The Adventure Continues

The hits just keep on coming! The other day, I was parked at my favorite daytime spot, eating a cup of Pacific Clam Chowder (delicious, by the way). It was low tide. I sat in the new BattleWagon looking down onto the beach at low tide. There, I saw a new friend, an eagle. Not a bald eagle. Maybe a golden eagle? At any rate, I got a picture of it before it spread it's wings to their five foot width and took off. Crazy!

Friday, after work, some co-workers of mine took me camping in a top secret cabin owned by a friend of the family of another friend. That's as far as I can really go into it. We drove north on "the highway" here for a few miles, and pulled off into what looked like a simple parking spot on the side of the road. No posts. No mailboxes. Nothing that would indicate that it was anything more than a pull-off. We grabbed our gear, and walked through a thicket of salmon berry bushes. Once we got through, the world changed. The forest opened up and the ground dropped down. There were suddenly wooden stairs before us. We climbed down the stairs and across a series of wooden boardwalks, then down a path to the cabin, about a half mile from the road. From the deck of the cabin, this was the view: This was the postcard Alaska I was expecting. Holy crap! It was amazing! I'd never seen anything like it!

We stayed in this cabin Friday night, made a fire in the old cast-iron fireplace, and just took in the view. For my co-workers, this is the norm. For me, however, this is mind-blowing experience! You could see for miles, as far as the Cleveland Peninsula, including Back Island, which has a naval submarine base on it somewhere. The conspiracy theories started kicking up in my head!

The next day, we got up, hiked out in the rain, and went into town. We met up with our boss, who had scored us a zip-line tour in exchange for some vehicle graphics we'd done. The gear was similar to climbing gear, so I was already familiar with the locking caribiners and harnesses, etc. Still, this was very new to me. We all got in the back of a Unimog and were ferried up to the top of the course. They had platforms built on the trees. We were, on average, 100 feet off the forest floor. I felt like an Ewok in "Return of the Jedi". It was spectacular.

After the zip-line adventure, we stopped on the way back into town at Ketchikan's version of the Bucksnort, called the Hole in the Wall. Pretty cool place. Dollar bills tacked to the walls and pictures all over the place. It was very cozy, but it smelled horrid. However, we did see a seal in the water in the marina there. That was sweet.

After that, my boss and I stuffed our faces with some BBQ, and I went to bed, stuffed from food.

This morning, I got up, went for a short drive, and found a potential new best friend. He hopped right in the van, and unless I find out who lost him, I'll keep him around. I don't know his name yet. I'm open to suggestions.

Random Picture

Thought the lushness would be cool to see. I had more stuff written up, but it got deleted along the way.  Anyway, enjoy.

So Much To See, So Little Time...

I woke up Sunday morning after my first night in the new BattleWagon, and I drove down to one of my favorite spots, the spot where I can see all of the ships come in, the seaplanes come and go, the birds diving for little fish on the water. You can also see downtown Ketchikan from here, when it's not obscured by the massive ships that hog the view. Sunday morning, it was slightly foggy. I thought it would be a beautiful day for a hike, so I set off.

I went northwest on the island towards Ward Lake, where I stopped and walked up a trail for a while. Near Ward Lake is a place in the forest that I like to describe like someone opened a giant can of moss and poured it all over the forest floor. The trees are thick and the sun doesn't shine through it too much. After walking around there, I noticed that the moss was also poured all over the branches and stumps and fallen trees of the forest. It's a pretty spectacular rain forest up here. I also noticed that there was a very strong smell. I later found out this is skunk cabbage, and where it grows, it comes up in patches. The huge, single, yellow petals make the landscape look like something out of a Star Wars movie. It's very cool.

After that, I kept driving, further into the island. I followed the road until the pavement ended, and then kept going until the maintenence ended. I wound up driving as far as I felt comfortable on an old logging road, and it was amazing how much the landscape changed. Before I knew it, I was in country that almost looked familar. It almost looked like Colorado. I was stunned.

Then I drove back in town, and I took some pictures of the signs I've helped to install since I've been here. Some of them were really cool. The neat thing about working in a small town is that you really get to see the fruits of your labors. In Denver, I saw what I had made, but only to a small degree. Here, I see it all the time!

I also grabbed a good shot of the ship at the dock next to a bus. It really shows just how massive these cruise ships are. I'd much rather have a raft or a skiff or something. But then again, a raft doesn't come with room service.

Life so far is great here. I just wish everyone was here with me. Hence this blog is here for a reason.

Alaskan Humor

My new co-workers suggested I put some hot, flashy, pimpin graphics on my new BattleWagon. Bear in mind I work at a graphics shop, and independently and with the shop, we've done tons of high-end vehicle wraps. That being said, I thought this was a creative homage to some of the greatest times in TV sitcom history... the generic food and beverage boxes. It's still making me laugh!

