Killin' on the Kenai

I've always wanted to dipnet on the Kenai and this was the year! We we decided to camp and fish a couple of tides to increase our chances of getting some nice fish. Usually we go to the Kasilof because it's more user friendly and we just sleep in the car or not sleep or whatever, but with kiddo's we decided to officially camp. Here's our sweet little set up on the beach of Kenai river along with about a million other people.
It was a long trip for a little guy.
Grandpa filleting the fish he had caught on Friday evening.

Grandma on Saturday morning during the century old record breaking fish count frenzy of 2011. I've never seen so many fish in my life! They were literally jumping out of the water all around us. It was great! Savvy was chief fish bonker!
I got a little sunburned as you can see. And the trek from the water to the beach was killer. I am so glad I didn't have a heart attack! Ethan and Savvy were terrific and played on the beach in the sand most of the day. Except when Savannah took breaks to bonk the fish!
Altogether 18 beautiful red salmon. Lots of salmon dinners and some smoked ones as well. I love subsistence fishing. So glad we are residents and get to participate along with those who have been doing it this as a way of life for a very long time.

Downtown Seward AK

After riding the train to Seward and walking over to Grandpa's office, we got our free tickets to the Sealife Center. The flowers out front were so pretty this year. Someone refused to be part of the photo shoot. He shall remain nameless.
Woody the sea lion. He just keeps getting bigger and bigger. Ethan was so put out that Woody wouldn't get out of the water and and climb up on the rocks for us. But he would swim by and peer at the kids.
A fish.
Ethan literally fell asleep waiting for his pizza.
Finally, the dynamic duo together at last in front of the sealife center.

The McKinley Explorer

Grandma, Ethan and Savannah rode the Alaska Railroad McKinley Explorer from Anchorage to Seward on one of the most beautiful days this summer.
One of the most spectacular scenes was upper Trail Lake. It was almost a perfect, windless day and the reflection was beautiful.
I'd never seen Spencer Glacier because it is behind the mountains that lay between the glacier and the Seward highway.
The area near Cook Inlet.
The train in Seward.
Breakfast in the train. Very nice.
Getting on the train in Anchorage.
Our dining car.

Cranberry and custard stuffed french toast. Again, the photos are out of order and I have decided it was because they are coming in number order and not the order we select them. Things to remember the next time. It was a beautiful day and the trip was amazing. I'd love to do it again. After arriving in Seward we met Grandpa for lunch, visited the Sealife Center and played at the park.

Once Upon A Time in Alaska

Once upon a time, in Alaska, there were two grandparents who wanted to spend special time with their grandchildren, Ethan and Savannah. So the grandparents convinced the parents to send the grandchildren to Alaska on a plane all by themselves. The children were wonderful and loved the plane ride and arrived in Alaska safe and sound. Only problem was, when grandma tried to blog the event, the photos wouldn't post in the order she requested. So now the grandma's blog post appears to have some sort of disassociation with reality and order of events syndrome. But no matter, all the wonderful adventures will eventually come to light.
When the children arrived at the airport, they were a little hungry and they wanted to get a burger and some fries. Due to construction, the closest burger establishment was in Mountain View, a quaint little village near the edge of town known for it's cultural diversity.

Ethan and Savannah brought a few things with them that they would need for the journey to Alaska.
They were very loving and adorable at the airport and lots of people looked at them and marveled that they were so young and traveled so well.
The mother had taken a photo of them in the Utah airport so she could remember their sweet faces and what they were wearing.
The burgers and fries were a bit small, so they children needed some ice cream to fill in the gaps in their little tummies. Alaska is a wonderful place!
More adventures to follow.

Our Visit with Mike and Aubrey

Mike and Aubrey came to visit this summer. We had a great time and had lots of fun Alaska adventures. This is Savage Creek, one of our favorite little hikes because we see lots of small animals, one of whom allegedly tried to bite and attack Mike's big toe. We think it was just trying to kiss him!

These photos are grossly out of order but blogger and I are just not friends this week. So please accept my apologies. Petting an Anchorage bear! There were lots of wildlife sightings - real and not so real.

No trip is complete without some yummy meals - Baked Alaska from Seven Glaciers restaurant on Mt. Alyeska!

Aubrey's yummy crab legs!

Sweet Balto in Downtown Anchorage! Yes, he has a book written about him!

Mom and Dad near Horseshoe Lake in Denali National Park.

Mike and Aubrey came with us to the temple. I missed the flowers!

A nice little bear we found on our way back from Girdwood!

Breakfast in Seward on the 4th of July! Bakery at the Harbor. Don't even thing about ordering french toast if you are even remotely staving or in a hurry!.

Mike and Aubrey at Exit glacier.

Getting ready to take the boat out to the bay! Reports were that there was a lot of sea life that day!Self portrait compliments of the new iphone 4! Taken in Denali.

The Alaskan huskies - the working dogs of the park!

Horseshoe Lake - a lovely spot to hike. Usually you can see moose and beavers.

And the Lodge - wonderful rooms, hot tubs overlooking the river, lovely lodge, loads of beautiful flowers, and huge cinnamon rolls! Very little parking and very weird hot chocolate.

Dinner at the Salmon Bake near the park. Great halibut taco's, burgers, and burritos!

We have to go back and eat at the great pizza place - not sure how we missed that this time.

Anyway, we had a wonderful time, wonderful weather, and can't wait to see them again!