2013 - Alaska or bust!

And everyone knows what the difference between black bear scat and grizzly scat? (I usualy use the other 4 letter word that begins with S and ends with a T but I have become so civilized since I own a teardrop) Black bear scat is full of blue berries and grizzly scat is full of BEAR BELLS.

 

Benn, I bet the skeeters at Lake Griffen were worse than anything we'll find up there. And of course they were accompinied by a world record hatching of Love Bugs when you were here! Love Bugs, now that will generate some questions from our distant tear droppers! Let's see what pops up here.
Mike

 

Love bugs?? Are they as pleasant as the Asian Beetles that we see here in Minnesota in the fall?

 

See Benn, I told you they would get attention.
Terry, let's just say the fly united until they smash into your windshield. FL rest stops have special outside washing stations that you drive up to and get your windshield hosed off, automatically. When the bugs are bad, that's just enough to get you to the next rest stop to do it all over again.
Mike

 

For all of you trying to get to Alaska, I read this blog post and thought I would pass it along. Not sure if it helps at all, but I found it interesting.

http://www.campingroadtrip.com/outdoor-living-newsletter-april-2011/alaska-rving-guide

 

Thanks Sarah,
I've been signed up but don't recall getting any newsletter so found this an interested 1st step.
I got the Manual? "Road Trip" but geesh? would take a year to go through it.
Sigh, starting the locale trips in March and will then see how it goes..

 

So do Love Bugs Stink? Are they anything like our year Shadflys aka fish bugs on the Mississippi?

 

Hey Everyone,
It’s now March and summer is roaring at us. I will be in Fairbanks on July 2nd. I will be around the house until July 9th and then I will be in Yakutat until July 17th. From the 17th till August 6th I will be back at my house on Birch Lake. July is the best month in the Alaskan interior. August can be just as nice but starts to get cool in the evenings and less sun light. September can be nice one day and snowing the next. Count on snow to stay October 1st. This is in the interior. It will be warmer on the coast in Sept. and Oct. but probably rainy. I’m serious about you stopping by. If you click on the map in the right hand corner of the home page, reach up into western Canada and drag Alaska into view. With the word “Alaska” just a little west of center, zoom about half the way in. You will see Fairbanks, Tanana River and highway # 2. Follow #2 south about 60 miles and you will see Birch Lake (you will see Harding Lake first, you will have to zoom a little more to read Birch Lake, about 10 miles further south). 2 is also called the Richardson Highway and the road to Canada. When you get to the roadside pull off by the lake I am within walking distance. Well, this is a start. Keep me posted if you are heading my way and don’t be shy.
George

 

George, Yikes!! It's almost April and I haven't started looking at my interior plans. Better get started so I can come by when you're home.
Here's my plan so far for anyone else who might be up that way:
In an earlier post I outlined our Inside Passage plans with arrival via ferry at Whittier on July 11th. From that point I've booked the following camp sites on the Kenai Peninsula. I was told that July was prime fishing time and the Kenai was very busy so we decided to lock in our sites.
July 11 - 14 Portage Valley RV
July 15 - 16 Stoney Creek Campground, Seward
July 16 - 18 Kenai Riverside RV Pard, Cooper Landing
July 19 - 21 Klondike RV Park, Soldotna
July 22 - 24 Alaskan Angler RV Resort, Ninilchik
July 25 - 28 Oceanside RV Park, Homer
Any info on these sites or things to do around them will be appreciated.

After that it's backtracking the Kenai on our way to Anchorage and Danali...... and beyond.
This part needs some planning!

 

Hi Guys,
I do not know anything about the camp grounds in the Kenai area. This area is the playground for Anchorage and it is very crowded. When the salmon are running I’ve seen them shoulder to shoulder on the Kenai River close to the road. Do drive all the way to the end of the spit in Homer. Used to be a cool bar and restaurant there shaped like a light house (small one). As you drive close to the end, take notice of the little shanties and tents and whatever else will shed rain. These house some of the workers that slime and clean fish. Usually college kids saving money for next semester. If you like fishing and can stand the tariff, hire a charter to take you way out. The good ones will guarantee you fish. Excellent halibut and they usually will arrange shipping your fish home. You can fish off the boat dock in the harbor. This may sound mundane, fishing from a dock, but I’ve seen the salmon jump up on the dock and people were trying to catch them with their hands. It was quite a circus. Go down on the docks and look at the boats. We have purchased crab and fish right off the boats. As you travel around Alaska, keep in mind you can camp anywhere you wish as long as you are not on private property, which there is very little of. Gravel pits are my favorite, no hook ups though.
When you leave Denali National Park heading north, you might consider taking the Denali Hwy. east at Cantwell. It is paved for about 10 miles on each end and gravel the remaining 115 miles. It cuts right through the Alaskan range and is beautiful. There is not a lot of traffic on this road and it is not maintained during the winter. There are primitive camp sites along this road. Tangle Lake is good fishing and there are many rivers and streams along the way. It dumps you out on Hwy #4 at Paxson Lake. Take a left onto #4 and go to Delta Junction. From here you have a choice to go left towards Fairbanks or right to Tok and Canada. I’m about 30 miles towards Fairbanks. If you take this route and as you are about to arrive at Paxson Lake, there used to be a garbage dump on the right. This was always a good place to see bears, not exactly in their natural habitat but interesting. Be very careful of moose. They can appear out of nowhere and are hard on vehicles. This is everywhere in Alaska. I’ve never seen a vehicle drive away from a moose encounter.
I hope this helps.
George

