Jul 15, 2012 - Bears

July 13 Later this afternoon we stopped at the fishery located down the road from our campground. We saw dozens of bald eagles flying around. It was an incredible sight. Quite a few of them were young, (without the white head and tail feathers) known as immature. We then found out that a brown bear and her four cubs were in the area. We waited about an hour and then we saw her coming through some bushes and trying to cross the street with one of the cubs. There were too many vehicles so she ran back. She came out again and tried to cross...

Jul 12, 2012 - Day 79, leaving Valdez

Day 79, Thursday, July 12, 2012 We loaded the car onto the dolly in the rain and headed north. Going through Thompson Pass is a much longer, steeper grade coming this way. When we got almost to the top, traffic was really slowing down and we could see a total of 6 trucks accompanying a wide load. They were transporting a big boat that completely took up two lanes. Going up the hill was ok because there was a passing lane. Once that ended, the boat took up the lane for oncoming traffic too. The trucks in the front flagged down oncoming...

Jul 11, 2012 - Day 78, Salmon fishing

Day 78, Wednesday, July 11, 2012 We went into town and bought me a fishing license and a couple of lures and headed out to Allison Point to try my luck. Rob decided not to fish. We got there a couple hours before low tide which is the best time to fish at that spot next to the hatchery. It’s a different kind of fishing because salmon do not feed when they are heading home to spawn so they do not take bait. The idea is to just to snag them with your hook in some part of their body or a fin. There was not too much action today unless you were...

Jul 10, 2012 - Bear Paw RV Park

Stayed at Bear Paw RV Park in Valdez, AK for three nights in a FHU site. This is a highly recommended park. Note 1: On Weds., 07/11/12, I bought a one day AK Fishing License and tried my luck at fishing for Pink Salmon about 300 ft away from the Solomon Gulch Fish Hatchery; I didn't have any luck catching anything, but neither did my friends Carl Hopper, Denise Yale, or any of the many locals. Note 2: On Thurs., 07/12/12, we went on the Stan Stephens Glacier & Wildlife Tour (Columbia Glacier Cruise). During this 6.5 hour cruise on the...

Jul 10, 2012 - Day 77, Mineral Creek Road

Day 77, Tuesday, July 10, 2012 It rained all night and all morning. It’s pretty soggy out there and there is a fresh dusting of snow on the nearby mountains. Temperature might not break 50 again today and Phoenix is 114. Hmmm. We drove out to the end of Airport Road where there are icebergs in the lake and two glaciers. A family was out there with a guide getting ready to go kayaking on the lake. It’s a wet and cold day for that. Then we drove out Mineral Creek Road on the south side of town. It follows Mineral Creek through a pass in the...

Jul 10, 2012 - Valdez, AK

Tue, 10 Jul: Valdez Alaska! Prince William Sound. Terminus of the Trans Alaska Pipeline. Fishing galore. And rain... The rains started sometime during the nite and when we awoke this morning it was a steady drumming on the roof. We stayed in our warm bed as long as we dared and then braved the elements to turn on the heat. We're of such hearty stock! Following freshly brewed hot tea and breakfast we started getting Carpe ready for today's run. Since it was Bob's time behind the wheel Sandi got to do the outside chores. Yellow rain slicks...

Jul 9, 2012 - Day 76, Valdez

Day 76, Monday, July 09, 2012 We had breakfast at the café at the RV Park and could see there was fresh snow on the tops of the nearby mountains. We saw Sheep Mountain which is red and orangeish from iron oxide deposits and gypsum. The Dall sheep like to eat the gypsum for the calcium. Then we headed west again through open valleys dotted with numerous small lakes. When we got to Glennallen, we turned right onto the Richardson Highway. The roads since we left the campground have been horrible again, frost heaves, broken pavement, and...

Jul 8, 2012 - gentlemen: start fishing!

The fishing boats began streaming past us out of the port last night. At 6am today it was finally time for the commercial fishermen to get out there and catch those salmon. The bay outside Valdez is large, but it was so full of ships, there was hardly room for them all to spread out their nets and reel them in. We counted fifty last night and there were probably twice that many out today. The process is the same whether your boat is large or small. A dinghy leads the net affixed to buoys in a large circle away from the boat. Once the...

Jul 6, 2012 - Valdez Day 2

Still at Eagles Nest RV Park. My, what a busy place! Some of the sites are permanent residents, including the ones next to us. Several of the trailers have freezers outside of their trailer for the fish they catch - one by us has 2 the other has 1. They just hook them up to the power. Took a great 2 hour hike this AM. It was an ATV trail, but the scenery was spectacular! Tons of waterfalls!, A few mosquitos but with Deet and not stopping too long, they weren't bad. After lunch we drove out to Valdez Harbor. There were a lot of cars parked...

Jul 6, 2012 - on vacation

Normally Valdez has enough attractions and tourist activities to merit a two/three day visit. We will be here nine days by the time we leave. It feels like we are taking a vacation from our vacation. One reason is that the 4th of July was on a Wednesday; making it into a long weekend could extend before or after. Valdez was planning a salmon festival the Saturday after the holiday. It would be a shame to miss a free salmon meal. Although we haven't had trouble, campgrounds closer the big city of Anchorage could be rather full. Another...

Jul 5, 2012 - Valdez

Eagles Nest RV Park. Well, this is like RV city. There are over 200 sites. Some tents and all sorts of RV's. I think half of them at least are either workers on the fishing boats or have their own boat. Campground is clean and level, but very busy. Today was a nice drive over Thompson Pass. Saw another glacier and lots of waterfalls. Still alot of snow on the top, which at 2678 feet is above tree line. The pipeline follows the route of this highway. I saw it above ground at one point and thought I'd get a picture later, but didn't see it...

Jul 4, 2012 - celebrating

Have you ever gone to a 4th of July parade wearing a parka, wool hat and gloves? We'll, there's a first time for everything. The locals tell us they have lots of rain, but they can't remember a 4th that was so cold. We joined them in trying to make the best of it. A full day of activities was planned. All of them were within walking distance of our campground. The parade began at 12:15 and was over by 12:30. No bands, no floats, no animals. The Boy Scouts kicked things off and the parade marshall Uncle Salmon, got big cheers. Various...