Not yet used to west coast time, Steve, Amy, and I were up early. Dale has no problem sleeping in any time zone. We had continental breakfast on the seventh floor with Charley, Linda, Dad, and Mom. They got deluxe rooms up there after Linda complained about not being assigned a "non-smoking" room. We had a breakfast voucher, which Dolores, Linda, and I went down to the restaurant and used, while Steve, Dale, and Amy went to the pool. Just before we were about to leave to buy Dale some more clothes, we got a phone message that his suitcase had arrived on the first flight this morning and should be delivered to our hotel anytime. We went out and walked around town anyway. I bought a jacket, Dale a Nintendo magazine, and Amy a book. When we returned to the hotel, Dale’s suitcase had indeed arrived. We checked out and drove to Stanley Park and walked and drove around. We could not find the totem poles, but did see the lighthouse, lumberman’s arch, nice gardens, pools, and waterfalls. Enjoyed a scenic area overlooking the bridge we would later pass under in our cruise ship. It is a beuatiful park with lots of rollerbladers and bicyclers. We turned in the rental car and were shuttled to Ballantyne Pier and boarded the Sun Princess. We all have our own key cards with charge priveleges. I hope it wasn’t a mistake to let the kids charge. We found our room, 607 on the Dolphin deck (deck 8). We wandered the ship, found Charley and Linda’s and Mom and Dad’s rooms at different ends of deck 10, the Baja deck, (they weren’t there), played with our family radios, ate lunch at the Horizon Court (a buffet area open 24 hours a day) on deck 14, the Lido deck, and finally (for me anyway) really began to relax. We met up with Charley, Linda, Dad, and Mom. Our departure was delayed two hours so that some delayed travelers could make the ship. We spent ime on deck as we departed at 7:00 pm. The kids kept checking the room to see if their bunk beds were out of the ceiling. We met everyone in the Regency Dining Room at 8:30 for dinner. We take up all of Table 123. It is a great location next to a window. Alonzo is from Mexico and our waiter, Calin from Romania his assistant. They take very good care of us. The food is wonderful. Dale is not very hungry, having already been to the Horizon Court twice. Amy pooped out before dinner was over but got a second wind to go to the pool and hot tub. They were both very nice. The pool was nearly a hot tub itself. Dale went to a movie with Dad, Mom, Charley, and Linda. We were in bed when he got back. Amy orered room service for breakfast and Dale did too!

I slept very well. Amy woke up cold this morning, so we’ll have to take care of that. The room is not exactly spacious, but doies have a lot of storage and even a couple of sitting chairs. The kids like their upper bunks and Steve and I each have a bed below them. There is a TV in the room. We have a porthole with an obstructed view. There is a lifeboat outside. But fortunately it has windows and we can see right through it. Dale slept in. Steve, Amy, and I walked around the deck until Amy had to get back to the room for her room service breakfast. Both kids thought that was pretty neat. We had a quiet day at sea all day. It was foggy this morning but cleared and was sunny by eleven. It was very pretty traveling through the passageway. Dale pretty much wandered around on his own. The radios work pretty well up above but not so well on the lower decks. We didn’t see Dad and Dolores at all this morning. I lost $20 in the casino. It didn’t take long. Dale took part in a Fun Zone signature hunt and won a silver medal because his team came in second. The Fun Zone has activities for the kids for parts of the day. Late at night and while in ports babysitiing services are available for a fee. We have to sign the kids in and out, so we get to see Dale a couple of times a day. He made some friends and was off with them for awhile. He still hasn’t been swimming. Steve, Amy and I went swimming at a new pool and also tried a new hot tub. We all met for lunch at the dining hall. Then Linda, Dolores, and I went to a wine tasting - two white, two red, and an asti. Our $5 fee was good toward the purchase of any wine, so we all took advantage of that. Tonight was our first formal dinner. The family got dressed and headed to the Atrium for the captains party. It was fun watching everyone else all dressed up. Alonzo and Calin cater to all of us at dinner, but especially the kids, who have some strange requests. They always try to honor them. Dale leaned back at dinner and said, "Life is good!" We all agree. We went to a show in the Vista lounge. Amy was tired and was going to go to bed but didn’t like being alone in the cabin, so radioed us and joined us. The radios do not always work but have come in very handy several times.

