Skip to main content

Nature and Nurture Intertwined

 
One of my favorite places on earth is the Kenai Peninsula of Alaska.  Just a few miles south of Anchorage Cook Inlet, and then Turnagain Arm flow together, carving a path between mountain ranges of immense beauty, and size.
 

There is something very special about the welcome you are given here, by the environment, and the people.  We stopped at Moose Pass so Daryl could meet the people he will be flying with next week, and get the lay of the land.  Stunning.
 
 
Then we continued on down the peninsula to Seward, a very interesting town.  One part of the town caters to the tourist crowd, as it is a major cruise ship port.   We are camping for a few days at the Municipal Park, on the water front, where we are packed in with about 200 other happy campers - both of the RV and tenting variety.

View from our campsite on Resurrection Bay, Seward.
The other part of town is the one I remember from 1989.  Small-town feel, old-world charm, and the people are remarkably open and friendly.  The woman at the newspaper office runs the paper herself.  Originally from California, she has been back and forth a few times, but keeps coming back for more.  The office was a wealth of historical information, with newspapers stacked and organized into large books.


The old bookstore was a hodge-podge of new and old books, with little organization to it.  The gentleman running the store talked to himself, and definitely could be considered a "character."  Then there was the woman born in Grand Rapids who was transplanted here as a child, and now created jewelry and owned a lovely gallery downtown. 

Art and "story" is very important in this community, and others around the state.  Seward is the Mural Capital - with many beautiful murals gracing the sides of buildings throughout the community.

 
 The young lady on the sidewalk, carrying a precious husky pup?  From Rosebush, there visiting her brother for a few weeks...now months...and who knew how much longer.  She is working at a breeding and training kennel, helping nurture the next generation of sled dogs.

 
 
The quilt shop was full of native designs as well as more general fabrics.  They were participating in the Row by Row Experience, which is an international quilting project, so I picked up a Row to complete this fall.


And now we sit in Starbucks in a local grocery story and get caught up on writing, and downloading Daryl's study materials for next week.  Slow going...internet at the end of the road.  For it truly is.  The end of Seward Highway.  And a little slice of heaven.

Comments

Unknown said…
Sandy. It looks like a kind of magical place here in the states. I would love to actually smell the air feel the breezes on my cheeks. Maybe soon. Mike will be retiring next June. I think will plant a seed in his head. We could ride out west visiting relatives and then out to Alaska. Thank you so much for sharing Sending wishes for safe happy travels. Debbie
joyce said…
Looks like a wonderful trip. Are you coming back down the same way you went up?

Popular posts from this blog

Hidden Gem

Thank you, Georgia , for helping me focus on the hidden gem, the place we love to go and not be found. Not far from home...it IS home. We call it "out back," and once there we are transported to a private place, not visible from houses or road or the casual observer. I couldn't choose just one photo, so I created a collage of this special part of our world. Enjoy.

Happy Week- being home and loving photography

Roamin Meets the GPS- Stories from the Road Lisa, my favorite Curious Girl , created a wonderful idea for a week of "happy" posts. Share those things which make you happy, bring joy to your life, and generally fill you with happy thoughts (I do love the movie Hook , with Robin Williams). We are just returned from our fabulous 23-day, 5600 mile, 10 state, 4 time-zone adventure, and I am filled with happy thoughts today. I am also aware of the piles of laundry, the dirty car, the grocery shopping, and the weary body. Those are not the things I'll share today! Today it's about the joy of road-tripping. The miracle that we live in such a country that everywhere you go you see something to celebrate. I love driving down the road and seeing something new, or different, or unexpected. We drove for a very long time across the upper mid-west, while following signs for "Wall Drugs." Apparently this is a historic stop, originally a place for those who crossed the coun...

100 Blessings

It's funny how a project takes on a life of its own. I started out making a list of things I'd like to take pictures of - piles of M&M's, rocks on the beach, license plates hanging on an old garage door. Then I decided it would be interesting to find 100 items about "me," celebrating my 100th post with items about me/my life/etc. This way I could tie my compulsion to blog in to my theme. So, I started THAT list. And when I was done I decided all the things I was collecting, ideas as well as items, were actually blessings. Things about my life that make me who I am and allow me to keep striving to be the best I can be at what I do. Each activity isn't necessarily a blessing, it's my ability to do the things I love to do, and be with the people I love to be with. This became an introspective activity, and that's probably where I am in my life right now. If the shoe fits..., so to speak. So, welcome to my 100th Post ! Without everyone I've met thr...