 

Mike & Carol,
I did stay in Seward at a camp ground but arrived late and left early in a boat for a couple of days. It was nothing special as I recall. Something to know about Seward is that it is a terminal for the cruise ships and when they are there it unloads thousands of people into the little community, a lot of lines and waiting. A must see is the aquarium in Seward. It is at the end of the main street coming into town. There is more to come as I recall.
George

 

Mike,
In a previous post, I mentioned that if you reached the ”Birch Lake Pull Off” that my house was within walking distance. Well, here is a photo of my front yard.
Go to the "General Photo Gallery" and at the bottom of page 1, click on your post of "Look What I Found part 2". Click on the 1915 Speedster and scroll down to the Comment by Duke & Laurie. Click on the link in this comment that will take you to the travel journal of the couple that owns the old Ford. At the bottom of that first page, click on "Day 15". Scroll down to the photos. The 3rd photo down on the right is of Matt looking into his radiator with a lake in the background. If you enlarge the photo by clicking on it you will see 2 houses on the shoreline just above the top of their teardrop. These 2 houses are my neighbor's and I own the property in between. Our house is up in the trees and can't be seen from this angle. Small world! You had a picture all the time and didn't know it.

 

just saw this on FB...Cool Tears April issue has an article on Alaska a three month teardrop tour....

www.cooltears.com

 

Yah, saw the CoolTears article.. fun...

 

George, thanks for all the tips. We extended our Homer visit based on your recommendations. It looks like a very interesting place. By the way, do you think we need to prebook any campgrounds in Denali and if so any recommendations? Right now it looks like we'll be up your way the second week of Aug. Will you still be around? Your note seems to indicate you'll be there until the 6th. We'll have a better idea of exact dates once we know when Carol has to be Anchorage for an eye injection she has to get every 5 weeks.
And I did see your house in the post. Looks like such a beautiful setting. Hope we can see it.
Mike

 

Mike,
When in Homer, check out the boat schedule from the end of the spit to Seldovia.
Seldovia is an old Russian village, complete with onion top orthodox church, about 20 miles down the coast on the left. I don’t think you want to take your vehicle down, if it is even available to do so, but your call. It’s a nice day trip but watch the return time. Don’t miss the boat back or you will be stuck. The only way to Seldovia is by boat or small plane.
Denali Park is the busiest place in Alaska during the summer. You might want to reserve a place at the campground. Tourism by car has been down the last few years so the traffic is down. But, Denali will get everyone who drives up there at one time or another. Give them a call and see what they think. Keep in mind; you cannot drive into the park. You have to take one of their bus tours. Some of your best views of the mountain are from the highway driving north around Talkeetna or from the Denali Highway, that I mentioned earlier. The mountain is so big that it has its own weather. The whole state can be completely free of clouds and it will have clouds all around it. Don’t worry; you will know it when you see it.
George

 

Mike your like a tour guide for Alaska - great. Maybe we could have someone from each state!

 

Saw this at the Camping Road Trip letter.. might be a repost but interesting:
This is the third article in a three part series that CampingRoadTrip.com asked me to write. RVing to Alaska has always been a dream trip for us.....


http://www.campingroadtrip.com/outdoor-living-newsletter-april-2013/tips-for-rving-through-canada

 

Hi Mike,
With only a few days left before you and Carol head off on your great Alaskan Adventure. I thought a friendly reminder about bears would be in order. Keep food out of the car, keep the windows closed and a finger on the panic button. :grin:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QxfVvspzTS4

Safe travels see you when you return.

Benn

 

Oh my gosh!!! May be we should change our minds about Alaska. You and Meribeth must be about ready to depart. Have a great trip!!

Carol