Wisconsin Ho!!

2,000 miles from Sacramento, 6100 road miles (give or take....) from Anchorage, and we've made it to our farthest destination: Wisconsin!!

We arrived in Milwaukee, WI around 5:00 pm on July 13. Our great friends, Jen & Steve & their little girl Maddie recently moved here for Steve's medical residency in Anesthesiology. They are Orion's godparents & moved away from Anchorage 5 years ago so Steve could attend medical school. The original reason to drive to Wisconsin was to attend the Heimbold family reunion. As luck would have it, this is where Steve is going to do his residency program. How crazy is that?

We left California on July 10th (Happy Birthday to me....) to drive East. Wow - I don't think you can really appreciate how large the United States is until you traverse it by automobile. And to think - we aren't even all the way across!!

The trip to Milwaukee took us four days & three nights - Here are some of the highlights...

Day 1: (July 10th) Bridgeport, CA (north of Mono Lake) to Salt Lake City, UT (~610 miles)

Here is the grand Mormon Temple in Salt Lake City. Very impressive building (took 40 years to construct). Everyone we met here was just so nice!!

Now - we really didn't visit the temple until the morning of July 11th. It took us ALL DAY to drive across the Great Basin of Nevada. Not much diversity in scenery across the Great Basin...which provided plenty of time to work on this:

This is the instep of Cleopatra's Stocking - the May kit for BMFA Rockin' Sock Club. I'll tell you what, while I'm liking how the sock is turning out, the feel of the yarn, the construction, and the color, I'm still not feeling the love. Knitting the sock has proved to be quite fiddly - lots of knit 2 together through the back loops for crying out loud. I normally love my Addi Turbos, but during this project they made me feel like I was knitting w/spoons. I would have used my newer Knit Picks needles, but I wanted to match the needle size the pattern called for. Argh, for a fraction of a millimeter in needle size, I think I should have gone ahead & worked w/the Knit Picks. I've finished sock #1 & think I'll take a little break from sock #2. Perhaps it will be finished as we drive from Washington back to Alaska.

Day 2 Salt Lake City to Cheyenne, Wyoming (~420 miles)

After crossing the mountains right outside Salt Lake City, the scenery becomes vast & somewhat monotonous once again. Lots of open sky & rolling plains as far as the eye can see. The trick to surviving a long road trip with children (hmmm - topic for a book????, well - with high gas prices, I don't see a demand for that sort of book right now), is to stop often to allow them to 'get their ya-yas out'. We happened to find the perfect stop in Rock Springs, Wyoming:

Yes - at first glance all you see is the standard playground. True - a good place for two young boys to burn up some ya-yas. But - take a closer look....

A swimming pool!! Even better - a free pool w/a slide. The boys (all three of them) were in heaven..
Hard to tell if they're having a good time, huh? There was also (not photographed) a soccer field within the complex - the trifecta for a perfect rest stop along our journey.

Day 3: Cheyenne to slightly west of Des Moines, IA (~610 ish miles)

In between Cheyenne & Des Moines - you cross the great state of Nebraska - home of Cabelas, my father's favorite outdoor gear shop. Lots of rolling plains, corn, and big sky. Again - lots of time to knit (more on the fiddly Cleo's ). When I took a break from knitting, Wade & I would decipher cloud shapes. Take a look:

We thought this looked either like a chicken or a cat. What do you see?

The scenery became much more green along this part of I-80. Lots and lots of corn... I also give high marks to their visitor rest areas - top notch!!

The usual lunch de jour - peanut butter & jelly sandwiches w/crackers, chips, cheese & moosaroni. (pepperoni made from Moose)
Day 4 - West of Des Moines to Milwaukee, WI (~378 miles)

The home stretch took us about 7 hours to complete. Thanks to the wonders of MapQuest, we were able to locate chez Sivils without trouble. Steve happened to be outside chatting w/a neighbor & did the ultimate double-take when he saw our white van coming up the street.

As we crossed the border between Iowa & Illinois, we crossed over the mighty Mississippi River:

Pretty cool piece of North America geography.

Okay - that's all for now - I'll do some back posting later about our attempt to visit Yosemite, our visit to Mono Lake, and a scavenger hunt & rock concert in San Francisco.

