Guest kwindshawne Posted July 6, 2008 Share Posted July 6, 2008 I made it!! Can you believe it? Those of you who know the hell I went through last year with my flight, know I was not in the best mindset for this trip, however, it went without a hitch. After oversleeping and nearly missing the flight out I managed to get there and on the plane within 40 minutes-without coffee!! I took pics, but am struggling with image shack so those will be posted (hopefully) at a later date. Some pics are posted on facebook, which I may make public temporarily. Updates coming soon. By the way, I am told it will not be dark here tonight-gets dusky this time of year. Should be interesting with jet lag. Going to a glacier tomorrow. Pics posted on my website link on profile.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
iChase Posted July 6, 2008 Share Posted July 6, 2008 Congratulations on making it! I'm rather impressed at your record breaking trip to the airport. I'm even more amazed that you made it through security in such a time. You can email me all your photos and I'll host them for you. chasewebb{at}{mac}{dot}{com} Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
iChase Posted July 6, 2008 Share Posted July 6, 2008 Here are the pictures: Great pictures Kelli, looking forward to more. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Avatar Posted July 6, 2008 Share Posted July 6, 2008 Kelli, Glad to hear you made it to Alaska safe and on time. The pictures so far look great, I can't wait to see more when you have time. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Justin_M17 Posted July 6, 2008 Share Posted July 6, 2008 Awesome pics. I love the view of the mountains Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hank Posted July 6, 2008 Share Posted July 6, 2008 My wife and I have wanted to go to Alaska for some time now. Even an Alaskan Cruise would work. But, after seeing your pictures, I think the "regular" vacation would work just fine. Keep the pics coming. By the way - seeing those pics made me think that some amusement park ought to have an Alaskan themed area - would work for me! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Interpreter Posted July 6, 2008 Share Posted July 6, 2008 Well, Cedar Point has Disaster Transport...which is 'themed'--if you can call it that with a straight face--as a trip to Alaska! Great pictures! Have a wonderful time! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hank Posted July 6, 2008 Share Posted July 6, 2008 Bring back Bayren Curve! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest kwindshawne Posted July 7, 2008 Share Posted July 7, 2008 I am currently uploading the second day of pics and emailing to iChase as we speak. We started off heading further away from civilization to get to this glacier-it is called Matanuska glacier. A couple owns the access to the glacier, so you pay a fee and drive back. It was t shirt weather at the gift shop, but less than a mile away it turns cold quickly. As we got closer to the actual glacier, it turned into a mud rock mix. As we progressed further, you could see pieces of ice poking in between. At the heart of the glacier, puddles of water in between the ice were blue-i told my sis, it looked like kryptonite. I cupped my hands into it and took a drink. Had to be the best water I've ever had-and ice cold!!!! We then got back in the truck and headed towards Independence mine about 12 miles outside of wasilla. (Could be more). It's an old mine that was closed in 1951 when it was no longer profitable to mine. Some of the buildings are being slowly restored, but the main part of the mine has collapsed and remains in that state today. The weather started ok, but it was raining and cut our trip short. As we went down the mountain, the weather slowly improved and eventually we saw the sun again. I will have to say, the sun feel stronger here-being blonde and light skinned, I tend to notice those things. The pics of the glacier runoff was at the base of the mountain from the mine. Tomorrow we head up to soldotna for our fishing trip. We will be staying overnite, fishing all day tuesday, and heading back sometime tuesday evening. It may be a while before I post more pics, and if I catch anything, I will make sure to post. My verizon access is hit and miss here-it didn't work at the gift shop, but surprisingly I had a signal on the glacier itself. BTW, the one pic of the moose was as we were leaving the glacier. Hard to see, but kinda in the middle of the pic. They are huge!!! It's really nice here, and I don't know what to think. It distresses me there are no theme parks here, but in all honesty, it doesn't fit with the lifestyle here. The weather here would not help either, I am told, since it gets cold enough it could shatter the metal. It has been 65 degrees or so during the day here, but sure doesn't feel like it. I've rambled enough. Will check in again in a few days..... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
iChase Posted July 7, 2008 Share Posted July 7, 2008 Trip report is looking nice Kelli. I'm glad you're having fun! Day 2 Pictures: 3AM Notice the moose in the clearing in these two pictures. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest kwindshawne Posted July 9, 2008 Share Posted July 9, 2008 Life is good up here. Went fishing on Kenai yesterday, and saw more wildlife than I will ever see again. Just yesterday I saw two moose, doll(?) sheep, and numerous bald eagles. I just missed spotting a bear-he took off before I was fully awake in the car. While fishing, if you need a restroom break, we pull up to the bank-you have to make sure you sing or do something to make noise-otherwise, you may have the misfortune of spooking a bear, which is a bad thing. On the bank, there are trails everywhere, which the guide told us are bear tracks. I caught about 4 fish yesterday, but the most spectacular thing for me was seeing a bald eagle catch a fish. This place is truly heaven on earth-and everyone is friendly. I am not sure I want to come back. Dad is having the time of his life and this will truly be a great memory for all of us. It pains me to see how tired he is, but this was well worth it. More pics to come-I am having connection issues on my phone, and my sister took the fishing pics. More than likely I will just be hanging out for the rest of the trip. I don't even know what day it is, and dont care!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
strunk27 Posted July 9, 2008 Share Posted July 9, 2008 thats really awesome. I would love to go to alaska some day. those mountains are incredible. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
