Eagle River Nature Center

It was great having our very own tour guide (Charlie Howell) giving us ideas for around-the-town activities.  After exploring Thunderbird Falls, we headed over to the Eagle River Nature Center.

The day time temperatures were perfect for all the outdoor activities we had - low 70s.  We always wore pants during our hikes to keep from getting bitten by mosquitoes and ticks.  (Remember how large the leaves were at Thunderbird Falls?  That should give you an idea of how big these pesky insects are.)



I couldn't decide which was better to admire, Russ or the scenery?  Since I'm only in Alaska for a short while, I better get back to admiring the scenery.

 



The mound in the water on the left side of the picture is one of many beaver dams at the nature center.  The water was so clear it perfectly reflected the scenery behind it.  Gorgeous!

One downside of all the beaver activity is that the trails often get flooded when new dams are built.  We all managed to make it across the planks without falling into the water.

 

 

 Russ and I are with our friend Charlie Howell in this photo on the banks of Eagle River.

 

This gigantic tree looked like it had been hit by lightening at some point.  With more than half the tree trunk missing, we could only guess how old this tree was.  It was so big the three of us couldn't reach all the way around it.

 

This is another great place to spend a couple hours or a whole day if you're in the Anchorage area.

Thunderbird Falls, Alaska



I've been stationed in Texas and became a Texas resident.  Texans are very proud of "everything is bigger in Texas" sayings.  I have to admit, I'd never seen tree leaves this big before in Texas.  Look at it!  This one leaf is bigger than both our hands put together.  And I may have mentioned how big the Alaskan mountains are.  There are dozens of mountains in the Anchorage area that are more than 6,000 feet tall, even though the base is at sea level.  That's like being in the Colorado Springs area with the 13,000 - 14,000 foot mountains, that start at a base of 7,000 feet.

Alaska needs to come up with its equivalent of "everything is bigger in ..." saying.

 

 

 We climbed up this lookout tower to get a better view of the falls.

 

Then Russ, Charlie Howell and I all hiked to be closer to the base of the falls.  We could feel the spray in the air.  It was so incredibly peaceful even though the noise from the waterfall was quite loud.

Russ and I even managed NOT to fall in when we got on the river bank to get a picture of Thunderbird Falls in the background.  If you're ever in the Anchorage area, I highly recommend this easy hike.

Exploring Eklutna Lake and Elmendorf AFB

There are so many places to explore right in the Anchorage area!  I finally discovered why so many people would take an assignment to Korea to get a guaranteed follow-on assignment to Elmendorf.  The Anchorage area is absolutely gorgeous (in the summertime).

 

We started the morning out at Eklutna Lake, which was only a 15 - 20 minute drive from Elmendorf AFB.  The lake had miles of groomed hiking trails that were easy/safe enough for me to go on without injuring myself.  (Or should I say re-injure myself since I seem so adept at getting hurt?)  We had a fantastic time exploring on the various trails.  Oddly enough, we only saw a handful of other hikers during the hours we spent here.

 

 Russ demonstrated his "rock skipping" skills and even managed a few throws with six or more skips.

 

 

Here's my handsome hubby staying out of trouble even though the drift wood looked really tempting to build something.  (Isn't driftwood just a larger version of Tinker Toys?)

 

 

After Charlie got off work she met with us to explore Elmendorf a little more.  Of keen interest to Russ was the air park for personally owned aircraft.  Elmendorf has a grass runway plus a lake for seaplanes to take off from.  An interesting factoid Russ taught me was that Alaska has more aircraft per capita than any other state in the country.

 

 

After admiring the air park, we went in search of moose, which freely roam the base.  This picture of Charlie will forever be etched in our memories.  (No, the security forces did not see her clearly unbuckled while she was sticking her head out the window.)  I'll have to save this for her retirement photo montage.

 

We didn't see any moose on base during our adventures, but we had a lot of fun anyway.

Around Anchorage AK

We didn't have a set schedule of what we were going to do while in Alaska, but we wanted to stop by and visit our friend Angie "Charlie" Howell, who's stationed at Elmendorf AFB near Anchorage.  (She and Russ had both been stationed at Travis AFB in the Bay area of CA as air traffic controllers while Charlie and I were both assigned to the Military Equal Opportunity Office at Goodfellow AFB in San Angelo TX.)

