Valdez

As part of our "package" workcamping at Tok RV Village, the owners sent us to Valdez to take a cruise of Prince William Sound. The campground promotes this cruse and they want us to be knowledgeable. So off we went! We boarded Buster for a few nights and off we went! Valdez is 254 miles south of Tok...a mere 5 hour trip....or...just down the road! The landscape in Tok is Lodge pole pines and Aspen, not much more...tundra, tundra, tundra! Going south to the ocean, the landscape changes to almost moss covered mountains. The Valdez area is in the northern part of a northern rain forest....just nice to see something other than trees! Not only do you go over a high mountains known as Thompson Pass, you go thru a canyon with several waterfalls. Needless to say, the ride to Valdez is just as beautiful as Valdez! Along the way you pass the Whittemire Glacier. You can actually walk up to this glacier...and they have restrooms...finally!

1. Bridalvail Falls
2. Top of Thompson Pass
3. Mountain top lake

Port of Valdez...lots and lots of fishing and pleasure boats!

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We left at 10am loaded down with cameras, coats, gloves, hats and, most importantly...snacks! The tour is 9 hours long, although they had meals along the way, we needed fortification in case we got stranded! You have to think ahead!

Anyway, they took us first to Columbia Glacier with its huge icebergs. Then we went to Meares Glacier and watch ice calving...sounds like ice cracking on a large lake...really weird but amazing! Along the way we saw lots of wildlife...otters, sea lions, seals, Puffins, porpoise, lots of eagles and whales! Hard to catch whales on film...they stay up that long...camera not that fast!

8.Dick spots a whale
9. ice at Mears Glacier
10. Approaching Mears Glacier
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13. Mears Glacier

14. Sea Lions coming to greet us...
15.Pt. Bull Head sea lion pullout...very noisie!
16. Columbia Glacier
17. Columbia Glacier

Chicken, Alaska

What can I say about Chicken, Alaska? Anyone who comes to Alaska needs to go to Chicken, What’s in Chicken? Nothing…absolutely nothing! But you need to go! Chicken is 82 miles from To. It’s 82 miles of tundra, trees, hills, valleys…..nothing else...no gas stations, no coffee stops…no electricity and no cell phone service…few cars,…and lot’s of gravel!

Once there, there is a post office, two campgrounds, a general store, bar and a café….that’s it! It once was a mining camp. People still go there to pan for gold and quite a few people have mining claims along the Chicken River, Oh yes, did I forget to mention that there is an airport? Every town in Alaska has an airport…including Chicken.

However, the day we decided to adventure to Chicken, there was a Bluegrass Festival going on as well as a tour of old Bentleys cars going through…it was really quite wonderful! Took a lot of pictures and found a couple w4e had become friendly with while they were staying in Tok, They are working at one of the campgrounds there and working a claim they have along the river. They are also full time RVers that winter in Florida. Do you can seem it is as very unique community with a population of 6! Hope you enjoy the pictures!

From Chicken you can follow a dirt road to Dawson City, Yukon or continue on to Eagle, Alaska. This spring, Eagle was completely destroyed by the ice along the Yukon River. There is nothing lsft to that community,