Doggy Parks

Selby Farms Park

From Albuquerque onward most of our sightseeing involved going to various doggy parks in the major cities.      The trip has been exhausting, so we hadn't really been in the mood for further sightseeing.  It was pretty neat seeing the various doggy parks since they all varied quite a bit.  Roosevelt Park in Albuquerque was dog-friendly, but it's not fenced.  There were little hills and trees all around, and no mud puddle for Millie to jump in.  It was a nice park.  In Oklahoma City we went to the Myriad Botanical Gardens hoping for a nice walk there, but the dog release area was quite small, and there's not much to see in the winter.  In North Little Rock we went to Burns Park where the dog park was full of mud puddles.  We ended up doing a walk in the River Trail instead.  Memphis had the best dog park ever at Selby Farms Park.  A section of the park there called Outback had over 100 acres of doggy space, which included trails and some lakes.  Nashville's doggy space at Centennial Park was also interesting, as there were lots of doggies in a concentrated area.  It was fun for doggy watching.  In Knoxville we stopped at Doggywood, which had a (relatively) small off-leash area, but a number of other open spaces and trails good for walking/jogging.

We really didn't do much else besides these stops for Millie.  The only other highlight was meeting up with Jen, a friend from college, in Albuquerque.  She just happened to be doing a fellowship there and I was really glad to catch up with her.

Most nights we preferred to relax and sort out administrative stuff on the internet.  Some nights I had to spend a bit of time planning for the next day's trip.  Mostly though, I've been worrying about the things I have to do over the next couple of months.  I am currently refinancing a property, and will be looking a for another when I get there.  I'm also trying to stay on top of my retirement accounts.  With Stocks peaking (tho now falling) in recent weeks, and bond bubble expecting to burst in the near future, I've been trying to figure out what to do with my money there.  Maybe it's time to start getting my hands dirty and try to hit it big with individual stocks.  Risky, but I might be able to do better than average if I do the research and stay on top of things.  Unfortunately I don't have much time for that at the moment.  Maybe once things settle down.  We'll see....

Bryce Canyon to Albuquerque

Colorado River near the dam

At the last minute we had a change in plans.  The weather forecast was calling for a winter storm (i.e. heavy snow) all day Wednesday in most parts of Arizona, including Flagstaff.  It was supposed to begin late Tuesday, with heaviest of the snow falling early Wednesday.  We would either be stuck in Flagstaff or end up driving through potentially bad conditions.  Instead of risking either, we decided to skip Flagstaff and head straight for Albuquerque, which didn't have any winter weather advisory.  It made for a very long day of driving, parts in middle of nowhere Arizona - miles from anything.  The scenery was nice but I definitely wouldn't want to be driving on these roads in bad weather.  The drive on 264 to I-40 was especially tiring.  Although, we saw one cyclist at a BLM visitor information center.  I hope he doesn't get stuck anywhere bad in the storm.

Despite the long drive, we did have couple of nice scenic stops.  The Lake Powell area was especially nice.  There are several view points around the town of page that are worth stopping.  We got a view of the Glen Canyon Dam, but somehow missed the stop for the Horseshoe bend.  That was where we were going to walk Millie, but since we missed it, she didn't get much of a walk rest of the day :(

Bryce Canyon

Today was one of the shortest drive days at 3.5 hours.  We were in Bryce Canyon around noon, and after lunch, spent the afternoon checking out the park.  The park hasn't really changed much since I was there few years ago, and there wasn't really enough snow to make the scenery any different.  Still, it was a nice break from the driving.  As for walking Millie, we couldn't really do any of the hikes since they don't allow dogs on most of the trails, which are snow or ice covered anyways.  On the way into the park though, about 14 miles out, there is the Thunder Mountain trail.  The trailhead is at the first scenic view point as you head towards the park.  We only walked around for an hour, but since there wasn't anyone around, we were able to let Millie run around off-leash.  Actually, I think the area outside of the park was a lot nicer than the park itself.  If you're going to go into the park, you really want to spend time doing some of the hikes down into the canyon.

