Denali National Park

Female Caribou

Eielson Visitor Center Mile 66 on the Park road.

Denali in the background
Only 30% of visitors actually see the mountain, Kim and I saw it from both the North and South.

The evening before our adventure into the park

Caribou

Only 7 miles into the park and we begin to see wildlife

That's a mouth full!

Hoping to go unnoticed

Close call.
Keeping a close eye on the bear that could've taken his life. 

Casting a shadow

Moose here are 30% larger than those further south, that's no bull!

Blackstone Bay

Beloit Glacier

Glacier Margaritas [minus the Alcohol] What a gorgeous gal!

AMAZING WEATHER!! Not typical for the PWS

I wore my jacket only to fit in.
Crazy how you will feel very different temperatures with the winds that blow off the glaciers.

Kittiwake Rookery
A Kittiwake is pretty much a Seagull, they are still nasty and poop everywhere!

Billings Glacier

Old Glory!
Fly your colors USA!

Some random wall of ice we found along our way.
Yeah, its a hard life when you have to look at stuff like this.

Gotta love black and white...

I don't look half or even a quarter as good as Kim,
but I figure I need proof I was there.

Alaska's colors

Nice blues coming through...

Office work

I told Kim we had to get some photos of her in the office. 

I even snapped a few when she was on a phone call.

Grandview Train Ride

My beautiful wife

CHOO CHOO!

Out and about. We kept going to the open ends of the train cars because they had the heaters on.
What? We kept getting too hot and had to go out for cool fresh mountain air. 

Some clouds, some sunlight, and some blue skies...

Well, when you're in the tourism business and sale other companies tours or recommend them to the tourist you get to go free. Kim and I decided to take advantage of our opportunities and I am supposed to be selling this tour out at our Portage Visitor center, so I figured I had better know something about it.

Our next trip will be floating out on a mountain lake with Icebergs from the Spencer Glacier and then a float down the river. We are also trying to get up to Denali before we head down south in the fall.

Old telegraph line used prior to the rerouting of the tracks.

Hope Alaska

So Jed wanted to get out of the condo and see more of Alaska. I always get beat from working 10 hours a day that I just want to sleep. But I bucked up and got in the car and we drove to Hope, Alaska.

On the way there I slept :) and Jed stopped here and there to take some pics. Jed thought this tree was cool. He got back into the car, woke me up, said he was running from a bear, (not really) and showed me these pictures and said, you don't see a tree like this everyday. 

Ok, it is pretty cool and different and I have no idea why its like that. Dad? Maybe you can shed some light on this. It looks like a pumpkin in a tree. Halloween already?

 One thing that I have really enjoyed about Alaska is the outdoors. Now that we know we won't be living here forever, we are going to be more adventurous and go hiking and rafting and take a train ride and more whale cruises and more mosquito bites and more solstice party time.

 Yep, I had Jed take a picture of me under a dead tree. 

 Jed thought the rock was cool. Its also interesting to learn how it was formed. I didn't really like it because it was hard to walk on or even sit down on. So for the pictures below.... sorry if I have a pained expression on my face... you now know why. 

We need pictures at every angle- says Jed :)

Even one on my lap. :) This one is my favorite. Jed couldn't find a good spot because of the rock formation and then the timer ran out. 

I love this video because its proof that I don't believe what Jed says to me anymore. He was trying to scare me, but it didn't even phase me. :)

I had no idea Jed was taping me. I have never rock climbed before in my entire life, let alone go cliff gliding down a mountain side. Ok ok so it wasn't as steep or as hard as I had thought prior to going down but I thought it best to be cautious as I was a first timer. But now we have record of it. Sorry that you have to watch my backside for 4 minutes.   

I figured I would be a little more creative with going up the hill then I was going down. Now I just know that I am cheesy.

Perks of our job in Alaska

Kim and I recently went out on an exclusive "Glaciers & Guitars Tour" that a local radio station chartered out. I was the "DD" Designated Driver,  hired out for the event. We had a small group on board our coach and I am grateful to report all of our passengers still had their coordination and balance following the cruise. Though, we did have an extremely intoxicated fellow jump onto the coach and yell something out. I am not quite sure what he said and I was standing in the middle of the isle getting a head count as he came up the steps of the coach behind me. I think he was somewhat dumbfounded when he didn't recognize a soul on board and then quickly stepped off the bus.

Kim and I had a great time and I am so glad she was able to come along with me. It would've been a somewhat awkward and lonely time had she not come along. She hasn't quite gotten her sea legs about her so she does tend to get a little sick on the ocean, but the Prince William Sound is protected waters and so it tends to be very calm. And as you can see from the pictures we took it was excellent cruising conditions.

A little reflection off of the calm waters of Blackstone Bay.

Leaving the Whittier harbor

No joke, the water was calm and the scenery was breathtaking!

My gorgeous wife and our friend and office building neighbor Laura. She works the front desk at  Alaska Tour & Travel.

Blackstone Glacier (Sunny side of Blackstone Glacier)

Blackstone Glacier and falls

Icebergs from the Glacier. The crew usually fishes a chunk of ice out of the water with a net and serves Glacier Margaritas (or for us they will make it virgin or make it Sprite or Ginger Ale on the rocks).

Finally had a moment to take a photo together. Best we could do was inside the ship.
Before the Ginger Ale

After the Ginger Ale