Haul Road Trip

I took my first trip down the Haul Road earlier this month. What an experience!!!! We were following a convoy of trucks down just passed Chandalar. This shot was taken about eight nine miles out of Prudhoe Bay. The dust reminded me of the Alcan Highway about 40 years ago but overall the road was in pretty good shape.

Prudhoe is a pretty desolate place but a fascinating place when you think of how the oil and gas industry provides Alaska with most of its general fund dollars.

This shot shows truck coming down off Atigun Pass toward Fairbanks. It is hard to imagine how these trucks make it down the Haul Road in the winter at forty below when there are white outs and they can't see the side of the road. The truckers biggest complaint about the road is the lack of delineators that show them both sides of the road. They said they'd rather put up with potholes than not have delineators along the road.

Here the trucks are approaching a DOTPF maintenance work creww as you see the Trans-Alaska Pipeline in the background running along the Haul Road. The pipeline switches back and forth on both sides of the road as a portion of the pipeline is above ground and in many places it is under the ground and not visible.

The Haul Road is not that wide and it is pretty crowded when two trucks pass or in this case a truck passes a road grader. All the truckers have CB raidos and alert each other of oncoming traffic.

The truckers said they wish motorhomes were required to have CB radios when they travel the road, so the truckers could tell them to slow down and warn them about traffic.

Unique and colorful Mountain Range stands out solo in a flat valley along the Haul Road.

Here we are approaching the Yukon River heading south toward Fairbanks.

Here we are heading north toward Prudhoe Bay across the Yukon River Bridge. THe Trans-Alaska Pipeline
runs parallel with the bridge suspended above the Yukon River.

More Pictures of Juneau in the Summer

During Special Session, my daught and I were lucky enough to get a small apartment just two blocks from the Capitol. This is a shot of the Capitol from the west side of the building as taken from my apartment. I had some great landlords that actually held my apartment for the Second Special Session without charging me for the time I wasn't there. Rent in Juneau is very expensive and during the tourist and fishing season it is almost impossible to find affordable housing. Most people ended up staying in exdpensive hotel rooms during the second special session.

My daughter, Katharine, was a House Page during the special sessions and was thrilled to meet former Governor Wally Hickel when he came to Juneau to talk to legislators about gasline issues. Hickel served as Governor of Alaska 1966-1969, 1990-1994, and also as U.S. Secretary of the Interior, 1969-1970.

Today Governor Hickel devotes much of his time to the Institute of the North which he founded. The organization's mission is to teach people in Alaska and from around the world about the obligations of ownership, as Alaska's and most of the world's resources are commonly owned.

Tourists line the outside of a cruise ship as it docks at Juneau. Five to six ships can line up in Juneau on a given day a the street are crowded with people from all over the world shopping at the dozens of gift shops lining the streets of downtown Juneau.

While dwarfed by the cruise ship, the sternwheeler on the right docks in Juneau once a week and offers a different mode of transportation to Juneau.

This view of the channel was taken from outside my apartment in Juneau. I was amazed by the number of yachts that spend the night in the Channel.

Malcolm Roberts accompanied Governor Hickel to Juneau to discuss gasline issues with the legislature. Here I am with

It's August And I Am Still In Juneau

This is the first year in the twelve years I have worked for the legislature I have been in Juneau in August. Fireweed in full bloom is something I am used to seeing at home in North Pole this time of the year. I am standing in front of the Capitol by a favorite toursit attractionThe legislature is in its second special session this year and the third special session of the 24th Legislature. The issues are, of course, the amending of production taxation for oil production, amednments to the Stranded Gas Development Act, and the gas line contract approval. (Photo taken by Katharine Moss).

This gigantic yacht came into Gastineau Channel last week and spent the night. Rumors going around town are that the yacht belongs to Clint Eastwood. If you you close enough, you can spot a red helicopter on the helicopter pad.

Juneau has a large popualtion of crows that aren't too fearful of people. This guy was sitting on the fence on my path to work last Friday.

Tourist travel to the Valley from the tour ships to see Mendenhall Glacier. There are up to five cruise ships docked in Juneau in a day. The streets are empty one minute and full of tourists the next. Most gift shops set their hours according to the arrival of the cruise ships.

Tourist Season In Juneau

Juneau's streets are lined with tourists. As many as five cruise ships dock in Juneau in one day, so the streets are busy. Tourists come from all over the world. I overheard one the other day tell whoever was on the other end of the cell phone that "Juneau is really big. The other towns in Alaska are really small." I almost gave him a geography lesson but decided not to dampen his excitement.

Here you see four ships docked at once. The float plane is one of six or seven that take off from the Gasteneau Channel right next to the cruise ships to fly tourists out to view Mendenhall Glacier and the Wrangell St. Elias National Park. When the ships are in town, the planes carry a steady stream of tourists into the air to view Southeast Alaska.

Crosswalk guards stop downtown traffic to allow tourists to cross the streets. Without seeing it, it is hard to believe how the streets are lined with tourists all summer. With all the tourism Juneau gets in the summer, how would moving the legislature would devastate Juneau's economy?

