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We have some catching up to do here even though it’s only been 6 days. We had a great R&R at the Sourdough Campground in Tok. The pancakes and reindeer sausage were everything they advertised and we left with full bellies, a clean truck and clean cloths. The road from Tok to Anchorage is known as the Tok Bypass until it reaches the Glenn Highway. Michelle and I renamed this road the Ribbon Candy Slowpass. Do not get caught admiring the beautiful views as I did once, hitting a series of frost heaves way to fast and jarring the truck, the fifth wheel and the navigator. We made too many stops for pictures and finally just had to keep moving or risk turning a 6 hour drive into an all-day photo fest. It would have been easy to do. When you reach the Glenn Highway road surface is much better and as it skirted the Wrangell-St. Elias National Park, the largest national park in the country which extends back into Canada, we returned to the stopping for photo ops at every pullout mode. It was impossible to pass up the opportunity to get these great pictures on such a clear day.
It’s no wonder that “The Glenn” is designated a National Scenic Highway. From the craggy cliffs of the upper Alaskan Range to the peaks in the Wrangell we were treated to a majestic introduction to Alaska-size Mountains. We finally did make it to Anchorage and we had no problem moving right into the Fam Camp at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson (JBER) especially since it is effectively empty. We are still well ahead of the vacation traveler curve. The first two days in Anchorage we found the two things we needed most: a Walmart and a Dodge Dealer. We have now restocked our pantry, filled our freezer with ice cream, and stocked up on RV toilet paper; the three stables of trailer life. The Dodge then got a good checkup and a clean bill of health with fresh oil and a new gas filter. We were ready to rock so we did, right up to the Eagle River Conservatory with hiking trails anywhere from a few hundred feet to 26 miles. We did the first one mile loop and joined the Albert Trail, a three mile extension loop through the boreal forest with a few river crossings. About a half mile on
the Albert we were met by two other hikers coming out. The female hiker, short of breath and eyes as big as saucers, explained that there was a big grizzly sunning himself on the river bridge just ahead. We decided not to disturb him either and turned back with them. Yesterday we wanted to explore the base and the five fishing lakes here but first we needed to make a quick trip to Bass Pro where we flopped down the $145 each for a non-resident fishing license, ouch. This is one BIG base, something like 26 square miles with the combination of Elmendorf AFB with Ft. Richardson Army post and it’s like its own national park. We were just cruising around the base when we spotted a mother moose with two calves’ way up a power line. We took some pictures with the telephoto lens but thought we might get closer if we turned around and went back up the dirt road so we did but they were gone. We slowed as we approached the power line not wanting to scare them if we did spot them again when out of the brush all three of them came at a
good clip and darted across the road. I just caught the tail end of them crashing through the brush on camera. Then an amazing thing happened, a good size black bear crossed right on their heels, running at a good pace and we are sure it was after one of the little ones. It happened so fast I missed filming it. Mother Moose led her two babies down a steep embankment and we lost sight of the moose and the bear. Thinking this was over we moved on to the lake, about a quarter of a mile down the road. As I started to fish Michelle was glassing the lake and she spots the moose and her two calves swimming. Looks like she took them down to the water to escape the bear. Michelle got three pictures of them swimming but before they got to close mother headed for the shore and that was the last we saw of them. Still it was pretty amazing to be part of all that going on if only for just a few minutes. We did do some fishing and I did catch my first Alaska Trout but no pictures were made as it
wiggled off and back into the water to quickly. All-in-all it was a great way to spend your birthday. Sorry, I think I am getting a little wordy with these posts but I hope you like the stories and the pictures. I will try to post more often and make them shorter in the future.
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Doc
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Ancorage
Ray, Michelle, HAPPY Birthday Ray, Glad you enjoyed it fishing, chasing moos and bears. Wow that is expensive for a fishing license. Your drive seemed very scenic, be sure to keep the vehicle on the road while watching the amazing scenery. I know what you mean by stopping at every scenic pull out. I spent several days in Yellowstone, around every turn was something new, also Arches Utah took a day to see. You must be getting healthy doing all that hiking. Seems like a "fish story".....it got away. Catch a big one this week. Keep enjoying your retirement.