On Aug 25th we celebrated "Christmas." Apparently, back in the early 1900's some guests were stranded in Yellowstone by an early snowstorm, so, the resort workers decided to have a Christmas party to keep the folks entertained and the practice of "Christmas in the Park "continues toady at all the National Parks. Ours started off on the 23rd when our dining hall was decked out with red and green streamers, balloons and a Christmas Tree with an invitation posted on the bulletin board to gather for the making of paper snowflakes that evening which later completed the decorations (the genuine snowflakes had already fallen producing a dusting of snow on the nearby lower mountain range which we have hiked in the past.)
Dec 24th was the "cookie decorating" gathering...... neither event were we able to participate in due to our work schedules, however, we did get to enjoy the turkey dinner with all the trimmings on the 25th. ..... So, that brought us to "Boxing Day" 26th, our regular scheduled day off, we took a 7 mile hike to "walk off" the calories from the previous day's over indulgence. It was a raw cold day, the kind where you can see your breath and one needed scarf, gloves and several insulating layers, however, over a period of several hours while hiking through the wooded trails, the rain eventually stopped making for a very pleasant day. After a short nap! we had a night out at the Princess Hotel (our competition ) for a dinner/show musical evening, before calling it a day.
We are still hoping to see "The Northern Lights" before we leave, though they are more commonly seen during the winter months, ~ it is all a matter of having perfect conditions, that being ~ a clear night .......lately it has been socked in heavy rain cloud, however, we really can't complain as overall the temp has been unseasonably warm these past 3 months. Each day now there are more and more employees leaving with a noticeable decrease in the noise level in the dining room ~ we will be off ourselves on the noon train for Anchorage on Sept 17th, it really feels strange now realizing we only have three more weeks left. Has the summer gone quickly? ....No I don't think so..... but it has definitely been a fun adventure, where we feel very lucky to have immersed ourselves in such majestic beauty and awesome wildlife.
Thursday, August 27, 2009
Monday, August 24, 2009
Friday, August 21, 2009
The Adventures Continue
OK Folks ....... we know it has been a month or so since our last posting ......... will keep it as brief as possible.
Firstly, we had a wonderful visit with Patrick Aug 1-4th, the weather was good for the most part and he got to see more than the average guest during his 3 day stay. On his first day he and Mary took the 8 hour bus tour into Denali Park where he saw several of the animals, however, like most folks he did not get to see Mt McKinley due to the low cloud/rain. We have taken this ride several times and have seen the scenery change from bare trees/brown dusty ground, to lush green foliage, to now the autumn hues. Currently the aspen trees are turning golden and in another week or so the tundra will be completely red.
On day two the three of us took the 12 mile bus ride to an area called Savage River where we did a pretty strenuous hike and had a fairly close encounter with one of the "Dall Sheep." In the past they had been so far off in the distance that they looked like snowballs with feet. The views from the ridge were pretty spectacular as we sheltered from the wind behind a large rock and eat our peanut butter sandwiches. Later in the day we walked around horseshoe lake (a favorite 5 mile round trip walk of ours which we do quite often.) We knew that beavers were around and had even found what we thought was their old "lodge." While the 3 of us were sitting quietly beside the lake, out popped a beaver who then entertained us for quite a while.
Day three Ron and Patrick hung out, saw the "dog sled demonstration, walked some nearby trails and later were able to take a flight around Mt McKinley (on oxygen from above 12,000 ft) which made up for him not being able to see the mountain on his first day. Very spectacular!
We also wined and dined which was a real treat for us as our meals in the "employee dining hall" are starting to get old. By all accounts Patrick enjoyed his visit.
On Aug 11th a friend, Juanita, joined us on a 3 day excursion to the south coast to the town of Seward. On the way we took a small detour to a delightful, two block town of Talkeenta, spent a couple of hours browsing, tasting the locally brewed beers and enjoying lunch outside. To me it was like discovering an oasis in the middle of a desert, this little town is surrounded with mile upon mile of raw rugged open wilderness..... definitely a special treat and without a doubt my favorite place.
It was a beautiful clear sunny day and we were surprised to see Mt McKinley on our drive down to Anchorage, (our only other time of traveling this road was on our initial bus ride up here in May) so another photo op. Our scenic drive to Seward took us 7 hr and we were happy to pull into our lodgings......... oh boy was it nice to be the guest for a couple of days, the comfort of having a bath mat to stand on after a shower, not to mention all facilities being connected, this in itself made it a vacation!
The following day we were took a 9 hr Kenai Fjords boat tour....... it was pretty overcast but at least not raining........ WHAT a WONDERFUL day we had....... the otters, porpoise, whales, sea-lions, seals, plus the multitude of birds (our favorite definitely being the plucky puffin) kept us more than entertained, not to mention the majestic glaciers and magical waterfalls......... our captain was most knowledgeable and the day just flew by. It was with some reluctance that we checked out of our lodgings on the last day and made our way back this time stopping in Anchorage for a little shopping and a decent haircut!
Today, we awoke to a sunny but very cold day (the night time temps are dropping into the 20s!) We kept warm clothing on for most of the day but enjoyed ourselves hiking ending up at Horseshoe Lake again to sit and wait for some beaver activity. Our patience paid off for a couple of beavers popped out busy in the process of making a new dam…then to our surprise for the very first time at Horseshoe Lake we saw a Moose at the waters edge quietly and contentedly grazing on the underwater grasses. Amazingly we were able to get within 20 ft and she didn't seem in the least bit concerned....... THIS is the joy and reason for being here ~ to truly enjoy all this wildlife and scenery without having to use a huge camera lens.
So once again we will pull the covers up tonight and say ......... It was a very good day. :)
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