This is me getting to try on the KoolKit - total body cooling system that we are trying out here at Clarian Arnett. Very fashionable. It was quite the sight, but atleast it makes the day more interesting! Brrr....is it cold in here or just me! Hehehehe.
Probably would of came in handy on those hot trail hikes that about did me in!
Wow! What a day!
Well unless you have been hiding under a rock or been off the planet today, you would probably know that the "invest in America" bill did not pass in the house of Congress today. This sent uncertainty and fear throughout the financial markets sending the Dow down 777 points. There is sure a lot of political blame going around, and it will probably get worse before it gets better.
But...
Now is not the time to panic or act hastily. Continue to pray, continue to tithe, stop all needless spending, pay down debt and start saving for some hard times to come. Basically, live within your means, and watch your credit card spending!
Here is a great example in God's word to think upon and meditate on! As we know, God wins in the end!
1. Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near. Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things. Whatever you have learned or received or heard from me, or seen in me—put it into practice. And the God of peace will be with you.
I rejoice greatly in the Lord that at last you have renewed your concern for me. Indeed, you have been concerned, but you had no opportunity to show it. I am not saying this because I am in need, for I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances. I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want. I can do everything through him who gives me strength.
-Phil 4: 4-13
Amen! To God be the glory.
Shepherd.
Welcome to day 6 of our cruise, in which we ported in Ketchikan! This is the famous place of the "bridge to nowhere"! Well the proposed site anyways. This area is land locked, so the only way into this place is by either boat or plane. The thing about this town is that it is also a rain forest and gets over 120 inches of rain a year, so it was no surprise that it was actually raining on our day there!
So it would actually be a good idea for this bridge to come hear, because it is hard for planes to fly in here due to the rainy weather, so the most reliable way in here is by a ferry boat from Juneau...which takes 15 hours! Yeah, not fun, but it could take you 5 days to get here by plane if the weather conditions arent right!
Well anyways, this town was much larger than the icy straight point. So, we decided to do some tourist shopping. We bought Jacob a new book. Jacob is Christine and Greg Wilson's 9 day old baby boy! Congrats!
Ketchikan, I guess, is the the salmon capital of the world. We did see A LOT of salmon swimming up stream to lay their eggs. The main river was so full of them, that all you could see was salmon! There were thousands and thousands of them! It was pretty cool, but also very disturbing, especially to Amee's mom!
We also took a Duck Tour of the town, which goes on land and water. So our driver not only drove us off a pier, but he also ran the boat a ground! lol. It was fun and our guide was very knowledgable! Not our favorite spot though...due to the all day rain, so not to much to say.
Shepherd.
Well today is Day 4 of the cruise. We rolled into the port of Skagway today, and we took a boat over to Haines, AK. Then after a 30 minute bus ride, we arrived at the Chilkat Bald Eagle Preserve, inwhich we planned on taking a 90 minute float down the Chilkat River to look for eagles and wildlife!
God was very gracious to us and gave us a beautiful, sunny day to float along the glacial fed river! It was still chilly, but so much better with the sun shining! The river, since it is fed by a melting glacier, the water is a constant 36-37 degrees...very cold! Plus you couldn't see the bottom of the river due to all the silt...not even if it was an inch deep! Thankfully, no one fell in!
We saw several bald eagles along the river. No bears, but we did get out on a sandbar and saw some fresh bear tracks that were probably from this morning. The salmon were starting to run, so we saw some salmon swimming up stream. One of our guides, CP, even caught two chumb salmons with a bucket, but he let them go. They were huge! His favorite is Sockeye and King salmon, then silver...chumb...and pink.
We all had a wonderful time enjoying God's creation. The scenery was simply amazing. It was definelty Amee's favorite trip on the cruise so far!
Day 3 of our Alaskan Cruise, we docked at the town of Juneau, which is the capital of Alaska. Also it is the largest capital in regards to land size in the country. You can only get to Juneau by boat or plane, which is amazing.
Well it was a cloudy and misty day, which they said it was a good day for whale watching because the whales come up to feed more often on cloudy days. Yeah! Well I dont know if that fact is true or not, but it worked for us! As we boarded our vessel, we actually saw a pod of Orcas (or Killer Whales) along the shore line! So we followed them for a while and I was able to get some great pics. The one above is actually of a baby orca whale, who surfaced above the water numerous times.
Then we saw this bald eagle perched up on this cool rock formation as we headed out to search for humpback whales. It was pretty awesome site. We also saw some sea lions as well.
Then we got to a spot known for humpback whales, and we were not dissappointed. We actually had 3 humpback whales around our boat doing some feeding dives. Feeding dives are where you get to see it's tail come up and out of the water. It was pretty awesome. The captain said it was very rare to have 3 humpbacks so close together, because unlike the orca's (who travel in pods) the humpbacks like to be by themselves. We even had one humpback whale come within 50-100 ft. from the boat. You didnt even need binoculars to get a good look at it!
