Praise God from Whom All Blessings Flow

Praise God, from Whom all blessings flow; Praise Him, all creatures here below; Praise Him above, ye heavenly host; Praise Father, Son, and Holy Ghost.

4,300 accident/incident free miles! Halleluia!! We arrived alive. Tired, weary, but happy to have finally arrived.

Ray did a GREAT job in getting us here and enjoying the trek. His prize was to FINALLY get to see a moose. In fact, several moose. But it didn't happen until we'd gotten thru the American checkpoint and into Alaska.

Let me share what happened before all the excitement in spotting the moose. Wendell was nice and cozily dreaming about the Alaskan snow...

But once the moose was spotted, he placed himself on alert! Just as he had done when we saw Bison along the way.

As we approached the border checkpoint, and I was reading the "traveling" section of THE MILEPOST [Note to self--do this BEFORE you get to the border!!] I informed Ray that he was only allowed to bring in 12 bottles of beer, 1.5 liters of wine, and 5 Cuban cigars. We were ok with the Cuban cigars because we didn't have any. The beer and wine was another story. Ray actually had brought his wine club bottles with him (probably 15/20) and had picked up 24 bottles of beer at Yellowstone. So, we hurriedly decided that the one who could drink 12 beers the quickest would be Wendell. We had purposefully not given him too much water as we didn't know what arrangements we could make to get him out of the vehicle to relieve himself.

He's definitely gotta have some German in him (like Ray). He had NO problem downing 12 bottles of beer. Check it out!!

Ok, so we NOW know it wasn't the brightest or best idea. But, it beat Ray being pulled over and getting a DUI!! If you're going to get upset with anyone, let it be Nic. It was totally his idea!! Now today, all Wendell is doing is laying around the apartment complaining about the bright light, noise and asking for pain relievers!!

The rest of the drive was pretty uneventful but beautiful, nonetheless. The first thing we saw were the Kluane Icefield Ranges. They are Canada's highest and the world's largest nonpolar alpine ice field.

In Haines Junction we stopped to see Our Lady of the Way Catholic Mission. It was built in 1954, using parts from an old Army Quonset left from Alaskan Highway construction days.

At the next town, Ray saw the World's largest gold pan (Burwash Landing). He wasn't impressed enough to stop and take a picture. (Nic & I again were napping and missed it!) We stopped in Beaver Creek for gas and a quick bite. 3 ham & cheese sandwiches and 3 sodas for $30!! Toto...we weren't in Kansas anymore...

Next up was the International boundary marker at the Alaska-Yukon border and the next stretch of driving was along the Tetlin National Wildlife Refuge. The Refuge was established in 1980. The complex association of lakes, ponds, marshes, streams and rivers provide habitat for 143 nesting species and 47 migrants.

Beyond that were the towns of Northway (very small) and Tok. Tok (rhymes with poke) had it's beginnings as a road construction camp on the Alcan Highway, in 1942. It's believed the name was derived from Tokyo camp and was patriotically shortened to "Tok" after WWII. Because Tok is the major overland point of entry to Alaska, it's primarily a trade and service center for all types of transportation, especially for summer travelers. It's also known as the "dog sled capital of Alaska" because so many residents are involved with dog mushing. (Alaska's official state sport.)

At this point of the drive it was evening and too dark to take landscape photos. The last pic we took was at the Visitor Center in Delta Junction--95 miles outside of Fairbanks--and the official end of the Alaska Highway.

We got to the apartment about 10:30 PM. It's a two-story townhouse. 2 bedroom, 1 bath. We unloaded the UHaul this morning and the unpacking begins...

Stay tuned. YT

"Follow your dreams, be kind and always remember to enjoy every day of your life."

Douglas Richard Twiss II (Dec. 13, 1982-June 3, 2005)

Destruction Bay, Yukon Territories, Canada

The story posted about Wendell is just a joke! As I took the photos of him--it was as if he was mugging for the camera--Nic & I cooked up the story to post. Peace to all. YT