This morning, we had rain and fog so we did not get the spectacular mountain and glacier views we had hoped for. We also had been warned to be on the lookout at the summit for berry pickers. Apparently, some of them don't look when they cross the highway. Today, we will drive through Anchorage.
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| One view of the mountains showed from out of the fog. |
On the way to Anchorage, we had to drive over a mountain with a very narrow, two-lane highway. I called it harrowing. Semis came blasting around corners and you had to hope they stayed in their own lane. The road was so narrow there was no shoulder. Absolute concentration was required to avoid rough roads and oncoming vehicles.
We also had to be on the lookout for cars passing in no-passing zones. Thankfully, Fred was behind us and he notified us on our short-range radio when someone behind us was passing so we could be extra careful. The one thing that was really good on that stretch of road was that we were on the inside lane next to the mountain, not on the drop-off side!
Once we got past the worst of the road, the highway improved as did the view. We followed along the Matanuska Glacier for a long time. That is one huge mass of moving ice! You can see that the fog is still hanging around.
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| Following along the Matanuska Glacier. |
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| Still following the glacier. |
We stopped at a pullout overlooking the toe of the Matanuska Glacier. That's where we had lunch and took care of Sunnie.
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| The toe of the Matanuska Glacier. |
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| The toe of the Matanuska Glacier. |
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| Wildflower or weed? It's pretty either way. |
Our next stop, in the pouring rain, was the Fred Meyer grocery store in Palmer. What a nice store! It was well stocked, clean, and had great service. (Plus, I have a discount card there from all our years in Oregon.)
When we finished at Fred Meyer, Bob wanted to find a part for our toilet. We could use the foot pedal to flush, but it wouldn't come back up to put more water in the toilet bowl. Bob found two RV supply places. The first one didn't have the part, so we drove to Wasilla and they did have the part. Luckily, we were able to turn around in the area where that supplier was. On the map, it looked like there was a road through to the main road if we turned left. However, when we got there and turned left, all we saw was a dirt hill filled with trees. It looked like an ATV or motorbike could go through there, but not us with our 5th wheel!
With our big city chores complete, we headed to Anchorage. Anchorage does not have a freeway through or around town. We were advised to keep our doors locked as we went through the city. There have been a couple of carjacking incidents.
As we drove through the Palmer-Anchorage corridor, we saw signs for two different waterfalls. We will hike those when we return to Palmer later in the month.
After leaving Anchorage, we had a nice freeway through the south end of Anchorage. Then we turned a corner and came out into sunny weather at Turnagain Arm.
Our first stop on Turnagain Arm was Beluga Point turnout. It's supposed to be a good spot to look for mountain goats on the cliffs. We had our binoculars out and searched and searched. Some other people in our group were there and they were sure they saw some. However, all we could find were white rocks.
It was nice to get out and stretch our legs in the beautiful weather and go down on the beach! Matt and Margret were there with Xena-dog (their standard poodle). Xena was a bundle of energy and ran back-and-forth between us and Matt and Margret. Xena is so fun to play with.
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| Turnagain Arm. |
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| Beluga Point on Turnagain Arm. |
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| Beluga Point on Turnagain Arm. |
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| Bob on the beach at Beluga Point. |
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| Turnagain Arm. |
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| Turnagain Arm. |
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| We can't get enough of these views! |
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| One of the local glaciers. |
One of the places it was recommended we stop on our way through was Alaska Wildlife Conservation Center (AWCC). It is a walk- or drive-through rehabilitation center for wildlife. The admission fee pays for the upkeep of the grounds and the care of the animals.
The dirt road in the Center is full of potholes and was muddy because of recent rains. We opted to park in their lot and walk through the exhibits. We avoid as many potholes as we can in our 5th wheel. There are some parking spaces for large RVs and we were lucky to find one that was easy to park in. It was along the edge of the parking lot.
We got out and started walking. First, we came to the enclosure for the wolves.
Each species has its own enclosure and you walk to look at all of them. Some animals are more visible than others. Of course, most people seem interested in the bears. We just missed the behind-the-scenes bear tour by 10-15 minutes.
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| A sky bridge crosses the bear enclosure. |
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| A black bear with an apple in its mouth. |
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| Bear art. |
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| A display with the relative sizes of different bears. |
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| Black bear. |
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| The same black bear. |
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| The antlers are over the top! |
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| Bob standing next to a Wood Bison hide. |
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| Muskox. |
There are signboards that tell how animals reacted to the 1964 earthquake.
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| This is a muskox! |
Another animal that creates excitement once you find one in its natural habitat is the moose. They can be hard to find. If you do run across a moose in the wild, give it a wide berth.
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| Porcupine. |
We spent two hours walking around the Alaska Wildlife Conservation Center. There's more to see and learn. There are foxes, coyotes, a lynx, and information on animals that have been used in movies.
Our caravan is going by the AWCC again on Monday, August 22, so if you're in our group and missed it the first time, you have another chance to visit.
Our destination today is Kenai Princess RV Park & Lodge. It's a small campground in Cooper Landing, Alaska. There is also a lodge on the property that is run by Princess Cruises.
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| Kenai Princess RV Park. |
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| Kenai Princess RV Park. |
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| Our campsite at Kenai Princess. |
We walked up to the lodge. It's gorgeous. There's a big deck where you can sit and look out over the Kenai River and the mountains. If you take your binoculars or use their spotting scopes on the deck, you may see bighorn sheep or mountain goats.
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| The Kenai Princess Lodge is on the hill above the campground. |
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| The view from the Kenai Princess Lodge's deck. |
We are so happy to have nice weather! That's it for today.
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