June 28, 2010

Today was another perfect day.  Our life is not too bad.  We have been camped in Valdez for the last several nights right on the bluff along Valdez Arm, a short distance from the Valdez Marine Terminal where the big tankers get loaded with crude that has come down the pipeline.  Today we were happy to awake to no rain.  We lingered over coffee before getting organized for a bike ride.  We rode our bikes almost six miles up Mineral Creek Valley on an old mining road.  We had hoped to see the old mine, but snow was still blocking the trail in one slide zone so we had to turn back.  It began raining on the way out, but the mostly downhill was fun anyway.  Upon returning, I walked down to the water below the trailer and within a half an hour, caught an early season pink salmon that I had filleted and in the refrigerator in almost no time.  The 20 foot distance from where it was caught to the trailer made it the freshest salmon I have ever eaten and the best I have ever cooked.  After dinner, we walked endlessly in the light drizzle along the shore line as I occupied myself fruitlessly with attempts to capture eagle-in-flight pictures from the dozens of eagles that were cruising the shoreline.

The fishing is slow as the pinks are just starting to arrive.  I knew I had a good shot when I watched a commercial boat haul up a huge net full on their second attempt yesterday just offshore from our campsite.  I watched them working their net for a good hour from the kitchen window, staying warm and dry on a cold rainy morning.  I tried fishing a couple times yesterday with no luck, but today I timed the tide a little better and probably had a better lure.  It was a real challenge landing the fish on the slippery rocky shore line.  From what I have seen, these stupid fish run for the shore when hooked.  Of course they don’t run right at you so they hit the shore a good distance away from you.  I fought to turn it away from the rocks and did a pretty good job for awhile, but it finally dove right along the shore about 30 feet away from me and wrapped my line under a big rock.  I worked my way over near the big rock, but I couldn’t reach out far enough to unwrap the line.  I allowed some slack, but the fish just took the line and it didn’t come off the rock.  Finally, I forced the fish in with my line scraping along the rock, knowing that I was likely going to lose both the fish and my lure.  When the fish was right next to the rock, I tried one last time with some slack and it sprung free.  I quickly reeled the already tired fish up onto a sloped rock and clunked it over the head for a quick kill.  It was one of the more challenging battles I have ever had with a fish, but not exactly one of the most fun.

Yesterday was also an adventurous day, although I don’t think it stopped raining for more than a couple minutes all day.  We weren’t in any hurry to get out of our shelter, but finally got stir crazy enough to go ahead with our planned adventure, a kayaking trip on Valdez Glacier Lake.  We had never visited this lake before this trip so it was a bit of a surprise find for us.  The lake is full of huge icebergs, although Valdez Glacier doesn’t appear to calve much into the lake.  I suspect that the lake sits on top of the glacier and the icebergs may not actually be floating, but that leaves me with the disturbing fear of ice chunks from below breaking free and floating violently to the surface.  Since guided kayaking tours are available out there, we didn’t think it could be that dangerous.  We had a fun time picking our way through the ice, watching the rainwater melt the big formations which occasionally dropped big rocks or chunks of ice into the water.  This was enough of a warning to not get too close.  We discovered many interesting features.  One was a brilliant blue round hole through a large piece of ice that we nicknamed the blueberry donut.  We also saw a tour group visiting an ice cave so we took a quick look at that as well.  The icy water and rain made it a chilling expedition.  Feeling the exhaustion of the effort, we had pizza in town for dinner.

Saturday was a moving day so it is amazing how much recreation we got in.  Admittedly, we only moved about 20 miles, but we still had to pack up the trailer and then set up when we got here.  Along the way, we stopped at Bridal Veil Falls, a popular sight right along the highway.  We almost let the rain change our mind about hiking from there, but we put on our rain gear and headed up the Goat Trail.  The trail climbed gradually onto the valley wall and only had a couple of scary ledges along the way.  We followed the trail to Snow Slide Gulch where rocks and snow had taken out the old bridge.  The high volume of melt water and the deep snow still in the gulch blocked any further progress.  We did enjoy some lovely views along the trail in spite of the low clouds. 

After setting up the trailer, we explored the area with the van a little so that we could plan our Valdez area activities.  We finished off the day with a late night bicycle ride on the bike path that follows the shore line and crosses the river before reaching the highway over five miles from the campsite.  The ride is effortless as the scenery takes your full attention.  I joked that there must be a lot of head-on bicycle collisions since no one is looking where they are going.  We saw seals, sea lions, otters, and eagles.  We were glad to not see any bears from the bikes, although we did see a black bear along this stretch on the way back from dinner last night.

Obviously we have settled into our full-time adventure.  Our pace is relaxed, but there are many hours in the day, lots of time to explore and be active.  Our living arrangements are forcing a bit more discipline %%%% This sentence was just interrupted with a strange loud bellowing sound that had Kris and I staring at each other with questioning looks.  Suspecting sea lions and wondering how close they must be, I rushed to the kitchen window to see a pair of them talking to each other only about 50 feet away.  What a great place to camp! %%%% to such things as washing the dishes and putting stuff away after we are done with our activities.  It isn’t too painful since we don’t feel pressed for time.  We just take our time and unpack what we need and then take our time to repack it when we are done.  Wet gear has been a problem the last few days so the van is full of stuff draped around drying and the trailer has its share of drying coats and shoes.  I will have a project on my hands to get everything back into place once things have dried a bit.

We seem to be managing our resources pretty well.  Water hasn’t been a problem.  We have taken advantage of dump stations when we find them.  We seem to be managing electricity well enough, although I suspect the battery is taking a beating since it rarely gets fully charged.  This is not a concern since I can pay for a new battery out of the savings of just a few nights of boondocking at typical rates.  If it dies, I’ll buy a new one.  The generator is still purring away, starting on the very first pull every time.  It got even quieter when I tried the energy savings mode, which allows reduced engine RPMs under low loads.

I have had to significantly increase my caloric intake.  One morning I weighed myself and saw a number I haven’t seen since I graduated from college.  I don’t think I am anywhere near unhealthy, but I don’t need my weight to continue falling any further.  It has been eye opening to see what living a healthier lifestyle can mean.  Kris is losing weight more slowly, but still showing the benefits of quitting her desk job.  I suspect my metabolism is a bit different but I do think I move around more, often fishing while she reads and handling some of the more physical chores like the generator. 

So life is pretty good without a job and a home.