Today got off to an unusual start. Once you read the following you will understand why I did not include any photographs. (p.s. I added photo taken at Delta Junction, the northern end of the Alaska Highway, on 07/16).
We got up at our usual time, 3 hours after sunrise, but I bet still before a lot of people where even thinking about getting up.
Since we were leaving Fairbanks and driving to Tok today I took somethings down to the car as soon as I got around. Judy and I then waited for Frank & Karen. They are usually up early as well. Last night we set a time of 9:00 to leave since it is only about a 4 hour (200 mile) drive).
While waiting for them I started reading the paper in the hotel lobby. Low and behold, the road we are to be taking tomorrow, from Tok to Dawson City, was closed because rain washed out several sections of the road and a few bridges. Now the excitement started.
I contacted our travel agent to reschedule several hotel reservations and one tour, moving everything closer by 3 days. We had to remove the two nights in Dawson City and one night in Whitehorse. This will shorten our total trip by 3 days. When I called the agent I had to leave a voice phone message, and I followed up with an e-mail. Excitement #1.
The four of us then took a walk several blocks for breakfast since that is all we were able to do at the time.
As we were approaching the breakfast cafe our agent phoned us back - the hotel reservation cancellations and the new changes in Skagway (hotel and tour) were changed - all this in less than an hour.
After breakfast and before checking out of the hotel we all went back to our rooms to finish packing and brush our teeth, etc. The water department shut off the water because of some work being done outside of the hotel. Excitement #2.
There was another interesting item this morning. When we got out of our room and to the hotel lobby we could smell smoke. It turned out that over the weekend there was a small forest fire near Fort Wainwright (on the eastern edge of Fairbanks). The fire was put out, but not completely. Over the night last night the wind evidently re-ignited some hot spots. The was the odor of burring wood as well as wood ash all over the car. Excitement #3.
As we were leaving Fairbanks, between there and North Pole (yes, there is a North Pole in Alaska) there was a blue-gray haze covering the road that we had to drive through.
Along the way we stopped at a pipeline viewpoint where the pipeline crossed a fiver on a suspension bridge. this was just a few miles north of Delta Junction, the official end of the Alaska Highway.
After arriving at Tok and checking in at the hotel I phoned the hotels that I made reservations for (from Watson Lake to Belle Fourche), a total of 5 hotels. I was able to move the reservations 3 days sooner. So, if you are following our schedule you can take the two days at Dawson City and the day at Whitehorse out (3 days).
Well, that was enough excitement for today.
Signed:
The Wayward Travelers.
We got up at our usual time, 3 hours after sunrise, but I bet still before a lot of people where even thinking about getting up.
Since we were leaving Fairbanks and driving to Tok today I took somethings down to the car as soon as I got around. Judy and I then waited for Frank & Karen. They are usually up early as well. Last night we set a time of 9:00 to leave since it is only about a 4 hour (200 mile) drive).
While waiting for them I started reading the paper in the hotel lobby. Low and behold, the road we are to be taking tomorrow, from Tok to Dawson City, was closed because rain washed out several sections of the road and a few bridges. Now the excitement started.
I contacted our travel agent to reschedule several hotel reservations and one tour, moving everything closer by 3 days. We had to remove the two nights in Dawson City and one night in Whitehorse. This will shorten our total trip by 3 days. When I called the agent I had to leave a voice phone message, and I followed up with an e-mail. Excitement #1.
The four of us then took a walk several blocks for breakfast since that is all we were able to do at the time.
As we were approaching the breakfast cafe our agent phoned us back - the hotel reservation cancellations and the new changes in Skagway (hotel and tour) were changed - all this in less than an hour.
After breakfast and before checking out of the hotel we all went back to our rooms to finish packing and brush our teeth, etc. The water department shut off the water because of some work being done outside of the hotel. Excitement #2.
There was another interesting item this morning. When we got out of our room and to the hotel lobby we could smell smoke. It turned out that over the weekend there was a small forest fire near Fort Wainwright (on the eastern edge of Fairbanks). The fire was put out, but not completely. Over the night last night the wind evidently re-ignited some hot spots. The was the odor of burring wood as well as wood ash all over the car. Excitement #3.
As we were leaving Fairbanks, between there and North Pole (yes, there is a North Pole in Alaska) there was a blue-gray haze covering the road that we had to drive through.
Along the way we stopped at a pipeline viewpoint where the pipeline crossed a fiver on a suspension bridge. this was just a few miles north of Delta Junction, the official end of the Alaska Highway.
After arriving at Tok and checking in at the hotel I phoned the hotels that I made reservations for (from Watson Lake to Belle Fourche), a total of 5 hotels. I was able to move the reservations 3 days sooner. So, if you are following our schedule you can take the two days at Dawson City and the day at Whitehorse out (3 days).
Well, that was enough excitement for today.
Signed:
The Wayward Travelers.
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