Weekend Camping Trip

Bryan and I got a killer deal on an RV rental so decided to take advantage of it and go on a 5-day camping trip up north to Tangle Lakes.

The deal was through Go North Car and RV Rentals: 50% off their normal rates for Alaskan residents! Their normal clientele are Europeans, but with the whole COVID thing going on their entire fleet was just sitting there in the parking lot. We would not have been able to afford it otherwise; renting an RV is not cheap.

We picked our RV up on Friday and headed out that afternoon. We got to Tangle Lakes by around 9:30 that night only to find that the campground was full. We ended up driving a few more miles up the  Denali Highway where we found a nice little pull-off on the side of the road that had a good view and was somewhat protected from traffic on the road.

 

We stayed there for two nights, then moved on to a different spot for one night, and yet another spot for the final night. We pulled in to Palmer Tuesday morning with just enough time to unload all our gear and clean up the RV a bit before turning it back in to the rental agency.

 

Sadly, I ended up with a very bad migraine which pretty much blew the entire trip. I was so bummed!

 

But we did manage a few light walks on some trails nearby and was able to do a little bit of berry picking. Bryan explored the lakes nearby our camping spots and got to get some fishing in. The kittens (Viktor and Naldo went with us) kept me entertained in the camper while he was gone.

Blueberry Picking

Bryan and I did a little bit of blueberry picking while we were off camping this weekend. 

I had hoped for a lot more, but the weather and my health said otherwise. Still, I’m quite happy with what we did manage to get.

I’m thinking we’ll save the 4-cup bag to be used in our sourdough pancakes each Sunday. The 8-cup bag we will use for Blueberry Cordial.

Picking was easy enough. I have seen a lot more berries in past years, but I have also seen a lot less. 

Bending over like that for hours on end sure takes its toll on an older body – I can remember picking berries all day long in my youth…

The season isn't over yet, so we may end up with another chance to pick blueberries this year.

4th of July In The Kitchen

We had a very productive 4^th of July this year!

First, we made Candied Jalapenos – one of our favorite condiments. We use these on everything from salads to fish to burgers. They’re super easy to make, and the left over brine makes fabulous carrots and onions, too. You can regulate how spicy you want the jalapenos to be by how many seeds you include – this time, I think they’re going to be quite a bit spicier than normal because I put a lot of them in there.

Once that was done, we moved on to the Fermented Salsa – another favorite of ours. We tried to buy as many local items as we could from the Friday Fling, but did have to supplement the recipe from store-bought produce as well. This recipe calls for 5 pounds of tomatoes! That’s a lot of tomatoes. But it’s fun, because you get to squish it all with your hands once it’s done.

After that, we got the Zucchini Relish started. That’s a two-day process, so we wanted to make sure we had the weekend to get it done. The zucchini we used were HUGE; I love that Alaska can grow such large produce. Lots of chopping, food processing, and again getting our hands in there to mix things up.

We are now set for another 6 months or so, at the very least. Although, we do go through the jalapenos so will probably be making those again soon.

The Mosquitoes Are Horrible This Year!

Bryan and I had such a great weekend, despite being eaten alive.

Friday morning we drove out to the Nancy Lake State Recreation Area and parked his truck in the South Rolly Lake Campground.

Then we donned our packs and headed off on the Red Shirt Lake Trail. It was an easy hike, just 3 miles to the other end where the canoe we’d rented was waiting for us.

We loaded it up with all our gear, and paddled out to the island where Public Use Cabin #1 is located. We had the cabin and the island all to ourselves for the entire 3 days we were there!

When we first got there, we unpacked our stuff and looked around a bit. Then we decided to take the canoe out for a spin around the lake, to see what we could see. And since we were going to be paddling around anyway, Bryan decided to throw a hook in the lake to see if he could entice a fish to nibble. None did, but we still had a nice paddle. What a beautiful lake!

The following day Bryan headed off after breakfast for a good 5-6 hours out there, fishing this cove and exploring that marshy area. He enjoyed himself thoroughly, and even came back a little bit on the pink side.

While he was out having fun with his fishing poles, I spent my time writing letters, reading my book, exploring the island. That sun really saps the energy right out of you, though; both of us were ready for our dinner that evening, followed by a relaxing game of cards.

That night we had a serious mosquito problem – to the point where Bryan had to get the Thermocells out and running just to give us a few hours relief. We woke up the next morning to the sound of some serious rain, so hoped the bugs wouldn’t be so bad on the way back to the truck.

They were horrible. I have so many bites! All over my hands, my arms, my legs… ugh!

But we did have a great time, regardless.

Halibut Fishing Charter

This last weekend saw us once again in Homer – this time for a Halibut Fishing Charter!

