When traveling with our best friends Larry and Helen adventures make themselves, this trip was no different. This expedition was about the beauty of God’s nature, food, and finding wildlife.
The Double Musky Inn
Our outing started with an hours drive north to Girdwood, AK to eat at Double Musky Inn. This restaurant is in the middle of nowhere. And it’s off the beaten path from the main thoroughfare with a gravel and dirt parking lot. Even before it opens at five there is a long line to get in. The dinner did not disappoint and the portions so large Mike and I shared the pepper steak. Helen ordered the wrong thing and ate off Larry’s prime rib. The desserts were delicious and so huge that .
Helen took her’s to go. The sun was still out as we headed back to Anchorage. We continued looking for wild life but not even at Moose Pass did we see a hint of any.
Aurora Borealis
It was too cloudy to witness the Aurora Borealis. While we were strolling through the streets in Anchorage Larry noticed a theater specializing in the Northern Lights. For an hour we sat through way too many exposures of the lights. In my humble opinion, it’s not the same as witnessing it in person. These light are so beautiful but only through the naked eye can you really appreciate this gift from God.
Seward
The following day our drive to Seward. It was breathtaking, the Turnagain Arm body of water followed us most of the way. We walked around the the quaint fishing village ate lunch We visited the aquarium and for the first time in my life I saw Puffins in captivity.
A beautiful back drop of Resurrection Bay and a commercial cruise ship in hues of white looked like a painting from our dinning table.
We drove back in rain but it was still light out by the time we reached the hotel. Later that evening we decided to just order appetizers for dinner. The first to arrive was the salmon dip with toast, then the chicharrones with dip, followed by the buffalo wings (two orders), Meanwhile Helen had her eye on the steamed clams, I was on a healthy mode and ordered and a broccoli salad and if that was not enough we ordered chicken quesadillas. We all had drinks to wash down all the grub, from there we walked to 31 Flavors for dessert. The next morning I was wondering why my clothes were so uncomfortable.
Off The Grid
On Friday we drove to Talkeentna just North of Wasalla, Helen insisted on getting the feel for an Alaskan camp ground, so we went off the grid. A scary road that looked like it had no return. We all exited the car with different thoughts, Helen wanted to go on a hike, I was terrified of ticks, my outfit that day was so off and my capri pants looked more like high waters and the high socks didn’t quite cover all of my calves. Larry was scared of bears and Mike was up for the adventure. Both Helen and Mike came across some canoes and wanted to use them, thank the good Lord they were locked up! Running back to the car Helen pointed out the green moss and orange colored mushrooms, and stopped to take pictures. On the way out we diligently looked for wild life, no bears, no moose, even a chicken would have sufficed. Talkeentna offers rafting and zipplining and those tiny planes that land on glaziers, but you must divulge your weight to get on those wanta be planes plus the cost was astronomical, we all opted out.
No Wild Life
Our last night was a delightful dinner followed by the wild goose chase of bear and moose. The waitress told us to take Raspberry Road to find moose. Half way up I did see a huge moose and screamed at the top of my lungs “MOOSE” but we decide that there would be more moose along the way so we continued. The road was almost at an end when we reached a consensus to go back to the spot where I sited the moose. Honestly, everything looks the same and we never found the beast. We did however see these huge animal butts but due to the dense forest we never saw their heads, Larry, Helen and even Mike finally came to conclusion that they were horses. In my mind I just said, “really?” In the middle of the forest two big butt horses, I kept this thought to myself.
Helen was persistence and was not going to go home without seeing something with a tail. At the end of this road we came across Kincaid Park, it was rainy but we got out and searched, we must have looked like overgrown Pokemon Go players, Larry wanted nothing to do with this and stayed in the parking lot. Our adventure took us to the edge of the park over looking another beautiful body of water and a very thick forest. I get an erie feeling and want to go back but Mike goes deeper into the forest. Sadly no moose, no bears and perhaps a few big butt horses only God knows for sure.
“A man who has friends must himself be friendly, but there is a friend who sticks closer than a brother” Proverbs 18:24