Welcome to Alaska, Di!!!!

It finally arrived. I am in Alaska. It was such a difficult time staying focused on work the last several weeks as Mike and his parents drove the RVs up to Alaska. But I have finally arrived. I flew into Anchorage and Mike picked me up. We were so happy to see each other after being apart for a month. It was wonderful. We had both missed each other a lot. Mike took me to the campground where they were staying, the Centennial Park campground in Anchorage. It is a great little park and we will likely stay there again when we come back through Anchorage on our way north.

Mom and Dad were happy to see me too. They were particularly happy because I brought with me the replacement jack they needed for their fifth wheel so they could jack it up and get it off of the truck finally. They had been without the jack for a couple of weeks due to the damage done to it at Burns Lake.

I knew I was in Alaska when on my second morning there at about 6:30 (8:30 at home so I was up), I looked outside the front driver’s window in the RV and saw this.

It was awesome. That is the closest I have ever been to a black bear. So cool!!!! Alaska is awesome. This park is actually in Anchorage and right on one of the main freeways.

Don’t worry the bear didn’t find anything to eat, but this is why they tell you not to leave food out and accessible in campgrounds.

Saturday Mike and I went for a bike ride on a trail near the campground and we visited the local farmers market. Sunday afternoon we decided to go for a bike ride on the Coastal Trail in Anchorage. It is a beautiful multi-use trail along Cook Inlet in Anchorage. Mom and Dad walked a portion of it and we rode our bikes. Our intention was just to ride for a few miles and then go back, but we were enjoying it so much that we decided to bike the whole trail and have Mom and Dad meet us with the truck at the other end. What a wonderful trail!!! It was so much fun. Although I certainly realized that I was out of biking shape but was excited to be active on a more regular basis.

Monday morning, we headed to the Kenai Peninsula. Our first stop was a beautiful campground near Hope, Alaska called Porcupine Campground. I seriously thought I had died and gone to Heaven, or at least the Garden of Eden. It was so beautiful. We loved it so much here that we stayed for the week. It was absolutely amazing. We hiked and enjoyed the sights. The fireweed which is the magenta flowers you see in many of our pictures are in full bloom everywhere. It is absolutely beautiful!!!! Interesting fact–fireweed is called that because it is the first thing to grow after a wildfire destroys everything. I would hardly call it a weed though, but it is seriously prolific so I can see why they did. It is everywhere in the Kenai peninsula.

The setting was amazing and the “pinks” (pink or humpy salmon) were running and super easy to catch. We were fishing at the mouth of Resurrection Creek just below the bridge and above the bridge. If you want a super easy introduction to salmon fishing, this is the place to do it. Dad (Mike’s dad but I call him dad) picked up what they call the Kenai flick (the method of “flossing” the salmon). You basically wade in to your knees and then flick a hook with a little pink fuzz on it and a weight about three feet above it, up stream. Drag it along the bottom faster than the current and then flick it up stream again. Dad had hip waders so he caught his limit (3 salmon per day in most places–read the regulations) first thing. Mike caught one from the bank and I was a big fat zero, but that was ok. Four salmon on our first run was great and we ate fresh salmon that night. Yummmmyyyyy!!!!

Not only was the fishing great, but the scenery couldn’t be better either. There was beauty all around us as we fished. In a day or two later, Mike and I both caught our limit too. Dad did a repeat and caught his too. So were eating really well and have a freezer full of yummy fish. These are not small fish either.

But, it wasn’t all about fishing in the Hope area only. We actually came to this area because of six-mile creek–the best whitewater in Alaska. This creek has class IV and V rapids in it and, of course, the thrill seeker in me could not resist whitewater rafting this canyon. So, Mike and I headed to Chugach Outdoor Center and booked an excursion to do all three canyons of this amazing whitewater experience. It was absolutely incredible, but unfortunately we could not take a camera with us so no pictures.

They put us all in dry suits and helmets and we headed to the creek. The first thing they had us do was jump into the river and swim like crazy toward the other bank and then float for a while on our back keeping our feet in front of us. The water was absolutely frigid as it is from glacial and lake water. It was also important not to let your butt sag at all because Mike and I both hit ground with our butts once, but it did not hurt. Then we had to pull each other into the raft. This was all training to teach us how to handle if (really they should have said when) we fell out of the raft.

These rapids were huge. This creek if fast because it is dropping elevation so quickly and it is super narrow creating rapids called the “anvil” and other equally apropos names to instill the right amount of respect and fear in those approaching them. One rapid launched all of us (six of us and then the guide) sent all but one of us flying through the air and tumbling into the water. Unfortunately right on top of Mike. He was the bottom of the pile. I had to pull him up from underneath me without knowing who was under me. He wrenched his shoulder good with that experience. We had climb back into the raft or swim to shore and then get back in. It was an absolute blast!!!! Quite an adrenaline rush to be in the water. That is the first time that has happened to Mike or I on all of the river raft or kayak trips we have done. That is a testimony to the awesomeness of these rapids. Several of the rapids sent me flying across the raft and I wrench my knee a few times (the replacement one). But it was so much fun!!! Then the “anvil” threw me into the water again. It was just me this time. I was able to swim quickly and they pulled me into the raft. That was only the class IV rapids and we were headed to the class V rapids next. With Mike’s shoulder really bothering him, he decided he was not going to continue to the class V rapids. I decided to stay with him and go back too because I had wrenched my knee enough in the class IV. We figured we were better off to stop while we were still having fun and were only slightly injured rather than pushing it. That was such an amazing experience and a BLAST!!! I would highly recommend it to anyone.

What an amazing first week of this long dreamed of trip. I am so glad that we did this. We are enjoying so much the time we have with Mom and Dad and experiencing this new place with all it has to offer. And we barely scratched the surface of what we could do in the Hope area in one week. I am so glad we did an extended trip for this experience.

I am also very glad that we are able to do this and things like it because we have chosen to live our lives deliberately and plan for the things we want to do. Our goal when we first got married to work to retire early has made all this possible. Getting out of debt quickly, sticking to a planned budget each month and many other small decisions have led to being in a place where we had the resources to do this trip. We have been richly blessed in so many ways. We are truly grateful.