One of the things I noticed today, a bright sunny day, is that my eyes are now more sensitive to light than it used to be after living in a dark place for two years.  I find myself wearing sunglasses a lot more than I used to.

Boise to Springville

Today was another easy drive, though the day was chilly and windy.  The scenery today was more 'white', as there was snow all around us except on the roads.  We also left at a reasonable time today so with a 5.5 hour drive, we got to Salt Lake City mid-afternoon.  This gave us time to take Millie to a nice walk at Parley Historic Nature Park.

Parley Historic Nature Park

Cascade Locks to Boise

Columbia River Gorge Scenic Area

Today's drive was an easy 6 hour drive on I-84 to Boise, Idaho.  We drove through the Columbia River Gorge scenic area in the rain, but it was still a pretty drive.  It got a bit drier about an hour or so into the drive.  No snow on the mountain pass either.  Once in Boise, we took Millie to an off-leash area in Fort Boise Park and tossed the ball around for her.  She's been a pretty good doggy these days in the car.  Maybe she's a bit stressed from the travel, I don't know.  She's not running around the hotel room like a lunatic like she did on the drive to Alaska so that is nice.  All-in-all, an easy day today.  Checked into Spring Hill Suites for the night, did couple loads of laundry ($1 for wash, $1 for dryer - not bad), caught up on e-mail, did taxes and got bummed, and now off to bed to try to get up early for a change.  Losing an hour as we move forward in time zones sucks....

I-84

Bellingham to Cascade Locks

After a hellish ride we were so glad to be off the ferry finally.  First things first we went to the Marine Park nearby to let Millie poo and eat breakfast.  She was very happy to be off the ferry too.  Then we found a off leash area near by (on 4th Street) where Millie got to run around more.  She was a usual naughty self and decided to jump in and roll around in a mud puddle just as we were about to leave.  Argh!  Good thing we carried a few towels with us for times like this.

Kaiten zushi

After leaving Bellingham we headed for Bellevue to meet with Sue & Mike at the Sushi Maru, my first kaiten zushi in the U.S.  It was pretty good!  Then a 3 hour drive to Portland to meet Maria and her friend for dinner at Tasty N Sons.  Unfortunately, I ended up asking her to come out to the ghetto of Portland because I wanted to avoid downtown traffic.  I wish I had left it to her to pick a place... oh well.  By the time we were done eating we had to head for our hotel, which was still 45 minutes away.  I didn't get to see much of Portland at all like I thought I might, so I guess I'll have to come back and check out this city again properly.

Tonight we're in Best Western Plus Cascade Locks.  I've been trying to stay in Best Western hotels where I can since they have the most pet friendly rooms.  Although a Mariott or Hilton would be nice, their pet fees ($75-100) are worth it only if you stay there a long time.  Most Best Western hotels that allow pets don't charge a pet fee, or if they do, it's only like $10 or $20 a night.  So far this hotel and the Best Western Plus Landing in Ketchikan have been really nice.  There aren't 'Plus' hotels in all the places we're going, so it won't be nice all the way, but hopefully the regular Best Westerns will be a comfortable stay.

Road Trip Grand Plan

We now have one week to go until my trip back to Virginia begins.  On Thursday the packers will come, and they will load on Friday.  I took Wednesday off to prep, so I only have two more days of work here - yipee!  We'll stay in a hotel from Thursday onward until we leave at 00:00 on Sunday on the Alaska Marine Highway System.  The trip to/from Juneau & Bellingham is typically three days, but I was able to split this up into 2 segments so we have 2 day break in Ketchikan.  This is great because Millie would go nuts stuck in a car for three days straight.  (See my post on the trip coming here.)  I don't expect there will be a whole lot to do in Ketchikan, but hope we find some nice trails to walk Millie on.

