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| Linda and I ready to head down the road to Redding. (Picture by Katie Breci) |
Doing car-time with my girl is a good thing. There's not much to do in the car except drive, sleep or talk. And in the two days on the road so far, we've done a lot of driving and talking.
I actually look forward to car-time with Linda. We talk a LOT during the course of ordinary days, but there's something about the proximity and the pleasure of driving together that brings out a lot of good conversation. One of the things that our first day's trip did for us was process more completely issues we have touched on in recent weeks but not thoroughly discussed.
My original plan was to spend our time listening to sermons. I like to listen to sermons. Really. I especially like to listen to sermons that open up new vistas in faith or sermons that fill in cracks in my being-like-Jesus. I have a lot of those, but they are getting filled in.
Fortunately, I told a friend who is a few years ahead of us what I planned to do. She said, "NO!!!!! Relax. Spend time together. Look at the scenery. Talk." Good advice. :) Now, we probably will listen to a few sermons along the way, but I'm glad I haven't tried to listen our way through the miles and kilometers.
Meeting a new friend was another outcome of just relaxing as we drove along. I brought along a small amateur radio transceiver and connected it to a magnetic mount antenna on the roof. As we drove through the hinterlands east of Tok, I heard another ham announce his presence. We talked several times for the next few hours. Sometimes he was ahead, sometimes, we were. Finally, he saw us at a pullout Yukon and we had an "eyeball", as it is called in ham radio circles. It just means we talked in person rather than by radio. I hope we'll have a chance to look him up when we return to Alaska. He lives on the Kenai and was driving to the west coast for his 50th high school reunion.
We learned a good lesson early on in the drive. The lesson is this: fast food is better in memory than actual experience. We have stopped for many years at "The Freeze" in Glennallen. We used to stop there many years ago when it was a Tastee Freeze, and many root beer floats were ingested. By the time we got there last night, it was suppertime and we had worked ourselves up to a light drool.
The service was pleasant, the food was not bad....but it just wasn't the same somehow. And it was expensive. After eating, there were sure enough calories in the system, but....umm.....not all calories are equal....either in the eating or in the digesting. We decided to buy and eat our own food wherever we could thereafter.
Speaking of our own food, we bought a 16 quart 12V Coleman cooler to carry refrigerated food with us. The cooler fits on the floor behind the front passenger seat and plugs into one of the Camry's 12v outlets. The fan makes a bit of noise, but it is really not annoying. We also bought a 110v - 12v converter to allow use in hotel rooms and on the ferry. Our food has stayed well chilled. We really like it....and no ice! It does produce condensation inside in damp climate situations, but it needs only be wiped out occasionally.
We stopped our first night at the Westmark in Tok. It was clean and comfortable, but looking a bit frayed. Our second night we stayed at the Raven Hotel in Haines Junction. Wow! What a great small inn it is! The rooms were immaculate with up-to-date furnishings....and there was even WiFi and a simple, pleasant complimentary breakfast. Two thumbs up for the Raven. If we come this way again, this is where I will want to stay.
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Enroute to Redding - August 18 & 19, 2012
Enroute to Redding - August 20 & 21, 2012
Enroute to Redding - August 22, 2012
Enroute to Redding - August 23 & 24, 2012
Enroute to Redding - August 25, 26 and 27, 2012
Enroute to Redding - August 28, 29, 30 & 31, 2012
Enroute to Redding - September 1, 2012
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| Enroute to Redding |
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