Ciao~

Giants of the Coast

Okay - Redwood trees are HUGE!!! They are the tallest trees in the world (> 300 feet in most cases) and are very old (many > 1000 years old). Alaska is so majestic and beautiful, but our trees back home are put to shame by the mighty Redwood.


After leaving the Oregon Caves we entered California & found a hike within a state park. Boy Scout Tree trail is a 3.1 mile trail (each way) through the majestic giants. The tall trees allow little light to filter through to the forest floor, so the temperature is very comfortable for a nice hike. I was worried about the boys going on such a long jaunt, but they quickly settled into their own game - it was fun listening to them along the way. Orion had a bow and arrow while Iain carried a cross bow. They were on the look out for shadow & tree monsters. Sunlight orbs and Earthquake levers kept us safe. Just following them and listening to their imagination unfold and create a magical world was enlightening. For all the time I spend worrying they are influenced too much by the media, peers, and video games, it's reassuring to know they can easily engage their active imaginations. I must remember - everything in moderation.


We camped at Elk Prairie State Campground. This was the first campground we encountered that was almost at capacity when we arrived. The campground is near the coast & bordered on the east by land frequented by wild Elk. Our camping neighbors were Herman and Candelaria Zapp, the couple who've driven from Argentina to Alaska back in 2003. They are currently on a new journey to Asia. Pretty incredible - their car is a 1928 Graham Paige Model 610 touring car, and they are traveling with their 3 small children (all of whom were born in their car, I overheard). Our road trip pales in comparison to the distance they are covering. They are financing their trip from odd jobs along the way and selling their book, Spark Your Dream.

Wednesday morning, before our departure for the 400 mile drive to Sacramento, the boys participated in the Junior Ranger Program. The focus of the morning's program was banana slugs. We had seen one during our hike the day before, so the boys were anxious to learn more & earn a Junior Ranger badge. The Junior Ranger program is a great way for kids to learn about state and national parks - we try to participate in the program at each park we visit, if possible.
Here's what the kids said they learned about these invertebrates:

1) They breathe and 'poop' out of the same hole. So glad I'm not a banana slug.

2) Raccoons eat them, but first roll the slugs around in dirt. They do this because the slug contains some sort of chemical that numbs the mouth when you eat it. The dirt supposedly helps alleviate this numbness. I think this might explain why some folks lick the banana slug (a popular activity at 6th grade camp, so I hear).

3) The banana slug is the mascot for UC Santa Cruz - ooh, so frightening!!


I also finished a bit of knitting along the way (you knitters out there are soooo patient!) I present Celtic Braid Sock #1:


~Ciao....

Portland

Since the RUSH concerts are over, we really don't have any pressing commitments until the June 21's LA Galaxy MLS game down in LA. So - we've decided to hang out a bit in Portland and see what the City of Roses has to offer. Our first stop was to hook up w/Winston's Mom & her hubby and meet Sandy's wonderful daughter, Katie. Katie lives in the Alphabet District of Portland - a very cute part of town. Many a conversation turned toward "we could live here... what kind of salary is available to veteran teachers?" While traveling we are constantly reminded what little variety Anchorage has to offer. However - Anchorage is a beautiful place to live - not very crowded, picturesque, etc. I have a hard time envision us actually moving away. (However, after a set back at work, it is a bit tempting...)

First stop: Lunch. Funny how traveling often revolves around places to eat. Katie took us to a local pub called the Ram's Head. Good eats. The kids were thrilled with a PB&J on white bread - a treat for them as I insist on whole wheat/multigrain at home. I had the curried tuna fish - yummy!!
Next Stop: A trolley ride (kids loved that!!) down to visit Knit/Purl and Powell's book store. The folks at Knit/Purl were fabulous. I did not stimulate their economy (Margaret did) on this visit as I'd already ordered yarn & patterns from them before departing Anchorage. They were kind enough to help me decipher a pattern translated from Dutch which had some words missing. Wade & the boys found some books at Powell's - not difficult as it is billed as the largest independent used & new book store in the world. Very cool - the Roach clan loves book stores. I think we could move to Portland based upon this store alone. The fact that it happens to be a block or so away from a knitting store is a nice perk. :0)

Anchoragites Take Portland By Storm
photo by Iain

The Gadsden clan had to drive back to Tacoma for Sandy's Monday Night Dinner. We drove back to Lake Oswego & then spent the next day visiting OMSI (Oregon Museum of Science & Industry) - a no brainer visit for a family enamoured with science.

