July 2, 2008; Wednesday; Day 30
It was another long alternating sleep/awake night for us. Either one or the other of us was snoring and of course BOTH the pups were! Pain for both was another reason for waking so we were reluctantly relieved to get up this morning . . . however sorry that there was to be no fishing.
Stephen’s foot – heretofore unreported – was worrisome enough that we decided that this morning would be a venture to the Doc’s in Soldotna – which ended up meaning the ER at their hospital. The facility is really nice and we were pleased with the treatment and the Doc. Are concerned about the diagnosis at this point which has Stephen on antibiotics as well as some topical creams and powders . . . love those tropical military assignments that manifest medical conditions later in life.
Since in Soldotna we took the opportunity to visit the local library to download emails, shop, and fill up on diesel! The skies were so clear we were able to see a Mountain known as
We touched based with Naomi and Ron, the camp hosts at Hidden Lake Campsite and did some prep in case Stephen is able to fish in the a.m. Dinner was basic appetizers. The weather today was sunny, highs in the low, low 70’s with light breezes.
July 3, 2008; Thursday, Day 31 (Summer is HERE!)
A killing spree was the first order of the morning . . . attacking and killing what seemed to be at least 100 mosquitoes that had found their way into our camper and were waiting to gorge on us. Stephen then did a great cleaning job on the wall to wall removable carpet, brushed the dogs and we then set down outside to our breakfast of grits. His feet doctored, he has begun the regimen of the antibiotics. There will be no fishing again today, sigh.
A special mid morning show soon followed with a combat helicopter (a 60 gunship) loaded with weapons providing an aerial show low over the campsite – much to the delight of waving, clapping and shouting campers. He faded over the treetops and then we heard the sounds of freedom as he did a low level ‘gun run’ about 150 yards over the treetops. There was lots of excitement in the camp, not to mention goose bumps. We believe it was either the Nat’l Guard or the guys from
Early this afternoon we headed to mile mark 2.0 where there is cell coverage on Skilek road and ‘phoned home’. FINALLY I was able to talk to Mom & get caught up on the 3-Cities news. Talked to the Zortman’s voicemail, as well as several other’s to hear news of the home front. Randy Goerhing was particularly clever in his wonderment of what type of fishing bait Stephen was using . . . was it real worms or sugar coated corn or gumballs, etc etc.
We met some great folks – a retired disabled Vet @ 52 years of age and his wife & 2 daughters. Their oldest black Lab is named Shadow and is 16 . . . and looks VERY much like our dearly departed Britt. We were a bit shocked at her Britt-like demeanor, body build, ailments and appearance . . . and of course took a picture(s) of her.
The weather started out sunny and mosquito laden, and then turned cloudy, windy, cool, and not so mosquito infested – yahoo! Still managed to reach the low 70’s and was a relaxing and satisfying day.
July 4, 2008, Friday, Day 32; Independence Day!!!!
Swat! Slap! Gotcha! So begins the morning once again . . . and we discover the entry point of the critters – our bedroom hatch! It seems latched but apparently is not tight enough. We drug out more ‘stuff’ since we are here until Monday morning. Stephen made a huge breakfast outside on the portable propane griddle. Afterwards we put up the screened room and spent an enjoyable afternoon relatively mosquito free!
I made an apple pie in the convection oven – thank heavens for the gift of the Pyrex pie plate from Betty Wright in Fairbanks – it has come in handy so
Page 3
many times already! The pups and I on our afternoon walk saw a Macgregor Sailboat (23 foot) trailered in to be launched and sailed for the holiday weekend. The family of four lives midway between Homer and Kenai and stated that there are a number of small sails in the area. It was fun to talk to them and they appreciated hearing about our S/V Indian Summer.
We had a nice campfire late afternoon since it seemed that rain was imminent but the breeze came up & the sun back out. Our celebratory meal was Brats, homemade Cole Slaw, Campfire Grilled Corn on the Cob and an adult beverage. It tasted wonderful! Later in the evening Michelle & Rafael and their daughters came by for pie and ‘girl’ desserts. My plastic wine glasses came in handy for the girls’ soda pops and made them feel ‘special’. We soon noticed it was almost 2300 hours so we said goodnight, put out the fire and headed to bed. (Jesse was already in the camper snoring!).
Saturday; July 5, 2008 (Day 33)
Pitter, patter, splash! What a wonderful sound to waken to . . . until you realize that the pups need to go out for their constitutional. We walked down to the lake and found a few brave fishermen were pulling their boats into the water to start their day of fishing.
