Jim and Irene’s Excellent Adventure

Or

 Starting to check off our Bucket List

        Number One on Jim's bucket list is Alaska. Number one on Irene's bucket list is Alaska and number 1(a) Banff/Lake Louise Canada. We tried to go to Banff for our honeymoon, but could not afford it at the time, promising ourselves we would go our first opportunity. Well, 39 years later, our first opportunity, we are on our way.

    

     Irene's infatuation and fantazies about Alaska were fueled first by her parents, Pop and Ruth, and their adventuresome trip through the Inside Passage on a ferry.  Pop and Ruth were lucky enough to have secured one of the very few cabins on the ferry that allowed them to stay with the ship through the entire voyage.  When Irene watched them sail off out of San Francisco, her fascination began.  When they returned and told stories of Skagway, the glaciers, whales and all the port of calls ( including the train to Whitehorse) she was hooked. 

   

     Later Uncle Karl and Aunt Olive took their own separate Cruise to Alaska and were actually inducted into the highly secretive and selective Grand Order of the Walrus.  They too came back and talked about the trip for hours. 

                    Irene was hearing the Siren song for Alaska.

 

    What may have been the final straw on her back was her own trip to Alaska when she flew up to Anchorage to pick up Jimmy Jr.  He had helped his cousin Joey drive to Valdez, where Joey spent the summer guiding rafts on the Lowe River.  Talk about a whirlwind trip.


 She was in Alaska for all of 24 hours, managed to drive to the Portage Glacier, gathered Jimmy off the train from the ferry, drove half way to Denali in hopes of seeing Mt McKinley and then flew home to Sacramento.    I have heard of wetting your whistle before you take a gulp or dipping your toe before jumping in, but Flying to Alaska for 24 hours?  You got it, she has been talking about it ever since. 

 

     Growing up in the mountainous area of Northern California, Yreka to be exact, I was fortunate be exposed to the gold mines, hunting fishing and camping of a year gone by.  Part of my wonderful youth was having a grandfather that delighted in having my brother and I stay overnight and tell grandpa  stories of his youth in the late 19th and early 20th century. 

   Grandpa was a hunter, a gold miner and then Town Marshall for 44 years.  He was an accomplished hunter and shooter with rifle or pistol.  He hunted, unsuccessfully, the last known grizzly bear in California, know as Club Foot, in the Siskiyou mountain range separating California and Oregon. He discovered perhaps the richest vein of gold in the Yreka area while hiking with his brother.  Grandpa eventually sold that claim to the Osgood mining company.

   So what has this got to do with Jim and Irene's excellent adventure?  Some of  brother John and my favorite stories were about Grandpa's adventure going to the Gold fields of Alaska at the turn of the Century.  Stories of getting from Skagway to Whitehorse.  Stories of the gold miners, the towns, panning for gold, and most of all, the wild life,  The wolves, grizzly bears, dear, eagles and moose.  Stories that fueled a young boy’s imagination with thoughts of adventure, gold riches, and a hunting nirvana.
 

      June 2012, we started fantasizing about a dream vacation in Alaska.  Because of the time required and the distance to travel, we decided to do it right.  But just how do you do it right?  Cruise the inside passage along Alaska Marine Highway?  After the cruise take a train to Denali and points north? Fly and drive Alaska? Take our Explorer, dogs and a tent and see the country?  How bout we rent a motor home and land yacht our way about?  That's the ticket.

   So we started our research and tried to contact several RV rental companies by Telephone, Email and Smoke signals (we tried both black and white smoke).  No response for about 10 days from 3 separate companies.  And then. And then, we discovered Great Alaska Holidays, an RV rental company that provides new or nearly new Winnebago’s for Rent.  They actually answered their own phone! Full of information, pleasant and very helpful. And very Professional! 

   Ok, so you found an RV rental place that would talk to you.  Great, but what is the big deal?  

   They have what is called their Spring Adventure.  We have to fly to Minneapolis/St Paul. take a bus to Forrest City, Iowa and pick up a brand new 32' Winnebago and drive it to Anchorage !  Very cool, Boss, Far Out, Bodacious, Over the Top, Off the Hook, Bitchin trip of a life time.  

   We are beginning to understand a little of what Lewis and Clark went through in their 3 year preparation trying to find the water passage to the Pacific Ocean.  Many of you may remember Pop's nickname for Irene. If not, it is Pushy Broad.  Very appropriate.  As we have gone through planning process over the past 10 months, Irene has, lets just say imposed her will, kind of decided where and when we will go  and how long we will stay.  Long live my own personal Sacagawea! 

   One of the things that Jim hopes to acccomplish is to debunk the myth that there are actually living Moose in existence.  We have traveled thoroughly in Idaho, Montana, Wyoming, Massachusetts, Maine, New Hampshire, and Vermont.  Been to Glacier, Yellowstone, The Grand Tetons and Acadia National Parks.  All reputed to be prime Moose country.   We have seen pictures of Horses with huge antler racks, very imaginative Statutes and sculptures  purportedly of Moose.  But we have yet to see one.   We believe that Moose are in the same Category as Big Foot, Mermaids and Unicorns.  Check back with us and we will try and dispell the notion of the existence of Moose.

 

Check our blog in early May for latest updates. We intend to post a blog and pictures everyday or as often as internet access allows.  If you wish to follow us and be alerted to the latest blog, just go to the bottom of this page and click on the button.