We toured the naval submarine, the USS Blueback. This sub is not a nuclear powered sub, but runs on battery power & diesel engines.

Periscope up! Captain Iain takes a look at what lies above at the surface.

Sleeping quarters for the crew. The USS Blueback had a crew of 85 sailors. Sleeping quarters were cramped to say the least. 3 sailors were assigned to 2 bunks - they didn't have to share, but rotated throughout their shifts. Since I get claustrophobic, I can't imagine living in such a confined space for 6 - 8 weeks at a time. Recycled air, no windows, intense heat from the engines, fellow soldiers who only shower 1x per week. No Thanks. After the tour, the guide asked who would want to volunteer for Submarine service - Iain quickly raised his hand. I think it may have been due to the torpedo room or the all-you-can-eat vanilla ice cream.

The physics room was pretty fun. Here Orion learns about static electricity and the Van de Graff generator. Electricity scares the bejeezus out of me - isn't it grand to be ignorant of what to expect? Really, as long as you keep one hand on the generator & stand on an insulated box, there isn't anything to worry about. While Wade turns the crank, static charge builds up & travels through Orion. You can sort of see the tin pie plates flying off his left hand. It was pretty cool. I've used one in class several times - kids get a kick out of it.

I didn't take any photos inside the chemistry room. Iain happend to wear his East High Mole Day Shirt, and the staff member thought that was pretty cool & gave the kids a couple of Monty Mole Stickers. I explained I was a chemistry teacher & they left me to run the demos & explain the concepts. We explored acid/base indicators, acid rain, the mole, separation due to density, and rheoscopic fluids. Pretty fun.

While in Portland we also went to a Pink Martini concert. The opening act was 3 Leg Torso - great as well. They are from Portland and Sandy's favorite band. They were playing four different nights to help with the KBOO (a local community radio station) fund raiser. What a great, fun show!! Thanks Katie for bringing us into the Pink Martini fold.

What an amazing city!

Canadian Souvenir

Roach Road Trip: Kanaskan Lake, BC to Hell's Gate, BC

May 27 - 30, 2008

It's quite normal when traveling to pick up a little souvenir for remembering your trip. Sometimes those souvenirs are a bit unexpected - such as the one we received on May 28 while traveling 117 kph (kilometers per hour) in a 80 kph zone. Yup - a nifty speeding ticket to remember our travels.

The highway system through Canada is known for its rough patches. Fortunately, most of the highway system is now paved. However, the northern section of the Cassiar HWY is quite rough & requires a slower speed. After you pass Kanaskan Lake (campground #3), the highway turns into a nicely paved beautiful stretch of road. It's easy to pick up some speed. Those Canadian law enforcement agents are smart cookies. They set up a speed trap over a rise at the bottom of a long stretch of highway. Bingo! Mr. Police Officer pulled us and several other vehicles over & gave us a nice souvenir. He was very kind about the whole deal, you couldn't help but say "Thank-You" when he handed you the $196 Canadian ticket. The Canadians are so swell that if you pay your ticket within 30 days, you get a $25 discount of the fee! Fantastic! So - sometime in the next few days, we have to visit a bank to get a check. Needless to say, Wade was a bit more careful about watching his speed.

Thursday night we stopped at a RV campground (w/showers!!) near Hell's Gate, BC. Hell's Gate is the narrowest point along the Fraser River (110 meters) which creates some serious rapids. An air tram has been installed so you can traverse Hell's Gate between the Cascade Mountain Range (Eastern side of river) to the Coast Mountains (Western side of river). In the early 1800s an explorer by the name of Simon Fraser encountered this area & said something along the lines of "No Human should venture into this place as surely we've entered the gates of Hell." Overall - a nifty tourist stop.
Some brave souls do raft down this section of the river. Looks a bit tricky...

Looking down from the upper side.


Well - we're about to head into Eastern Washington for RUSH concert #1.

We've stayed at Winston's Mom's friend Wendi here in Bonney Lake, WA. She gratefully has agreed to watch the boys while we attend the concert. She's quite a great person & friend. I'll report on the concerts (show #2 is tomorrow night at Clark County Ampitheatre) when we stay with our Oregon friends in Lake Oswego.