Stephen’s foot continues to slowly improve so at this point we don’t have to return to the Doctor. We, along with most of the campers spent the morning in the camper, reading. Around 1100 hours the rain stopped and we took the opportunity to reorganize and consolidate the utility trailer. We think we are happier with this load but time will tell.
We took a long afternoon walk (partly sunny) with the pooches and then back to do a Dutch Oven Dinner . . . roast whole chicken with vegetables. The Wildlife Trainee’s do a campfire program on Fridays and Saturdays so we attended the one on the life cycle of the salmon at the Amphitheatre with a beautiful lakeside view of Hidden Lakes. Then it was off to see Michelle and Rafael and the girls. Mikayla and Sierra begged for a ‘hike’ so we ‘hiked’ to our campsite, picked up the pooches (they’ve nicknamed Jesse . . . Angel), & completed our evening activities – falling into bed at 2330 hours!
Page 4
July 6, 2008; Sunday (Day 34)
Who is calling at 0420 hours?!?!?! Oh, it’s the alarm clock. The pooches can’t believe we are getting up so early but open the camper door & they’re ready to GO! We drove to the Russian River (spotting a Big Male Moose enroute), arriving at 0510 hours, got Stephen ready to fish & while he was waiting for the ferry to open, the pooches & I crawled back into bed!
Upon awaking a couple or so hours later, we found Stephen ready to return after having ‘stung’ a couple of fish around 0700 hours. He said that the fishing had slowed dramatically and the fish he saw caught were turning red as they prepare to spawn. It was enjoyable fishing as not only did he sting a couple but there was at least 100 feet or more between fishermen! He indicated that keeping an eye out for bear was a top priority, especially if he heard anyone at all yelling! The signage all around the parking/camping lot every 20 feet cautioning all to beware of bears just emphasized this point. Soooo, the next run of fish are due about mid July here on the
The afternoon flew by and it was soon dinner with friends and then farewells with another family. The weather began sunny but soon clouded up so we are back to a bit of ‘spitting’ rain and light breezes. We ended up with a semi sunny early evening and 62F.
July 7, 2008; Monday (Day 35)
The sounds of a summer rain storm raged all night long. When we stepped outside this morning we realized that the wind must have been involved as well since our screened room was a shambles and everything once inside the room was continuing to be drenched in the morning rain. So much for leaving today . . . we need to dry out when the rain stops! Meanwhile our outside breakfast with friends was a ‘cozy’ inside affair. The rain did eventually stop around 1100 hours and we began the dry out process. And did generator maintenance . . . and general housekeeping . . . and finally a campfire at 1530 hours! We’ll try this moving on again tomorrow as we are now dried out and fairly well packed!
Weather was morning hard rain, sunny in the afternoon, light winds with a high of low 60’s and then evening rain.
Page 5
July 8, 2008; Tuesday (Day 36)
Hidden Lakes Campground was in our review mirror by 1100 hours as we headed for Soldotna. We visited the Soldotna Moose & Antler Shop where the owner Tom (whom carves beautiful scenes into antler pieces), gave us a tour of his facility. Our next stop was the local furrier where
Weather was mostly breezy, cold and overcast. Light rain in the morning with a high of 57 degrees. Miles traveled today was approximately 45.
July 9, 2008; Wednesday (Day 37)
My ear ache & head pain from yesterday has eased due to doctoring from Stephen. We washed the truck/camper this morning & howdied with several fellow travelers. The Zortman’s are in the process of purchasing 2 acres of land in the Anchor Pt. area to stow their 5th wheel – we’ll catch up with them in a week or so when the second run of reds begins on the
We took a long walk this afternoon with the final destination being the post office. We picked up a wool Pendleton vest for Stephen (one of the ‘forgotten’ items was the Carthart jacket lent to us by John) so my sweetie could remain warm. Weather was breezy and cold with occasional sun and highs of 54F. We remain a second night at the Fred Meyers RV Parking.
July 10, 2008; Thursday (Day 38)
Ready, set, move! We rolled out of the lot after doing all the necessary camper chores around 1100 hours. We set off to look at the ‘Friends of Troy’ parking area . . . met up with a couple of retired military (one a Navy EOD - Ron & Dee - and the other an Army Combat Engineer – Carl & Darlene Gehring) and decided that this looked like a good area to settle. We are right on the
Page 6
“
We heard from Jay-Bird regarding the cyst on his kidney directly after his ultrasound. The cyst is about 1/3 the size of the kidney and now we wait for his Doc to see what the next course of action will be. We spoke to a German couple visiting from
July 11, 2008; Friday (Day 39)
And now the wait begins . . . for the next run of Reds (the big one) and news of what procedure is needed to ‘fix’ Jay-Bird. Meanwhile another retired Army couple (Aviation – Ed & Barb O’Brien) just pulled in from Tennesee in their big motor coach. They had been live-a-boards on their 38 foot Morgan Sailboat for 10 years so was fun to talk to them.
