The new job

I started my new job working for the vast corporate megalith today. Holy CRAP is that place huge. Ever go to one of those stadium rock concerts where you're a face in an ocean of faces? That's my office, except divided by cubicles and floors. And just to abuse the concert metaphor, I bet I'll have about the same impact on my job as the drunk redneck yelling "Freebird!" from the nosebleeds has at the Metallica show.

About all I got accomplished today was getting my photo taken for my ID badge. Oh, and I found the nearest food court. That's crucial.

Fires and other Sunday fun

Woke up this morning to a bunch of sirens that stopped nearby. Grabbed my camera and walked down the street to find that the house on the corner was on fire. Took the ~25 firefighters with 9 firetrucks about an hour to put it all out.

Pics here.

After the fire, I went to see if I could start Melba's Jetta - it refused to start after I washed it at a DIY car wash last night. I left it at the wash and walked home thinking I'd maybe gotten something wet under the hood and an overnight drying session would help. It didn't. Battery seems fine, but the starter just clicks and jump starting doesn't help.

I'm thinking it's either a bad ground wire or a dead starter. Had it towed home.Poor dead rusty dented trim-shedding Jetta.

Vomitorium

I woke up late this morning feeling a little off. Bit of a headache, wasn't hungry, kinda lethargic. So I moped around the hotel room for a few hours, packed, then checked out (thanks, Hank!). After returning the rental car (thanks, Hank!), I got a ride over to the airport for my 2pm flight.

Right as I get into the security screening checkpoint line 'o personal intrusion, I start feeling queasy. Really queasy. So I duck out of line, and head back to the bathroom where I dive into a stall just in time to hurl. Headache immediately intensifies.

Of course I then needed to go back to the end of the line. Made it through that time, and managed to find my gate. Not long after I sat down, a friendly older couple from Minnesota sits nearby and starts talking at me about RVs, Minnesota, Alaska, my job, etc. etc... all while I'm trying my damndest to put a really pained "I'm feeling like ass, stop talking to me" expression on my face. They didn't clue in. Ten mintes later, I made another run for the bathroom and hurled again.

I finally got on the flight, thinking that I might be feeling a little better. I end up in seat 6A, a window, and moments later this really big dude wedges himself into 6C, the aisle. Of course, he's from Minnesota, and starts talking at me about RVs, Minnesota, Alaska, my job, etc. etc... and the ass-face wasn't working with him, either. The plane was still on the ground taxiing when I felt another wave of blargh, but that time managed to choke it back. Big dude finally clued in that I wasn't feeling well, and mercifully left me alone for awhile.

The flight from Anchorage to Minneapolis lasts a bit over 5 hours. I managed to use every airsickness bag in row 6, in addition to making a few mad dashes for the lavatories in the very back of the plane. Dry heaves, again and again. Did I mention the headache?

I tried to read my book, heaved. Tried to listen to music, heaved. All I could do was sit in my seat with my cold hands stuck to my forehead in a fruitless attempt to cool it down and not heave.

The BEST part was the guy sitting behind me. Evidently he was just coming off a 6 month shift on an oil rig somewhere ridiculously remote, and as an accessory for his Grizzly Adams beard, he was sporting some really hellish body odor. This wasn't the sweaty armpit kind of B.O. - this was the sour, sharp kind of B.O. you get from not showering for a few months. The kind that burns your nostrils and makes you feel a little ill on the best of days. Today, it sent me reaching for the bag almost every time it wafted over for a visit.

The flight mercifully came to an end, and by the time I got my bags and moved outside to wait for my ride, I was starting to feel less queasy. Headache was still in force, but I could deal with that. My good buddy Mueller graciously picked me up at the airport and gave me a ride home.

I'm feeling pretty decent now, but sore. I expected a sore stomach, but my legs are sore, neck is sore, and even my butt muscles are sore.

That was the second-worst flight of my life. Not to say that Sun Country Airlines did a bad job - the flight itself was great - they've got an amazing amount of legroom in coach, and the food that I couldn't eat actually looked pretty good.

Anyway, it's good to be home.

Nottadamnthing

Hank's flight home left Anchorage at a little after 8 this morning, so after I dropped him off at the airport I tooled around Anchorage for about an hour, then returned to the hotel where I saw this in the parking lot:Very Northern Exposure-esque. Odd that the closest I get to real wildlife in two trips to Alaska is in the hotel parking lot on my last full day in town.

Good thing I saw this guy when I did, because after all the driving (and fisticuffs with Hank) over the last 10 days, I was happy to spend the day lounging in the hotel room and enjoying the hotel's hottub.

Michael, I did nothing. I did absolutely nothing, and it was everything I thought it could be.

