Shortly after Ryan returned home, we headed off on our first real Alaska Road Trip. The destination, Kenai Peninsula. We left home with no real plan or destination in mind, other than 2 nights in a hotel in Anchorage. It was great to be able to attend the temple, see some friends from dental school, and just enjoy having some family time. We enjoyed eating out and watching Toy Story 3. We ALL loved it.
We went to a bird watching area to walk around while Dad was busy. The kids really enjoyed taking turns choosing which path to take along the boardwalk. We saw a few birds, a moose, and we really enjoyed seeing the fish in a stream. The salmon were the favorites as they made their way from the ocean upstream.
After our few days in Anchorage, we drove a little way down the highway to Alyeska Ski Resort. We camped one night in Girdwood. It was beautiful and sunny. The only drawback was all of the teenagers that were kind of noisy around the campground.
Here's a beautiful shot of a glacier we saw while we were driving around.
The next day Ryan took out his mountain bike for the first time since he got home. We cleaned up camp for a while and then rode up Alyeska in the tram. It was well worth it. When we got up there I thought, "It would be fun to see Ryan up here." Just then, he came riding down the mountain! How's that for good timing!
You could see the ocean from up there. The drop-offs made me a little nervous.
Ryan rode his bike all the way to the top and then beat us down when we rode the tram. I'm sure it's because we had to wait. The first one we tried to get on was full. Glade wanted to hike and so Dad took the two of them up the mountain. Liberty was asleep in the pack, so I took a break. They disappeared for about an hour and when they finally came back, it turned out they had gone all the way up to that rescue station you can see in the background. What good little hikers!
We had fun playing in the snow.
We Continued driving down the road and opted for the Seward turnoff. We kept seeing this train (or one like it) throughout our trip. The kids really liked it, especially Glade.
We camped in a campground by a lake. The lake was beautiful, too bad the weather wasn't. We got rain starting in the middle of the first night. We went to the Seward branch on Sunday morning and stayed two nights in the campground. Most everyone left except for us and another family of Park Rangers and their 2 small children. We enjoyed talking to them and hearing more about Denali.
Enjoying the lake, never mind the rain.
Glade having fun camping.
Kim says hot chocolate is the best!
Dad decided it was time to buy everyone rain clothes, so we did! We stayed a lot drier after that . . . until our trip to the lake, that is! The water was just too tempting to stay out of! Too bad boots only protect you to a certain depth!
Me cooking in the rain!
Libby didn't love the poncho, but at least it kept her a little drier. She WAS loving the apple, though.
We love that our kids have good imaginations. Here they are at the lake taking Dad on a boat ride. Looks like fun, doesn't it?
Overall, it was a good trip. We enjoyed most of it, although the rain did get a little old. It was really nice to be together as a family again. We love us!
