The big move

We made it!
Anchorage, Alaska, to lyman, Nebraska....Oct 30 to Nov 5!

Putting the last touches on the Alaska house....with one thing and another, we got a late start. Finally on the road at 2 pm! A beautiful sunny (and cold) day to see us off. We headed North with the cat screeching in his cage, and the dog panting and whining. Connie was blessedly content with her traveling VCR and a Pooh movie.... Passed a trappers cabin near Slana with wood smoke pouring from the chimney, the mellow glow of a lantern in the window, and a satellite dish in the yard. We decided to stop in Tok for the night, and cross the border in the morning

We reached the Canadian border in the morning of another beautiful day...Connie thought the drive through window at the Customs office was McDonalds. Thankfully, the Customs officer was amused! Drove on through the Yukon and a time change, past mountains and lakes...Kluane Lake being the most memorable...beautiful! The blowing snow made a smokey haze as we rounded the lake and came upon an old cabin near the highway. Towards evening we began to notice pines mixed with the ubiquitous spruce along the frozen Yukon. We pulled into Whitehorse at dusk and decided to find a motel. Located one out by the airport that welcomed pets, so we stopped there. Connie insisted on hugging our waiter at dinner....he was charmed!

After a good night's sleep we stopped at Metro Chrysler in downtown Whitehorse and I traded war stories for a while with Wayne, the parts manager. He was always my contact for locating backordered parts through Chrysler Canada, and it was nice to finally meet. We snapped picture of the static display at the airport on our way out of town. From Whitehorse, we headed up over the Continental divide, in brilliant sunshine. The mountains and lakes were simply astonishing. Growing up in Alaska, I thought I'd seen beauty, but this was just enough different that it was all I could do not to sprout wings and lose myself.......

It began to cloud over as we headed down towards Watson Lake. We encountered a small herd of caribou just outside the town. We stopped for food and gas.....as we pulled up to the restaurant/lounge, the dog barked at someone stepping out of the lounge--she was surprised when he barked right back! We headed on out after a quick burger. We'd heard a storm was coming, so we pressed hard to cross the Canadian Rockies that night. A full moon followed us most of the way, and lit a snowy owl sitting at the roadside. We crossed the top under full moonlight, and the cell phone service indicator came on, so I made a call to our friends in Ne, but as it turned out, they were still in Oregon. Coming down the other side we saw two moose, both too close for comfort! I swear I was counting white hairs on one's rump as he galloped across in front of us. I am surprised that the tires didn't have flat spots after that stop! We pulled into Fort Nelson close to midnight, and stopped at the first motel we saw. They charged ten dollars extra per pet.

We slept in till 8 the next morning. Stopped for breakfast at a drive through and headed on out, though miles of white-frosted forest. As we headed towards Fort St. John, it warmed up and we saw less snow. The forest began to change again, and we noticed larches mixed in with the spruce and cottonwoods. I snapped a picture of the distant Rockies as we drove down towards clear skies.

We began to see roadkilled caribou and deer, and quite a few eagles enjoying the bounty. The land turns into farms as you head towards Alberta and the plains. We saw several coyotes and several caribou.

The sun was setting as we passed through Grande Prairie. We decided to stop at Fox Creek for the night, and found a room at the Alaskan Motel.

Connie was beginning to get tired of traveling, so we stopped in Edmonton and located a Toys-R-Us. I snuck into a bookstore and managed to post a quick update on Ebay. Fortified with books and toys, we headed out again. I noticed a distinct majority of light colored vehicles..... with a few red. In Anchorage, the trend was more towards green and black, and green was almost totally absent here. The porta-potty helped us cover more miles.....though Chuck couldn't get away with stopping at the "next rest area". Connie would inform him that it was "right there" and he just needed to pull over. We were getting tired behinds by now, so we blazed on through Red Deer and Calgary, stopping for the night in Lethbridge. When we asked for a room at the Travelodge, the clerk asked if the dog required a bed as well.....

After breakfast at McDonalds we turned west and headed over the Rockies again, through Crowsnest Pass, where we turned south towards Montana. We crossed back into the US at Roosville, and my previous experience held true here....our own Customs officers were quite rude, where their Canadian counterparts are courteous and pleasant.

We started seeing a different type of pine just as we crossed into Montana, and more of the larches, most of which were still in fall foliage. We detoured to visit friends in Montana, and saw a grizzly near St Ignatius. Bison roamed the hilltop in the bison range, and deer were plentiful. As we headed towards Missoula after our visit, a deer bounded in front of us and almost became deerburger.....more flat spots on the tires! A small murmur of "oh-oh" from the backseat....

An early start from Missoula....with mist smoking on the river as we drove east into the sunrise. The country got drier as we went, leaving behind the larch, and later, the tall pines. We followed I90 east until early afternoon, when we turned south again towards Wyoming.
Down, down through red splashed hills, and prairie dog towns. The red road against pale grass and blue sky was astounding. Antelope and deer, and back into dusk again.
From zero to seventy-one degrees, under a vast blue sky....what a change....

