life in the old lane

Had a marvelous day today. I left my little old lady comfort zone and went for a real hike around Lower Dewey Lake. 

I had cell coverage the entire way. And gps.  I didn’t see any one after I started looping around the lake. It was great. When we get old we start thinking that we can’t do stuff. What if I fall, says the brain? Listen to your body says the yoga teacher. Be afraid. Be very afraid says the asylum.  Well. Screw that shit. This little “moderate” hike was a DIY one day Outward Bound course. 

And I got a couples of great lake shots.

This is totally Skagway  

By 5pm I was more than ready for an unfashionably early dinner at the brewery, where  I had great fish tacos and maybe one too many beers.  All the while enjoying the end of a great day in Alaska in the summer.  

 

Today’s so called hike was to Lower Reid Falls. It was splendid. You don’t really see it until you are right on it. It’s about two miles from where I am staying. Most of the hike was on the sidewalk. Which brings up today’s mystery. 

Why does  Skagway have such great sidewalks? Guess it’s the same reason that Hawai’i has an Interstate highway. Three of them actually. 

You can not get rid of stuff in Skagway. Anything.  Cars, water heaters, washing machines, old clothes, building materials. Anything. So all manner of stuff ends up in yards. 

 I should feel guilty about staying inside on a fine warm sunny summer evening.  But, I am old. Cheese, crackers, dried cherries, and coffee for dinner and I will read a book until I fall asleep. Grateful that I can still travel albeit at a much slower pace. 

I believe this raven lives in a big cedar across the street. He/she has a lot to say. The Tlingit people to whom this land belongs are from the Raven clan. The raven is responsible for the order of the universe. I would say we need more ravens to whip us humans into shape. 

Cloudy, damp, cool day today but I needed some rest. So it’s all good. Zoom yoga today. And a small walk for lunch. Grilled cheese and a flat white at the Glacial Coffee House, a fine establishment. 

And, I may even make it out for dinner tonight. But not at the coffee shop. It closes at 1:30. Dinner will have to be at a saloon. I can do that. 

These used to be stuck together and they were housing for summer workers. They have been sawed up and are going to be put on a barge and off the will go to become tiny houses. If they survive the process. 

Big thanks to whoever parked the vintage red truck.  Today was another glorious day. 65 and sunny. So I was out enjoying it. Tomorrow morning it could be damp and chilly. In fact it’s clouding up now. It’s 6:30. 

Big event of the morning was breakfast after my easy hike. Basically the same hike as yesterday. I figure that “easy” is age appropriate for me. 

 I ran into this mess of dogs along the way. Wonder if they were visiting a friend in the “Pet Cemetery”? Skagway doesn’t seem like the kinda town that would have a dog walking service. But this lady had a dozen dogs. Well mannered dogs, I might add. 

Since it was still nice this afternoon I headed out again. This time to the docks. 

My phone keeps telling me about storms and flooding in falls church. Doesn’t it know that I am in Skagway.? That it is in Skagway? And that I live on the 11th floor when I am in falls church?

Carlton said that this sign told him all he needed to know about when to get to Skagway and when to get out. 

Nothing open for dinner tonight so I had cheese, crackers, dried cherries for dinner. Planning on yogurt and cookies for a bedtime snack. Kinda my normal travel eating is to get most of my daily calories in at breakfast. Then snack my way through the rest of the day. 

But, it’s Alaska. Why shouldn’t it be cold. I head out in quest of my lodgings. What if it’s not there? What if it’s awful? What’s Plan B?  Plan B was to race back to the ferry. But no worries lodging was found and it’s great. 

There are a lot more shops than there were 20 years ago. The park service has restored more buildings. But there’s no people. 

Well, there are some people.  Enough to have a small town “go fund me” event for some deserving soul.  It was sponsored by the local brewery. The barbecue and beers were good but I was cold. Back to my room and bed. By the way sunset is at about 10:30 and it comes up at about 3:30. 

After a modest 5,000 calorie breakfast, I head out on a little hike.  Fortunately, I have trained on the Asylum Wilderness Trail! 