We arrive in Bellingham, WA on 2/15 and will drive 11 days straight until we get to our hotel in Herndon, VA.  The nightly stops planned as of the moment is this:


2/15/2013 Portland, OR
2/16/2013 Boise, ID
2/17/2013 Salt Lake City, UT
2/18/2013 Bryce Canyon City, UT
2/19/2013 Flagstaff, AZ
2/20/2013 Alberquerque, NM
2/21/2013 Shamrock, TX
2/22/2013 Little Rock, AR
2/23/2013 Nashville, TN
2/24/2013 Roanoke, VA

I went back and forth on what route to take and some how ended up with the above.  Unfortunately, I didn't make any plans for an extended stop anywhere.  Most of the driving days will be short though (~5 hrs), so I do hope to make good use of some mornings and afternoons to see things.  We do have a plan to stop into Bryce Canyon, Petrified National Forest, and Smokey Mountain NP.  We might throw some other things in as time permits.  I only wish more National Parks allow pets on the trails.  I don't really want to go somewhere on a road trip and have to leave Millie in the car.

In addition to seeing some sights, I found out some of my friends live near some of the places I'm stopping, so I am making plans to try to catch some of them also.  This probably means the most relaxing part of the trip will be the ferry ride, but it should be a fun road trip.

The only thing I really have to worry about now is weather.  I think I'll be fine down South but am not quite sure what I'll see around Boise and Salt Lake City.  I want to take my winter tires off now since I won't be able to switch 'em out until mid-April possibly if I drive with it.  Hopefully I'll get lucky and not hit much snow....

Alaska Road Trip

Since I do not know if I will be here next summer, I want try to see as much of Alaska as possible while I can.  As such, I took off on a little(?) road trip with Jackson that started in Anchorage on the May19th and lasted about a week.  Although I didn't have to do the driving, it was a long stretch from place to place.  The trip went something like this:

Day 1:  Anchorage to Seward

We took the scenic Seward highway from Anchorage to Seward, stopping at various view points along the way.  Unfortunately weather wasn't on our side, and it was mostly overcast with some rains at times.  We wanted to do a walk somewhere, but it was quite windy in Turnagain Arm so we skipped that.  The drive South took us across a mountain path, and it was still winter up there.  At lower elevations trees are just starting to show leaves.  Up there, the trees are still bare.  We did a side trip to a town called Hope and saw our first of many mooses.  We also stopped in Kenai Fjords National Park to see the Exit Glacier.  By the time we made it to Seward, it was already dinner time.  We ate halibut and then walked around town a bit for photos.  We stayed the night in Seward.


Day 2: Whittier and Glacier Cruise

We headed out of Seward with plans to catch the 1030 "tunnel" going to Whittier.  You see, to get to the town of Whittier, you have to take North American's longest and most inconvenient tunnel.  The tunnel is one-way, and shared with the trains.  A 15-minute slot an hour is alloted for vehicles to get into Whittier.  If you miss that slot, you have to wait for the next one.  We had a cruise booked that departed at 1230, so we wanted to be sure we had one other opportunity to take the tunnel if we missed the first.  We made our first.

The cruise that we took was Phillip's 26 Glacier Cruise around Prince William Sound.  Again, the weather that day was shit :(  Still, since it was early in season, the cruise was only half full, and the boat was really nice and comfortable.  We saw tons of otters, few whales, and lots of birds.  We didn't really see 26 glaciers, but we saw enough of them.  Not a great day for photos, but it was a nice 5 hour ride nonetheless.  I would do this cruise again if I was in the area. 

Once done with the cruise, we headed back to Anchorage for the night.

Day 3: Anchorage to Denali

We had a roughly 4.5 hour drive to Denali, but we took a side trip to Eklutna Lake and the Independence Mine on the way.  The drive up to Hatchers Pass, which was still snow-covered and closed, was very beautiful.  We passed some nice creeks going up, and saw some ground squirrels once there.  The mine was actually a bit further in there where our car could go though, and snow was too soft to walk on.  We had to look at it from a distance. 

Once back on the Parks highway, we found an view point where you can see Mt. McKinley (or Denali as they call it).  We saw the base of the mountain, but the summit was cloud covered.  Shortly afterward, we arrived in Denali, checked into our hotel, and drove into the park.  The park only lets you drive the first 15 miles into the park.  Still, that was enough for us to see caribous, moose, and a wolf. 