Steve and I are up early again and have breakfast at the Horizon Court. We docked at 6:30 am. Despite Ketchikan’s record raininess, the sy is perfectly blue. We woke the kids and sent themto breakfast while we disembarked and checked on tours. Dad, Mom, Charley, and Linda all booked some tours through the ship, but we didn’t. Since it was such lovely weather we booked a seaplane trip to Misty Fjord. We got the kids and walked around town a bit. We mailed postcards and a letter. Amy bought some souvenirs. We walked to the floatplane dock, checked in, left the kids there, and walked up the hill. Enjoyed the view, the flowers in the yards, and the huge raspberries we found. We took off at 9:30 am and few over tree covered mountains, lakes, and bogs called ???. We saw patches of snow, waterfalls, and even some mountain goats. We landed on a small lake and got out and walked around enjoying the scenery and wildflowers, and took more pictures. The flowers were beautiful. Amy spent most of her time next to the babbling brook throwing rocks and babbling to herself. It was my first seaplane trip as well as the kids. The take offs and landings were very smooth. It stayed sunny and beautiful for the whole day. We returned from our flight at 11:30 am and walked to the Totem Pole Heritage Center. The kids complained the whole way that it was too far and too hot. Then when we got there they seemed less than impressed. Steve and I enjoyed seeing the totem poles and pictures of their original sites, as well as the narration by a beautiful young woman. We walked back down to town for some more shopping. I enjoyed looking at everyone’s gardens. The hours of daylight and the rain must be ideal. The same plants I have at home are humongous here. One especially lovely yard had an old fashioned bleeding heart nearly as tall as I am. We crossed a small river with a fish ladder. Back in town we ran into Mom and Dad. Dolores, Amy, Dale, and I all got free earrings from a jewelry store. Steve got beer. Our cabin has a refrigerator and Steve has plans to use it. He bought some pop too. Amy bought souvenirs. We boarded the ship and the four of us met Dad and Mom for pizza. It was the only food I would call bland. Dale went to the Fun Zone and won a gold medal for golf. The rest of us met Charley and Linda at the pool and hot tubs furthest aft. Then we tried to get Amy to take a nap so she could be awake for dinner. She had a hard time falling asleep then fell asleep hard. Dale went to Charley and Linda’s room to watch a movie with them. Then when they went out to run, he stayed in their room and ordered chocolate chip cookies from room service. Dale went to the Fun Zone for a kids dinner and styed until 10:00 pm. He’s made lots of friends on board and has most fun with them. Amy was still sleepy at the beginning of dinner, but woke up by the end, just the opposite of the previous evenings. The waiters missed Dale. He would have liked the shrimp too, but at this point in his life his friends are everything. Dale stayed in the room and the rest of us went to see the show "Pirates" in the Princess Theater. Amy stayed awake and enjoyed it.

We docked again at about 6:30 am, about the time I woke up. Steve and I did breakfast at the Horizon where we say Charley, Linda, jDad, and Mom. They are off to do sea sayaking. We left to go check out tours. We got the kids going and went back ashore and booked a tour sea kayaking on Fritz Bay at 1:00 pm. We walked around Juneau for a while. We went to the state museum which had a little bit of everything - natural history, state history, natives and otherwise, and art plus a special glass exhibit that was fabulous. I was most fascinated by the baskets. Some are woven with grass so fine it is like thread. They are water tight and natives even boiled water in them by adding hot rocks. Other baskets were woven out of baleen of whales cut into strips. The natives used every part of the whate. We walked back to catch our tour. We had a short van ride, lecture, got fitted up, another lecture, and finally got into our kayaks. Steve and Amy went together. I went with Dale, who chose the back of the kayak so that he could steer working the rudder. We did very well together. Our first leg was a long haul across the bay. We saw some sea birds and large fish jumping. Then we went along the opposite shore line and saw several bald eagles. Steve ended up doing all the paddling for them, beause the small paddle they gave Amy was too short for her to reach the water very well. At one point some guides pulled up to us in a small boat to show us the contents of a crab trap - a very pregnant Alaska king crab (they are oblligated to return all females to the sea, season on males begins tomorrow), a snow crab, and a huge dungeness. The latter two are going to be dinner for our guides. We saw harbor seals popping up here and there on the way back. Dale was quite the taskmaster often telling me to paddle faster. On the way back he decided it was a race. We passed everone, including the guide, except one other kayak who I think really wanted to be first. Dale was happy with our second place finish. We had a snack of crackers, pepperjack cheese, salmon spread, and reindeer sausage. Back in town we did the tramway ride and hiked a small trail at the top. Then the kids headed back to the boat and Steve and I walked around the shops. I fell in love with the work of a locla artist and bought some of her note cards. I also picked up a catalog of her works so I can order a print if I later decide to. Then it was back to the ship. Amy, Steve, and I went swimming and to the hot tub before dinner. It was another beautiful, sunny day, and the pools were being taken advantage of by more than just us hardcore swimmers. Dale joined us in the dining room tonight. The kids went back to our cabin after. The rest of us went to the Klondyke Show in the Vista Lounge. It had its funny moments but they were few and far between. Walked out on deck and enjoyed the beautiful evening. It was about 11:30 pm and we were just pulling out of port with the remnants of sunset. Our weather has been exceptional so far with only a few clouds today.