Talkeetna trektna

I've noticed that there are an awful lot of city, river, and lake names in Alaska that end in either -tna or -tka. I'm guessing it's an Aleut or Inuit thing.

Anyway, Talkeetna sits near the base of Mount McKinley and also very close to Denali Nat'l Park. Hank and I decided to forgo the usual car key fistfight and just let me drive the 2.5 hours to check it out. The drive up is easy and the scenery alternately beautiful and obscured by dense forest.

We passed a moose grazing along the side of the road just outside of town, and stopped for a light dinner at a little sidewalk cafe in town. I use the terms "sidewalk", "cafe", and "town" loosely - Talkeetna is downright tiny, there really aren't sidewalks, and the cafe was an old quonset hut with outdoor seating. The one main road into and through town is paved, but it dead-ends on the outside of town and the rest of the smaller roads seem to all be dirt. A local we chatted with at the cafe calls the main road "a 14 mile dead end".

We drove the 200 yards from downtown out to the edge of town to the dead end, and checked out the Susitna River (which is fed by the Talkeetna and Chulitna Rivers - see what I mean about the -tna thing?). You can see McKinley from the bank of the river, but the haze was pretty bad yesterday and I didn't get a good picture. About the only decent shot I got was this one of Hank:He's quite the budding videographer.

More pictures

Add this one to the list of "signs I have never seen on a golf course". And the mountains in the background make for a crappy backdrop.

Since when did I grow a double chin? That's not good.

Milk River, Alberta.

Banff, Alberta. We spent the night in Banff with the RV parked right near these train tracks. It isn't wise to park your sleeping quarters near busy train tracks.

Golf.

Hank and I played Eagleglen golf course today. Eagleglen is on Elmendorf Air Force Base here in Anchorage, and has spectacular scenic backdrops to almost every hole. And true to it's name, we spotted an eagle nest on 18th with a white head poking out. Pretty cool.

Here's Hank's swing on 16:Not bad for a guy who had one knee replaced 9 months ago and is in line to get the other done this summer. The course just opened for the season two weeks ago, and had many temporary greens - but seems to be shaping up nicely. Hank shot an 81, I shot a 109... but the important score was Bingo Bango Bongo, where we TIED. I was damn happy about that. Hank even let me drive the golf cart once or twice. Quite magnanimous of him.

We're headed out tomorrow for a drive down the Seward Highway. Should get some good pictures from that.

Beach.

Late

I'm oddly fascinated by the late setting sun. Not sure why. Was out driving around Anchorage tonight and noticed this:Yep, that's the sunset at 11pm.

Hank and I will be playing golf tomorrow. Will he let me drive the golf cart? Doubtful.

A few pictures

I'll post a lot more once I get home and get some time to properly edit the stuff I shot, but here are a couple of shots I took on the rare occasions when I was able to wrestle control of the RV away from Hank and pull over:

We made it.

We left Minneapolis at about 2pm on Monday, pulled into ABC Motorhomes at 5.30 this afternoon. 3,644 miles driven in ~120 hours. We averaged about 5 miles per gallon of gas, paid as much as $3.23/gallon US, and $1.31/liter Canadian (roughly $4.30/gallon US).

The frost heaves in the Yukon were still really bad, most of the lakes in the Yukon and Alaska are still partially frozen, and the start of spring is still a few weeks away.

Its 11pm in Anchorage right now, and as I look out the window I see only about half of the drivers going by on the freeway have turned their lights on. If it wasn't overcast, it'd be a lot brighter. Weird.

Hank and I have a rental car - funny how a Dodge Stratus can feel like a go-kart after driving an RV. We'll be touring Anchorage for the next few days, and hope to play some golf too.

Here's a shot I took of Hank and I on Thursday:

Alaska!

Crossed the border into Alaska about an hour ago. It's after midnight here and the sun has gone down, but the western sky is still bright. It feels odd to look at the clock and see 10pm, but also see the sun above the horizon shining bright.

Thursday

Made it as far as Fort Nelson, BC last night after a marathon drive most of the day. Hank is a bit excited to get to Alaska, and drove right on by a bunch of stuff that would have been fun to photograph, but that's ok. We'll see a lot more.

Here's one stop we did make:Not too shabby... now if I can just keep Hank from jumping into the driver's seat every time I stop to shoot something, we'll be golden.

Banff

Decided to drive through Calgary and sidle on over to Banff for the night. Gorgeous little town, has a european feel, and mountain peaks in the background in every direction.

Weather has been holding up very well - sunny today and even a little too hot for awhile. I hope the clear skies hold up as we head north.

Looks like we're going to go up through Prince George, BC then meet up with the Alcan a bit west of Fort St. John. I'm torn between that and heading west from Prince George and catching the Alcan a hundred miles or so west of the Liard hot springs. We'd miss the springs, but the scenery might be a lot more betterer.