Day 4: Denali National Park



Today we took the park service shuttle to mile 53, or Toklat River.  The shuttle, which looks like a school bus, will stop when there are wildlife around for viewing.  Our driver was also very good at commentating and giving us lots of information.  There were also stops for bathroom breaks and view points.  Initially we though we might get off in places to more time off the bus, but we found it just easier to stick with the same bus.  We were also doing really well with the wildlife sightings.  Caribous, moose, Dall sheep, and grizzlies!  The highlight of the trip was a sow and 2 cubs.  The cubs were so tiny (and cute) - they had just been born this past winter.  They came down a mountain, crossed the road in front of us, and continued down.  We also saw another, lone grizzly later on the trip.

Our shuttle trip was done by 2:30, so we headed back into the park again afterward with our car.  We were hoping to see that wolf again, but no luck.  We drove as far as we could, to the Savage river, and did the 2 mile loop around.  I really enjoyed this particular walk.  If you're looking do hikes in Denali though, there aren't too many options.  There are some trails near the park entrance, but none in the park past mile 15.  You pretty much just go where you want.  The park actually encourages people to explore.  Be sure to read up on all of the rules and safety info before venturing out though.

Day 5: Denali to Fairbanks

Another long day of driving....  The ride to Fairbanks was actually only couple hours and a bit, but it was the hour or so to Chena Hot Springs that made the day long.  I wanted to see what that place was like since I was planning to go this past winter (only to have my flight and trip cancelled due to weather).  Can't say I was overly impressed with the place, but I can see how it'd be a charming getaway in the winter.  We did the ice museum tour, a 3 mile walk mainly for the exercise, and checked out the hot springs (tho we didn't go in).  Back in Fairbanks, we stopped at the Gold Dredge No.8 and crashed some tour that was going on.  It wasn't quite clear if it was open to the general public yet since we kept getting ushered around with the other tourists. 

Day 6: Barrow

We didn't expect there would be much to do in Fairbanks, and the drive to the Arctic Circle seemed like a really long way.  So we planned a day trip to Barrow, the Northern most town in North America.  Well, planning meant we had our flights that would get us there around 10:30am, and leave at 8pm.  We weren't exactly sure how we'd get around though since we couldn't get a hold of any car rental or tour companies.  Once there though, we somehow bumped into a guy looking for someone who had a car reserved.  Although we weren't that person, we needed a car so we went with him and got us an SUV for the day.  Definitely much better than cabbing it everywhere like we thought we might have to do.  We took the car and drove as North as we could go, and all around town.  We wouldn't get too far on foot either, and it was quite cold up there (it was ~32F but wind chill made it colder) as you would expect.  We saw the Arctic Sea and the whale bone arch you see in all adverts on Barrow.  We also went the Inupiat Cultural Heritage Center where we learned more about whaling and saw some traditional dances of the natives there.  What I really wanted to see in Barrow though were the polar bears.  We drove all around looking for them but had no luck. About the only thing I left with were bragging rights for having been there.


Day 7: Richardson Highway



We had a very long drive today from Fairbanks to Copper Center on Richardson Highway.  We got some nice views of the Alaska Pipeline on the way down, as well as of the surrounding mountains and lakes.  Man... I was really exhausted by this day.  I didn't want to do anything by the time we got to the hotel.

Day 8: Wrangell-St.Elias National Park

Today we visited our largest National Park, Wrangell-St. Elias.  It's not a very accessible park though with only like 2 roads going into the park.  It took us nearly 4 hours just to get to a footbridge near McCarthy, 60 miles of it on gravel road.  At the footbridge, a shuttle ran every hour to Kennecott.  We didn't realize we had to take the shuttle there, since we couldn't drive past this point.  Luckily, we just happenned to arrive 10 minutes before the next shuttle.  Once in town we signed up for the 1:30 tour of the old Kennecott Copper Mine.  It was very interesting to see and hear about the history and operations of this quite impressive mine.  We had hoped to do some walks, like to Root Glacier, but we didn't plan anywhere near enough time for that.  Since we had a long drive back, we took the next shuttle out of Kennecott and went back to Copper Center for the night.

