July 20 – August 1st Our Return to Whitehorse

And.....our week back in Whitehorse

July 20 – August 1^st Our Return to Whitehorse

With hope and the new transmission, we depart Watson Lake early so we can squeeze in 5 days of sightseeing and driving before Sam flies out of Anchorage.  And…..we make it 12 miles when the same issue repeats itself.   We limp back into Watson Lake in 2^nd gear.  To briefly summarize how our last 4 ½ weeks have gone…. in the category of “you just can’t make this stuff up:”

• 3 weeks for the new transmission
• 12 miles on the new transmission
• Check in Whitehorse, no rental cars available so no way to get Sam to Anchorage so shuttle back to Whitehorse for her to fly out
• Check in at the ticket counter – “do not board this person” error on the screen, cannot fly out using the passport CARD, have to have the passport BOOK for international AIR travel (wish we were on the boat at this point)
• Re-book to fly out of Juneau Alaska
• Can get to Juneau via ferry from Skagway
• Can’t get to Skagway due to massive landslide
• Landslide clears for use via pilot car over one lane
• Skagway to Juneau via ferry no issues!
• Arrive Alaska Air counter, flight delayed and only one option to fly Sam home
• Snag that option and watch Sam finally depart, she will navigate Seattle airport just fine we assure her (You’ve got this!)
• Note from Sam and Dad that she is safely at home
• Sit down in the State Building to relax and read our books to unwind and are evicted with everyone else when the fire alarm screams at us “evacuate now”!

We are still making lemonade out of lemons but it is sure getting tart!!  Where is that sugar?  Sam may never leave the state of Oregon again, but if she does she has gained experience in travel via public transport, train, motorcoach, shuttle, ferry, airplane (finally) and lots of walking.  She has enjoyed RV life in organized campgrounds, beautiful parks, and a boondock spot.  She now knows you can also do a home stay (a room in Marcel’s home) and stay in hostels.  She enjoyed the lively conversation, shared experience and the multinational aspect of these options.  She is a well-rounded traveler already!  We miss her dearly, loved having her and she is so glad to be home to family, friends, and furry pets.  She was a trooper during all of this and shored up our spirits on more than one occasion.

Now, the more positive aspects of the lasts 10 days.  Having done nearly every museum in Whitehorse we turned our focus to other endeavors.  We did a one day small van tour to Kluane National Park and Reserve.  The 6 of us chatted amiably and hiked up to a few of the viewpoints.  As usual, the scenery is well worth it and we saw a number of bears.  Sam, as is her custom, made numerous small rock cairns.

We stay in a room in Marcel’s home.  He is an interesting fellow who has travelled and worked in many different countries.  He “lets” a room and one small cabin and is located in a nice, older neighborhood, a short walk to the bus.  We visit with him in the shared living room and enjoy using the BBQ in his nice back yard.  “Help yourselves to the raspberries,” he calls, and we do.  Fresh off the bush, Yum!  Marcel’s home is in Riverdale, which resonates with Sam as she has enjoyed the escapades of the Archies, which takes place in fictional Riverdale.  

One lane of the highway to Skagway is now open with a pilot car so we hop on the only local transportation, the motorcoach associated with the White Pass and Yukon Railroad, the train to Skagway that we took on our first Whitehorse week.

The bus descends down a very steep, windy highway in the fog.  The fog lifts enough for us to spot Mountain Goats on the high slopes.  Sam spies 3 wolves very briefly and close to the road.  What a treat!!  

Once in Skagway we have time for lunch and then we are on the ferry to Juneau. Very reasonably priced and a nice nearly 7 hour ride getting us in just before dark around 9:30 PM.  It is quite windy however as Sam finds out when she steps out to snap some photos.

We take a taxi van and split the cost with fellow travelers.  The ferry dock is about 14 miles to down town where we are dropped off at the Juneau International Hostel, 3 bunks in male/female dorm rooms, another good option for Sam to experience if she and her friends plan any travel.  Even though the hour is late we relax in the living room and enjoy lively discussion with folks from Germany, France, Canada, Sweden, Australia and Pakistan.  Sam joins right in and a nice discussion on art and such commences.  Before we know it, it is 11:30 and time for bed.

We Uber out to the airport for Sam’s mid-day flight, with a nice man named Mike.  We arrive early so Sam can check in, only to find out that the plane has been delayed to the point that there is only one Seattle connecting flight option.  We snag that and wait.  We walk Sam through the Seattle airport situation and the small train.  She is ready for the challenge and we bid her adieu as she walks off through airport security.  We hang around until we know for sure that she is in the air.  

 

Bon Voyage Sam, thank you so much for being willing to take this weird, convoluted journey with us.  As most folks have said, most likely you will remember this trip and have lots of stories to tell! 

We opt for the $2.00 bus back to down town and wander for a while.  We take the free 4:00 van out to the brewery site for the Alaskan Brewing Company, far removed from the hubbub of the jam packed, cruise ship harbor.  The van driver shares a lot of local history with us, drops us off, and will return in an hour.  He appreciates that we are using the local transportation and ferry system.  We enjoy a dark beer, their Smoked Porter, and a 45 minute chat with a couple of locals as we offered them the other 2 chairs at our outside table.  Dinner is a great sandwich and another dark beer (sense a pattern?) at the driver’s recommended Devil's Club Brewing Company.

 

Our last day in Juneau is quiet.  The Hostel is not open during the day so we just meander the streets, find a nice lunch spot and a couple of places to sit, relax and read our books.  We tie in with a short tour and also enjoy the City and State Museums, very nicely done.  To finish off the day we sit in the atrium of the State Building and have just settled in to read when the fire alarm sounds loudly and urges all of us to vacate the building!  As we exit we do smell a plastics type of smoke.  The fire must have been quickly extinguished since we see the fire engine leaving about an hour later as we were waiting for the bus.

 

Dinner finds us at the end of the bus line at the Forbidden Peak Brewery and another nice dark beer, their Statter Oatmeal Stout.  Our ferry departs at 9 PM so we Uber from the Brewery with Mike again, small town, not many Ubers.  We settle into our ‘bunkette’ for a short night and get off the ferry around 4 AM.  Thankfully Miss Tennessee from the Morning Wood Hotel had called to let us know she had a cancellation.  She left the room unlocked for us and we crawled into bed at 0415 and slept well. 

We are now back in Whitehorse awaiting our rental car in the morning.  We are seriously regrouping on what to do next in order to get at least our travel trailer home.  We had been looking at used vehicles, gathering cash for purchase via our daily ATM withdrawals, but in the end, we decided to not purchase a vehicle on the off chance that we could not get all the paperwork together to take it across the border. CBP staff were very helpful with answering emails but some of the vehicles we looked at most likely would not have met all of the US Standards. 

We have converted our Canada cash back into US funds by way of cashier’s check and we are on to Plan D.