We hiked down to the Kenai which is about ¾ miles from our camp site. No catching but a fair amount of fishing going on, particularly on the opposite side of the river. I made a peach/blueberry pie and broccoli salad (we are having a get together with the military crowd this evening for dinner) so that effectively wiped out the afternoon. The weather was mostly cloudy, breezy with a dampness which made it bone chilling. The sun came out about 1500 and left at 1800. The bug population is definitely down (probably because I purchased mosquito coils!).
July 12, 2008; Saturday (Day 40)
It seems a bit warmer this morning but then it could be that we just came off our morning constitutional! Stephen removed the hot water thermostat as its ‘kaput’ - we ended up in Sterling (16 miles east of Soldotna) for the replacement & then did some shopping. I had a nice large pot of chili
Page 7
bubbling on the stove when I heard, “
One of the big coaches (Harold & Ruth Ann Howell) had a cocktail hour. Afterwards Ruth Ann and I re-attacked the problematic TV (now that we located the TV antennae - under the satellite dish - and finally navigated through the Samsung TV Monitor menu’s enough to receive 4 television stations!). Unfortunately most are cartoons . . . so much for a news fix! Typical weather day, cloudy & cool in the a.m.; sunny at 1500 hours and the high temp of the day – mid 50’s, then cloudy & rainy all night!
July 13, 2008; Sunday (Day 41)
Gloomy, cold, rainy . . . guess we really did have summer on July 3 & 4 as the natives are now stating! The only good news about this weather is that the mosquitoes are in hiding! Stephen has joined the afternoon fishing aerobics group with Ron, Carl, and Steve – they are usually gone for 1 ½ to 2 hours – the right amount of time since the Red’s aren’t yet here! Weather was the typical rainy in the a.m., cool, warming up mid afternoon then bam! Cold! It was a great day for reading, cooking and doing crossword puzzles!
July 14, 2008; Monday (Day 42)
What an exercise day this turned out to be – and the weather cooperated so how nice was that! I took the pups on 3 walks, rode my bike into town to make a chiropractic appt for Stephen and then dinked around a bit (at the furrier – my new favorite place). The morning started out cloudy and not breezy but morphed into sunshine with a light breeze and afternoon hint of rain . . . which didn’t materialize . . . but the sun came out with a vengeance!
The guys did fishing aerobics (they go to the river and spend an hour to an hour and a half practicing their casts). We BBQ’d dinner and then read waiting for the night to darken . . . it never did as the sun was strong all night long and we were once again sleeping in the land of the midnight sun!
Page 8
July 15, 2008; Tuesday (Day 43) The Reds are Coming! Reds Coming!
FISH ON! A few more of the Red’s have wandered upstream and Stephen caught one this evening, and had a couple of other strikes. This baby was an
8 pound Hen and was huge. Stephen had a ball fishing in the late evening with some of the local folks. All were ‘Johnny on the spot’ to handle nets for getting the caught fish to shore. I have lots of ‘dirt’ on my fly fisher husband whom now owns a pair of hip boots, a large salmon fishing net and other bait casting accoutrements! Ruger & I walked down to the river at 2200 hours to watch the fishing show & walk Stephen back home at midnight. Jesse meanwhile snored in the camper.
The other two significant day’s events had to do with helping Jay and Mary locate a Nephrologists/Urologist – Stephen’s own kidney Doc - along with assistance standing by from the Milsow’s. So that wait continues but at least we are making progress. Stephen made it to his first chiropractic visit here in Soldotna with a return visit scheduled tomorrow. Weather was mostly cloudy with intermittent light showers – highs mid-50’s.
Sidebars:
- The Alaskan residents state that this year the mosquito population is down due to a late spring (May) snowstorm that effectively decimated the population. Don’t want to imagine a worse mosquito infestation.
- ATV’s (4-wheelers) are a popular mode of travel here. In fact there are many trails alongside the highways between ‘bergs’ for the ATV’s to travel.
- There are no snakes in
- The lupines (I mistakenly called them wild hyacinths) are a deeper purple and more of a hyacinth look here in
No comments:
Post a Comment