Homer to Hallo Bay

 we woke up very early to get to the office for Hallo Bay company..i mean we needed to be there by 6 am...in the end i don't think we actually flew out until 2 in the afternoon at least...the plus side was this amazing sunrise on Beluga Lake.  i think that is the name of the lake...though i may be totally off on that.

 we enjoyed beautiful weather in Homer the evening before.  i feel very much like the summer is running away and it will all soon be over.  where does it go?

 i know the pups probably bogged down my usual summer activities a bit this summer.  they are growing fast.  loads of training to do. our walk today was lovely though.  they were very good.

 my niece and her family were here for a few days.  i think dogs and kids just adds extra excitement.  i think the kids really had a blast with the puppies.

 we haven't walked less than 15,000 steps each day they were here. today i enjoyed a bit of a chill day. laundry, dishes.  neighborhood walk.

 in Homer we stayed at Bishops Beach.  always easy and i love the beach there.

 Val and i were enjoying our long shadows.

 rain today though this afternoon it cleared up.  i'd already taken a walk in the rain and the errand list was calling me.  out of groceries.  i had made some good kid choices i think.  they really liked my cereal choices of Capn Crunch and Frosted Flakes...also chocolate milk and popcicles always a hit.  junk food at the great aunts house...should assure me a place on the favorites list...haha.

 we did a lot of walking/hiking.  friday we took the adventure to the dead humpback whale out on the beach in front of the dunes.  i hadn't been.  it was a pretty boggy walk.  the whale looked pretty small from the dunes, i thought perhaps it was just a piece of the whale.  i'd never taken that route down to the beach.  pretty steep, but they were game so off we went.  the whale looked much larger once you were next to it...get downwind though...gag, gag, gag.  not many photos.

 i am gagging just speaking of this but that dang Blossom found a puddle with decaying juices and water and she lay right down in it....so disgusting.  the car will never smell the same

 after the walk we headed to the monster dog wash. the kids had a great time helping me bath the pups.  like me, they could care less about getting wet.  we hosed down boots and all as well.  tusker was nearly killed accidently as he jumped out of the tub and nearly hung himself.

 Saturday we did a morning walk in Kincaid around beercan lake.  we spotted 3 moose.  later, we decided to take advantage of the clearing weather and headed to Arctic Valley. Claire 's beau was excited to try and get some elevation since they are from Texas and it's flat.

 next day we headed out to Hatchers Pass.  took a trek out  Arc Angel.  then we headed to Independence mine.

 Claire and the kids left that night late.

 her beau and i did a walk with my friend Gail out in a bit of rain out Campbell Airstrip.  then we just headed out the Seward Highway.

 we got lucky and caught the bore tide.  then we hit the conservation center.  then off to Girdwood for the hand tram at winner creek.

 loved all the fireweed.  the light was great as well.  often it looked like there were two colors of fireweed.  just the one.  optical illusion.

 look how pretty

 not many days left of walrus viewing.  haven't heard yet if explore plans on doing the walrus cam again next season. hoping they do..otherwise my job as an advocate will get more difficult again...trying to keep pressure on the state to keep this place funded and keep the walrus safe.

 excited i finally got a coupon in the mail from Shutterfly so i can hopefully get a decent price on the reusable grocery bags for sale. want to be able to offer it to folks on the web page if they are interested.  sounded like a few were already.

 the sunset looked pretty amazing out there the other night.

 feeling like a slacker due to my poor gym showing this summer.  really want to get back to it.  itching to get swimming again and back on the elliptical more.  summers are a time to get outside though i guess so i really shouldn't be too hard on myself.

 lots of steps this weekend.

 finally made my way through all the bear pictures...there are some fun ones. will get to those over the next few weeks hopefully.  still have some from Holgate and will get out to Denali for the mushroom class August 10-12 so that should be fun.

 looks purple!

 for sure feel like summer is slipping away from me.  aak!!

 need to get Tusker scheduled for his surgery...don't want any accidental pregnancies.  also need to get Pogi in for an ultrasound.  i fear the end is coming fast for my sweet kitten.  he's one of those perfect cats with a wonderful personality. so fluffy...but he has rapidly declined.  he was a chunky cat and now he is super thin. his kidney lab tests show him to be in failure and he probably has some intestinal tumor as well.  didn't sound like there were many options for him.  he's been just sleeping under the bed a lot.

 my ankle is doing pretty good overall.  still swollen for sure and i can feel it in certain positions.  have been able to walk really without issues though so that is cool.

 the political insanity continues.  has someone who has been endorsed every had it rescinded before?  has anyone ever died between nomination and election before...?  these are the things we hope for in these days of election with everyone feeling we have such dismal choices for our next POTUS.

 there is a depression across the nation at how bleak it all seems.  at least to those who are not feeling these candidates...i've noted that there are posters up for local and state elections but i've yet to see any for the national elections...i suspect nobody wants to own up to leaning towards either of these candidates.

 i think the pups all have adult teeth in!!  i did buy a few super huge bones, one for the car and one for the house. hoping that would keep them busy.  Ivy likes to be near me where ever i am.  Tusker is a bit less at my side.  similar to Blossom.  they lay where they want while monitoring my where abouts.  Ivy just needs to be closer i guess.

 they had some wild times this afternoon but overall i think they are a bit wiped out from their kid visitors as well.

 this sunrise was so spectacular we just stopped in the middle of the road to snap a few photo's.  thankfully, there didn't seem to be much traffic that morning.

 loved the light and the fog and the plane.  so pretty.

 so happy we did catch this.  much of the day we chilled at the office or near the office. we met the folks that were also going out there and in the end Val loaned them her phone so they could enjoy the day and not be stuck at the office.  they had an international cell phone so i don't think it was working well in Homer.  we took them to Bishops beach to stroll and also introduced them to some pastries at Two Sisters.  they opted to return there after we got back from Hallo Bay i think.

 these are a few from the start of our time in Hallo Bay. i'm all confused as to which pictures i already put in...hopefully i don't end up doing repeats.  with different cameras and cards it can get a bit confusing.

 this is camp...we had a solar powered bear fence around camp.  i felt safe at all times.  sleep well on our cots.

 the tents were large enough to stand comfortably which is  a bonus.

 they have to move camp every so often but it was a nice place for us since the bears were still chilling in the meadows and then also on the river.  nice to move about and check out more scenery.

 i was excited to see bears but i am always looking at everything to find cool stuff to take pictures of

 this island, called eagle island, came and went with the tides.  i guess you could walk to it at low tide.  we never had that timing down to do that.

 shells and other stuff on the beaches.

 small creek on the other side of our camp.

 headed out for our first bear viewing attempt.

 our trusty guide, Jerry, assists us as we walk.

 there was a big boggy bit that the guides always lent a hand to us so we wouldn't fall.  i'll probably turn in early.  the pups and i are sleepy.

grateful for:  A.  fun family visits. thanks to Claire and crew for coming and letting me enjoy your holiday with you  B.  safe travels for all  C.  amazing sunsets..i may have to sneak out back and enjoy the pink clouds out there.  :-)  night.