This picture was taken on Elmendorf AFB.  The salmon had just finished the spawning run a week or so earlier.  That would've been pretty neat to see.

 

 

These next photos were taken at Chugach State Park.  It's amazing how tall the mountains are considering Anchorage is at sea level.

 

Due to the mountain heights (and cooler temperatures), there was still plenty of snow by the time we visited.

Rest assured, Russ did NOT peg me with the snow ball in his hand (though he wanted to).

Honeymoon to Alaska -- Finally!

Back before Russ and I had started dating, we'd been at a luncheon with several other co-workers.  Russ had mentioned how he was going to take his wife to Australia on their honeymoon after he got married.  I'd asked when he got engaged, and he mentioned he wasn't engaged, but when he did get married, he was definitely taking his wife to Australia.

Well, here we are on a flight to Alaska.  True, we weren't heading to Australia, but Alaska does start with an A.  So doesn't that count?  Plus, since we got married in January, that was NOT the time to be making a trip to Alaska.  So here's to our "real" honeymoon!

We officially departed Langley on 5 July and drove up to Andrews AFB.  We only stayed one night at lodging and departed for the long flight to Anchorage from Ronald Reagan National Airport.  It was a long, but non-stop, flight.  Of course, Russ had to sit by the window so he could enjoy the view and plot our flight path.

 

 

You wouldn't know it by looking at the level of the sun, but it was after 10 p.m. when this picture was taken.  (This was the rental car we had while in Alaska.)  When we had a hard time finding an open restaurant, we finally figured things out when we looked at the clock on the car to see how late it was.  So for our first meal on our honeymoon, we ate at Arby's.  (It was open!)

 

Visit with Chuck in Rush PA

After dealing with the movers, cleaning up and closing on the sale of our home, Russ and I were ready for some rest and relaxation.  Fortunately for us, our friend Chuck (last name left off for his privacy) invited us up to Rush PA for the long 4th of July weekend.  Don't know where Rush PA is?  You're not alone.  Rush has a population of 14 people, so it doesn't even have its own zip code. 
So we flew up to Tunkhannock, the closest public airport where Russ could land. 

 

Tunkhannock was the first place I'd ever been where I'd seen a vending machine for live bait.  Apparently this town is a perfect match for Chuck, who is an avid outdoorsman.

Chuck will be retiring from the Air Force next year and bought his retirement home ahead of time.  He plans on finishing the basement and making a "family room" location.  Fortunately for Chuck, Russ' background in electrical engineering is helpful for this project.

 

His home is on a lovely piece of land, approximately 9 acres.  It's a great location for his friends and family to come visit and have outdoor barbecues since you can be pretty loud and still not bother his neighbors.

 

Jarret, his cocker spaniel, has plenty of room to run and loves swimming in the creek that runs along the back of the property.

 

It wasn't all work and no play.  We took plenty of time enjoying the slower pace of small town living.  We went to "Podunk Valley" where his father lives on a farm.  (The first time Chuck turned in a leave request and had his dad's Podunk Valley address listed, I thought Chuck was playing a joke on me.  I didn't really believe there would be a town called Podunk anything.)

 

We stopped by his dad's farm and I got to pet the horses and other animals.  

 

 

 

I forgot the name of this bridge, but it was in a really pretty area.  We drove over it first and then found an access road to go exploring underneath it.  

 

Jarrett decided she really liked Russ when she learned he was willing to share some beef jerkey treats.

 

The second night we were in town we stopped by the camp grounds where Chuck's mom, Judy, and stepdad, Larry, were staying.  It was on top of a hill with a great view of the valley.  (Of course, my head is blocking the view, but we enjoyed the sights.)

 

 

Russ and Chuck brought a bunch of fire wood and stacked it for Judy and Larry.  (Chuck did the hard part and had cut and split the wood before our arrival.)  Then we had some dinner.  Larry was cooking some squash in the biggest frying pan I'd ever seen.  (Judy was seasoning it.)  We had a great meal followed by some delicious strawberry shortcake.

What a great change of pace and a great weekend!  Thanks for inviting us, Chuck!

Farewell Flowers from AEOX

My co-workers gave me a beautiful flower arrangement for my going away.  (I forgot to bring the camera to my section's going away luncheon for me yesterday.)  The flowers added a nice shade of color to the otherwise non-descript lodging room on base.