The Tram transports tourists to the top of Mount Roberts where there is a restaurnat and gift shop. Yours truly has vertigo, so has never been on the Tram but have heard it is a fun journey that takes passengers 1,800 feet in the air. Goldbelt estimates it has 200,000 passengers a year.

Here is a view of Juneau, Douglas Islalnd, Gasteneau Channel, and Douglas Bridge 1,800 feet up Mt. Roberts. (Photo taken by Willow Seay in 2004)

This is the courtyard as viewed from the Capitol Buidling third floor (which is called the second floor because the first floor is called the ground floor).

A float plane lands next to the cruise ship Infinity. The huge cruise ship dwarfs the float plane.

When the cruise ships dock, they become a skyscraper that moves in on the skyline of buildings in Juneau. This cruise ship actually block the view of Juneau from Douglas Island across the Gasteneau Channel.

Easter Tour of St. Therese Shrine

My annual trip to the St. Therese Shrine and Chapel brings comfort to my soul. The visit brings to mind Romans 10:9:

That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou salt be saved.

The shrine is visited by people all over the world ad a place to seek peace of mind and reaffirm our purpose here on earth is to serve God and prepare us and our children for heaven.

The Shrine and Chapel are hidden behind trees on a small peninsula overlooking Pearl Harbor in the Lynn Canal.

The drive up the northern end of the Egan Highway is scenic with a grand view of the St. Elias Mountain Range and the Lynn Canal.

Scene from the northern end of Egan of the St. Elias Range.

A statue of Jesus Christ on the Crucifix stands tall facing the Chapel and the shrine.

The scene from the back of the crucifix is the Lynn Canal.

A rock formation similar to Stone hedges has been built between the peninsula and the retreat facilities at the Shrine.

Roots from trees grow into strange forms like this one that resembles a horse.

This statue is the newest addition to the shrine was erected in memory of all the victims of abortion.

Alaska Through Rynnieva's Eyes

A photo tour of Alaska would not start off on the right foot unless it began with a picture of the "GREAT ONE", Denali (Mt. McKinley). This picture was taken in late September at the Talkeetna Wilderness Lodge.

Crocus blooming is a sign of spring in Juneau.

Home on the Range? This is not the midwest. It is the flatlands south of Cantwell on the Parks Highway where the caribou roam.
Fall scene from Parks Highway near Healy.

An avian lobbyist checks in with the Majority Leader's Office on the second floor (third level) of the state capitol.

This picture was taken in my front yard. This cow and her twin calves roamed the subdivision all summer. Everyone was cautious to keep dogs tied and cars at a slow speed. Unfortunately by winter at least one calf had fallen prey to vehicles and died.
North Pole Sky in the winter with one pink cloud in love with a spruce tree.

Mendenhall Glacier from across the Gastineau Channel on the north end of Douglas Highway.

Jetstream disperses in the sky and forms a feather. This picture was taken north of Trapper Creek on the Parks Highway.

McKinley, Eielson, and Foraker Mountains as seen from Talkeetna on an early fall morning.

Juneau's sky can be the most beautiful sky in the worly when it is clear. THe fresh white snow from a spring storm casts a creamy hue on the clear blue sky.

Mt. McKinley from Parks Highway heading north from Talkeetna.

Low tide in the Gastineau Channel. This shot was taken from Sandy Beach on Douglas Island.

First cruise ship of the year creeps into the dock and takes its place as a temporary skyscraper in the Juneau architecture. There are times three and four cruise ships add to the skyline at once.

Autumn scene near Rex on the Parks Highway.

The birch trees give way to fall and winter while the spruce endures year-round.

I took this picture to see how many people could spot Darth Vader on the side of the mountain.

Fog creeps in on the roadside between Nenana and Fairbanks as birch trees begin to shed their yellow leaves.

The clouds move in on the mountians near Cantwell as Mt. McKinley disappears from view. It is amazing how such a large land mass can just disappear from thin air.

Evening sky in the west from Copper Street about midway between Fairbanks and North Pole.

Sky shots just don't get any better than this. If you don't believe there is a heaven, tell me where these rays of hope come from. This picture was taken in August of 2005 at the east end of Bradway Road across the street from New Hope Methodist Presbyterian Church.

December morning sunrise as seen driving to North Pole on BadgerRoad.

Dark October sky hues with yellow and orange on a late night ride home to North Pole from Nenana where we attended Jack Coghill's 80th birthday celebration.

Evening sky above the Juneau wetlands in March.

Alaska Explorer stopped in Juneau on its maiden voyage to Valdez in 2005. The stop was planned as a way for legislators and staff to get a first hand tour of the new tanker which transports crude oil from Valdez to the lower forty-eight.

The Tanana River cannot be tamed. This stretch of the river keeps eating away at the bank and has claimed homes and businesses along its path.

Talkeetna Wilderness Lodge is an excellent place to wait for Mt. McKinley to move out from behind the clouds that protect this giant, Denali, the great one.

This photo of the Great One was taken at Talkeetna Wilderson Lodge on the crisp late September morning.

Evening skyline heading north to the airport from Juneau in the spring.