This is my first entry that hasn't been back-blogged. So I finally get to tell you what I've been up to since our arrival.

The apartment : is nice. No one-bedrooms were available, so they gave us a two-bed for the same price. So Zoey has her own room. It is fully furnished and works like a hotel, except there's no maid. I really like it.

The town : is interesting. There is no nice part of town, and there is no bad part of town. It is a patchwork quilt of old and new, mixed together. Every block is different. We've been house hunting. We got into our apartment at noon, were fed and had gone for groceries by two, and by three p. m. we were out touring houses with our realtor, Kevin. (we don't waste time!) It was really nice to have someone we had been working with for a month. We had a list of places we wanted to see the first day. We toured three houses : two we had chosen and one that had been on the market awhile, but had just reduced into our price range that morning. We were looking for a fixer, so looking at our two choices was kind of a let down. The third, our realtor's choice, looked like a palace compared to the other two.

We toured houses for the next two afternoons. Friday afternoon, we had narrowed our search down to two we had seen the first day : a fixer and the realtor's choice. We decided to put an offer down on the ready one. As of today, we have everything setup to start buying it. After agreeing to sell my soul to the bank, it will be MINE :)

Being new to the area made us think it might be hard to choose an area. But we had a really fantastic realtor whom gave us the insider's scoop on all the areas. We also mentioned that we wanted 5-10yr resale value, so that helped keep us out of some of the iffier areas of town. I'm confident that we're buying in a safe neighborhood. If the house passes all inspections, we should be in by Dec. 15.

Crescent City, CA – Eureka, CA 85 miles

My allergies have been kicking ass since Canada and I’ve had to add Benadryl to the Claritin since Seattle, so I slept the entire way to Eureka. Matt woke me up at the city limit. Eureka! I have found it!

….more about the town later…..

Albany, OR to Crescent City, CA 8:45am – 3:30pm, 262 miles

The first few hours of our drive were through thick fog. Pea Soup fog. So I don’t really know what south central Oregon looks like. We had lunch and a DQ blizzard at a park in Grant’s Pass. It was a gorgeous day, sunny and 65F. Perfect for a picnic lunch. I took a nap and woke up at the California border sign. We had to go through an agriculture checkpoint and declare our plants. Armed guards asked us questions….what they were really screening for is anyone’s guess. All I know is that my plants were acceptable.

The road snaked through a river valley. Just thinking about it as I remember it makes me nauseous all over again. A canopy of trees rose above us. What started as a tree tunnel with low branches grew to a high ceiling over 100 ft above. Giant branches were woven together to block out all but small slivers of sunlight. The redwoods are AWESOME!

Mini Honey, Giant Tree.

The welcome to California was much more pleasant than our welcome to Alaska. It was -20F with a 20mph wind and completely dark. I’d never felt so cold before then or since.

- - - -
So I have to admit, I went into panic mode a little upon our arrival to the coast. It was mostly a freakout about how different California is from Alaska : the dirtiness, crowds, no winter, no hiking right outside my door, no isolation.

Then we went for a run. Part of it was on the beach. The feeling of the world drifting off beyond me into the sea was therapeutic the same way that hiking in the Alaska Range is. I finished the run with a smile and the resolve that I will erase all preconceptions of Eureka and give it a chance. Tomorrow, the trip becomes more than just a fun vacation. With less than a two hour drive ahead of me, my new life is looming—just out of reach. *gulp* I’m excited and nervous to meet my new home. Wish me luck.

Our first ocean sunset in Crescent City, CA.

....still en route to Eureka........

When I arrive in Eureka on Wednesday, I will begin the process of converting my journal to blog and adding pictures. Check back for new posts starting on Thursday.

Currently deep in Oregon wine country. Never knew there was such a thing? Huh, me neither.

Seattle, WA –Albany, OR 9:30am – 6:30pm, 243 mi

Seattle traffic is NUTS! I’m so glad that Eureka isn’t a huge city! We decided to make this another short driving day to stop in Vancouver, WA for lunch with my high school friend, Kristin. I hadn’t seen her since Eleanor’s wedding in 2008. ( I really suck at seeing old friends, don’t I?) She’s been here since June, working on an internship at a church. Sounds like she likes it, but is super busy and hasn’t really gotten to know anyone outside of work or do any exploring.

