Alaska Native Heritage Center, July 9

What an experience we had today! The one thing that the Visitor's Center advised us to observe was the Heritage Center.  We saw everything from Indian dance, (George is going to put it on Utube).  We had a tour of the five Indian cultures:  The Athabascan tribe, Yupik and Cupik, Inupiaq and St. Lawrence Island Yupik, Unangax and Alutiiq, and the Eyak, Tlingit, Haida and Tsimshian.  I couldn't even begin to pronounce the names.  We saw a demonstration of how each of these tribes live by visiting a reproductions of their houses.  They tried to stay as original as they could with the same wood, hides they used for windows etc.  So interesting!  We saw a whale skeleton, (a real one),  original totem poles, the art work they did and so many other things.  These Indians are still living today as they did 100 years ago.  Some, of course, have adapted to our lifestyle.  Our favorite of the day was the singing and the dancing.  So artful and inspiring!  Even though we prefer more isolated surroundings, we enjoyed Anchorage very much.  We try to be as remote as we can by choosing campgrounds outside of the city.  We are headed to the Kenai Penninsula tomorrow.  Love you

Anchorage, Ak. July 8

Good evening folks!  Alaska is really not so bad, you know?  The temperatures are cooler than we like but it wouldn't feel like Alaska if it were too warm.  We went into town today and had a nice seafood lunch at a cafe.  We were outside but they had heaters around and they had 2 at our table.  Hot chocolate sure tasted good!  We visited the shops and picked up some gifts for the kids and I visited a shop that really took me by surprise.  My knitter friends would really appreciate this!  It is called Qiviut Alaskan handknits.  This company harvests Musk ox, which is an Arctic animal who survived the Ice Age.  Their body is compact to conserve heat and their long guard hair protects them from weather, wind and mosquitoes.  In order to survive the harsh Arctic winter temps. musk ox grow a thick layer of Qiviut over their entire body.  This fine under wool is shed naturally each spring when it is no longer needed.  The farm in Palmer is managed by Musk Ox Development Corp.  They comb off this fine fiber each spring.  "Oomingmak" Musk Ox Producers Co-op purchases all the fiber harvested on the farm and has it spun into yarn.  This fiber is very rare and one of the finest fibers in the world.  It compares favorably with cashmere and Vicuna.  Most of the members of the Co-op are Yupik.  The opportunity to knit the beautiful Qiviut items by hand allows them to earn a supplementary income to enhance their mostly subsistence lifestyle.  For a yearly, nominal membership fee, the Qiviut yarn is sent to them.  They knit at their own pace, with no pressure from quotas or a set time frame for completion.  Payment is per piece, along with a profit sharing at the years end.  They live in the Yukon Kuskokwim Delta.  The villages are small and isolated.  The only way to travel is by air.  Since there are no roads, all their supplies must be transported in the summer by barge or flown in during the rest of the year.  Cost of heating fuel, electricity, groceries etc. are many times higher than Anchorage.  They hunt and fish for most of their food. They also speak their native languages and follow their Native traditions such as arts, crafts, dancing and songs.  I am so glad I experienced this shop.  The picture you see is a decendent of one of the Yukik people.  He has been knitting since he was 7 and I only dream of knitting like him. 
I forgot to tell you that we saw our Venture Out friends, Leland and Alice in Denali Nat'l Park when we were boarding the bus.  What a small world, huh?  See you later!

Mt. Mc Kinley above the clouds

Wasilla, Ak. July 6

Hi everybody,  We left beautiful Denali Park and found more beautiful scenery as pretty as what we saw in the park, including wild life.  We drove all morning and stopped at Wasilla for the night.  A funny thing happened at the Wal-mart I was shopping.  I was in the check-out line and I turned around, and right there in back of me 2 inches away was no other than Sarah herself.  I asked her what direction Russia was so I could view it.  Ha! ha!  Don't you think that was funny?
The town is beautiful and very busy.  We don't care for busy on this vacation but we had to stop here on the way to Anchorage.  See you there tomorrow!

Denali National Park

Bus trip to Denali, July5

Are we lucky or what?  There is only one day of each month that Mt. McKinley is visible and guess what?  We hit it on the nose!  It is soooo far away and you will see a white cloud looking peak on the picture.  But is so awesome!  A 20,000 ft. high mountain, the highest in North America. We had a wonderful trip into the park.  Of course we couldn't cover all 6 million acres, but the wilderness is beautiful!  You can really feel your littleness there.  It is a pure and wild place.  This a habitat for large caribou, moose, and grizzly bears all of which we saw.  The view of the bears were so small we could only see through the binoculars.  It is amazing that these animals have long been adapted to survive in northern life.  The rivers are so young and so laden with pulverized rock that they can wander across their broad, flat valleys.  We were in awe the whole time we were there.  This is a winner!

Denali National Park, July 4

Hi folks,  We left in the rain, (what else is new) and drove to Denali.  Thank God it cleared up and we drove to our campsite.  We left for the Park and booked a bus trip for tomorrow morning.  The bus will take us 63 miles into the mountains and wilderness.  We drove 15 miles today but that is as far the park will let you drive.  The rest of the way, which the bus will take us, is a narrow dirt road with no guard rails.  I wish I had some valium!  The park is absolutely beautful!  Denali, the "High One," is the name Athabascan native people gave the massive peak that crowns the 600 mile long Alaska Range.  Denali is also the name of an immense national park and preserve created from the former Mount McKinley National Park.  This park is 6 million acres and is larger than Massachusetts.  Isn't that Amazing?  I will tell you more about it when we finish our trip tomorrow.  Sleep tight, dear ones.  I love you.