More Travel Around Tok

July 7, 2007

It was a really rainy day again today. We went to the Visitor Center and got more information on the area. We drove around the area but we are getting really tired of the rain. It reminds us of living in the northeast and why we are happy to be in FL!!!!



July 8, 2007

It started as another rainy day. We had to move out of the current RV park. Moved to another one that we thought we would like better, called Tundar RV. Then we drove to Chicken.

Chicken has a population of about 21!!! However, it is a very popular place, partly because of it’s name and also it is on the Top of The World route..

The drive was very nice. Weather was on and off rain going over, but clear coming home. The scenery as usual was magnificent.

We saw the devastation of the 2004 fires. Wildfires are common in Alaska from April or May through the summer months, depending on rain fall. The total number of fires in 2004 was 707, with a total of 6,385,496 acres, making it the largest recorded fire season in Alaska history.

Another little bit of Alaska trivia: we have been watching the fireweed and thinking that that should be the state flower. The state flower is the forget-me-not and we have only seen them once!! I thought the firweed was nameded because it was red, not so!! It is a lovely purple to pink and the reason it is named fireweed is because it is the first thing that grows in the forest after a fire. We saw beautiful views of the fireweed in the mountains that had been burned.

Another piece of trivia that I forgot about: there are no gun laws up here. Anyone that wants to carry is permitted to. In fact, if you fly a plane you are required to have a weapon with you. When we went for the flight with Jim, at the stop when we went for our walk he strapped on his revolver!! It shocked me, but he explained that if we came across a bear or other wildlife that we were threatened with he needed to have protection!!!

July 9, 2007

Today we took another side road. It is called the Nabesna Road and is mostly gravel going into Wrangell-St. Elias National Park. When we started the weather was sunny with clouds in the distance. As we got closer to the park it got darker and for most of the drive it was very cloudy. The road is 42 miles, but it goes over some creeks and the ranger told us it would not be safe to cross them without a 4-wheel drive, so we only went in 17 miles.

We were a bit disappointed as it is mostly tundra and not much scenery. The Glen Hwy. that goes to it is very scenic. We drove that same section in May on our way to Anchorage. It is interesting to look at the pictures from May and the ones I just took. The mountains were covered in snow!!

On the way back we drove through a terrible thunder storm. We has such a strong down draft it pulled the car across the road. Thank goodness no one was coming. As I write this, the park has not yet gotten the storm, but I hear something in the distance and it is getting rather ominous looking outside.

Tomorrow we will leave Tok and head for Haines. That is down along the Inside Passage and probably the only place we will visit in that area.