Alaska Dreaming

Ten years ago this month, I was privileged to accompany my mom as she realized one of her life’s dreams. After six years of (her) meticulous planning, we toured Alaska together. The whole trip was a grand adventure. It was my mom’s first commercial flight, but she was distracted from her nerves by the attention of a sweet old man who kept hitting her up for a date by plying her with homemade maple fudge until his son-in-law bought him a beer and he fell asleep. In Seward, we hiked past the “no entry beyond this point” signs to touch a glacier - really, really, bad idea, by the way - we watched minke whales breach and momma moose nurse their babies. We saw a glacier calve and grizzlies forage and sea otters dive for clams. We played in the snow in Denali Park, hiked through the cemetery in Skagway until we found the waterfall, panned for gold in Fox, got chased by marmot outside of Homer and told off by a four year old in Bird Creek. We ate pie for breakfast and sourdough pancakes for supper and slept in bunk beds in a hostel. It was fabulous. My mom didn’t exactly invite me on this trip, but she did allow me to come along and experience it with her. I would do it all again in a heartbeat.

Exit Glacier.  And, no, you are not supposed to get that close.....

International Boundary

Twins!!!

Panning for gold ~

Sea lion haul out

This guy?  Right outside the car on the side of the road.  Just eating flowers and entertaining the tourists...

My sweet momma.  Moose Pass is home of delicious pancakes and amazing pie ~