First woke this morning about 3:00 am as Amy nearly fell out of bed. She was dangling with her feet over the edge of the bed, but Steve got her down safely. She climbed back up the ladder but didn’t remember any of it when she woke later. Happy Birthday to me! It is another incredibly clear day again. We got up early, had breakfast, got the kids up, ran into Mom and Dad, and all headed off the ship together. They have a helicopter tour later today and booked a bus tour up the White Pass for later this morning. The kids did some shopping with Grandma and Grandpa while Steve and I went on to the heliport to find they could take our family of four in ten minutes. We tracked our kids down in a gift shop, say good-bye to Grandma and Grandpa, and go get geared up for our helicopter trip to a glacier. We all get boots and a vest and listen to a safety tape.. Our helicopter carries six passengers in addition to the pilot. The sky is perfectly blue. We are the third of three helicopters. We pass through some beaustiful areas, then land on a glacier. The helicopter drops us off and picks up another group left there previously and takes off again. We get a little tour by personnel also left behind. We taste glacial water. Steve cut himself on a piece of ice and bled quite a bit. We took a lot of pictures. We are so fortunate for the great weather. The helicopters return and end the peacefulness of the glacier experience. They drop off more people and then take us back to town. What a wonderful birthday! The helicopter ride was a first for me, Dale, and Amy. Steve goes on a helicopter ride every 40 years or so. Back in Skagway we wander around town a bit, Dale buys a souvenir ulu knife, book a bus tour for Steve and I, then take the kids back to the ship. They order room service for lunch and hangou while we go on our bus tour of town and the White Pass.We get to hear some Klondyke gold mining history, view the train going up the other side of the valley, and stop to take pictures of waterfalls and other scenic areas. We actually are in Canada for part of the tour. We get off in town, stop at a bar for a beer, buy and write some postcards, go to a store, beer store, post office, and finally back to the ship. We have been doing a little bit of walking around in all our ports and also getting exercise going up and down the stairs on the ship. We leave and board the ship at either deck 5 or 7. Our dining room is on deck 7. The Fun Zone and some pools and hot tubs are on deck 12. The Horizon Court Buffet and another pool and more hot tubs are on deck 14. You can walk around outside on decks 7, 12, and 14. There is no deck labelled 13. Steve, Amy, and I went swimming and hot tubbing before dinner again. It feels good after being so hot in town. Dale goes swimming for the first time with some of his friends in a different pool from us. He spends all evening in the Fun Zone. The rest of us go to the show "America Sings" before dinner. I was late because I signed Dale into the Fun Zone, so end up in the back of the theater. I caught up with everyone else after the show. They had great seats in the front. Dale skipped dinner in the dining hall. Amy ate a lot and was not even hungry for dessert. She left before they delivered my birthday cake. It was a birthday to remember, being with family in Alaska, taking a helicopter tour, and seeing a glacier up close. I walked around deck for awhile. It was a little cool, but at 11:30 pm still light out. The sky was still clear. There was a half moon. We passed a lighthouse on a small island that was very pretty.

