Day 10 of the trip
Miles driven today: 166.2; Total miles for Trip: 2,845.6
Gas Mileage today 33.2 mpg, average of 30.9 mpg for trip
Total elapse driving time 46 hours, 5 minutes, 20 seconds
Slept well
last night. Up around 6:30 AM, we are docked in Juneau. It is heavy clouds
and raining. We missed the sail into Auke Bay when we would have seen the
cityscape so we don’t go out. Auke Bay is way out of town and not very
scenic. We decide just to have coffee and save our appetite for the Roadhouse
outside Haines.
The Columbia
has been offline for 1 year for overhaul. Not sure what all they did, it’s
kind of hit and miss. The Wi-Fi is new. Our beds were comfortable for Pat and
less so for Chuck. End of the hall location was very quiet. The barking dogs
were only heard in the first couple hours of the sail. They seem to be well
staffed and able to keep up with the work.
We packed
our gear last night. While we are docked Chuck takes most of it to the car so when we unload later it goes quickly.
Our energizer bunny Equinox is filled to the brim. Our cabin is on the same
deck as our car, so no stairs or elevators to contend with landing in Haines.
The snow on
the mountains between Juneau and Haines is still heavy and lower with high
waterfalls from the melt off the steep walls. The rain in Juneau was left
behind and we get partly cloudy skies with some sunshine. We’ve warmed to the
60’s.
We load the
car easily but end up having to wait for an hour to get off at the Haines dock.
How the ferry staff figures out all the ins and outs with a variety of
vehicles and their various destinations is awesome. And they are very
competent and pleasant.
Once off the
ferry we head to Chilkoot Lake, following the short salmon stream to the lake
and its beautiful setting. Then on into Haines with a stop at our favorite
coffee shop. The stores are pretty much closed so we travel on out of town
along the wide, braided Chilkat River. The Roadhouse is closed much to our
surprise. We pass through Canadian customs without any problem. We start the
climb upward and go back in time with elevation changes, from full lush spring
to early spring to late winter. We go through time zone changes but Chuck says
they are now same as Ak due to daylight savings time. At the highest points
above tree line there is snow on the ground and streams are mostly frozen. The
high St Elias peaks are heavily snow and glacier covered with fresh snow on
them. it is hard to describe the beauty of these wide-open spaces where
various mountain ranges converge. The road is in very good condition and they
provide pit toilets along the way. There is a rare cabin from time to time. No
cell towers, no electric or phone lines. Real wilderness. We have seen a lot
of bear scat on the roads since Haines, so they are out of hibernation! As we
descend from the high-country spring returns to the wide-open valley that
contains Haines Jct. There are native villages in the area, some off road that
require river travel. But it is obvious this area had a very hard winter and
now a late spring. But we enjoy the sun as we enter Haines Jct. We go
directly to the Village Bakery for dinner as it is only open until 7PM and it’s
5PM on arrival. VB is as nice as we remember, a funky log cabin among the
pines with an eclectic menu. We sit outside at picnic tables to eat our
dinner. One of the tables is speaking French. To our surprise Tim and Maria
from the ferry are at the next table. They have taken our suggestion for VB
and glad for it. We head to our fave hotel, the AlCan in Haines Jct, and get
the same room as years before. Tim and Maria head to Beaver Creek at the
Canadian Border. The room has microwave, small fridge and is large with two
queen beds. We have Wi-Fi and able to catch up on emails. The evening is
beautiful and sunny with cool breeze. Sunset will be late as we are in the
north. Our room overlooks the snowy mountains around us. We won’t be able to
visit the Native Center this time, maybe on the way home. Frost tonight?
So grateful
for good travel conditions and friendly people and for those who provide
services for our comfort and safely.
Nighty Night.
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