Anyways, it was a great day! Two thumbs up! I love watching God's creation!
Shepherd
Well toady on day 2, we woke up at 7 am to go and run 2-3 miles on the treadmill. Then went to breakfast and chilled on board since we were cruising to Hubbard Glacier all day.
We got to the glacier around 2 pm, and it was the best day of the whole season as stated by the staff. Sunny and clear. To God be the glory.
Well Hubbard Glacier is the biggest one we will see. It is 6 miles wide about 400 ft high above the water and about 160 miles long. The picture just doesnt do it justice. We saw alot of calfing of the ice, where huge chunks fall off into the ocean. It sounds like thunder. It was awesome! We also saw about 200 seals laying on the ice near the glacier! It was just an amazing day. So quite and majestic. This day was so beautiful.
Tonight is our first formal night, so time to get all dressed up and get our picture taken.
Shepherd
Well it is day 1 our our cruise. We got in around 8:30 into Anchorage the night before. We departed to Seward around 1 pm on friday via tour bus. The bus ride was uneventful except we did see one moose, but I missed it due to reading the newspaper. oh well.
We got to Seward at 4 pm and got processed to get on board the Radiance of the Sea. We ate dinner at 6 pm. I had an onion tart for starters, then shrimp ravolis and salmon for dinner. For dessert I had a blueberry & peach cobbler. Let the gluttony begin. Glad I brought my running gear.
After dinner we had our mandatory overboard drill with our life vests. They even made us go outside, which was different than the carribean cruise. We had a good time though.
Then we played some Rook and watched a comedian for our evening entertainment. He was very funny and clean. A nice day 1.
Shepherd
Well today in Denali, we slept in to 7 am. We had a wake up call for 2 am to go and see the northern lights, cause a couple we met on the tour saw them last night around 2 am. But unfortunatley for us they werent visible tonight, so we went back to bed. Lord willing we will see them on our cruise.
So after waking up we ate our morning poptarts, and we headed off to see the sled dog demonstration.
It was very cool. We got to pet the sled dogs, and the ranger gave a 30 minute presentation of the sled dogs. Then they hooked up 5 dogs and had them pull the sled around a small gravel practice loop. Those dogs have a lot of energy! It is the only NP with a working sled dog team. It is how they patrol and observe the park in the 8 months of winter time. The park is really only opened for normal turists from may to beginning of sept. I only wish I got a picture of the sled dogs with my cell phone, cause I totally forgot to!
Well after the demo, we got back on the train at noon!
Shepherd
Well after getting back from our Tundra Wilderness Tour. we decided to do a little day hiking one some of the trails in Denali. It was nice just having my camera and not my 30 lb hiking pack! Amee & I decided on Rock creek trail, which was about 4 miles round trip. It was simply gorgious hiking it. with all the aspen turning a vivarant yellow mixed in with some green evergreens with huge mountains in the background. The shrubs were a mix of firely reds and yellows near our feet. The trail was well manicured and not difficult at all, which was good for Amee. Plus we just wanted to take our time and soak it all in. It is the best and most amazing national park I have been in. Lakewood...if u ever get the chance to get here, you got to take it!
Shepherd.
Well so much happened on this tour I couldnt get it all in with only 1000 characters.
I wanted to also tell a little about this photo of polychrome pass. In the very back of the picture is a receded glacier between the two mountains. All the ice and snow have melted, so now u only see the rock and dirt left. It looks like a black tonue. It was very cool. Polychrome mans many colors, which was true of this area especially with the fall colors. Down in the glacier river bed where the melted water from the receding glacier was flowing, we saw a momma grizzly & her cub eating on some soapberries.
It is funny that at the park entrance they say that if a moose charges you to run away as quickly as possible, but if a grizzly charges at you you r suppose to stand your ground and wave your hands and shout or sing. Also if all else fails...play dead. I think that would be very tough to do with a 400 lb bear messing with ya! Well we got back from the tour at 2 pm.
Shepherd
Well day 2 in Denali started with a 6 am Tundra Wilderness Tour. We boarded the bus and headed into the park. The sunrise was amazing with some pinks and purples. Then about 10 mins into the tour, we spotted a female moose and her baby next to a small pond. It was very cool. Our first moose sighting, and at the very end of our tour we spotted a bull moose with an impressive rack! Then as we enter farther into the park we spotted our first pair of grizzly bears in a river bed. Awesome! Then later on, we saw some Dall sheep high up on a mountain. They were the least impressive, b/c they we so far away. We also almost ran over a red fox in the road. It was so beautiful. We also saw many caribou, golden eagles, artic tundra squirrels, snowshoe hares, and even more grizzlies including 2 cubs. Wow!