UncleHenry Posted July 9, 2008 Share Posted July 9, 2008 I've been to Alaska before. Had some interesting things happen... Getting lost at "Exit Glacier" Walking across a highway Getting chased by a moose Yeah, I was a stupid kid. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest kwindshawne Posted July 9, 2008 Share Posted July 9, 2008 I've been to Alaska before. Had some interesting things happen... Getting lost at "Exit Glacier" Walking across a highway Getting chased by a moose Yeah, I was a stupid kid. My sister got some close up pics of Junior-her pesky moose that won't stay out of her garden. I am hoping to post them sometime in the next few days. It's a bit cold, otherwise I like it just fine, wildlife included. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest kwindshawne Posted July 10, 2008 Share Posted July 10, 2008 Yesterday and today has mostly been relax days since I have been running hard since I got here. Today we went to the Iditarod headquarters which is probably a mile down the road from my sister's house. She took the majority of the pictures, while I was playing with sled dog puppies. I got to hold one!! I picked a little black one to play with, but the white one chose me and came right up to me, so I played with it. Joe Reddington, Jr offers brief runs with the sled dogs for visitors. He is the son of the man who started the Iditarod race and they have a nice visitor center up here. The pics I personally took are from the few runs that I witnessed. It was quite a sight to see...the dogs get really excited when they are attached to the sled and start jumping around and bark-howl with their excitement. Remind me so much of my wolf in his younger days, although these dogs are smaller than he was. They have a glacier here named from my family name, and come to find out it was a direct ancestor. Quite a switch from the way it is at home. I dont think I will make it this trip, but plan to go there and sign the family guestbook next time I am here. Pics are being sent to iChase now, should be on soon. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Avatar Posted July 10, 2008 Share Posted July 10, 2008 I just love live trip reports, this one has been so relaxing to read. When I came home today I was looking to see if you posted an update yet, glad to hear you are enjoying your time with your dad and sister. I like the pictures so far and just want to thank ichase for helping out. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest kwindshawne Posted July 10, 2008 Share Posted July 10, 2008 The memory card from my sister's camera worked, and Ihave a short clip of the dogs running with Mr. Reddington. I hope it works on here. I can't thank iChase enough either. This whole trip has been life changing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
iChase Posted July 12, 2008 Share Posted July 12, 2008 Alright, I have the new pictures! Sorry it's taken so long. I've been up to my neck with band stuff lately. I'm glad to do this. Kelli has pictures and experiences that need to be shared! Looking forward to the next update! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest kwindshawne Posted July 12, 2008 Share Posted July 12, 2008 This was an experience of a lifetime...I didn't want to come back, but here I am in chicago waiting for the last trip home. I am a changed person thanks to this trip, and I plan to go up again as soon as possible......thanks so much iChase for posting these and making it work!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fan of beast Posted July 12, 2008 Share Posted July 12, 2008 i told my wife we would go south to the beach this winter. i think my arm could easily be twisted to go to alaska next spring. you got me with the fishing pics. i have been salmon fishing in lake michigan, but i bet that doesn't compare to alaska. there are lots of bald eagles in northern michigan. they are amazing to watch. they have massive wingspans if you ever get the opportunity to see one fly over close. you'll probably need a vacation to recover from a vacation like that. thanks for the awesome report. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest kwindshawne Posted July 12, 2008 Share Posted July 12, 2008 i told my wife we would go south to the beach this winter. i think my arm could easily be twisted to go to alaska next spring. you got me with the fishing pics. i have been salmon fishing in lake michigan, but i bet that doesn't compare to alaska. there are lots of bald eagles in northern michigan. they are amazing to watch. they have massive wingspans if you ever get the opportunity to see one fly over close. you'll probably need a vacation to recover from a vacation like that. thanks for the awesome report. You're welcome. While we were out on the Kenai, I noticed it was dead quiet-no cars, planes or anything-just the occasional screech from the eagles. I had the special experience of seeing one catch a fish and fly right over us with it. It was something I will never forget and hope to see again very soon. The fishing was an off day, but I still nailed 4 fish total. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fan of beast Posted July 12, 2008 Share Posted July 12, 2008 i told my wife we would go south to the beach this winter. i think my arm could easily be twisted to go to alaska next spring. you got me with the fishing pics. i have been salmon fishing in lake michigan, but i bet that doesn't compare to alaska. there are lots of bald eagles in northern michigan. they are amazing to watch. they have massive wingspans if you ever get the opportunity to see one fly over close. you'll probably need a vacation to recover from a vacation like that. thanks for the awesome report. You're welcome. While we were out on the Kenai, I noticed it was dead quiet-no cars, planes or anything-just the occasional screech from the eagles. I had the special experience of seeing one catch a fish and fly right over us with it. It was something I will never forget and hope to see again very soon. The fishing was an off day, but I still nailed 4 fish total. fish in water that cold is the tastiest fish you'll ever have. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest kwindshawne Posted July 24, 2008 Share Posted July 24, 2008 Final pics...if I can get them to load. Seems as though Junior the moose made an appearance yesterday, and these are the photos of him trying to invade my sisters garden. I was hoping to see him before I left, but wasn't meant to be. http://img521.imageshack.us/img521/9070/s8...5668429cgt9.png http://img514.imageshack.us/img514/5089/s8...3416829csk2.png http://img515.imageshack.us/img515/8650/s8...7926129cml6.png Sorry for the size-the fact I was even able to post them is a miracle Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
iChase Posted August 17, 2008 Share Posted August 17, 2008 One last picture from Kelli. A bear. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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