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North
to Alaska
A road trip to Alaska from Southern California by Rosanne M & Kevin J  California We started our trip in San Diego, north through Oregon, Washington, Canada and then 3 weeks in Alaska. We stayed in Anchorage with a friend - and we took trips from there to Seward, etc. When we left Anchorage we drove up to Fairbanks and then across the Top of the World Highway. We then went across Canada and down through Jasper, Lake Louise & Banff, then on to Wyoming & Montana (Yellowstone). We drove 12,000 miles and were gone for 3 months. It was quite a trip. I have about 200 pictures in albums in the order in which we took the trip. I will try to tell a story with these pictures.  I
now live in Grand Junction Colorado. I can see this mountain (Mt. Garfield)
from my house & also the Colorado monument.
Every week, my best friend and traveling buddy kept calling me and reminding me that we hadn't gone on a vacation for a long time. He had been out on disability and was itching to go on the road. But unfortunately, I was bogged down with a 50 hr work week and a leased condo. One day I was called into the office and my boss told me that they were downsizing and I was laid off. The next morning my landlord told me that my condo had been sold. In less than 24 hours I was jobless & homeless. I called my buddy and we decided to put all our stuff in storage and take off. We had a friend living in Anchorage, Alaska and when we called her she told us to come on up for a visit. We called our family and friends and told them we were headed North to Alaska. We literally threw a few things in the back of my friends Jeep and headed out on the highway looking for adventure.  Although
we left from Southern California, we didn't really feel like our vacation
started until we got to the most beautiful spot in California, the Monterey
Peninsula. We stayed with some friends for a few days and toured all around
Monterey, Carmel and Pacific Grove.This is Pacific Grove
17 Mile
Drive, Carmel  This
is Steinbeck country and a lot of history to explore down on Cannery Row.
After filling up on some great seafood at Fisherman's Wharf we were anxious
to get on our way. We
drove from Monterey to Yosemite, but because we were footloose and had
no itinerary, we wound up at the park on the Friday of Memorial Day Weekend.
When I asked the Park Ranger if they had any room for a 7X7 tent, she
just laughed and laughed. Most people make reservations at Yosemite YEARS
in advance. We
did a halfday tour and enjoyed all that we could see of the park in a
few hours. Even though it was the end of May, there was still a lot of
snow in the mountains.Yosemite Falls, Yosemite From Yosemite we drove through many California Gold Rush towns on our way to Lake Tahoe. 
Emerald
Bay, Lake Tahoe
Our first night in Tahoe was the first time we camped out. All the camping we did was in a 7X7 tent that got very small after three months on the road. I didn't mind that we had snow that first night - but I did mind when the forest ranger posted a sign on a tree near our tent "WATCH OUT FOR BEARS". Oh, my, god - the only bears I had ever seen were behind bars at the zoo!!! <
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T R A V E L M E N U M A I N M E N U
Text and
Photography by Rosanne MacKenzie.
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© 1996-2008 Gar Benedick, All Rights Reserved. |