Ciao for now....

On The Road Again....

Roach Road Trip: Days 1 - 3: Anchorage, AK to Cassiar HWY, British Columbia
May 25 - 27, 2008

We've finally hit the road again. We find love is traveling to visit friends. The Roach Clan is on the road again. (Sorry Willy Nelson....)
**Warning - Long Post Ahead **

We departed Anchorage a few hours later than we'd hoped. Our estimated time of departure was around 2:00pm and we actually pulled out of the driveway around 5:30pm. Thoughts crossed our mind to actually bag leaving so late & just leaving early the next morning. This also would have allowed us to make a last minute visit w/friends for a BBQ. Alas, the boys were adamant that we hit the road then, so we did.

First stop - Gas Station & checking the air in the tires. We purchased new tires last year after our 11,000 mile trip. In order to maximize our fuel efficiency, we wanted to be sure to have the tires inflated to the correct pressure. Of course, determining the correct amount of pressure proved to be more difficult.
Here's Wade trying to see what the VW manufacturer claims to be the correct pressure. The side of the tires said max pressure is 70 psi. WOW!! So - Wade tried inflating it & actually reached 60 psi before I found the paperwork for the new tires stating the pressure should be 40 psi, so Wade released some of the air. Good thing - there are several bumps along the highway could have proved disastrous w/over inflated tires.

Whew - heading the right way.

Here is the view from our first 'campground'. Around 10:30 pm we decided to pull off & call it a night. Just a big quarry - a perfect stop for 2 boys. It took quite a bit of convincing that we did not need to take every 'cool rock' they found. We hadn't even left Alaska yet.

This is Kluane Lake - located in the Yukon Territory. It still had a thin layer of ice on the surface. As you can see, the weather was fantastic. This was a welcome change after the cool spring we encountered in Anchorage. The temps was hot - I'd estimate in the high 70°s easily.

This is Haines Junction. At this point along the journey, you have a choice to continue East along the Alaska Highway, or head south west into Haines, Alaska. For travelers heading to the Lower 48 along the Alaska Marine Highway (ie "Ferry"), you'd head toward Haines. Last year when we passed through Haines Junction, it was pouring rain.

This year we took a slightly different route. Instead of continuing along the Alaska Highway, about 13 miles West of Watson Lake (where "Sign Post Forrest" is located) we turned and headed south along the Cassiar Highway (Highway 37). Last year we wanted to return to AK via the Cassiar, but the highway was closed due to mud slides. The photo above is of the Coast Mountains.
Campsite #3 - Kinaskan Lake Provincial Campground. This is located about halfway along the Cassiar (around 200 miles-ish). Perfect camping area - next to a lake w/a shallow edge so the boys could play. According to the campground hostess, the ice had just melted off a couple of days before. I'll say it again - the Canadian Provincial campgrounds are amazing - clean, cheap ($15 Canadian) w/clean pit toilets, firewood, etc. It's also a great way to meet other travelers.

We had an artichoke we rescued from our refrigerator. Cooked over the campfire & it provided a nice treat.



We did see some wildlife, but not as much as last year during our trip south. I think that may have been to the high temperatures & that we are traveling about 3 weeks earlier than last year. Here is one of the 3 Black Bears we saw. We also saw 5 moose, but since I see those quite frequently they aren't considered 'blog worthy'.

Up Next.... Our Canadian Souvenir & Some Knitting....

Weekend Fun

What to do in Alaska in May when the temperatures reach 50°F, the sun is shining, and the snow is gone? Why - you put on your swim suits & run through the sprinkler, of course!

Spring so far has been fairly cold - temperatures are still dropping below freezing in the evenings - even though it's the middle of May! Fortunately, the sun comes out & the temperature warms up quickly. After the freaky snow storms, we're not letting any opportunity to play in the sun pass us by!

You can see the leaves on the trees & bushes haven't even popped yet, although it shouldn't be too much longer. Iain and a neighborhood friend thought it was fun to get a drink directly from the sprinkler.

Leave it to the boys (with help from Dad) to figure out a way to keep playing in the sprinkler even after you begin to get a little chilled. A couple of lawn trash bags - with holes for head and arms, and you're good to go.

