back from Haines Alaska

 

these are from the big camera from this trek. it's been a busy few weeks. a lot to catch up on, but thought i'd toss a few in and give a brief tale of the trek. above is like a rainbow and a half at least. i've seen double rainbows but this was a rainbow with extra color

these were far away but mountain goats or sheep by Kluane Lake.  this was in the Yukon Territory. my friend arrived on a Sunday night. we went for a drive since we'd ordered pizza after her arrival. in that time we saw a moose and her calf and a trio of young black bears.  we never saw the mom but the black bears were chill and playing so i'm guessing she was near by.  seeing bears from the car is almost always the best. 

i had to work one night before our trek away. it was in the ER, so slammed and exhausted after words. sleep and a walk at the dog park.  then since it was my friends Birthday we headed out to eat. Brewhouse for herb crusted halibut. we both love it. 

we did the drive to Tok day one.  it was ripe with fall colors.  we stopped several times to allow the dogs to play/walk.  we stayed at the Caribou Cabins in Tok.  great little cabins, dog friendly. they do have a few caribou there. they were chill about the dogs. we stayed here on our return back as well. that night we were gifted with a little northern lights display. always a treat.  there was a big show on the Sunday/Monday night we returned. it kicked in after 12:30 and after all the driving i crashed after dropping CR off at the airport so i slept through it. 

the next day was the longest drive. from Tok to Haines.  border crossing in and out of Alaska. you have to leave Alaska to get back to Alaska. we saw these bears driving the Haines Highway.  anyway. before we hit the border that drive to Haines, we hit construction.  really it was the only construction zone delay we had but it lasted about an hour. usually, this is a great opportunity to get out and walk around but there were so many biting flies surrounding the car that neither of us found that to be an appealing option.

it was a beautiful drive though. our border crossing in to Canada went smoothly. he only asked if my license plate was real. 

we had a mix of rain and sunshine. rainbows and fog. other than the bears we saw on the Haines Highway part we didn't see much scenery through that section. it was super foggy.  i always had decent visibility and there were hardly any other cars on the road out there. Kluane Lake was beautiful so we stopped to make sandwiches and walk the dogs on the lake beach. 

on these long drives you top off the tank every chance you get. since we'd be in the Yukon and British Columbia for only a matter of hours i put the phone on airplane mode to avoid roaming. we did see some fox as well along the road. no photos of them though. 

we got in to Haines just after the sun had gone down so the last part of the drive we didn't get scenery.  we crossed back into the states easily. showed him our bear photo, which impressed him. the dogs health certificates were checked and the dogs looked at. the CDC forms he never bothered with because he told us the fact that we knew what he was talking about was proof enough that i'd filled them out. the guy crossing back over in to Alaska on the drive home never asked.  he was our only serious/cranky border agent.  it's hit and miss really. 

we stayed 3 nights at the Beach Roadhouse in Haines.  they have a series of buildings/cabins/yurts.  almost at the end of the road to the right of town, past a landslide area. we were in one half of a duplex. dogs allowed as well so it worked out perfect really. the owners have quite a bit of property so plenty of places to walk dogs. there was a great trail at the end of the road.  we took that the next morning down to a beautiful beach. i think that was less than 2-3 miles round trip. 

that first day we explored the town. not ton to the town and many buildings for sale.  apparently one guy came in with the intent of re-inventing Haines and bought many properties only to abandon his plan so subsequently a lot of places on the market now.  reminded me of one of the stories running through the old series Northern Exposure. a wealthy astronaut in that series was hell bent and making Cicily an oasis that people would travel to from all over the world. 

this bear gave us a lovely show.  day 2 in Haines was a beautiful weather day.  we walked on a long beach at Mud Bay. the dogs got to run off leash and had a great time. after we opted to go check out the haines highway again since it was foggy on the way in and the drive out was looking like a rain day.  so back over the border for a few  hours.  we just did around 60 miles each way. check out the highest elevations and see the mountains we would other wise miss.  this bear entertained us coming and going. in these he's playing in puddles by the side of the road. 

rolling around.  so cute from the car. as we drove toward border crossing i saw something ahead  on the road.  couldn't tell if it was a biker or motorcyclist...in the end it was a small plane.  they can use roads to land and that is what happened so that was interesting. that was at mile 33 restaurant.  we stopped there on the return trip and took in an early dinner. CR had explore places to eat more than i had.  so we checked off several places during our stay.  we ate well for sure. quite a few options. 

we also cruised over to the Chilkoot Lake a few times over our stay and there was also some cool old buildings that used to be military ages ago.  many have been transformed into condo's.  there was also a big grass field in the middle of those buildings so another good place to let the dogs play while we enjoyed some totem poles and historic buildings

we also stopped and enjoyed this cool gyrfalcon on our sunny day drive. it looked to have captured a chipmunk and was enjoying it's meal.  