We slept in a little and got up at seven. We missed seeing the eight orca whales Dolores saw earlier while walking on deck 7. It was a little cloudy, but the sun was shining on the higher peaks. We had begun entering Glacier Bay at about 6:00 am. We force the kids to get up, dress warmly, and go on the deck to look at glaciers. They aren’t really interested until they hear a whale has been spotted. We went up above and watch awhile then have some breakfast at Horizon Court. Then we head back outside. The clouds burn off and once again we are fortunate enough to have beautiful blue skies. In addition to the view of the humpback whale, we also see harbor seals, puffin, black-legged kittiwakes, guillemot, scoters, and bald eagles. The blue color of the glaciers makes me want to buy a blue topaz to remember it by. Margerie is the bluest, steepest, and one we spend most time by. We hear lots of sounds like rifle shots and thunder and see calving. It is tough to judge the scale. Although it is very cold and breezy when traveling, once we reach the Margerie and Grand Pacific Glaciers they stop the ship and it is very pleasant out. We cruise back down the Tart Inlet and up the Johns Hopkins Inlet to see the Johns Hopkins and Lampaugh Glaciers stopping at each to get better views. There are many icebergs in the inlet and we can’t get too close to the glacier because the seals give birth to their young on these icebergs. The clean white icebergs float with 75% of them underwater. The icebergs that have lots of dirt on them can have up to 90% underwater. We saw some kayakers and smaller excursion boats. There are camping areas along the shore. When we were cruising out of the inlet we saw lots of orca whales. After leaving Glacier Bay we went down and around Cape Spencer and saw lots of humpback whales there. Amy, Steve, and I went to the pool and hot tub. It was cool outside but very pleasant in the water. According to our ships information channel on the TV, the pools are 91.4° F. Another nice feature on the TV is the view from a camera on the front of the ship. That channel also includes any of the announcements by the park rangers we picked up in Glacier Bay or the shipboard naturalist about wildlife sightings that are not normally broadcast to the cabins but can be heard on deck. After swimming we head back to the room to dress for our last formal dinner. Dale joins us for dinner (we made him). As usual the food and service were excellent. Tonight we celebrate Charley and Linda’s ninth anniversary. After dinner all eight of us meet at the back pool. We made Dale go with us after the cream puff incident. We had the pool and all three hot tubs to ourselves.

Slept in again this morning. It has been hardly noticeable that we are on a ship up until this time. Now that we are crossing the Gulf of Alaska you can feel some rolling. I enjoyed laying in bed feeling the rocking. Amy went to breakfast with us and became uncharacteristically quiet when the motion began to bother her. But she did manage to eat some and then did feel better. As we entered Prince William Sound - just more of the same snow covered peaks and abundant marine life. The sky was overcast today however. We saw more orcas. They are actually part of the dolphin family and are called Killer Whales because they kill whales. We saw one baby humback whale just playing at the surface of the water, slapping his tail the entire time the boat passed by. Then the water was speckled with sea otters. They are so cute! They are like little furry bobbers floating in the ocean. College Fjord was very impressive with many glaciers converging on the sea. We saw some major calving at one of them. Although it was a cloudy day, the blue color of the glaciers was fabulous. Along the shoreline were lots of dead trees beacuse of an earthquake and tsunami. We passed within three miles of where the Exxon Valdez ran aground, leaked oil, and caused damage to the environment that is still being assessed. Now all ships are escorted to sea by two tugboats. On our way out of College Fjord, Steve, Amy, Dolores, Linda, and I sat in a hot tub enjoying the view. It had been somewhat chilly on deck and the hot tub seemed particularly hot. It was great! We then went back to the room to pack and get ready for dinner. We haven’t seen Dale at all today except to sign him into or out of the Fun Zone whenever it was open. He won his third gold medal today for a scavenger hunt. He packed his suitcase, grabbed something to eat at Horizon Court, and headed back to Fun Zone. This time Amy wanted to go and play Bingo. Steve and I got to be alone in the cabin for an hour. We picked Amy up at 8:00 for dinner. They did not play Bingo as planned and she did not have that great of time and was ready to leave. Dinner tonight was crab legs and everyone except Dad ordered it. We even got an order to go for Dale. Alonzo took good care of him, including melted butter and everything. During dinner we got to see orca whales and some dolphins out the window. The junior waiters did a parade with flaming baked Alaska. Amy went with Linda and Charley to their room after dinner. We picked up Dale and he wanted to go to the room to eat his crab legs. So we went to pick up Amy and see the room with a view. Dad and Mom joined us there. Then five of us went to see the final show "Odyssea". It was an inverse Little Mermaid. The guy joins the girl underwater. There was more dancing and acrobatics than plot. Amy didn’t see the point of it. The set and costumes were fabulous. The ship was rocking quite a bit as we crossed the Gulf of Alaska again. They apparently slowed it down so the dancers could dance. As soon as the show was over the rocking started again. We were rocked to sleep our final night. The suitcases were packed and set outside the door after dinner.

