Oct 2010 Leaving Ak/Custer/Victoria/GRose/Lincoln

Oct 2, 2010  On the road again....We leave Fairbanks with heavy hearts, as two weeks ago, our friend Art, had a massive stroke and today, he died.  Shari is going with her Mother to San Diego, and will not return to Alaska until next May, at which time she will deal with the two houses and their belongings.

 It has been good to be with Art and his wife, Shari, and what a treat to have them invite us here for the summer.  We spent most of the time in  Fairbanks parked in the Sportsman's Warehouse parking lot, as it was more convenient while we were working.  However, it was so relaxing to pull into their property for a couple days a week for R & R.  They  didn't get the house finished enough to move in while we were there, but we stayed thee anyway.  The four of us spent some good times with Shari's BBQ's, the eating out, going to the movies, and sitting at our favorite table in front of Coldstone Creamery. Yummmmmm.  Glad we had this lovely experience, but we are sad that we didn't get any pictures of us with them....We really liked being in Alaska, but are looking forward to the lower 48 to be with family.

Frost Heaves give a whole new meaning to the term "Rock n Roll" as the motor home rumbles along the highway.  Some places have been repaired since our coming up here, but we still bent the axle, again.  Jack just used his manly muscles and pounded it back into place.  We saw herds of elk and moose as we were leaving, and enjoyed the many changing colors of the trees.  Everything was so densely green when we came up, that the contrast was like seeing a whole new land.

Oct 7, 2010  We finally arrived back in the good ol' USA.  Jack drove really hard for the past 5 days, and the 6th day, we are taking it easy in Great Falls Montana.

Oct 8, 2010 We stopped at the " Little Big Horn" and toured the area of Custer's Last Stand.  How brutal the wars were, and what a price was paid for the development of our country, on both sides.  We thank those that gave their lives for us.

Oct 11, 2010  Well, that could have been bad!! I wrote that on our way to Alaska we bent the tow bar in the 'frost heaves', well we bent it again coming out, and Jack hammered it back as best he could.  And...after we left Joel's place in Longmont, CO, driving down the freeway we felt a bump in the motor home.  As we looked in the backup camera, our towed Jeep was no longer in the center of the screen, but over to one side.  The tow bar had come off the ball, and the Jeep was being held with the safety chain.  I'm a believer in safety chains, and we now have a new tow bar.

Oct 12 - 21, 2010  Bernice flew to Sacramento to spend some time with children, and see a good friend, Sylvia Roberts.    Sylvia had been walking across the street and was hit by a car that severely broke her body from top to bottom.  Thankfully, she will not be paralyzed, but recovery will be long and slow.  Bernice was originally going to see grandsons coming and going on missions for the LDS church.  One grandson, Kyle, just returned from two years in Chile, and another, Blake, is getting ready to submit his papers.  Unfortunately, we can't always be to those farewells and homecomings.  Stefani, Melissa and Bobby's daughter in Utah just left for a mission to Atlanta, GA.  Didn't get to that farewell.   Sad :(

Oct 22, 2010 Victoria Hwa Hsu was born.  She has lots of black hair, and has sweet delicate features.




Oct 26, 2010 Went dancing and had a fun evening with the kids at the Grizzly Rose Saloon and Dance Emporium.  The twins remember when we used to take them dancing with us to competitions.  Fun times!!!!  I know it's blurry, but one of the kids sent it to me, and this is what I got...
 









Oct 20, 2010 Stopped in Ogallala, NE, and had a very lovely visit with one of Jack's high school friends, Ron Holscher and his wife Karon.  Dinner out was very fun, and Karon and Bernice shared lots of quilt project ideas!!   Jack and Ron had a successful pheasant hunting outing in Ogallala.  Jack missed a lot more then he hit.  haha






 

Oct 31, 2010 We then went to Lincoln, NE to visit Jack's sister, Myrna, her son Scott and wife Patti, along with their three growing boys.  Jim, Jack's brother, and his wife Pam met us there.  What a great visit we all had.

It was nice to get together, and not have a funeral make it happen...  What a nice way to spend Halloween....lol

Sept 2010 20th Anni./Derek

 Sept 22, 2010  We celebrated our 20th wedding anniversary, celebrating with just each other.  We went to one of Jack's favorite places, the Silver Gulch Brewery.  We also had lunch at the Pump House Restaurant overlooking the Tanana River.

Sept 27, 2010  We discovered that Leroy's niece, Derek (aka Robin), Loretta's daughter, lived in North Pole.  We were able to have a lovely evening with her and her sweet family, and catch up on lots of news.  This was indeed a bonus.

7.1/8.18.10 Pam.Jim /Sr. Olympics/Denali/Nenana

July 3, 2010 One of the things we loved to do was go to the Farmer's Market Saturday morning, with our babies in the stroller We didn't do a lot of buying, but loved to look at all the goodies people had for sale.August 9, 2010 We had a very special treat!! Pam & Jim, Jack's brother came to visit us for a couple of days. They were taking a cruise, but came in early for our visit. Here we are way up North, and family comes to visit. How special is that? One of Jim's school friends and his wife met us for dinner at the Silver Gulch. Good food, and good company!

