On our way to Denali National Park the day was so clear and beautiful that we got to see Denali! Because the weather was so nice we decided to take advantage of the beautiful day and do two hikes. The first one we did was the Savage River Loop Trail. It was a beautiful hike that looped around a roaring river. The second hike we did was the Savage Alpine Trail. It was a very hard hike that climbed up and over a very steep and high ridge. We got amazing views of the valley from a high ridge top. It was getting dark by the time we finished!

We visited the National Park Service’s sled dog kennel where I got to pet an Alaskan Husky and learned about dog mushing. I learned about the Husky’s ability to withstand cold temperatures in winter when the snow falls. The ranger also taught us that Huskies don’t do well in hot summers because they have three coats of fur.

We were supposed to spend two more days in Denali, but we all got Covid and decided to go to Fairbanks to get medical treatment and stay in a hotel.

We spent seven days at Broken Arrow Farm. We saw lots of animals on the farm like horses, dogs, cats, goats, sheep, alpacas, ducks and chickens. Every day at nine in the morning I helped two homeschoolers who lived on the property with the animal chores such as feeding the horses and goats. After the chores were done the kids and I played in the hay barn and all around the farm. I got to go to the main house where I ate pancakes with syrup. I also got to go to my friend’s room where we listened to music and played with all sorts of toys and games.

There was a sweet cat named Mayhem on the farm that always came running over as soon as I came out the door. I really liked to pet him.

A funny thing that happened was that there was a big basket filled with mints in our house. Bex and I ate them all, before learning they were for the goats!

At the end of the week Bex left for Scotland to spend the semester abroad. It was great to hang out with her! I will miss her.

We celebrated mom’s birthday at the Alaska State Fair where the winds were so bad that some of the rides were closed. We saw huge gourds and squash and giant pumpkins that weighed more than 2000 lbs.

It was a great time at Broken Arrow Farm but now we are moving on to new adventures! Above and beyond!

There is so much to love about Kodiak Island! We are surrounded by breathtaking scenery (green hills, rocky beaches). The people are friendly and welcoming. There is even a Spaceport. And bears!!! Lots of bears!

After leaving Anchor Point we took the ferry M/V Tustumena from Homer to Kodiak Island.

Unlike all the other ferries in the Alaska Marine Highway fleet, the M/V Tustumena loads vehicles by having them drive onto a vehicle elevator which then lowers the vehicle down to the car deck. Once on the car deck the elevator platform rotates 90 degrees so the vehicle can drive off into the car deck.

Ma driving Big Blue onto the M/V Tustumena’s vehicle elevator. You can’t tell from this, but there was no barrier at the far end of the elevator so Ma was driving right up to the edge of a sheer drop down to the ocean.

Ma backing Big Blue off the vehicle elevator after it rotated 90+ degrees

We spent one week at Anchor Point, North America’s most westerly highway point! From the beach we could see five volcanoes which are part of a whole chain of volcanoes called the Ring of Fire.

We spent most of our time exploring the beach. We saw a tractor launching boats off of trailers into the surf. The tractor went so fast into the water that the boat shot right off the trailer and into the sea. Another day we explored an abandoned house several miles down the beach. The abandoned house was so cool to investigate. I played on the beach and rushed into the sea. I almost got knocked down by a giant wave. We also saw bald eagles and seagulls.

We spent one day in Homer where we ate pizza. We also walked on the docks. We saw boats in all different shapes and sizes.

We had so much fun in Anchor Point, but now we are moving on to a new island. New island, new adventures!