You know what the following photo can only mean...


The 2nd annual Roach Road Trip isn't too far away. In fact, we're scheduled to hit the road next Sunday, May 25th. School lets out on Friday, May 23 and I've convinced Wade that perhaps rather than leaving on the 24th, we could use that extra day to do some packing and organizing.

The itinerary for this year's trip is similar to last year's but w/a few extras. We leaving early so we can catch two, back-to-back RUSH concerts at the Gorge Amphitheatre in George, WA and another at the Clark County Fair grounds in Vancouver, WA. Winston's Mom and her hubby, Dave will be there for both shows too! I think even Sandy is planning to attend the show in Vancouver. I hope we'll be in the area for a Monday night dinner. We have to be in the Seattle area to pick up Wade's brother on May 30th - 5 days to drive down should be enough time.

After some time in Washington, we'll head down to Oregon to visit friends and perhaps Smith Rocks for some climbing. We'll return to Wade's hometown of Sacramento to visit his family and then work our way south to San Diego. Planned highlights of this year's trip include:

- 2 RUSH concerts
- MLS Soccer Game -- LA Galaxy vs. Columbus Crew. Orion is really hoping for an autograph from his soccer idol, David Beckham. I'm trying to let him know that there are no guarantees that will happen.
- Family Reunion (my side) in Sheboygan, Wisconsin. Yup - we're going to drive to WI and then back.

Yes - the gas prices are really going to take a chunk out of our summer budget. However, when you factor in the price of 4 air tickets from Anchorage, to well, anywhere, it's really just a wash. Wade and I figure the experience is much more rich by driving - we're really looking forward to this time together as a family. Every morning the boys do their "Road Trip Countdown" - it's pretty cute & I know they're excited as well.

So - have we started packing, you ask? Well - sort of. I've done this:

I've re-wound two balls of my Kauni yarn. I had a hard time seeing what the color transitions were when they were in their original form.

How exciting, no? My plan is to perhaps start the Anne-Evilla sweater by Ruth Sorenson while I'm gone. It's pretty much knit in the round, so it shouldn't be too bad.

A knitter has to have their priorities, set - right? I mean, if I'm going to travel 12,000+ miles this summer, I need to plan ahead on what projects to bring along. So far I've planned this:

1) Leafling - Socks That Rock May Kit
2) Anne-Evilla sweater by Ruth Sorenson
3) ???? - More socks I'm sure

Any other suggestions on portable projects? I might do a few more hats from Charlene Schurch's book, Hat's On.

Well - soccer game in 2 hours - gotta go.

Ciao~

There's No Place Like Home...

10,862 miles and 6 weeks later, we've returned home to Anchorage, AK. We had a fabulous trip - no complaints - no major catastrophes - sanity and health intact. I'd say the AK to CA Road Trip of 2007 was a total success. But - there's no place like home. :-)

Gosh - it seems like forever since I've had the opportunity to post. I know several people were wondering where we were since several places through which we traveled had neither internet availability nor cell-phone service. We returned home late Tuesday evening - just in time to post my July socks for the SAM3 (ended 7/31). :-) I haven't had a chance to sit down to blog since when you return home after 6 weeks of traveling - there tends to be lots of stuff to get done like: unpacking, laundry, unpacking, laundry, unpacking, vacuuming the gazillion tons of dog hair, and did I mention - unpacking & laundry?

I have a bit of time (before the next load of laundry is ready to fold - I really hate folding laundry) to do some 'catch up'. I think I'll first post our return & then do some 'back-dating' blogging recounting our adventures since we left Oregon on July 24.

Friday - July 27: Cheechako Ranch, OR to Merritt, B.C. - 585 miles.
This also happened to be my 11th wedding anniversary to Wade - nothing says romance like driving 585 miles. Nice drive north. We decided to take Hwy 97 north & enter Canada via Oroville, rather than driving toward Seattle to meet up w/Hwy 5 & enter via Bellingham. We figured we'd have hit some heavy traffic in Seattle on a Friday afternoon.

Pretty uneventful drive - other than having to give up some wonderful fresh peaches we'd picked while in Oregon. Border patrol wouldn't let us bring them across for fear we'd also bring in unwanted insects. Go figure that as soon as you cross the border there are acres of fruit orchards & a ton of fruit stands. Yeah - they know everyone coming across had to give up any fruit they had. What a racket!