We spent one day going to Ice Sculpture House, the Knotty Shop, Pioneer Village, the Alaskan Pipeline, and of course, Santa's House. Shari and Art joined us one evening at the State Fair. We had such a great visit with them.





August 13, 2010 Jack participated in the 'Senior Olympics' in Fairbanks, in Archery. He took first in his age group (he was the only one), but be got the highest score of all groups. Not bad for an old guy.----(that's what he says about himself)---- , While participating, he met this fun lady, RJ Nelson, from Nenana, a neighboring town to Fairbanks. One of the days was the opening celebration, and Jack and RJ entered everything. It was fun to watch them participate..



August 16, 2010 We were in Pioneer Park, with Jack and the puppies doing one of their favorite things, eating ice cream and smelling the territory. (you figure out which does what). haha

Jack found another friend, and one of them seems a bit confused. We really liked to go to Pioneer Park, and went there several times. There was a street that had been lined with some of the early houses from the Fairbanks area. Most of the houses had plaques on them stating the year they were built and who lived there.

August 18, 2010 We took a holiday from Sportsman's Warehouse parking lot, and drove to Denali, Alaska. What a nice time we had. We camped at a quiet campground for three days not far from the town of Denali.

While there, we toured the little shops and ate some yummy food. There were lots of cute little shops, but my eye was drawn to "Dizzy Lizzie's" where they had the cutest Gypsy skirt, but I resisted and walked away. There was even a quilt shop with hundreds of fat quarters, and I resisted and walked away there, too. If I finish all the projects I brought with me I will be doing good. I have managed to make two quilts and several crochet items on this trip, and have purchased a couple of kits for quilts. So, I'm not completely depriving myself of new projects.


One thing we have found since we arrived in Alaska, the people really like to eat. Whenever we order there is so much food, sometimes Jack even has a problem eating everything, and I definitely do. I just want to snack off his plate and not have my own.

August 20, 2010 We took a long tour through Danali National Park and saw many moose, caribou, wolf and grouse. It was a good tour, and we were provided a good box lunch. The bus was not full, so there were empty seats, which housed unclaimed box lunches. So, Jack was able to have more cookies.......



August 22, 2010 The lady from Nenana, RJ, that Jack met during the archery tournament, told us that her town was going to be having a big celebration and invited us down. Well, it was on the way back from Denali, so we went. What a good time we had!!! First we attended church in what I say was right out of Little House on the Prairie. We were a bit detained getting there, as we stopped for road construction and couldn't get the coach started again. We got a jump, and when we arrived, church had already started and the small but beautiful building was packed full. The newly elected Bishop was there to meet and greet the people of Nenana.

Afterwords, in a building close by, a potluck lunch was served. We then went back to the coach and took a little siesta till time for the next event. The town had erected a monument for the Alaskan Scout Troop that served during World War II, and were responsible for guarding the Alaskan boarder. It was a lovely ceremony with some of the old timers telling stories they remembered, which furnished us with some insight as to the history. Right after this dedication, we went to the Community Center for the naming of the building. It was being named for one of the prominent members of the community that had recently died. Then, we attended our first 'Potlatch' event.

A Potlatch is generally a celebration for some event, like a wedding, funeral, graduation or other major event. Basically, it is an eating, singing and dancing event, and this is how it goes. people sit in chairs or on the floor in back to back rows. There are strips of paper laid on the floor in front of you, and you set your plate on the paper. Servers go up and down the aisle putting food on everyone's plates. It is rude to refuse any of the food. You don't have to eat it all, but you don't refuse any of it. At one point Jack received a fish head, as a sign of honor, and I was excited when I received a cup of what looked like berry cobbler. I was enjoying it and was then told it was fish eggs, crisco and sugar. I thought about that lard going down my arteries...and was reminded that fish oil is good for you. Yummmm After dinner, the dancing and singing begin.... We really had a good time with our visit there. Thanks RJ....

Another fun tradition in Nenana is the Tripod. People from everywhere send in a bet as to when the tripod will fall through the ice. They guess down to the second. The money pot is usually very high. $279,030 was the pot for 2010.....








O

Alaska Cont June 22, 2010

ALASKA STORY CONTINUES

June 22, 2010 We took a wonderful Riverboat tour on the Discovery II Sternwheeler through some of Alaskn history. We learned a lot about the Athabascan native tribe.

We saw some beautiful pelts, and a gorgeous coat made from the fur of several animals.

The pelts were hung to dry


Jack had his picture taken with one of the locals in the village....haha

We were fortunate to also see a float plane go through some maneuvers, stooped by Susan Butcher's place and saw her husband and daughter put the dogs through their routine. She won the iditarod race several times. But this time of year, they have the dogs pull a 4x4 wheeler for the exercise. Quite imp0ressive, as the dogs could hardly wait to get the 'go' signal from the trainer.