We stopped again between Portland and Salem for an outlet mall. WE were both pretty uninspired to buy anything and came out with a few new pairs of underwear each—odd since it was our first trip Outside since May. It’s really hard to shop when I know so little about the climate of the place I’ll be living.

Two big milestones today:

1. Our car rolled over to 100,000 miles. This was Matt’s first car, bought while we were in college. He saved forever for one and paid cash. Focus had 30,000 miles when we got her in 2004. She’s taken us everywhere : MI to OK, OK to WA, all over AK, AK to CA. We promised her an oil change and scrub down when we arrived here. Happy Anniversary, Focus!
2. We crossed the 45th Parallel (latitude) line. Since Fairbanks, at 65.6N, we’ve crossed over 20 degrees of latitude.

Free snacks at the hotel : cookies and chips and salsa. YUM!

Bellingham, WA – Seattle, WA 9:30am – 12:00 noon, 102 miles

The highlights of today were a 20 mile run and dinner with my college roommate, Amber.

The 20 miler was on the Burke-Gilman Trail alongside Lake Washington. It was a beautiful day: 55F and sunny. It was my first sub-3:00 20-miler, coming in with just 30 seconds to spare at 2:59.30. After a physically stressful week, I wasn’t sure how it would go. But I am more than pleased to average an 8:58/mi.

holy saltiness!!!

Now to taper and stay healthy for the race.

The last time I saw Amber was at a CMU football game in 2007 when I came to visit after graduation. She moved to Seattle just three weeks ago—so it worked out perfect for us to get together. It was great to catch up and see her new home.

We also visited the Seattle REI. The entrance was through some trees, along a hiking path. I thought that it was a little overly cheesy. The store was crowded by noon on Sunday and full of people that looked like they stepped off the trail just moments ago. Some wore daypacks, and one guy even carried a large overnight pack, dirty as hell, complete with clip-on driking cup. WTF?

With suuuuper sore legs, it’s time for a stretch and bed.

Cache Creek, BC to Bellingham, WA 8:30am – 2:30pm, 242 miles

The drive out of Cache Creek was like driving through a western movie: scrub brush and sparse trees covering the hills. The trees gradually grew more dense and became like a rainforest, complete with fog (no monkeys).





About halfway through our drive, we hit Highway 1- the Trans-Canada Highway. This was the point Matt and I had our first doubts about living successfully Outside. Traffic was horrible. Without the comfort of knowing that Eureka isn’t this congested, a pit of worry grew in my stomach. Will we be happy there? Life is definitely more fast-paced on the Outside.



The line at the border was two miles long and took us an hour to cross. As we mentioned our cat and declared our houseplants, the official left his booth and consulted with another guard outside, our passports in hand. They conversed a few minutes and then he returned to his position in the booth. He smiled and said “Welcome home!” as he handed our documents back to us. I was a little nervous that he’d chosen us for a random search. Trying to unpack and repack our stuff would surely take hours, if it fit at all.


We had a relaxing day with Matt’s Aunt Polly and Uncle Jack in Bellingham. It was nice to stay recharge for a day. Their guest beds are really comfy. Even Zoey seemed to look less stressed out by the end of the day.







Matt went for a hike and I took a nap. It was awesome! Washington is lush and moss covers all the trees. It’s a jungle!

Prince George, BC to Cache Creek, BC 9:15am – 4:15pm, 276 miles

I’d forgotten how much I really love Canada until this trip. It’s a lot like Alaska and the U.P. in that most people have that “northern friendliness”. They’re more eco-conscious in government taxes on recycling, laws on idling cars, etc. The U.S. seems to have this plan regarding the environment : put all our money into NASA because there must be another planet we can shuttle everyone to when we totally trash this one. Let’s find that new planet! I also love how readily available French newspapers and radio are. Every day we’ve stayed in a moderately large town, I found a French language news station. Much to Matt’s chagrin, we listen for a little while each morning until I get a headache from concentrating harder. He’s slowly learning the basics in French, but mostly just says “blah blah le blah” when we listen. Zoey is fully fluent in French and specifically embraces the culture when it comes to pâté.
Just as we’ve caught up to fall and the Canadian geese, we’ve caught up to my allergies. BOO! The only relief other than drugs is napping. Usually it takes me a few days to realize it’s not a cold, but instead, allergies. Today was the day.
Mostly a sleepy day. We stopped in Quesnel for the colors and a thrift store.