We camped in a town RV park near a sawmill that ran all night. Fortunately we were tired enough that the noise didn't keep us awake.

Saturday - July 28 - Merritt, B.C. to Burns Lake, B.C. - 505 miles
The plan was to drive West & take Hwy 37 - otherwise known as the Cassiar Hwy - north & intersect the Alaska Hwy near Watson Lake at the border of British Columbia & the Yukon Territory. We figured we'd already driven the Alaska Hwy from Dawson Creek, so we wanted to avoid a total backtrack in order to see new territory.

All was going swimmingly - gas & Starbucks coffee in Prince George, a beautiful drive West on the Yellowhead Hwy (#16) & a quick dinner at a nice rest area outside Burns Lake which is 150 miles west of Prince George & about 100 miles from the junction of the Cassiar Hwy. Ever heard of "The Best Laid Plans..."? Yeah - funny how plans change.

We chatted w/a couple who had also stopped at the rest area & were headed toward Jasper. They asked the normal questions "Where are you from? Where are you going? etc." great conversations w/fellow travelers. When we mentioned we were headed back to Alaska via the Cassiar, they told us they had seen a sign saying the highway was closed. CLOSED!

So - imagine instead of 'South' the sign says 'North'. Arghh - we never actually saw the closed sign for heading North - we turned around before then. However - two days later when we drove by the junction for the Cassiar heading south - we saw this sign:
Now - call me crazy, but don't you think it'd be kind of thoughtful to put a sign like this near a large city like Prince George where you then have an option of taking a different highway north? Why wait until the actual junction - so you can watch frustrated motorists turn around in a huff and then backtrack 200 miles to Prince George & then take a different route? I know you might think - well, perhaps you should have checked the internet, or called the phone number. Sure - if we'd had internet connection or cell phone service - or quite honestly, if we'd have thought there was even a remote chance this highway would be closed. I mean - it's a highway - for crying out loud. They are usually open. Wade & I drove the Cassiar back in 1993 after we'd graduated from college. Certainly after 14 years the highway would have been in better condition? Cause for closure: a land slide from heavy rains took out the highway.

Sunday - July 29 - Burns Lake, B.C. to slightly north of Fort Nelson, B.C. - 686 miles
Since we had to drive back through Prince George (again) to head toward the Alaska Hwy (which originates in Dawson Creek - 250 miles northeast of Prince George) we had some miles to make up. The upside? Another coffee in Prince George. I think I now know where all Starbucks locations are in that city.

We did pass this yarn shop along the highway -But alas - as you can see - it was closed on Sunday. Darn.... Can't say we didn't try. :0)

So - with 300 miles to make up (Prince George to Burns Lake roundtrip is 300 miles) we decided to put the pedal to the metal & drive, drive, drive. We stopped briefly in Fort St. John (The Energetic City) for gas, eat dinner (pb&j and some ramen) and run around a bit.
This is a sculpture of a bear that won a welding contest back in 2004. We thought it was pretty neat. The park was beautiful & located next to their community recreation pool & curling club. I guess we can see why Fort St. John is called The Energetic City - they keep active!

Then we drove to Fort Nelson - another 4 hours away - if I recall since it was my turn to drive. The drive was nice & the sun was actually shining. Much of our drive through Canada looked like this:Mrs. Q refers to this part of Canada as "The Wet Coast" - she isn't kidding! After we rolled into Ft. Nelson around 11:00 pm for gas, we decided perhaps we should find a place to sleep. My suggestion of saying the heck with rearranging all of our crap (pardon me - after 6 weeks - you have lots of crap) so we could pull out the seat for our bed, and just check into the Motel 8 that was across the street from the gas station. Wade would have nothing of that, so on we went. We pulled over in a large turnout (found from the wonderful Milepost) & joined three other campers to sleep for the night. The accommodations might not be 5 star, but you can't beat the price.

Monday - July 30 - Ft. Nelson, B.C. to slightly east of Whitehorse, Y.T. - 526 miles
Up at 8:20 a quick breakfast and then back on the road by 9 am. Surprisingly - the other campers were already gone. Perhaps they know something we didn't about pulling over on the side of the highway to sleep. Is there a certain check-out time from gravel pullouts?