We were up early, finished packing, and met Mom, Dad, Linda, and Charley for breakfast in the dining room. Alonzo waited on us one more time. Then we got our carry off bags, waited on deck 7 a little while, and departed the ship about 9:00 am. Since we were making our own connections after leaving the ship, we could go at any time. We got a shuttle bus to Hertz and picked up a car and a mini-van. Drove to the Wind Song Lodge but couldn’t get in yet. Seward is a town of about 3,000, except for Fourth of July weekend when they host the Mountain Marathon and about 20,000 tourists. The race is not really a marathon, but a 3.5 mile course up to the top of a mountain and back. There is no trail to the top, you just make your own way up the slope of loose rocks. It started as a bar bet many years ago when someone asked if anyone could run up and back in an hour. They didn’t the first time, but the hour mark has been broken many times since. We watched some of the women ending. They were all dirty and many were bruised and bloody. We read later that one woman was severely injured in a fall when she broke ribs and punctured her liver. That kind of takes some of the fun out of it. To find a parking spot and avoid some of the crowd we went to the Sealife Center. It is a new facility, only open two months, to rehabilitate animals and do research as a result of the Exxon Valdez disaster. It was very nice. We got to see seals and sea lions in a natural looking setting both from above and below the water. A lady gave Amy an orange plastic bag and showed her how she could get Travis to follow it around and go in circles. They also had waterfowl you could view from above and below the water surface. It was fun to see the tufted puffins diving. They go under a little, shake all the air out of their feathers, then continue to dive. There were beautiful backlit moon jellyfish and huge king crabs. When we left there we walked around town for a bit, got lunch from a street vendor, and money from an ATM. We ended up watching their parade, because we were blocked in the Sealife Center parking lot. It didn’t hold us up long though. We then drove back to the Wind Song Lodge to check in. Mom and I walked around in the woods and along the river for a bit. Then we all drove to the Exit Glacier and hiked up to it in the rain. It didn’t rain much and was still very warm. Even after all the glaciers we had seen on the cruise, it was still impressive to be close enough to touch it. It was a blue and beautiful and awesome to be so close. Everyone enjoyed the hike. Amy was a little mountain goat scampering ahead of us. Back at the Wind Song we went to their restaurant and suffered shock when we had to pay for it. We made a quick trip to the grocery store for snack stuff and then to bed. I was too tired to stay up for the fireworks at midnight.

Today is our first really lousy weather day. We are finally getting a taste of the real Alaska. We had room service for breakfast. Steve went to Burger King and brought food back. We met for the cruise at 9:30 am. The captain of the ship "The Greatland" announced that because of foul weather we would not be going to the park or glacier so anyone who wanted to leave could. About twenty people did. We didn’t. It is going to take more than bad weather to keep us from having fun. We headed out for a tour of Resurrection Bay and immediately saw a bald eagle perched on some spiles. Then we saw two sea otters and a humpback whale. After following the whale for a while we headed off to Fox Island for lunch - salmon of course. Down on the beach we saw and heard five oystercatchers. Since they had prepared food for the 20 extra people, you could have all you wanted to eat. A park naturalist had some display items and talked a little bit. We then departed for further adventure. We got to see tufted and horned puffins, black-legged kittiwakes, murrelets, cormorants, glaucus-winged gulls, Steller sea lions (two harems lounging on some rocks), two mountain goats (a nanny and a kid), another humpback and our first whale again. It rained off and on the whole day, but we all stayed on the upper deck and outside most of the time. Amy and Dale discovered the heater and parked themselves there quite a bit. When we returned at 4:00 pm, about two hours early, part of our tour price was refunded. It was still a great trip. We walked around the ahrbor shops a little while, then back to the Wind Song. Charley and Linda went out running. Dale watched TV in Charley and Linda’s room and Amy watched in our room. Mom, Dad, Steve, and I went for a walk.We went back down to the harbor for dinner at Chinooks, We went upstairs and ate on the second floor overlooking the harbor. Dale had king crab legs again, probably the best of the trip. Dale spent the night with Charley and Linda. Amy spent the night with her Grandma and Grandpa. Steve and I enjoyed our night alone.