there was some discussion as to what sort of bird this was.  several sources seem to confirm gyrfalcon. 

there were quite a few totem poles in town.  there were some really old ones on the field laying down.  loved those and there was one a the library where the clever totem carver had placed a book in the hands of one of the characters on the pole...the book was titled, "totem carving for dummies".  i found that amusing. 

there were several beaches that we stopped to let the dogs play on too. i always enjoy exploring small towns up here. i had been to Haines briefly years ago. it was a stop on our cruise of SouthEast Ak. we stopped, got in a van and then headed out to the Chilkat River to see bald eagles.  they congregate in October/November so really not tons of eagles back then or this trip.  lots of bear scat all over and some bear tracks on beaches. 

nice feather display

the drive back tends to feel shorter and technically it was shorter. no construction stop. ended up with better weather than expected. stopped again in Kluane.  we also stopped at this pretty waterfall in Canada. again...just stops to eat, stretch and walk dogs. gas up when we could. 

got back to Tok and ate at really the only place in town Fast Eddy's.  Tok it much better than Glenallen, charm wise, but neither are really all that charming. the coastal towns have it all over some of the interior towns which are more utilitarian than pretty. 

we made a stop at the Matanuska Glacier on the way back. the dogs love it.  better to get them silt stained on the way home. 

overall, a lovely trek.  

i got a bit lazy after i returned home and my friend left. typical after a long drive and excitement of exploring this amazing place. 

the pets survived, thanks LS for stopping by to check on them. the dogs and humans survived the border crossings. 

Covid Cat has an air tag on so i checked on him at times. mostly, he tends to stick very close to home so that is comforting. 

dog park and local walks.  only skipped walks one day this past week after returning.  that was a total lazy day.  it was sunny so i just enjoyed the sunshine and read a novel i've been working on.

got my two shifts in last week.  pcu and peds. 

i'll have to hop in the shower and get these guys off walking soon. my handyman has been coming in this last week working on the shed.  so great to see progress after looking at the shell all summer. i got a layer of primer on the wall up front as well. so progress all over. 

he's on his way over now to finish the roof. i was thinking of a metal roof but in the end it would have to be ordered and take weeks to come so just going with shingles now. 

i bought some little boat style port windows so i'll have him put one on each door and then i'm thinking put one under the roof and set it up so the cat can have a place inside/outside to chill.  just enter through the little window. put some cat steps up to the top. 

always about these pets.  

it was a lot of photos to load in the computer...caught up.  

yesterday i walked in N. Bivouac.  found one of my favorite tiny tourquoise mushrooms.  lots of them.  so pretty. 

watched a mini series the other night.  met with my friend SJ for dinner last night.  

todays goals...maybe get a new skeleton...it is getting to be that time of year.  stopped at home depot for more primer and they had Halloween and Christmas stuff out. 

MT picked a date for the pumpkin massacre that sounds like it will work for about everyone so that is great. 

this is that old fort area above and below from a beach outside town. i better hop in shower. 

grateful for A.  safe travels to and from Haines B.  more amazing sights and memories. C. health and happiness

the low tide that went out for miles...

 back to Hallo Bay. we walked miles on the tidal flats this day. i loved it.  we were all pretty chill. happy for any bear sightings but also happy to explore and just enjoy the great beauty of this land.

 it is a truly amazing place.

 we did have a bear join us as you will see later.  we followed her along and just enjoyed. great scenery.  great folks.

 got almost all of my pictures for the year loaded into shutterfly.  so hopefully i can work on my calendars and christmas cards next stretch off.

 there are still some pictures from the Iditarod that i haven't even looked at this year.  such a slacker.  then i can load those in.  don't usually use too many of those but a few are always fun.

 got Blossom off to the vet this morning.  i guess the Northern lights went nuts like 5-7 am while i was sleeping.  supposed to be good again tonight.  should go out chasing, but it will be in the 20's and i'm already in my pj's

 took the puppies for a training walk around the bog.  they did fairly well.  got to play with them off leash in the open area and did some sit/stay/come training out there.  near the end there was a loose dog and they went nuts.  we are still not great at greeting dogs on leash . they believe they should be able to romp and play...at over 60 pounds each now...they can easily best me.  i'm trying hard to make sure they don't really get that.

 we picked up Blossom and then i took them in to the vets for weights.  Ivy Rose was 63# and Tusker was 66 pounds.

 as for Blossom.  they drew labs and started her on antibiotics. sounds like we will probably give her sedation and check her teeth. i do suspect she may have a bad tooth in there.  we shall see.  hoping that is all it is and nothing worse.  hopefully, it can just be fixed and she'll feel better.  chatted with my vet friend in CA...thanks Carla.  so awesome to always be there for me with pet advice.

