Old Denali Highway

(Maclaren Lodge, Old Denali Road, Alaska) - Lots of driving today!! Almost 12 hours. We did cover lots of miles, but mostly it was the rustic road conditions (gravel, washboards, soft shoulders, potholes) that made it slow going. Passed from Canada back into the sweet, sweet US of A in Poker Creek, AK. Obviously homeland security is not much of an issue here since our passports weren't even checked and they were more concerned about getting us our Moose Stamp than whether or not we had weapons or IED's. Although, let's be serious here... there's not much of a terrorist threat in Alaska... what are they going to do, nuke the tundr?

From the border it was on to Chicken, Alaska (Population: 25 Happy People & 1 Grump as the sign at the entrance of town says) where I got my free rubber chicken with my gas fill-up. Then driving all day. The last pull of the day was down the Old Denali Highway, a dirt road that served as the original entrance to the park. We stay 42 miles into the 120 mile dirt road at a small, rustic homestead called Maclaren Lodge. Great food, amazing views and incredible hospitality made for a great time.

The border crossing.

Back to the States... Good to be home!

Mama Moose and her calves that we saw while driving to the McClaren Lodge.

Midnight Hike

(Dawson City, Yukon) - In Dawson City we decided to hike up Midnight Dome, the "mountain" that looms over the city. It was pretty cool to be able to set off on a hike at 9 o'clock at night. When we reached the top it was and took these photos, it was around 11 pm... Gotta love this Midnight Sun. It's been pretty light out all night and we'll be up here for the summer solstice (June 21) the longest day of the year. We'll have to have an all night party... who can sleep when it's sunny all night anyway?

The top of Midnight Dome

Volker "The Nicest German in the World" Steinlein clowning.

Group jumping shot #1

Group jumping shot #2

The Klondike

(Dawson City, Yukon) - My first trip to Alaska!! Wasn't really excited until I knew I had it but the prospect of heading to "The Last Frontier" really had me excited. The trip is 26 days of long drives, remote camping and lots of mosquitos but the amazing landscapes and loads of animals make it worthwhile.

So far things are rolling well. It's been a week of long drives through BC and Yukon to make it up to Alaska. The group is good and we've had plenty of time to hang since the midnight sun gives us almost 22 hours of daylight. It's weird to hang out around a fire at 11:30 @ night and it still be sunny! We've seen loads of wildlife: moose, bear, caribou, beaver, fox, etc. Spent one night in the southern arm of Alaska and got "Hyderized" (I'll explain Hyderization in an upcoming post). But mostly just driving during the day and hanging at night but we did have a day to canoe which was nice (except for the near-death experience). Today I'm in Dawson City, the northernmost metropolis (1800 people) in the Yukon. Looking forward to my sourtoe cocktail toe-night (har, har) and heading into Alaska tomorrow. The real adventure is yet to come...

The group on day 1.

Twilight on Cuclutz Lake in BC.

Volker Steinlein washing my windows.

The bustling metropolis of Hyder, Alaska (pop. 60).

Our 1st Glacier (Bear Glacier on the Stewart Hwy, BC).

Crystal Clear Lakes.

A Black Fox. He was a real showboat, posing for the camera. Kind of looks like a cousin of my brother's dog Zanna.

Beer + Fire + Camera

Almost a full moon. Midnight at Moose Meadows.

Sanibel representing at the Watson Lake Sign Forest.

Posting our sign at the Sign Forest.

Yukon Gold!

Group Clownin'.

My Crew.

Bald Eagle protecting it's nest housing 2 chicks.

Memorial Day Week In Seattle

Spent the week after Memorial Day chillin' out in Seattle. My parents knew that I would be there so they flew out for the week to cheek out the city. I spent the week hanging out with my Seattle friends, preparing for my Alaska "Klondike" trip & and hanging out with the folks. Christine and Jason were gracious hosts for putting me up for almost 2 weeks and were spectacular guides for my parents and I. Popped over to the Olympic Penninsula for 2 cloudy days to hang in Olympic National Park and hone up on my photo skills with my new camera and my SLR Sensai Jason was great help.

One of my 1st photos with my new camera. Looks like a advert for Tums.

Family (& honorary family) shot during rainy walk at Olympic National Park.

Dining in style at the Crescent Lake Lodge... Thanks Mom & Dad.

Messing around with the new camera.

Long exposure with red headlamp and ipod.

Ipod name spellin's.

Jason's morning rainbow shot.

Jason & Christine posing like a "Remington Steele" detective team.

Pappy.

Me about to karate chop Murphy's ass for his Dine & Ditch fiasco.... Ate and ran post pub and left me passed out at the booth to take the heat... Beeotch!!

The Seattle skyline @ night.

Sasquatch @ The Gorge

(Central Washington) - Went to The Gorge to see the Sasquatch Music Festival. The day started out beautiful but as soon as we entered the show the clouds came and the sky opened. First 10 minutes of frigid rain followed by a 15 minute encore of hail, hail & more hail. Beautiful. Made for a soggy and cold evening of delayed shows and unenthusiastic fans. Still got to see The Shins, Stephen Malkmus, Ben Harper and The Flaming Lips. I had tix to the Sunday show but sold them as I was not hyped to see another show in the hail (plus my ride was heading back to Seattle).

Kite Watching (The distant American cousin of Trainspotting)

The Dudes

Jason Taking Photos

Wow... I've Been Slackin'

(Seattle, WA) - Hey... It's about time I got a post up. Things have been a little bit hectic: Starting up my Trek season, Rescuing a trip (during my birthday weekend no less!!), Vacationing in Seattle, Gearing up for my first trip to Alaska. Not a whole lot of time to sit down and post the goods. Since my last post I bought a new camera. Figured I couldn't head up to "The Last Frontier" with just a point and shoot, so I bought a digital Nikon SLR!! Having a nice camera doesn't help you take better pictures, but I'm hoping to sharpen my shootin' skills up in the northern lands. Let me know what you think about the pics...