Update

Drove all the way to Great Falls, MT yesterday. Not bad considering we didn't leave Minneapolis 'til almost noon.

We're about 110 miles south oof Calgary, AB right now. The goal is to spend the night near Calgary so we have plenty of daylight to enjoy Banff tomorrow.

On the road again

Hank and I hit the road at 8am tomorrow. We've decided on a different route from the last time I went:Key:
A: Minneapolis, MN
B: Great Falls, MT
C: Banff, AB
D: Prince George, BC
E: Fairbanks, AK
F: Anchorage, AK

I'm thinking the scenery should start getting good around Great Falls, and be cool all the way up from there, instead of crossing Saskatchewan and the middle part of Alberta where flat, open prairies are all there is to see.

Workin' for a livin'

As of last Friday, I have rejoined the ranks of the gainfully employed. To leave my blogging options open I won't mention my employer's name, but I'll give you a hint: Think of a huge nationwide big-box retail chain that ISN'T evil.

I start on the 30th, after RV to Alaska II.

In other news, Hank decided not to ride his motorcycle up to Minneapolis, and will be flying into town tomorrow afternoon.

Can't wait to hit the road. Today, I visited the RV we'll be driving and did a little inspection. All the paperwork seems to be in order, but there was a screw sticking out of one of the tires on the trailer. Took the trailer up to Mills Fleet Farm (a Minnesota mainstay) and got a new tire. The tire was still holding air, but I didn't want to have to deal with a flat trailer tire in the middle of nowhere.

Really rough cut

I spent about 4 hours last night cutting together a rough clip of some HD video I shot on my last trip up to Alaska. The stop at Liard Hot Springs in BC was one of the only points where we had sunshine, so this is some of the only good raw footage I got. The music I used for the clip is a squeaky little ditty by WD40 and the Piercers.

So I guess what I'm saying is, the clip sorta sucks - but it's my first foray into editing HD. Download it at your peril here. (24mb mp4 video)

Roadtrip companion position: FILLED.

So I get a voicemail from my MOTHER this morning:

"Steve, this is your MOTHER (she always emphasizes the word MOTHER, for some unknown reason). We were reading your blog about your next trip to Alaska, and Hank has some questions for you. Call us back AS SOON AS YOU CAN." *click*

Hank is my stepdad, the delightful young chap whom my MOTHER married a few years back, and who also makes her laugh almost continuously. Hank is 31 flavors of cool, and I don't say that just because he reads this.

So I dutifully place a return call to the Surprise Compound, and sure enough, MOTHER answers and nearly word-for-word repeats her voicemail message.

"We were reading your blog about your next trip to Alaska, and Hank has some questions for you. Let me get him for you."

Hank and I discuss the particulars, and decide that he most definitely needs to ride along on the roadtrip to Alaska. Hank wants to go for the hardcore on this trip. Not only will he be driving with me from Minneapolis to Anchorage, he will also be riding his BMW K1200LT from the Surprise Compound to Minneapolis. All this after having had his knee replaced recently. Hank is the man, and a scratch golfer to boot.

Hank offers this gem to put me over the top: "You know, I've been to every state BUT Alaska." That settles it.

Hank is comin' to Alaska.

Alaska. Again!

I got a call from Oslo the other day, and he asked if I was interested in driving another RV to Anchorage - this time starting out in Minneapolis. After a quick scheduling consultation with Melba, I jumped at the chance.

This time, I will be on my own schedule and will determine my own route. I am hoping that spring will have sprung in the prettier areas where, on my last trip through, skies were overcast, foliage was brown, fauna was hidden, and snow cover was still deep.

My original thought was to go alone, but then I thought a travel companion might be fun.

Wanna join me? I leave on May 15th.

--

Also... after some judicious editing, I culled the 419 pictures I shot on my first trip down to about 150 and posted them in my flickr directory. Link to that is on the right side of this page.

Alaska Travelogue - posted.

For those who are interested, or anyone else who wants to subject themselves to the punishment of my stream-of-thought travelogue, I finally posted my Alaska travel journal.

To find it, you'll have to hit the archive for April, and look for the four posts labeled "Alaska Travelogue" on 4/11, 4/12, 4/13, and 4/14. I left the other entries I made on those days where they were - please forgive the chronological disjointedness of it all.

Or, if you're lazy like me, follow these links: 4/11, 4/12, 4/13, 4/14

These days covered the section of the trip from Fort St. John, BC to Anchorage, where lack of cell coverage kept me from posting in real time via my Sidekick.

For this section of the trip, I pretty much just typed while I drove. I know, it's dangerous to do that.