We drove down Thursday after noon, checking in to our AirB&B around 10:00 that night. That gave us just enough time to quickly put our food in the fridge and crash into bed.

Bright and early Friday morning, we picked up his cousin Chris, Chris’s wife Terri, and his best friend Mike from the campground just around the corner from us – and headed on down to the small boat harbor to hook up with his father at the charter.

Our charter was with Wild Coast Alaska owned and operated by Karl Thomas. His son Cody was deck hand, and did a very good job at it even thought his was only his third time working the boat with his father.

The boat, called the Fiskr Valhalla, was a custom-built Sea Raider 2896 with a fully enclosed and heated bulkhead. It even had a private, stand-up head – albeit a very tiny one. Captain Karl clearly takes very good care of his equipment: that boat was so shiny and clean I bet you could have eaten off the deck (well, at first you could).

Since we had chartered the boat specifically for us (we were the only passengers on board) we got to spend a good 8 hours fishing for Halibut & Salmon. We had clear blue skies and a very calm sea for the most part – which, if you know Homer at all, you know that’s fairly unusual. However, it did get all foggy and overcast for a while, then cleared up again. Not bad fishing weather, all in all.

We all caught fish, but they were considerably smaller than we used to catch, back in the day. Still, we all went home with at least 30 pounds of fish, and that’s not so bad.

So This Happened The Other Day

I got an email from my boss the other day saying he’d sold the company! Completely out of the blue and a huge surprise to everybody, although in retrospect it makes sense. He’s getting up there in years and is not getting any healthier. Still, it was a shock to say the least.

Our new owner is a company we’ve actually been working with for the past year or so. Hood River Engineers is out of Oregon and is owned by Adam, a Veteran of the U.S. Army. The sale creates a win-win situation for both parties involved: we get stability and a reliable future after our current boss retires, and they get 50 years’ experience in the industry! They even changed their name so they could take advantage of our reputation, now calling themselves GDM of Oregon and referring to us as GDM of Alaska.

I got my offer letter on the first of the month but had to negotiate a few changes: namely my salary and my work situation. Bryan did some research for me on the salary angle, while I talked to them about the reason why I’m working from home. In the end, they were amenable to all I proposed so they typed up a new offer letter and I signed it on Monday the 8^th.

Filling out all that paperwork is a hassle compounded by the fact that I’m working from home. Everything has to be emailed to me, then I fill it out, print it, scan it, and email it back. On top of that, the printer we have here at home really sucks (we are GOING to get a new one, damn it!) so that the scans are barely legible. This necessitates a drive in to Anchorage so I can hand the paperwork in to my new boss in person. At least his way I can meet him (again) and put my face in the office to remind everybody what I look like.

Wow! hard to believe it’s been two months since I was last there.

Anyway, I am now employed by GDM of Oregon, I got a raise in salary to be more in line with industry standards, I have a much better benefits package (medical, dental, vision, and a 401k), and I still get to work from home until it’s safe to go back to the office!

Yay, Me!!!

Swan Lake Boardwalk & Trail

Bryan and I went on a little exploratory walk after work yesterday. We both had endured a rather hectic day, so spending time out in Nature seemed like a particularly good idea.

The trail we chose to explore is call the Swan Lake Boardwalk & Trail, and they just happened to be having their Grand Opening Celebration this month. This area is the location of a former Dena’ina village site and holds cultural significance. It was purchased by the Great Land Trust company back in 2014; they have been developing numerous trails and wildlife viewing spots on the land since then.

It was nice, but I have to say the trailhead could not be in a worse place. It is right off the side of the road in a developing neighborhood. I mean, literally right off the side of the road! And there is no parking at all – apparently, they expect you to just park on the side of the road in the ditch, or perhaps in somebody’s driveway if you want to be That Guy.

But once you get on the trail, it is quite nice. They have boardwalks that keep you up out of the soggy ground and have a good gravel/dirt path for the places that do not get soggy. Oddly, the boardwalks are slightly wobbly. I am not sure if that’s poor construction or if they are supposed to be that way. They are brand new – so one would expect them to be in good condition.

If you take the first left hand turn and go for about 500 feet you end up at the lake (otherwise known as Quggesh Lake in the native tongue) with a grand view of the Palmer Hay Flats and the Chugach Mountains in the distance.

Heading back on the main trail, it takes you on a one-mile loop up a slight incline, periodically giving you a beautiful view of the mountains and the inlet.

It is very buggy. I had sprayed myself liberally with the insect repellent like normal, but Bryan (who normally prefers to forgo the pleasure) was being eaten alive. We had to move along at quite a clip in order to outrun the little beasties.

All in all, it was exactly what we needed to shake off the workday, and we topped it off with some sushi for dinner!