Steve and I were up early and went down to the Millers Daughter’s Bakery to pick up bagels and sweet rolls for breakfast. The kids ate with us. Then we packed up and left for Kenai across the peninsula. It was a beautiful drive, but I could hardly keep my eyes open. Dale slept the whole way and Amy read. We followed Charley’s car and kept in touch by radio. On one stretch we saw quite a few black ??? magpies. When we got to our hotel there was a message to call Melody. Grandma Helen was in the hospital. They suspect she had a slight stroke. She’s doing okay. We checked in and walked to the visitor center. Then we walked to a bluff overlooking the Kenai River. Around the time of high tide beluga whales can be seen chasing salmon up the river. It was near high tide but we didn’t see any. Steve, Amy, and I walked over to a very tiny Russian Orthodox Church. Amy and Steve walked back to the hotel to get the van. The rest of us walked further on to a gift shop recommended as a must see at the visitor center. We got free gifts - Kenai pins. They had some fabulous things there, especially the lidded wooden bowls that were several thousand dollars each. They also had some great antler baskets. Charley and Linda walked back to the hotel. The rest of us went with Steve to the beach to run around, throw rocks, pick up stones and driftwood, find quicksand, and not see belugas. Steve and I then dropped the kids and grandparents off at K-mart and we drove around town a bit more. We went back to K-mart to pick everyone up again. The radios are very handy once again. We also picked up Burger King carry-out for the kids and left them in the hotel room to eat it and watch TV. The rest of us drove to ??? . Dolores saw a moose. Linda may have. We had dinner at ??? Lodge. They have a collection of 15,000 hats stapled everywhere. We ate outside. The had a prime rib special for $8. That was all they had. So we had prime rib. Dolores did not eat much. The place seemed very popular with the local people. We continued on around on our circle tour. No more moose sightings. We did see a large beaver dam and beavers. Then we went back to the room. The kids were just fine. The sun was still high in the sky, but we went to bed at 10:00 pm anyway.

Up early, packed up, ate free continental breakfast, checked out, and left. We headed back across the peninsula still looking for moose. Dolores spotted one that all four of us saw. Charley and Dad missed it, so we still have to find one for them. We took a gravel side road by Skilak Lake looking for moose. We found rabbits, lots of rabbits. We also saw some loons on a small lake and some very pretty scenery. Evidence of a couple forest fires still remained too. When we got to Seward Highway we headed north to Anchorage on road we have not yet travelled. It was a wonderful drive, but once again I must fight sleep. We left beautiful blue skies in Kenai, and drove into more overcast and cloudy conditons as we went along. Driving around Turnagain Arm was very interesting. It is an area with very significant tides, low at this time. There were warnings of quicksand, which I believe after our experience in Kenai. We had a nice sighting of Dall sheep along the highway. We went by another beluga lookout point but the tide was too low for whales. We stopped at a mall in Anchorage and had pizza at the Round Table. Charley ran over to K-mart for film. We could have been in suburban Detroit and Dale loved it. When we left, I drove for a while, and of course, it started to rain. It never amounted to much, but the clouds were pretty low so not much view of the mountains. It was still a nice drive if not as scenic as south of Anchorage. We stopped at an art gallery, to get gas and snacks, then down the Talkeetna Spur a mile to the Fiddlehead Fern Farm. We got to taste ostrich fern fiddleheads with cheese and crackers. They were good, slightly reminiscent of asparagus. Author Mary Carey runs the place with a friend. They were interesting characters. Steve drove again. I was trying to stay awake, but kept nodding off. I did manage to spot a moose across a small lake next to the road. Everyone who wanted to got to see it. We missed the Denali Wind Song Lodge and have to turn around and find it. We check in, pick up tickets for tomorrows tour of Denali, and go next door to the Pincess Lodge for dinner. The four of us walk across the street to a small grocery store to pick up breakfast foods and snack stuff for tomorrow. The kids both took baths. There is a TV here, but only three channels and one of them is CNN, so the kids are suffering. Steve and I are unsympathetic. I had a glass, actually plastic cup, of Linda’s wine before bed.

