Wistful for Washington

In September I was able to head home to Washington for my good friend Lynn's wedding. My first weekend, we of course went to Orcas Island for a get-away. The above picture was the start of the sunset view from the ferry...it turned bright red and pink the closer we got to the island. It was one of the most beautiful ferry rides I've had, and it started my visit off with a nice resonence of tranquility. 

Tyler went moose hunting while I went home, so Gretel was lucky enough to get her first airplane vacation! She was very well behaved on the plane and received many compliments from the airline staff. Apparently, airline personell don't see dogs go willingly into their kennels very often. Once we arrived, she was ecstatic to see Grandma and Grandpa Human and constantly jumped on my Dad the hole visit. She really enjoyed the visit to the Orcas house and became quite adept at jumping off the dock after sticks, not a trick most dogs take on very readily. She was like a super dog, plunging under the water, surfacing with a billow of air to clear her nasal passages, then on the prowl for that elusive peice of wood! 

Lynn's wedding came the next weekend. She specifically wanted a roast pig, so since my parents catered the wedding, we got to watch the pig roast from start to finish. It was on the spit by 4am, and this is Mr. Pork-Almighty in all his glory. Definately the best pork to ever enter my mouth, I drool just looking at the picture!

At the wedding with some wonderful high school friends! If only Alaska was closer...I could see you all more! 

Dad never missed a moment to play with Gretel. Here, he plays with her and the 16 year old golden retreiver at the same time. Such talent! 

I of course got to see my much-missed family while I was home, with plenty of love from everyone! Here I'm enjoying a great visit with Aunt Connie and Uncle Jim. 

I of course got to visit with friends, too! Jill made an amazing chocolate strawberry cake when we had her and her fiance Ira over for dinner. The hardest thing about living in Alaska is being far away from amazing friends and family. And Jill's visit solidified that notion ten-fold! 

All in all, a great visit home. If only I could do it more often. 

Wishin for the Fishin

My parents came for a fun visit in June. We took them up north to Talkeetna for a salmon fishing trip on the Talkeetna River, supposedly a superb fishing location. The drive took about 6 or 7 hours, and was gorgeously sunny the whole way. We took a water taxi up the river to the prime fishing spot and got ready for the fun, pictured above. 

Tyler, Dad, and I all tried our hand at salmon fishing. The trick is to anger the salmon enough that he wants to attack your lure. 

We saw a lot of giant fish, but couldn't entice them. We tried many different setups, here Dad's changing out the tackle. 

Mom and Dad playing with Gretel while we waited for the taxi. No fish, but a gorgeous trip in the Alaskan wilderness! 

August Shenanigans

I'm going to try and attempt a few quick blogs to update you on our fall and winter. We stayed busy, enjoying Alaska! 

We went on a beautiful backpacking trip in August. The hike goes straight up for an elevation gain of about 1000ft, then levels off and you hike around two gorgeous lakes. Above is the second lake, Crescent Lake. The cabin we stayed at was on the opposite side, about three or three and half more miles from where this picture was taken. Little did we know the trail isn't maintained in the summer. We were swarmed by bugs, dwarfed by gigantic cow parsnip bushes that were over our heads, traversing on muddy, slippery rocks we couldn't see, during berry season when all the bears could very well be hidden in the bushes in front of us looking for the little tastey jems. We ate a few of the berries ourselves, but the rest of the hike took us hours even though it was only a couple miles. Exhausting! So we didn't stop for much berry picking. But still one of the most beautiful hikes we did all summer. 

Once we got to the cabin, exhausted both mentally and physically, we were in dire need of some nourishment. As we started boiling the water, we realized *gasp* we forgot utensils! We only had one pocket knife, which you can't eat pasta with very well! Thankfully, some campers left a newish-looking toothbrush holder behind. After some short pondering, shown above, Tyler cut the cylinders in half  and we sanitized them in boiling water. 

The little spoons fit quite well in the pan for their little sanitizing boil bath!

And viola! Look how well those little spoons worked for the pasta! After that last bit of mental energy was spent, we quickly passed out hard in recovery from our day's trek. It's about 9:30pm in the picture, even though that Alaskan summer light's still pouring in the window. 

The next morning, I watched the sunriset and made Gretel this beautiful fireweed necklace. It, of course, didn't last long. Before long, I saw her on the opposite ridge at least a mile away rustling through the bushes looking for something to chase. At least I could see her turn around and rush back the minute I called for her!