Nothing to report...

It has been several days since my last report. Work has kept me busy during the week and so far the weekends have been full of rain without fail. This 4th of July weekend has been dark, cold, windy, and rainy. So there hasn't been much of anything going on. We have realized that we need to go buy warm clothes sooner rather than later. I brought a small jacket up with me and SweetPea has been using a windbreaker. It's still shocking that it can get so cold in July! I'm sure this is considered warm to those that have acclimated but to the unitiated (especially when you are used to Alabama weather) that isn't the case.

We did see a Moose walking around base the other day. And on another note, right behind our soon-to-be house the woods start about 10 feet from the back fence. I noticed that about 100 yards down that woodline from our house is a sign posted that says, "Warning, Bear Activity". That should provide some photo ops!

The Lady of the Lake

Not a whole lot to report. Today was the first day where we actually had a little time to relax. After waking up we headed to Fairbanks for a little shopping. While there we hit Denny's for some old-fashioned breakfast. I had to have SweetPea grab a pic of me next to the sign:
After brunch we stopped at a nearby lake just to check things out. We didn't grab any pics but the water was crystal clear. We could easily see different trout and who knows what else swimming around. We also went to a nearby creek and just loved the scenery and fish swimming around. I can't wait to get out and fish.

After that we stopped off at one of the lakes on base to see the infamous Lady of the Lake. The "Lady" is a B-29 that was sunk here in order for crews to practice water egress. Eventually they stopped using it for training and just left it in place. It's actually quite cool and creepy looking: I'm hoping to get out and fish tomorrow. We bought our licenses and are technically legal. Alaska has tons of fishing rules based on the part of the state and specific stream you are fishing. Hopefully, I won't get arrested...

Yeah, we now have a home...sort of.

Finally, luck worked in our favor. The housing office sent us to check out another house on base today. It was a 2 bedroom, 2 story house with a mostly finished basement. There is also an attached, heated garage. It looks really nice. On Tuesday they are supposed to lock down a date that we can actually move in. YEAH! HAPPY HAPPY HAPPY!

Also, we went to a local restaraunt tonight. I won't mention the name because it was HORRIBLE! Outside, the sign said 'Fine Dining' but they had a dirt parking lot and no door! I know, at this point we should have left. Anyway, I figured we'd give it a try. When we got inside and saw the menu they had things like spaghetti with meat sauce for $16. I ordered the Cordon Bleu for $22. Ouch! The lettuce from the salad bar had a weird bitter taste. The glasses were dirty, the waitress took FOREVER to bring refills, lost my straw, and on it goes. It SUCKED. I have had relatively few "never again" kind of meals but this was one.

At the new house there is a small back yard, maybe 15 by 15 feet (or less). And then a strip around the side of the house that is probably 10 by 40 feet. I figured it would be a waste to buy a big gas mower (even used) for such a short season and small yard. I've been told that during the summer, the 24 hours of daylight makes grass grow like wildfire. So SweetPea thought it might be a good idea to buy a push reel mower, you know, the old fashioned kind? Wow! Have you looked at the prices of old-fashioned non-powered mowers? Anyway, it still sounds ideal for such a small yard and only 3-ish months of mowing a year.

Boy, it must snow here...

Just been checking out the new shop, still waiting for a house. We've gotten several answers but not any closer. Now they say that a house on base might not be available until September. If that is the case we'll probably just move off base.

At work I noticed we have a nice big six-pack (That's what we call a big king cab truck capable of holding 6 passengers, hence a 6-pack). Anyway, sitting next to it is a big old snow plow blade. The guys said that during winter (which officially runs from 1 Sep to 1 Apr) each week someone will be assigned snow removal detail and that includes shoveling the sidewalks and plowing the parking lots of our buildings.

Also, because of the short warm months there is no AC. All the windows in people's offices are opened, which is just funny to me for some reason.

Is it Dark yet...?

So, we are still in Air Force lodging (fancy word for military hotels). They are telling us right now that it could be a month or so until we get a house. This wouldn't be so bad if it weren't for the combined heat and absolute lack of darkness.

You can't open the drapes toget fresh air without inviting the never ending daylight! ARGH! It is so difficult to fall asleep. We find everyday that we are wide-eyed and running at 20 miles an hour when we realize it is like 11:30pm. It is torture. Today I checked into my new unit and saw where I'm going to work. In the process I also met several other people that all despise the eternal sunlight.

As for the house, we are hoping to get a house with an attached, heated garage. At first I thought a garage not attached to the house would be ok, and then I imagined me crawling out through waist deep snow to start my car 30 minutes prior to driving to work! Thanks, but I'll wait for an attached garage!

Hopefully we can get out and fish or do something this weekend. The current forecast is rain all weekend but we have to do something to post pics, and to enjoy some of the short summer. The temps are very tolerable 70's aside from the sunlight. I might have already mentioned that! It's hard to remember in my current delerium.

The Long Road Home...

Well, every journey has to end sometime. After 13 days on the road and roughly 5,100 miles we have finally arrived. To me, it is bittersweet. For one thing, two weeks on the road just the two of us has been fun (although the Celine Dion CD should have been thrown out the window after the first 50 miles!). But, also because this truly was a once in a lifetime trip. No, seriously, ONCE....IN...A...LIFETIME! LoL, it wasn't that bad, and I'd do it again. It was an adventure with everything we were able to see: Mountains, rivers, lakes, Mt Rushmore, The Badlands, Little Bighorn, Deadwood, Madison County IA, Black bears, Grizzlies, many many moose, elk, deer, prairie dogs, bison, and probably some others I can't remember.

Here's our last big scenic shot while we were stopped waiting on a road crew. It was a spectacular view:

These were taken in the lobby of the Best Western Gold Rush Inn in Whitehorse, Yukon. That moose heads shows how huge they are. When we were crossing the border into Alaska we were looking down a big hill at a lake. Out in the middle of the lake was this large brown 'rock' that looked out of place. I asked what it was and SweetPea identified it right away as a moose. Suddenly the water exploded as the moose raised its head. I don't know if they submerge their heads to drink, or he was eating off the bottom. But, those things are big!

Even though we are in Alaska the blog doesn't end here. We will keep updating it frequently with our adventures and experiences. Stay tuned! And comment! Let us know you are out there.

~ The Jacksons

Lions, Tigers, and Bears...

...Ok, maybe just bears! After seeing black bears over the last few days they are cool, and I'd be terrified to see one in the wild, but I've been anxious to see a real Grizzly. Today we had made it about 30 miles and were driving through thick forests when I saw a big ol' brown grizzly charge out of the woods. I don't know what it was running at because we were far away, but man she was huge! The black bears just didn't look mean at all, but this thing just had that ferocious look!

Maybe an hour later we got a real treat when we were driving down the road and saw several vehicles stopped in the middle. As we pulled up we saw this: