A few days before the S.T.O.M.P. Parade, I took a drive to Denali Park with my friends Lori and Julie. As we got closer to the park, we hit a snow storm and the winds were really strong. The clouds were pretty amazing, but we hoped that this wasn’t going to be an indication of what we’d encounter in the park.

Fortunately, the weather improved as we got closer to the park, and soon blue skies were peeking out between the thick clouds. It was chilly though, and also a bit windy.

We didn’t get too far into the park before spotting wildlife. A group of caribou were crossing the park road. They stopped once they got to the other side, which allowed us to get some decent photos of them using our zoom lenses. Next, we came upon a trio of bull moose. I don’t know how old they were, but perhaps they were young bulls who were recently cast off by their mom? It was neat to see them hanging out together, and their antlers looked so funny growing straight out of their heads - like handlebars.

The three of them got close to the road, and our car, and for a second I thought they might want to charge us. Julie pulled her car forward, and they all crossed behind us! It was an amazing sight to see them all together like that. I love the photo I captured of them. I really adore moose.

After leaving Denali, we decided to stop at the cemetery in Nenana, as Julie had never been there, and she also likes cemeteries. (I think cemeteries are really interesting places. Anytime we travel someplace new, I seek out local cemeteries. They have interested me since I was a teenager)

All in all, it was a fabulous day, with amazing wildlife sightings. We didn’t see any bears or lynx, but I’m happy with caribou and moose.

ROADTRIP TO PAXSON and the DENALI HWY

On Mother’s Day (Happy Mother’s Day!), Steve had to work, so I organized a roadtrip in our local photography group. We drove down the Richardson Highway to Paxson, and then in on the Denali Highway to Tangle Lakes Campground (mile 21).

Three vehicles went. My friend Deena went with me and Raven, Amanda drove in her own vehicle with her husband and their 3yo son Marc, and Roger and Lea rode together in his vehicle. We drove a total of about 440 miles altogether. I was so thankful for the pillow Steve put on my seat, because it saved my tailbone.

We made many stops along the way, to photograph the gorgeous landscape, wildlife (caribou and moose), and to stretch our legs. The day couldn’t have been more gorgeous, except for the really high winds and the continual drop in temperature as we made our way further south.

One of our stops was at Bolio Lake near Fort Greely. When we got to Meadows Road, we came upon soldiers conducting a training exercise. They had the road blocked and the turret gunners had their weapons aimed right at us. A bit disconcerting to say the least!  We were waved forward and interrogated by a patrol leader. With a little sweet talking from Deena, and a display of our military IDs, we were permitted to drive past them to the lake so that we could take photos.  I was glad to see them lower their weapons as we drove by!

The scenery was beautiful, and we stopped many times to take photos. Roger and Lea turned around at Gulkana Glacier, while Deena and I and Amanda and family kept going to the Denali Hwy. Deena and I turned around at Tangle Lake, but Amanda kept going a little further. On the way home, we hit snow near the Rainbow Mountains. But we seemed to keep outrunning it, until we reached the Black Rapids area and left it behind us.

What an amazing day! I took bunches of photos, but here are some of my favorites:

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My friend Amanda will be here in a few minutes. We’re going back to Denali for an afternoon/evening trip. The buses start running this weekend, so this is the last chance we have to drive our own car into the park to mile 30. I hope the late visit will result in more wildlife sightings. You can be sure there will be more photos to share in my next blog entry.

Until next time…

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I stood near the Carlson Center, where traffic was heavier, as the 2012 UAF graduating class held graduation rehearsal the same morning! But everyone was very courteous and in good spirits as pedestrians and vehicles shared the roads.

I had to wait a little while before the parade got to where I was standing. I struck up a conversation with two young ladies sitting near me - telling them about our local photography club and inviting them to join (they were talking about their new cameras). Another gal nearby overheard our conversation and later told me that she was a member of the group! She was there waiting for her husband and son to come by in the parade.

I’m glad that I wore waterproof mascara, because I cried several times. I always get choked up when I see such fine men and women en masse. The army band marched by, filling the air with patriotic music. Several old cars came by carrying young and old soldiers. Also present were several veterans groups, a large group of Harley riding combat vets, Purple Heart recipients, military vehicles, and more.

I didn’t take too many photos at the parade, as I wanted to enjoy the event. I especially loved seeing the many military families cheering for their special soldier or airman. But most of all, I loved that so many folks from the community came out to cheer and thank our brave men and women for their service.

THANK YOU FOR YOUR SERVICE AND DEDICATION TO OUR COUNTRY!

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The day before the parade, I went to Denali with my friends Lori and Julie. I wanted to get the photos from the parade posted first, before working on the Denali photos.

Yesterday, a group of us followed each other down to Tangle Lakes on the Denali Highway. It was a long drive and I took hundreds more photos. I’m also going to be working on them.

I’ll include the photos from our roadtrips in my next entry.

Until next time…

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I wandered from table to table with my camera, focusing on the details of each beautiful flower. Some were no bigger than a thumbnail. Others were the size of my hand. They came in every color under the rainbow.

Ladybugs were spotted on a few plants. I love these little creatures, despite my aversion to insects. (When I worked at the post office in PA, shipments of ladybugs would come through each spring and summer, en route to local farms and gardeners. Some of the boxes would break open in transit and these tiny orange and red beetles would escape. I remember a box having a large hole in the corner, and the ladybugs climbing out and covering the mail carrier’s letter case! We had a good laugh over that.)

There were about a half dozen employees working when I visited. It’s only a matter of weeks before we’ll be able to move our plants outdoors (June 1st is the usual planting date for gardens up here). As we get closer to June, all of the local nurseries will see an increase in traffic. We sure do love flowers up here! I’ll be going back myself in a few weeks, to choose the flowers for our hanging baskets. I usually opt for Americana colors (red, white and blue/purple) to complement the colors of our house.

I’m not sure what Steve’s plans are for vegetables this year. His tomatoes didn’t do very well last year. The growing season is just too short. He had a lot of fruit, but much of it didn’t get a chance to ripen.  I’m not a big vegetable eater, but I would love to grow some sort of lettuce and other salad greens. I’m thinking about doing some potato container gardening too.

Here are some of the photos I took at the greenhouse. I’m not savvy when it comes to flower types and names, so my description under them is pretty generic - unless I know for sure what it is.

I also created this desktop wallpaper that you’re welcome to use on your computer. It’s 1024×768 in dimension. Right click on it and save it to your computer. Just a little token of my appreciation for all of my fabulous readers! Click the *More* link below to get to it. It’s too large to display on my opening blog page.

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We’ve had some stormy, cloudy days over the last week. We even had a thunder storm a few days ago. We don’t get thunder here very often, but I’ve always enjoyed noisy storms. I was worried about Raven, but she handled it quite well.  She merely lifted her head from her nap and then went back to sleep. Poor Sedona used to tremble and hide in a closet.

Green-up has officially come to much of the area. The trees in the hills are already tinted green with new leaves. I’ve got tiny buds on the trees around my house, but they haven’t leafed sufficiently yet. It will only take a few days. It happens quite quickly.

The prickly rose bushes are also full of leaf buds. I don’t see any flower buds yet, but I haven’t really looked closely. Generally the prickly rose starts to bloom in late May/early June.  It won’t be long!

We have a pair of mallards who come to our yard every year. There is a run-off creek between our house and the neighbor’s. It’s only full of water in the spring after snow melt. The mallards seem to enjoy it. The other day, the mallard hen was wandering around my yard. I didn’t see the drake.

The snowshoe hare continues to visit too, but he’s much more tan and brown now as he loses his winter white fur. Once Steve blows all the dropped bird seed into the woods, the hare probably won’t come back.

Raven and I have been enjoying regular walks at Creamers Field. The other day we walked the back fields - away from the birds - where it was much more quiet and we could walk alone without the worry of coming upon other dogs. (She can be leash aggressive).

Here are some photos I’ve taken over the last few days:

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Our dance recital went really well! I remembered all the steps and didn’t make any technical mistakes at all. I just wish I was comfortable enough to smile more. In time…  I’m just thrilled that I remembered the dance. I hope to see some photos of us dancing eventually, and if I can share some, I will. I’m a little sad it’s over, but I look forward to next year. We had such a good time.

I’m planning a trip to Denali on Friday with a couple of friends. I’m also planning a trip to the Denali Hwy (out of Paxson) on Mothers Day with another friend (Steve has to work). This means that I will have a bunch of photos to share in my next blog entry.

Steve had a really good visit with his family and took a bunch of photos. They’re on his laptop and I do hope he’ll email me a few to share here.

We haven’t taken the tarp off the camper yet. I sure hope the voles didn’t get in there this winter. We’ve got several camping trips planned, and I can’t wait to hit the open road.

I love this time of year!

Until next time…

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