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Published: October 22nd 2017
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Reindeer Sausage
Where else can you eat reindeer sausage but in Alaska? Geo: 63.5253, -150.958
After a wonderful time in Denali National Park, we were ready for a little variety in an urban setting, and so, we headed south to Anchorage. One of the first things we did was get checked into a motel (after 10 days of camping, it was a nice retreat!). The hot water was plentiful and the dark room simulated something close to nightfall—something we hadn't seen since Couer d'Alene.
That evening, we strolled around downtown in search of some fresh seafood for dinner, when Sean saw a street vendor selling reindeer sausage dogs. He and Caleb decided they just had to try one, because where in Idaho can you eat reindeer sausage? In actuality, they were quite scrumptious. Sean decked his in spicy hot mustard, and Caleb ate his with BBQ and pineapple sauce—an unlikely, but apparently delicious combination.
Dinner was at Phyllis's where we all ate some variety of seafood, from salmon and halibut, to crab cakes and jumbo prawns. It was a lively, busy atmosphere, and though not cheap (really, Alaska compares to the European exchange rate), it was well worth it! After our meal, the waitress offered us blueberry pie for dessert, and we all squealed
Phyllis's Seafood
Fresh seafood and blueberry pie for dessert in honor of Fanny Quigley at her suggestion. Blueberry pie?! Really?! We had just learned about Fanny Quigley who had settled in Kantishna (in present-day Denali NP) during the gold rush, and who was famous for her blueberry pie. She made the pie crusts with fat rendered from bear lard, and so, in the spirit of Kantishna, and in honor of Fanny, we had to order a couple of slices to share. What a delicious, buttery crust with its piping hot blueberries inside!
After dinner, we parted from Mom and Keith, while Caleb climbed in the Gatmobile with us. Since it wasn't dark yet, which told us we shouldn't be tired yet, we ventured into Earthquake Park on the outskirts of Anchorage. It is from here that the most famous pictures of Anchorage are taken, showing off Cook Inlet, the city skyline, and the Chugach Mountains beyond. We watched a cow moose and her two yearling calves cross the road just in front of us as we neared the park. In just moments, they were able to disappear behind the foliage and were out of sight. It's said that there is a better chance of seeing moose in Anchorage than in Denali, and by the night's
Anchorage Skyline
View from Earthquake Park (where we saw a cow moose and her two calves) end, we certainly found that to be true.
We walked through the park on a lovely greenbelt, which snaked in and out of the trees and along the shore of Cook Inlet, enjoying the views afforded by both. Then later, we ventured to yet another park, and though we found it to be closed, we did see another cow and calf moose—bringing the total count that night to five. (We saw two in Denali.) This pair ambled right up a little landscaping knoll and into a subdivision.
Somewhere near the airport is where it happened. Sean was driving and Caleb was riding shotgun, while Kaia and I were on the bed in the back, watching the city go by. Then all of a sudden, there were two extremely loud bangs on the right side of the van, as if two rocks had hit the window right next to my ear. Sean said he had also seen something white fly in front of the windshield, which he took to be a golf ball. It was only a bit later when we were able to turn around and return to that site that we figured out the cause of the strange set
Sean and Caleb
With Cook Inlet and the sunset beyond (this was about 9:30 PM) of bangs and the UFO. Sean slowed down as we passed the site where we had heard the objects hitting our van, and what did he see? Eggs cracked in the middle of the road. That unidentified flying white object was no golf ball, and those loud bangs had not been rocks, but eggs. We had been egged by some punk kids in the middle of the night with apparently nothing better to do! On the plus side, our van was so dirty from having driven both the Al-Can and the Denali Highway that the egg didn't stick, but just slid off with the dirt. That was definitely a first for us!
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dad
non-member comment
hey elg sean and allwow, thanks erin for another great update on the blog!! easy to see you are a writer!moose in anchorage? yep, seems we saw the most ever when in and around anchorage. eggs on the "gatmobile". how dare they??? seems
i did something like that when i was a kid... :)glad you're having continued great times on your adventure!love, dad