the car you can't do that. You have to schedule every departure and arrival.

This is a common view with this Troller along the entire passage. I have access to all the great food that is available to those who visit. I would try to learn to enjoy the seafood that the locals can cook here. Fancy resturants are few but the local feed you much better for less at all of the small feederies located near the ferry landing. Halibut Tacos and fish tacos are unusuall to those down south but a regular for all of us who habitat the values of the SE. In Petersburg the best Mexican can be found in the infamous "Kito Cave".

This is the ferry landing at Wrangell where I often sit and watch the sunset after work. There is a hotel "Stikine Inn" near the ferry where the chef is awesome. Though I being a Scotch cheapster live on his clam chowder.

Just imagine your sailboat tied up here. I do this every month and enjoy the people of the harbor. Many single men with their favorite dog as their best friend. They work as old men even to feed their desire for adventure. No girls, don't think this is a place for a husband unless you are young. All men here know how to cook and are pretty independent!

Wonderful trip. Thanks Sofer. The glacier has shrunken? a lot since 1977. Wow.

LOL, no Sofer, it is beautiful to look at, but don't know too many "girls" that want a husband bad enough to put up with an "independent cranky old man and his dog". LOL It truly is pretty, but oh so cold looking.

Everyone pray for my GD Charlize today Monday/Tues. She is having surgery on a malignancy and she is only 2 1/2. Thank you. I will be too busy with all of this to post for a while. Sorry, Steve

My thoughts are with you.

Steve, sending positive thoughts for your darling GD.

Sofer, please let us know how your little GD Charlize came thru her surgery. So little for such a drastic procedure. She will be fine.

Prayers for Charlize and family going your way.

Steve, you know your baby has my prayers.
I love this thread. You've converted me and I really DO see my sailboat tied up with those! Independent men or no, some of us ladies enjoy the traveling by boat, too, with or without cooking. I think I need to see Petersburg by boat. And also that beautiful sunset. I want to see that, too.

Steve, any news about Charlize? Keeping her in my thoughts.

I was wondering the same thing, Judi

Me too, I keep checking. Hope all is OK.

Charlize went through surgery well and a large mass was removed. She and I held hands tonight until she went to sleep. We talked about the dogs I saw today and was interested on how one wanted to bite me and I talked it out of it. So I told her to bite her Doctor tomorrow and she only smiled. She is such an angel and will grow into a tough and fighting child as she starts her chemotherapy. I am sad about her but pleased with the wonderfull people in Mary Bridges in Tacoma!

God bless all who helped her through the surgery and God bless Charlize. What a wonderful Thanksgiving the family will have.

Steve, wishing your family a Happy Thanksgiving, and peace and strength to Charlize as she as she goes through chemo. She has a wonderful support system and a great Grandpa.

Thought this thread was a good spot to post this, emailed to me from a friend, taken in Alaska. You may have to cut and past the link, well worth it, sequential photos of a backyard moose birth. Symbolic for the hope we all hold for Little Charlize.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/8711600@N03/sets/72157624136480812/show/

Amazing. Thanks for the link.

What a wonderful link! Hope inspiring, for sure.

That was amazing.

Thank you for the inspiration of this moment. My Charlize is doing great! She held my hand and started playing today. She is very hungry and we need prayer for her GI tract to start moving so she can eat. Right now it is stopped because of the pain meds. We need her naso-gastric tube to be removed and for her to start eating. It was so painful to have the nurse replace the tube this morning. She cried but did not fight the process. She gripped my finger with emotion as it was happening. So tough the little ones with the processes of Cancer.

God bless Charlize. She's one very brave little girl.

What a fighter!!!

How is that baby doing now Sofer? Is she able to eat yet? Poor little thing. So tough on the little ones.

Bad news today her cancer is a "clear cell" rather than a simple Carcinoma. This means less likely to have success but we are still positive. The bone and brain scan were normal so at this time radiation and chemo are starting. Poor Charlize 15 months of battle ahead.