I pick Cemetery.  I run into a few people and dogs. I believe in the scheme of hikes, this would be considered easy. But it was enough for me.

It was 65 degrees and wonderful today. 

We are still in Canadian waters and and there is a bit of cell service. And I have a great travel plan, so a little update 

I seem to have been upgraded. I was expecting a tiny room with a port hole. I got a tiny room with 2 large picture windows. The crew walks around outside my windows. But I decided not to worry about them. Just to change clothes in the smallest bathroom on the planet. 

Critter report as of 8am – 2 pods of dolphin and 1 small whale. 

We hit open ocean in a couple of hours. Hoping for smooth seas. There’s 3 chunks of open ocean along the way. Thinking about that is what Carlton called “wreckage of the future”. 

The ferry is running at 25 percent capacity which makes for a very fine experience. Capacity goes to 100 percent next week. 

Anyhow, so far so good.

It’s about 2pm now. So far. So great. 

The elderly Blue Canoe arrived on schedule.  It’s about 400 feet long by my guess. I plan on reading, people watching, critter watching and deck walking. Will be able to get off for a couple of hours on Friday evening. There are several patches of open ocean to contend with. I volunteered for this adventure. Pretty sure I’ll be happy to land on dry land in Skagway on Saturday afternoon. 

no posting until cell or WiFi service is restored  

laissez le bon temps rouler

The Village Inn is excellent. Comfy bed to sleep in. Sofa to nap on.  And a chair to curl up in and look out the window. Plus adequate coffee and muffins in the morning. 

Limited my walking to 3 miles today. And I chose a path away from the water. I will be having 3 days of nothing but water starting tomorrow afternoon. 

another great weather day. Warm in the sun. Cool in the shade. Fluffy white clouds. Pretty near perfect. 

Went to my regular Zoom Yoga class today  That’s one of the good things from last year. Zoom yoga. Work from home. Virtual doctor visits. 

Need to get organized for the transfer to the ferry. The ferry dock is about a mile away. Sailing at 6pm but boarding several hours earlier. 

One more evening in Bellingham and one ice cream joint that I haven’t tried. Yet.  I will fix that soon. 

It has been a fine sunny day. I walked about 7.25 miles and am rather tired.

No critter sightings today except sea gulls and geese. Many of the shops and restaurants are closed on Monday and Tuesday. I find that rather charming. It’s not that there are no people in town. There seem to be as many people out and about as there were yesterday. I suppose that there is a McDonald’s and a Target out near the Interstate that’s open 7 days a week, but the locally owned businesses seem to be pretty much 5 days a week. And great pride seems to be taken in buying local.

Picture time.

 I think I will go out now and get some ice cream and a hit of espresso. 

After a starter breakfast of muffin and coffee I suit up and head out in quest of a real breakfast. Three miles later, I wander into The Little Cheerful Cafe. Where l indulge in a fine breakfast.

The 3 mile walk was glorious.

Critter report: 2 deer, 3 rabbits, 1 squirrel, many joggers.

After breakfast, I took the bus back to my hotel. I am really enjoying Bellingham. It is a delightful little progressive town. 

well, it is 9pm here and we’ll past my bedtime back east.  I can assure you that travel is back. Both of my flights were packed.  Since I had 7 hours to spend at SeaTac between flights, I sprung for a day pass to one of the Alaska lounges. Best $50  I have spent in a long time. Also hiked around inside the airport. Logged 4.75 miles. Not too shabby for an older lady. 

I am pleased with the little town of Bellingham. I checked out one of the ice cream shops already. But now, I need to get ready for bed before I crash. Chocolate ice cream and espresso can only keep me going for so long. 

Our lily-white faith-based asylum not only acknowledges Pride Month but hoists a pride flag. 

And today – I finally got all ready to go.

I am my own worst enemy. “Gee I really want to take another jacket, a second pair of shoes, how about a little purse? Do I really need to take my travel coffee mug? What about leaving the Kindle home and just using the iPad? Do I need to take gloves?” You would think this was my first trip ever. Enough Already. 

This is from Great Circle Mapper – as the plane flies. Not as the ferry and the train goes. But, you get the idea.