Since we were traveling along familiar territory again - we stopped at Liard Hot Springs for a quick soak in the hot pools and some lunch and some coffee. Although we weren't happy about the additional 300 miles the Cassiar closure added to our trip, Liard Hot Springs is a great stop. The boys could have played in the pools for hours and were sad that we weren't camping there as we did on our drive south. We promised we would return again some day.

Another exciting day of driving. However, this time - when we stopped in Watson Lake for gas (the ceiling that was caving in in the bathroom of the gas station was now totally gone), it wasn't raining, so we stopped and walked through sign post forest. According to the Milepost (a must have if you plan on ever driving to or from Alaska!) there are over 61,000 signs in the forest. Next time perhaps we'll plan ahead & have a sign ready to put up.

The Alaska Hwy also affords several opportunities to view wildlife from the comfort and safety of your car. We saw another black bear munching away on the greenery alongside the highway:We also finally saw the herds of buffalo signs kept warning would be on the road. On our trip south, we saw One lone buffalo - certainly not worthy of the numerous signs warning of their existence (I was beginning to question their existence). This time around we saw a few, and then as we came around a bend - whamo - a herd of buffalo! We imagine we saw at least 100 hanging out alongside the highway. It seems that between the time we drove south & now, babies had been born - they are actually pretty cute!We did see another large brown bear, but we were driving too fast to slow down & stop to take a photo. When we did stop, the bear decided to run off into the trees. Trust me, it was big!

We camped in another gravel pull out east of Whitehorse near the Yukon river.

Tuesday - July 31 - Whitehorse, Y.T. to Anchorage, AK, U.S.A. - 724 miles
Yes - you've read that correctly, we drove 724 miles in one day w/two children in the car. 9:04 am: Another tank of gas and coffee from Starbucks (there are 4 in Prince George & 1 in Whitehorse, the capital of the Yukon Territory) we were ready to roll. As we put it "We could smell the barn". What do children do, do you ask when you drive for so long?

They sleep...
They play catch with a football while you're waiting at construction near Kluane Lake:


Love the form! Future NFL quarterback?

The Kluane Range is in the background. Wade is trying to intercept the ball...

And... you brush up on your map reading skills to make sure your parents really know where they are going...When you arrive at the Canada/Alaska border, right before you pass through customs, there is a rest area where you can view a swath of trees cut to show the border. You can also stand on a bench and straddle two countries! How cool is that?

Here I am - my right foot (on left side of photo) is in Alaska, U.S.A. and my left foot (right side of photo) is in the Yukon Territory, Canada!

One minute I'm in Alaska....

The next I'm in Canada!
It is 421 miles from the border to Anchorage. We could do it! We filled up w/gas twice more & continued on. We were able to reach our home at 10:15 pm (11:15 pm Canada time (PST)) - just a mere 14 hours after we left Whitehorse! If Wade had even suggested early on in this trip that we'd drive from Anchorage to Whitehorse on our first day, I'd have said he was nuts. But - when you hear the siren call of your own bed, shower, and home - the force is strong. When we were driving past Eagle River (20 minutes north of our house) we joked that we couldn't make it & would need to pull over and camp for the night. Nahh....

For any die hard knitters who've actually read this epic post - I did accomplish some knitting along the way:These are the Embossed Leaves sock - complete. I had finished the first sock during our stay at Liard Hot Springs on our drive down. Yarn: Regia silk (lost the ball band, so can't give the exact colorway), Needles: Size 2 Addi Turbo magic loop. I LOVE this pattern & the yarn is so soft. I think I'll need to buy a new pair of shoes to show off these socks. :0) I also almost finished my monkey socks - I have one more repeat & the toe to complete before they're finished & given to a friend.

Grand Totals for the AK to CA road trip 2007:

Total Mileage Traveled: 10,862

Total Gallons of Gas Used: 548.713 ( I did convert between litres & gallons while in Canada)

Total Cost of Gas: $1989.51 (This is an approx. since some of the cost was incurred in Canada & I'm not quite sure of the conversion rate)

Average Gas Mileage for the 2003 Eurovan: 19.95 mpg

Days Gone: 47

Spending Quality Time and Adventures with Family: PRICELESS!!

Well - time to fold the laundry...

Ciao~