Mesa, AZ - Alaska Planning

Here we are in Mesa, AZ, where the temperatures have been in the 80’s, although there have been a few days in the high 60’s and I’m thinking about Alaska. Actually, I’m thinking about summertime in Alaska since we’re planning out next summer’s journey up to Alaska. Back a few months ago, I wasn’t sure whether we wanted to head to Alaska or to head to Europe. We have some friends who have just finished up an RV adventure touring southern Europe from Morocco (not quite in Southern Europe but that’s where they stayed for a while) all the way to Turkey. Reading their adventures made it seem like that was where we wanted to go. On the other hand, we had some friends, Shirley and Jerry, who just finished up a 3-month journey to Alaska and back and Gary’s sister and her husband, Cathy and Tom, who had taken a 2-week tour of Alaska. Then there is my Aunt Betty who wanted at the age of - well, she’s older than Gary and I - to make a trip to Alaska. When her kids said, ‘Mom, you can’t do that’ she said, ‘Just watch me.’ Their words were: Alaska, Alaska, Alaska. Ugh, what a choice. Europe - Alaska. Europe - Alaska. I want to do both.

But, the final deciding factor was that we were heading to Mesa, AZ for the winter and would be on the west coast. That carried the day and - we’re heading to Alaska for the summer. Of course, we have Shirley’s and Jerry’s complete plan, with stops, what to see, campgrounds to stay in, what to do and they’ve even given us their Milepost to use for the trip. She told us that we could write in it and highlight it but - I’d probably highlight so much in my day-glo yellow pen that she’d be able to use it for a neon light. But the plan is to use hers as a planning reference and buy our own when the 2016 book comes out in April.  Then I can highlight to my heart’s content. (Besides she and Jerry used the ice cream coupon in their book.) I've also got two other books about Alaska RV touring and a 12” high stack of brochures, booklets and other materials that Shirley brought back for us. There’s probably a fine line between enough to plan and information overload and I think I’m on it and might be teetering over the edge.

So, what are our goals for the trip? What do we want to see, what do we want to do, where do we want to go? There’s so much up there and we have only 3 months and - some of that is in the journey up there from Washington and back to Iowa for September.

What do we want to do? What’s my bucket list of adventures for this trip? Note: I’ve illustrated my goals with Shirley’s pictures. Thanks, Shirley. I hope my pictures turn out just as well.

(Hmmm, this list has all ones - I'd better learn how to count. Actually, I don't know why it's this way and don't know how to change it.) I write my journals in one piece of software and then send it to Google. Somehow these two pieces of software don't know how to talk with each other - kind of like our Congress.)

1. Shirley and Jerry flew up to the Arctic Ocean, stayed overnight and drove back through the awesome Brooks Range. Gary and I thought about the cost of that and wondered if maybe we could spend just as much on possible 3 other smaller tours. Then we re-read their e-mail and looked at the pictures they took of the trip, Prudhoe Bay, the Brooks Range and decided that we will do this trip also.

1. I’d like to do some ice-climbing. We’ve never done that before and it looks pretty adventuresome (kind of like the rappelling we did in Moab several years ago) but I’ve read that there are some guides who will take novices out on a glacier but they are probably thinking of 20-something novices with muscles and athletic abilities not two old farts with jello for muscles. In Seward is a company that takes beginners out to Exit glacier. I’ll have to check into that further. 

1. Obviously we’d like to take a few boat trips out into the waters around Alaska to see not only the glaciers from the water view but also the sea life that lives in the area. What would a trip to Alaska be without a wildlife cruise?

1. I’ve got a hike planned for each of the towns we stay in for more than a week. Shirley and Jerry told us that they saw hikes everywhere they went and I’ve been looking at all the town brochures to find some that we might be able to fit in.

1. Kayaking in the bays - with a guide, of course. I understand that there are are great kayaking tours around Valdez.

1. Flight-seeing around Denali. I have a friend from work who did this and thought it awesome. Shirley and Jerry took a flight-seeing helicopter out to a glacier which sounds great too.

7. I also would like to look into the Valdez ice caves and kayaking into them.
Will we do it all? Will we have time to fit all this in? Will I faint when I see how much it will all cost? Hmmm. I’m not called ‘cheap’ for nothing. But, on the other hand I’ve already checked the prices and have a good idea of what this all will cost. I’ve already fainted and gotten back up. So, we’ll see.

But that’s all things to do. What about the things to see? What about the things to buy beforehand? And, what about little things like insurance? Luckily, I’ve got time here in Mesa to do all this so that we can enjoy the rest of our trip up to Washington without having to spend lots of time planning.
No, we haven’t gone to Alaska yet, but I’ve got Shirley’s pictures to look at for inspiration.

‘One of the neatest things about full timing in an RV is - you never have to say: ‘Are we there yet?’ We’re always there.’