Fish camp was also very impressive. All the natives leave home during the fish season to work at fish camp, catching, cleaning, and drying lots of salmon.

June 28, We had a great time at the El Dorado Gold Mine. We boarded a train for a ride back through time in a mining camp. We entered a tunnel that took us underground to an active mine, where a narrator took us verbally through the process of gathering gold. Honey was very good at gold panning. Me, not so much....... but I was good at shopping to get it made into a neclace. Thanks, Honey.......

6.7.10 Alaska, (last entry Northbound)

6.7.10 We're Here - Northpole, Alaska. After 2 months, 6 days, over 4,500 miles of gorgeous country, and many enjoyable hours with friends and family, we finally made it to our planned destination!! Northpole, Alaska. We are parked on Art and Shari Harlow's property, where they are building their new home. What a beautiful spot to build a house and theirs is almost completed. They plan to be in before September. We seem to be having DirecTV and internet problems, and don't have either, but other than that, things are great! Our morning walks consist of walking around the property, and the dogs love the new smells, i.e., wolf, moose, etc. lol I'm not brave enough to just let them run loose.

Thought we'd start this off right, by visiting with Santa. After all, this is the Northpole.....




Boy, does he know a lot about you and where you live. So, you better be good!


The reindeer were a bit tired today.


Jack is in the sleigh, too, just look hard and you will see him.


And this is where we will be for about the next 4 months...... Art put in all the necessary things needed for a motor home to park, so we are quite comfortable.

6.5.10 Whitehorse, Yukon

6.5 - 7.10 Whitehorse abd Tok

Well, fancy that...you remember that horrible road that we took to come into Skagway? We're taking it back out. and no one has repaired it. SLOW GO again... The climb out wasn't as bad as everyone made it out to be. We dumped most of or water to lighten our load a bit. Maybe that helped. We are in Whitehorse, Yukon, and have just toured the local Wal Mart. We really are blessed to be in the US and have clean and comfort at our disposal.One funny thing though..so many people here are in their sandals and shorts. One of us is confused... Jack wanted to tour the Yukon Brewery, so he did....complete with samples.

Whitehorse, in the days of Klondike Fever, was one of the major ports for the Steamboats. The SS Klondike, a paddle wheeler, has been restored and is moored in town. The Steamboats aided the stampede to this area. It is almost unbelievable the thousands of people that crowded the streets during the 'Gold Rush' area. The SS Klondike was one of 250 paddle boats that ran up and down the river through this area for 50 years, aiding the trappers, gamblers and fortune seekers. They also hauled ore mined in the areas.

6.6.10 Spent the night at a Canadian Superstore parking lot with 6 other rigs. Wal-Mart was nearby and had 17 rigs parked in their lot. It's good that there are so many places that will let us park for free as wee travel. They know we will come in and shop.

In spite of not getting and address for church before we left Skagway, Alaska, Jack was able to find one for me. (We're back in Canada and have no phone service). Lucky me, I got to play the organ for the prelude music. They said the organ doesn't get used very much. One of the fulltime missionaries played the piano for the meeting. I didn't take my music, but should should always have it with me. You never know when it will be needed.

We finally made it to ALASKA!!!! We also took a picture of the International Boundary. I could stand in two countries at the same time. I was looking for Russia, but couldn't see it yet. lol

6.7.10 TOK Alaska Jack had to start the day by working before breakfast. The roads were so bad the last part of Canada, that the hitch was sbent in several places. So, after doing a lot of hammering to straighten it out a bit, we stopped in Tok to get it repaired. What a difference when we hit roads from the good ol' USA. They're not in a big hurry here...we arrived at about 10am, went to breakfast, groomed the dogs, Jack puttered around with motor home stuff, and here it is 1pm and we finally wee him welding. 2:00.... Here comes Jack with the tow bar. Yea!!!!!

The welding shop in Tok had a lot to offer. Jack ahd a tough decision to make... Keep the Cherokee, or get a new truck?... lol Looks a lot like a Scrambler.....

6.4.10 Skagway, AK

Sleeping has been very comfortable at around 50 dg. at night. But, what a way to wake up…and what a spot! Birds chirping, snow on the mountains, and the Excursion Train rattling right outside our door…….

While in Skagway, we decided to take a walk down town, and see the Alaskan Quilt Shop. I have been real good and haven’t gone to any so far. But, I’m weakening, and today is my day.

We watched the cute Soapy Smith Show, and a National Parks narrative on this “boom town”, it enlightened us on the Klondike story of Skagway. People stampeded in here by the thousands in 1898 via boat to get to Dawson City, Yukon, during the gold rush. The problem was, not many of them got any gold.

While in town, we weren’t invited to dinner, but Jack did get a picture taken with Sarah.

One of the jaded ladies caught Jack in one of the brothels, and I got him just as he was being lured up the stairs. Whew! Just in time. Some of the original buildings are still here, which includes the Red Onion Saloon.

The pianist wanted me to bring my older sister around........

We won't be able to go to church on Sunday, so Jack wondered if I could go a couple of days early? Silly boy!!!