Day 9: Back to Anchorage

The trip back to Anchorage took us over many mountain passes, which made our trip a lot longer than expected.  The weather was quite crappy this day too, so that didn't really help.  I was so exhausted I slept half the way back.  The only notable view on this trip was the Matanuska Glacier.  It was quite an impressive one that you can see from a view point on the road.  We did arrive in Anchorage relatively early compared to the other days, but we were pretty spent from the drive back.  The last evening was a fairly relaxed night.

Overall, it was a good trip, but it could have been better in many ways.  For one thing, we could've hit better weather.  We were also on the shoulder season, so not as much greenery in some areas, and too much snow prevented us from doing some of the things we had planned to do.  If I do this trip again, I think I'll try the shoulder season at the end of the summer, instead of the beginning.  Or, suck up the crowd and try to hit it in season.  I would like to go back and do some things again, like all of the national parks, and see more of Chugach State Park.  If I'm still around Alaska next year, I may go back to one or two of those areas and spend more time ther.  If not, well, I've at least got a taste of it all.

Road to Alaska

It took me while to decide the how, when, and what of moving to Alaska, but I think I have finally nailed it all down.  I pretty much knew from the start that I wanted to drive so I can see a few things along the way.  The tough part was planning around my dog, Millie.  She's a 6 months old black lab who is way too energetic.  I needed to make sure that I would be able to find lodging each night that allowed dogs and also have enough time each day to walk her.  All in all, I am travelling roughly 3000 miles, but I tried to limit each day's drive to about 7 hours (except for one day where I'll have to do 10).  As for activities along the way, this turned out to be much more difficult.  I'll probably be stopping in several National Parks, but none of them allow dogs!!  I was quite disappointed at that.  This means I will be cutting my stay at some of these parks short, and will be putting Millie in day care/kennel for the places where I plan to stay for a whole day or more.  So much for trying to spend quality time with her :(

There was one other snag to the trip.  There are no roads leading to Juneau, AK.  I have to take a ferry from somewhere if I was going to drive there.  My departure terminal choices with the Alaska Marine Highway System were either Bellingham, WA or Prince Rupert, BC.  Bellingham was my first choice since I could avoid couple extra days of driving.  However, I was very concerned for Millie who will have to spend most of the 3 days cooped up in her crate inside the car.  Even with 3 or more pet calls a day, I think she would be pretty miserable.  I almost considered driving to Prince Rupert, which would cut the ferry time to half.  Unfortunately, driving to Prince Rupert in the winter seemed way too risky so now I am just hoping Millie will manage the ferry ride.  I could potentially fly her from Seattle, but I would have to find someone who is available to pick her up from the kennel and put her on the plane on the day I arrive Juneau.   We'll see....

It's not my style to plan everything for a trip, but it's unfortunately necessary when you have a dog in tow.  Here is a break down of the next three weeks for me:

2/2 - Depart Reston; stay in Columbus, OH
2/3 - Stay at Dad's in Springfield, IL
2/4 - Stay in Mitchell, SD
2/5 - See Mt. Rushmore; stay in Sturgis, SD
2/6 - See Devils Tower National Monument; stay in Livingston, MT
2/7 - Drop Millie off at kennel/day care; arrive in West Yellowstone, MT
2/8 - Snowcoach tour to Old Faithful
2/9-11 - Cross-country skiing in Yellowstone?
2/12 - Another snowcoach tour in Yellowstone (Grand Canyon area)
2/13 - Dog sledding tour
2/14 - Pick Millie up from kennel/day care; stay in Liberty Lake, WA
2/15 - Arrive in Seattle; meet up with friend for dinner
2/16 - Hang with another friend; snowshoe or take dogs for a hike
2/17 - Tour downtown Seattle; hang with another friend that night
2/18 - Catch ferry in Bellingham
2/21 - Arrive in Juneau

Now that I've written it all down, it's a pretty hectic schedule.  Hopefully the ferry will be relaxing.  And I have a few days in Yellowstone where I can choose to do nothing if I want.  Hopefully I will manage to stay healthy during the trip and avoid snowstorms.  Wish me luck!