Alaska Rain

I woke up to, and consequently, was gently rocked back to sleep by a nice, constant Alaska rain. It's not like Colorado where it will typically rain a few minutes or maybe a few hours and then quit. This rain has been constantly drumming down for a while now, and I have a feeling that it will keep going all day. The high for the day is 45, and the forecast simply says "Rain". I do love the rain, and this is a good fit for me. I'm excited to have the opportunity to raise a family up here someday. It looks like this could be a long-term thing, especially if I get a boat to explore in. Maybe the BattleSkiff Chronicles is in our future?

The Search for WiFi Ends!

I've had so much time to explore and to meet people. I've got so many pictures to share. I really don't have much to write about since I have been pretty regularly, so now I'll just go into some pictures and describing them. Most of this stuff happens on Saturday, the day when I used to walk around looking for either a room to rent, a couch to crash on, or a car to buy. Part of my ritual, coincidentally, has been to run into the people that gave me a ride to the hostel from the airport my very first night in town. I snagged this picture of some of my new friends before we went into the picture framing shop for an impromptu accoustic jam session. I'll always remember going for that first cruise around Ketchikan listening to a song from Eddie Vedder's soundtrack to "Into The Wild." It was awesome. Anyway, digressing, they played some classic hits. My mouth stayed shut as my mind asked if they knew any Cat Stevens songs. Either way, it was a great moment, and I soaked it up. It reinforced my desire to learn to play the accoustic guitar. Yes, Bob, I know... bass players are cooler, but unfortunately, I don't know any accoustic bass soloists out there to emulate, so guitar will have to do.

Later that day, I found a local paper and happened upon a listing for a van. I thought it could be the time, so I called him up and walked out to this guy's place, out by the local Walmart. I checked out the van, went and cashed my first paycheck, and took his 1987 Ford E-350 off his hands. Watch out! Two birds with one stone! Transportation AND a place to live! AND... it's now, legitimately, the BattleWagon Chronicles once again! This is the BW:III! She's not much to look at, but she's HUGE inside! While I'm excited about my new-found freedom, I must extend my deepest gratitude to Steve, the owner of SignPro of Ketchikan, who was so incredibly kind as to let me stay in his home for two weeks. I have to thank Sydney, too, for giving up her room for a while. You guys didn't have to do that, and I really appreciate you giving me the chance to get some footing up here. Freedom found, I went crazy Saturday night. I drove to the southern end of the road, something around 10 miles from town. On the way out, I snagged a picture of the sunset, thinking that I didn't have a lot of time to grab a good one. Little did I know that the sunsets last forever up here. On the way back into town, I grabbed some more pictures. I stopped next to some giant trees. My guess was cedar, and it was reinforced by some info I found later on that night. (You'll have to read on.) I parked the van and took two good pictures. I'm posting them both so you can get an idea of for how tall these trese are and how steep the hills are. It's a absolutely a rainforest up here!

I drove on and saw this great cascading waterfall, thundering out of the hills and shrouded by bushes about a hundred feet above me. It was spectacular. Just spectacular.

I drove back to town, through town, and headed north. I was a passenger when I first went past a place that looked intriguing, and that was my destination. I wasn't expecting it to be what it was, and I was awed by this pleasant suprise! I pulled up to this Alaska State Historical Park called "Totem Bight". It was hidden in a thick patch of green, green trees, and I thought it looked amazing without actually seeing it. After I parked, I noticed a staircase leading down to the ocean, which was halfway out because of the tide. I walked on the beach, and I went way out on this point that, at high tide, would have been underwater. When I got out to the end, I looked up, and I saw one of the most glorious sunsets I've ever seen. I stepped back, set the camera with a timer on a tall rock, and went ahead with the "hero shot". What came out blew my mind. If I ever want a picture to be the catylist for my time in Alaska, so far, this has to be it. I mean.... wow.

After this... I called it a night.

More pictures and more stories to come later. Now that I've found my WiFi, I can do this more regularly. Stay tuned, and thanks for reading!

Big Ships in a Small Town

Since last Thursday, there have been cruise ships in and out here in Ketchikan. Carnival, Celebrity, and Norweigan cruise lines have had ships here, the biggest and most flashy so far being the "Carnival Millenium".  (I know ship names are supposed to be in italics, but I'm using quotes since this is from my phone.) The ships get here, carrying between 1,000 and 4,500 passengers, a large chunk of whom get out and stretch their legs on the touristy city streets. I haven't weathered a winter here yet, but I've definitely discovered the tourist season is this town's bread and butter. It seems like every business in town geared up for it, which makes me wonder how badly they will all wind down once the last ship leaves in the fall.

Either way, I hope to take advantage of the season and get to know some people from overseas. Met a bunch of older Brits today. It's funny, but the "humor" that annoys we who install signs seems to be international. People with British accents saying "it's crooked," "it's spelled wrong"... apparently it doesn't get old. I like the people who say that I make what I do look easy. I ask them what they do, and say I wouldn't have the slightest idea how to do that. It's a great ice breaker. People are good at what they do. F