 we were laughing about a visit she made up here when my old lab, Baby Huey, came down with trigeminitis.  sure i didn't spell that correctly.  it was actually the first case she'd ever seen. not very common.  she said she was just talking about huey the other day with this.  he had both a bells palsy and a horners.  drooling like crazy.  poor dog couldn't pick up sticks any more and he was obsessed.

 i had to hand feed him for several weeks.  his tongue worked but not his jaw.  he couldn't close his mouth.  so i had to manually hold his jaw while i fed him.  drool was everywhere. this was like 3-4 x a day if i remember right.  i'd shove it in his mouth on a spoon.

 at some point, that spoon got sucked out of my slimmed up hands and down the gullet...gone!! i screamed, "noooooooooooo!!" and made a reach for it down his throat.  this was in Ketchikan.

 by the time this happened, my friend had moved on to Juneau to tour around a bit.  i remember talking to her and she asked how Huey was...i told her, "fine...post op!!".  spoonectomy successful.

 it was not my most fun month as a dog owner, but we got through it and he healed up.  drooled forever after but was able to eat and fetch again happily.

 i told her i did not believe Blossom had this ailment.  haha.

 she was eager to eat upon returning home and took her meds well.  then we all went for a walk so the pups could play off leash, and Blossom could get her walk in.  fun for all.  Blossom is still wanting to walk and doesn't seem to have any issues with that.  does seem to want my attention and encouragement with eating.  that is when i started doing, "go team blossom" i think.  i have always made the puppies wait until she was done eating so she wouldn't be bothered while eating.

 she wrestled with the pups on the gasline/powerline trail

 sadly, this morning there was a dead moose on the side of the road.  they were loading a trashed truck onto a tow truck.  no idea how the owner of that came out. but the moose didn't fare well.  felt badly as i'd just seen a moose with her calf crossing that road yesterday.  if it's the same one, it's probably going to mean 2 dead moose as the calf will probably not survive the winter.  will possibly get pegged off by a bear.  they are still out there loading up on whatever food they can find.

 actually felt a bit like i accomplished a few things the past 24 hours. after sleeping so much that felt good.

 here is that bear i promised you.  she was out clamming. low tide before the salmon running can be a bit of a feast for them if they get lucky.

 not sure she was feasting.  i think she did catch a few fish at low tide as well though.

 i think they also eat the barnacles.

 skies were just amazing that day.

 pups are on guard dog duty.  perhaps it's the changing of the guards and Blossom can relax now more like Rio used to be able to.  i think it really did comfort Rio having Blossom there keeping an eye on stuff.

 back to work tomorrow night. hopefully, it will go better this week.  miserable coughing that much and trying to work so i hope it's settling down .

 want to make hair and foot doc appointments.  just need to stop procrastinating.

 may actually need some caffeine to get through this work week.

 ate pumpkin bread for breakfast.  so tasty!!  i think i'll take the pumpkin seeds to work to share with the crew.  i still have more to cook up in the fridge.  i also have more pumpkin to make bread with.

 stopped at grocery store and was going to buy some sugar, but the bag i picked up was solid as a rock.  ditched it.  it was too busy to bother with it so i left without it.

 don't think i took many pictures today.  some days i just walk.  it was nice this morning to bog it with the two of them and work on the training a bit more intensely.

 did the math...when i walk all three dogs, that is 198 pounds!!  that is a lot of dog.

 had big bang on in the background today.  had the news on but it's too depressing.  it's what is Drumpf whining/complaining about today.  what a baby.  he's going to sue everyone, it's rigged, he's going to win, the media is rigged...

 didn't hear any of his followers bitching about all the media coverage during the primaries when the other 17 folks running couldn't get any air time and Drumpf hogged it all...no charge.  if they are the ones bringing him down now, they are also the ones responsible for him being there to begin with.  ratings.

 she walked in closer to us.

 the pups have just followed me in here and crashed, they are quite loyal to me.

 Blossom has actually always enjoyed sleeping downstairs.  i think Rio always did Mom duty.  old habits.  so these guys have mom watch while Blossom maintains the vigil downstairs of protecting the household.  she's very brave!!

 chill day.  most of my days are pretty chill though i must say.

 i'm quite happy with that.  that will all change when i start the Rationalist Party!! man do we need one.  those other 2 parties are a mess and the other smaller parties are pretty useless as well.

 love all the rivulets in the sand

 thus to the end of another blog.  hope you enjoy bears..still more pictures from summer to share.  the ice is forming though so i'm sure i'll be looking for cool ice photos...and if i manage to stay awake one of these nights perhaps i'll take a few more aurora shots.  don't hold your breath though.  i'm a bit of a creature of habit.  would rather go aurora hunting with others...seems safer that way.

thankful for:  A.  Blossom having a good day and taking her food/meds well B.  healthy pups  C.  walking.  it's good for my heart, mind and soul