The scenery also was quite amazing since we are at peak fall color, so all the reds, yellows, oranges and greens were amazing. We also go to see Mt. McKinley, which is very rare. cool!
Shepherd
Our first day in Denali was uneventful, since we got in at 4;30 pm. We were bused to our chalet, and we got checked in. Our room was very quaint and peaceful. Amee was excited that they had Bath & Body shampoo, conditioner, soap & lotions. Cocunut lime verbena was the scent. Our favorite!
We then tool a shuttle bus to the wilderness access center to pick up our tickets for the Tundra Wilderness Tour that we would take tomorrow.
After all this since it was late, we walked around the tourist traps to check out the souveniers. Since it was only 2 weeks till the end of the season, they had 50% sales on all clothing. I ended up buying a heavier fleece. Amee got a scapbooking book for our alaska photos!
Then we found this Alaskan Fish Co. restraunt that was a hole in the wall place. It had great fish. I had halibut & Amee cod. We also had some great sweet potatoe fries. The guy working there was friends with Levi, who I met on the AT on the rollercoaster. Small world.
Shepherd.
Well it is 2:50 pm and this is the view from the train. It is simply gorgeous up here in Alaska. So much color everywhere. The trees are turning colors and the redness in the ferny plants coupled with the evergreens and of course the mountains in the background. God's creation is so beautiful.
The food on the train has been surprisingly good. We even had reindeer saugage for breakfast. It was quite tasty. For lunch I had the smoked salmon corn chowder served in a bread bowl. Delicious!
So far we havent seen any wildlife other than a few water fowl, but we just entered Denali NP, which is my 3rd national park I have been to this year. We still have about one hour left before disembarking the train.
There is terrible signal up here, so I dont know when I will be able to post these stories.
Shepherd
Well we officially made it to Anchorage at 10:30 pm or 2:30 in the morning Indy time. We were beat, so we went straight to bed. The hotel is very nice and the beds very comfortable.
We woke up early to a beautiful sunrise over the mountains, and quickly got over to the Alaskan Railroad station to pick up our tickets for our 8:15 departure. But before that I had to take Amee's pic in front of these cool bears in the hotel lobby ....hopefully we will see them in person!
So now we wait, and I may start shooting some photos.
Shepherd.
Well meet Dave everyone. He was our very friendly flight attendant for our flight to Denver. Frontier is nice but they charge u $8 to watch a movie & $6 to watch tv. Ouch! Atleast they still had complinentary drinks, but no free pretzels or peanuts! The flight was uneventful , and we got to see some of the Rockies. To bad I couldnt hike some of the Colorado trail why I was out here! lol.
We r about to board flight 888 to Anchorage. It looks like a full flight. Hopefully we wont be next to another baby on this flight. Thankfully the 18 month old slept most of the last flight!
Shepherd
Well it is 1:22 pm and we made it safely to the Indy airport thanks to Eric Wright and the nouni (sp?) van!
We have never used Frontier airlines before, but check-in went like a breeze. It literally only took us 2 mins to check in. It would of been quicker but one bag was 2 pounds over the weight limit, which was easily corrected. We will comment on their service once we arrive.
So now we wait for another couple hours, time to break out a new book.. A Treatise Concerning Religious Affections by Jonathan Edwards. Good stuff!
Shepherd.
Well today is September 1st, Happy Labor day! We are finally awake and getting our last bit of clothing packed up as we prepare to head off to the Indianapolis International Airport this morning at 11 am!
We are very excited to be flying up to Alaska to see God's country for the next 12 days! Thankfully we are flying into Denver, instead of anything in the Gulf coast area! Then, We will be staying in Anchorage this evening before boarding a train that will take us to Denali National Park on Tuesday. Then we will spend Tuesday, Wednesday & Thursday in Denali before meeting up with Amee's parents back in Anchorage on Thursday evening! Then Friday we will board our cruise ship for a 7 day cruise down to Vancouver. This is just a quick overview, and Lord willing I will be putting up more detailed posts via cell phone each day of our adventures...so stay tuned!
We have been worried about what to take on this cruise, since it is the complete opposite of our Carribean cruise we took last year. On that cruise we tried to take the least amount of clothes possible since we were there for the fun and sun! But, with this cruise, we wont be lounging around the pool to much (well maybe the hot tub). The weather is suppose to be in the mid 50's all 12 days with the lows in the 40's and the chance of rain nearly everyday. :o( So we will see what God has for us!
Also, We are excited to see if we see any wildlife upclose, since I didn't get to see any bears on my AT hike. They say the chances are very good...bears, moose, caribou, mountain sheep, eagles, whales, ect... So we will have our camera ready!
Well that is all for now! Stay tuned for more updates.
Shepherd
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