Alley oop, up and over Resurrection Pass and along Turnagan Arm into Anchorage yesterday with a sore bum and legs turning to jello after three days on the road. But hey, the weather was drop dead gorgeous and a scorcher for here with temps in the seventies during the day, clear skies and no rain. Turnagain Arm so called because it was where Captain Cook turned around when he realized this wasn't the northwest passage he sought.
It's early for the salmon to show up so the hordes of tourists haven't descended onto the salmon rich waters of the Kenai Penn. just yet. But the hooligan or candle fish as they are also called are running in the Kenai River and elsewhere. My friend Chris smoked his catch. I tried some bones and all and they were good. They're oily and not to everyone's liking but I liked them, just what I needed - grease. So oily in fact are they I learned, that it was possible to light the oil dripping off their tails like a candle, when dried I presume.
I had a big grin on my face after passing a sign in Stirling about 10 miles north of Kenai, "It's spring, we're so excited we wet our plants," and a few doors by contrast "Furs and skulls."
Back at sea level I had a mostly flat run into Anchorage. Along the north shore south of Girdweed as my friend Dave called it, traffic signs slowed cars to 45mph as a safety precaution for the shoulder parked dip netters after hooligan. I stopped and watched. The trick seemed to be have a good spot and sweep your small fine meshed net near the bottom. It was an outgoing tide and the hooligan were running and being caught. It wasn't like drop your net in the water and you'd have a dozen candle fish, more like one or two with a lot of empty sweeps in-between, at least for the time I was there.
From near Girdwood where I camped by the bike path it was 38 miles into Anchorage. The old road bed now turned into a bike path is just a wonderful ride, worth the effort even with a BOB trailer in tow. It climbs up onto the mountain side with grand views of the Arm. Informative signs along the way tell of the history and ecology of the area. It ends at Indian about 15 miles west then back onto the main highway and traffic. Melting snow cascading off the mountain side had the trail flooded in one place and in others a stream flowed along the edge or across it.
Today rest with my gracious hosts and friends the Hermans then tomorrow leave for Wasilla and Talkeetna. Made some contacts here and see what develops. Short notice but I need to boogie. My wife called today and a valve stuck on our well and she's without water. I just made reservations to leave from Talkeetna for Fairbanks on the Alaska RR next Wednesday, a little sooner than I expected. Good bike trails will take me past Eagle River north of there tomorrow. Life is what happen while you're making other plans.
It has been a good beginning with the Love is the Way banner. Like a pebble dropped into a pond the ripples will continue until some distant unseen shore is reached.
It's not over yet. Catch you down the road.
Love and light to you all,
Peace Rider
