The rafting adventure

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Hello all... recieved an email from Brian a few days ago and a very brief satellite phone call this morning. They ended up doing the hiking trip in Denali National Park rather than the Troublesome Creek state park hike they were originally planning. Apparently there were very few people and they were able to camp where they wanted. They had a couple of days amongst forested areas and then hiked above the tree line where they camped for a couple of nights on the side of a mountain. Spectacular views of the ranges and across to Alaska's highest peak Mt. McKinlay (not sure if that is spelt correctly). They saw grizzly bears, some with cubs - but all from a safe distance. Matty and himself were chased by an angry male cariboo who obviously saw such handsome chaps as a threat to his territory. They had to make a run for it and hide in a thickly wooded patch! From there they had a couple of days in Fairbanks and then collected their inflatible raft for the trip down a river (not sure which one). Apparently it is a grade 1 river (the lowest grade) and the water level is quite low so there is not too much white water and they are having to carry their raft over the rocks in places. There is quite a lot of paddling to do now (they are three days into the trip) so by the end of 220km they will be well worn out... Assuming they know where they are, and have a fair idea of how long it will take them they are expecting to be back in Fairbanks early next week - so a total of about 7 nights on the river. Brian had indicated in his email before they left that they were looking forward to seeing the country they would be going through which is apparenlty beautiful and the wildlife of which there is supposed to be lots.. I didn't get to ask if they had seen any cirtters this time but they were all well and still enjoying the adventure. Brian will fly from Anchorage to Vancouver on the 1st of July and the boys will drive back in the van via the capital of Alaska Juneau (a small centre that is only accesible by boat or plane!).... I will update this once I hear they are back from the rafting trip safe and the update after that will probably be from Moscow once we meet up...

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Comments

[Serena]

Sounds like they are having lots of fun!!!! I'd love to see some photos, i guess dad will get them up when he reaches some sort of civilisation! enjoy your adventures serena xx

[Kylie and Rob]

Dinner in Helsinki
Hi guys! Wondering if you'd be around in Helsinki or St Petersburg to join us for tea or perhaps a coffee! We'll be Helsinki from 3.20pm on July 15th to 17th, then in St Petersburg. Back in Helsinki again from 28th yo 31st July. Home via Tokyo for four days. Can't wait!! Hope you guys are having heaps of fun.... Love Kylie and Rob