Steve and I are up early, pry the kids out of bed, eat in our room, and head next door to the Mountain Chalet to catch our 7:00 am bus to tour through Denali National Park and Preserve. There is only one road in the park and traffic on it is extremely limited, so we hop on a bus for the next eight hours. Our driver, Gary Wittemore, will stop and let us out for scenery and toilets. For wildlife you have to stay on the bus. Our luck is with us again as it is a mostly sunny day. We first spot willow ptarmigan, the state bird of Alaska. Then a cluster of vehicles along the side of the road, including a professional photographer videotaping from the roof of his vehicle, alerts us to a mother brown bear (grizzly) and her cub, playing right along the side of the road. We watch for a long time as they play, poop, and eat. Finally we move on. We stop at a couple of spots to see if Denali (Mt. McKinley) is visible. A very small part is. We still get some spectacular views. Yesterday no mountains could be seen through the rain and clouds. We also see lots of ground squirrels, a rabbit, hoary marmots, the nest of a golden eagle with babies in it, golden eagles, mew gulls, caribou, and Dall sheep. First we see a lone caribou walking along the gravel river bed munching. Later we see lots laying in a snow bed nicely outlined against the white. We have box lunches on board the bus and a hot drink at the final destination before turning around for the return trip. I enjoyed all the wildflower sightings too. We finally saw forget-me-not, Alaska’s state flower. One of my other favorites was the Eskimo potato. We knew this would not be the most fun for the kids, but they were well-behaved and uncomplaining. They even seemed interested in the wildlife sightings. We got back at about 3:30 pm. Steve and I dropped the kids off in our room and went back to the park, about a mile away, with Charley and Linda to see the visitors center. After a short rest in our room, seven of us drove to Healy for dinner. Charley had fallen asleep and was out for the night. Driving back after dinner, we saw a lynx cross the road. Dale and Amy then stayed with Grandma and Grandpa, and Steve, Linda, and I went back to the park and hiked to Horsehoe Lake (1.5 miles round trip). Early along the trail there is a view down to the lake and we could see a mom and baby moose there. We hiked on down and saw another big moose at the edge of the lake. She just kind of wandered off and we lost her. We couldn’t spot the other two moose through the vegetation. We did see lots of fish jumping in the lake. It also had a beaver dam at one end, but no beavers were spotted. There were lots of wildflowers along the trail and a couple of mosquitoes. We have heard about how horrible they are here, but there’s more mosquitoes in our backyard. You could still see the moose from the vantage point above, so they must have been there when we were down by the lake. We drove a little way out on the park road. There is still no view of Denali and we had no further wildlife sightings, so we headed back to the room. The kids requested a chance to sleep in tomorrow.

We did sleep in this morning. Steve and I got up about seven and walked across the street for breakfast. We visited some gift shops and checked on horseback riding and still were back in the room before the kids woke up. They finally got up around ten. We went horseback riding at 11:30 am. We didn’t feel the earthquake that happened about then, but Linda did. One other couple went riding with us. Our guide, Jay, was from Jackson, MI. He had a holster and gun and talked about seeing a grizzly last week. We had no such luck. I rode Major, an extremely well-behaved horse that did what I wanted him to. Steve was on Chief, who did what Chief wanted to. Dale rode Chico, who liked to take shortcuts. Wrangle was Amy’s horse and he liked to follow Chico. We rode for 1½ hours through woods, to an old trappers cabin, along a path called the "salad bar" because of the tasty grass and berries, by the river to let the horses drink, past moose bones from an old grizzly kill, and through open country blazing our own trail. There were some clouds but it was a mostly sunny day. Jay pointed out Jumbo Dome (an extinct volcano), and the site of a huge coal mine. Amy decided our ride was a long enough time for her butt to be on a horse. Back at the Wind Song, we split up for lunch. Steve, Amy, and I went to Lynx Creek Pizza. Dale went with Charley and Linda to Cruisers at the Princess Lodge. Then Charley, Linda, Steve, and I went back to the park to hike the trail up Mt. Healy. It was all up hill and quite steep in parts. Charley was not feeling well and did not go all the way to the lookout. I went, but very slowly. There were some great views and I had a wildlife encounter. A young ground squirrel came up and checked out my walking stick and shoe. The first stretch downhill was pretty slow going too. My braking muscles ached on the way down. It was five miles round trip with a 1700 ft elevation change, rated 3-4 hours. We did it in three hours and 40 minutes. I am glad we went. Steve gathered up the kids and took them fishing at Horseshoe Lake. Mom, Dad, Charley, Linda, and I drove out to the end of the 15 miles of park road you are allowed to drive on. We saw two moose right by the road, then got a view of Denali. The end of the road is not the most scenic spot, but it was nice. We sat at a picnic table, drank wine, and ate cheese, crackers, and chocolate. The mosquitoes did come out, but were only bothersome briefly. Steve, Dale, and Amy joined us just as a red fox was walking through the site. He crossed the bridge and walked up the other side of the river before we lost track of him. Now we only need to see a wolf. The kids climbed around on some rocks for awhile. When we left we still had a view of Denali, but no sun on it. Moose crossed the road right in front of Charley. It was noticeable where hot springs were feeding in along the river by the steam rising there. By now it was midnight and we saw a full moon rising over the mountain. It was still quite light out. When we returned to Wind Song we saw a wolf walk through the parking lot. Well it might have been a husky, but it looked like a wolf. Amy was asking everyone what the highlight of their trip was. Almost everyone said the helicopter ride. Hers was dessert on the cruise ship. Everyone went right to bed except me. I sat in the bathroom catching up on my journal.