We couldn't quite bring ourselves to stop when we were so close, so we pressed on and pulled into Lyman that night. Went out the next morning and got photos of the van at the border, before we washed seven days of road grime off it.

Blue Heeler Glass
Box 118
Lyman, NE 69352
Tel: 308.787.9999
Fax: 308.787.9998

Free counters provided by Honesty.com.

	Putting the last touches on the Alaska house....with one thing and another, we got a late start. Finally on the road at 2 pm! A beautiful sunny (and cold) day to see us off. We headed North with the cat screeching in his cage, and the dog panting and whining. Connie was blessedly content with her traveling VCR and a Pooh movie.... Passed a trappers cabin near Slana with wood smoke pouring from the chimney, the mellow glow of a lantern in the window, and a satellite dish in the yard. We decided to stop in Tok for the night, and cross the border in the morning
We reached the Canadian border in the morning of another beautiful day...Connie thought the drive through window at the Customs office was McDonalds. Thankfully, the Customs officer was amused! Drove on through the Yukon and a time change, past mountains and lakes...Kluane Lake being the most memorable...beautiful! The blowing snow made a smokey haze as we rounded the lake and came upon an old cabin near the highway. Towards evening we began to notice pines mixed with the ubiquitous spruce along the frozen Yukon. We pulled into Whitehorse at dusk and decided to find a motel. Located one out by the airport that welcomed pets, so we stopped there. Connie insisted on hugging our waiter at dinner....he was charmed!
	After a good night's sleep we stopped at Metro Chrysler in downtown Whitehorse and I traded war stories for a while with Wayne, the parts manager. He was always my contact for locating backordered parts through Chrysler Canada, and it was nice to finally meet. We snapped picture of the static display at the airport on our way out of town. From Whitehorse, we headed up over the Continental divide, in brilliant sunshine. The mountains and lakes were simply astonishing. Growing up in Alaska, I thought I'd seen beauty, but this was just enough different that it was all I could do not to sprout wings and lose myself.......

	It began to cloud over as we headed down towards Watson Lake. We encountered a small herd of caribou just outside the town. We stopped for food and gas.....as we pulled up to the restaurant/lounge, the dog barked at someone stepping out of the lounge--she was surprised when he barked right back! We headed on out after a quick burger. We'd heard a storm was coming, so we pressed hard to cross the Canadian Rockies that night. A full moon followed us most of the way, and lit a snowy owl sitting at the roadside. We crossed the top under full moonlight, and the cell phone service indicator came on, so I made a call to our friends in Ne, but as it turned out, they were still in Oregon. Coming down the other side we saw two moose, both too close for comfort! I swear I was counting white hairs on one's rump as he galloped across in front of us. I am surprised that the tires didn't have flat spots after that stop! We pulled into Fort Nelson close to midnight, and stopped at the first motel we saw. They charged ten dollars extra per pet.
We slept in till 8 the next morning. Stopped for breakfast at a drive through and headed on out, though miles of white-frosted forest. As we headed towards Fort St. John, it warmed up and we saw less snow. The forest began to change again, and we noticed larches mixed in with the spruce and cottonwoods. I snapped a picture of the distant Rockies as we drove down towards clear skies.
	We began to see roadkilled caribou and deer, and quite a few eagles enjoying the bounty. The land turns into farms as you head towards Alberta and the plains. We saw several coyotes and several caribou. The sun was setting as we passed through Grande Prairie. We decided to stop at Fox Creek for the night, and found a room at the Alaskan Motel.

	Connie was beginning to get tired of traveling, so we stopped in Edmonton and located a Toys-R-Us. I snuck into a bookstore and managed to post a quick update on Ebay. Fortified with books and toys, we headed out again. I noticed a distinct majority of light colored vehicles..... with a few red. In Anchorage, the trend was more towards green and black, and green was almost totally absent here. The porta-potty helped us cover more miles.....though Chuck couldn't get away with stopping at the "next rest area". Connie would inform him that it was "right there" and he just needed to pull over. We were getting tired behinds by now, so we blazed on through Red Deer and Calgary, stopping for the night in Lethbridge. When we asked for a room at the Travelodge, the clerk asked if the dog required a bed as well.....
After breakfast at McDonalds we turned west and headed over the Rockies again, through Crowsnest Pass, where we turned south towards Montana. We crossed back into the US at Roosville, and my previous experience held true here....our own Customs officers were quite rude, where their Canadian counterparts are courteous and pleasant.
	We started seeing a different type of pine just as we crossed into Montana, and more of the larches, most of which were still in fall foliage. We detoured to visit friends in Montana, and saw a grizzly near St Ignatius. Bison roamed the hilltop in the bison range, and deer were plentiful. As we headed towards Missoula after our visit, a deer bounded in front of us and almost became deerburger.....more flat spots on the tires! A small murmur of "oh-oh" from the backseat....