Noisy neighbors woke me up at 5:15 am. I looked out the window and it was a sunny clear day. I took a shower, then drove back into the park. There were some clouds in low valleys, but as I drove along Denali came into view from behind another peak just as clear as it could be. I took a few more pictures of it, then drove on to the end of the road. I saw some caribou when I got out field glasses to see what people on a tour bus were looking at. I was gone about two hours, then slept for about an hour. The kids didn’t get up until about ten again. We got packed up and left about 11:00 am. It was a slow trip to Anchorage. We pulled into the park to se if Denali was still visible. It wasn’t, although it looked liked clouds between us and the mountain and not clinging to it. Further along the George Parks Highway it came into view with only a few clouds obscuring the two peaks. From then on we stopped at every pullout and even along the road where there wasn’t any. First we got the north peak clear, then the south peak, and finally both. It was awesome. The kids were less impressed and rarely got out of the car. We stopped for gas at Igloo City then again at Talkeetna Road. We decided to drive to Talkeetna even though we are early for the Moose Dropping Festival. It is an interesting little town. It had some nice little gift shops. The adventurous of us had dinner of caribou burgers and musk ox burgers. Charley and Dale shot pool after eating. There was a beautiful view of Denali right outside of town. Once we hit the main road heading back to Anchorage, our views were gone and the travelling went a little quicker. We drove through Anchorage and found the Puffen Inn right where Steve thought it would be. The kids found more than three channels on the TV and were very happy. The adults all went for a walk down to Spenard Lake. It has seaplanes all the way around it, except for a small park. Dolores, Linda, and I collected wildflower seeds and even a couple of small plants. The guys tolerated us. Before bed Dale went to McDonald’s for a snack. Amy had trouble getting to sleep, so I had trouble getting to sleep.

Another day to sleep in. I didn’t wake up until nearly eight and even then didn’t get up right away. We had muffins for breakfast from the office. The kids got up about ten again. We repacked stuff for our trip home tonight. Mom, Dad, Charley, and Linda got their sutcases out of our car and took off for the Saturday Market Place. We left a little behind them and caught up by radio.We ran into them several times will perusing the merchandise. I bought a few little souvenirs - some beads, buttons, and baleeen. Amy also buys souvenirs. Dale had BBQ chicken on a stick. Steve had Montana Indian taco. Amy had Indian fry bread and some of my pad thai. We say good-bye to everybody and the four of us head to the Imaginerium, a hands on childrens science museum. It seems geared toward younger children, but Dale and Amy are amused for a long time there. Steve and I find some comfy chairs and doze off. We overheard Charley on the radio giving Dad a hard time. We talked to them a bit. The radios have definitely been useful. J.C. Penney’s has one of Wyland’s whaling walls painted on the side of it. Across the street is a city park with the most wonderful gardens. Different beds were planted in different color schemes. With such a short growing season but so much light, everything does well here and all blooms at once. I was looking at gold and found the boat charm that Dolores fell in love with in Ketchikan, except it didn’t have the fisherman on the deck. We contacted the other group by radio and they met us by the park. I took Dolores to see the charm. She did like it, so I bought it for her birthday and Christmas. We hung around the park a little while then Charley, Linda, Dad, and Mom left for the airport. Their flight is earlier than ours. We still have lots of time. We walk around downtown a litlle while longer and then go to Blondie’s for dinner. Dale and I have Alaskan king crab legs once more, Steve has salmon, and Amy a hamburger. We drove to the Earthquake Park on the shore of the Knik Arm. It was less impressive than I had hoped and less time consuming too. After reading all the displays, Steve and I walked along the coastal trail a while. Dale never got out of the car. Amy did, but headed back when the mosquitoes became annoying. We then headed for the airport. We turned in our rental car, checked in, checked our bags, set off the metal detector (Dale), found our gate, then waited. Just before boarding, they switched our gate. There were no computers or pa system working there. We also had to go downstairs, cross the tarmac, and go back up stairs to board the plane. We left a little bit late, closer to midnight, but otherwise the flight was uneventful.