Fraser River outside of Quesnel

Quesnel park where we stopped

Fall colors again!

I seem to be a magnet for them. Thrift stores and Dairy Queens. We also had a blizzard there, btw.

The Oreo Cheesequake Blizzard is heaven.

Poutine. If you haven't tried it once, you haven't truly experienced
the disgustingly, but slightly appealing, nature of French Canadian food. All you'll need
is to try it once. Believe me.

Fort Saint John, BC to Prince George, BC 9:00am – 3:30 pm, 271 miles

The breakfast at our hotel was really good : hot and cold foods – cereals, waffles, roasted potatoes, and breakfast burritos – all fresh. We stopped in Dawson Creek to do some touristing. First, posing for a photo with the “Start of the World Famous Alaska Highway” sign. We also happened upon a Dairy Queen. Great stop if you ask me!




We drove several hours through more farmland, and then re-entered the mountains. Today, we finally returned to fall. It’s kind of like watching the seasons rewind. It only took 1,900 miles to undo winter. Prince George has a really nice running path, which was a relief, since our hotel’s neighborhood was a bit sketchy. All the leaves still clung to the trees.





The trip is starting to wear me down. I didn’t really notice it until our run. A 9:00/mi pace felt pretty hard.




Matt and I opted to take advantage of the kitchenette in our room and cook dinner for ourselves. Until this point, all dinners were out. My stomach is sensitive to lots of salt and processed food, so it was also grateful for me to cook. We also decided that a full week is long enough to go in the same running clothes—especially when they are stuffed into a duffel—still damp—so it was laundry and dinner-in night. I’m so glad that our 8h+ driving days are over. It’s so much more relaxing with all our remaining days around 6h or less.

Dear Readers,

HELP!!! My people are trying to kill me! Matt is a scary driver. He flies over frost heaves and it feels like a roller coaster---all day long. The cage is sideways, so when I stand up to look around, I get thrown back and forth in the cage. Karen lets me out of the cage to sit on her lap. But her lap is bony and out in the open. All the passing trucks trying to fly down to eat me can see me from her lap. So I try to hide between the suitcases in the back seat. Karen doesn’t like when I do that because she can’t reach me to torture me some more, so she stuffs me back into my cage. I’d like it more if the blanket was comfy. Maybe. When I try to tell my people that I’m not happy, they talk to me in their angry voices. I guess that means they don’t want me to be happy. That makes me even more upset. I thought they liked me.

The hotel is fun though. I like hotels. Sometimes I get my own bed. Karen gives me all her extra pillows so I sleep like a queen. Queen Zoey. I like the sound of that. Please tell Matt and Karen that I’m royalty and should be treated like this all the time. I like all the new smells and I can hide under the beds.

I also enjoy licking the soap from the bathtub. Karen doesn’t like it when I drink from the toilet either, but the water is so fresh and cold, I can’t resist. Why do the hotels have toilet lids? I don’t know how to put them back up to get a drink! I figure that if it’s harmful and I get sick, at least I’ll be at the vet and not in the car. I’m assuming the vet’s office isn’t constantly shaking.

Each morning, I can tell when they’re preparing to leave. I hide under the bed and Karen either kicks me out or yanks me out by the tail. I’ve thought about asking them to mail me to California, but that would probably be worse to go without a litter box that long. My poop really stinks, so that wouldn’t be a fun ride.

Please save me!!! I think that my people are trying to kill me! When we were leaving Alaska, they told me I could go to the shelter in Fairbanks or come with them. But they were sneaky when they asked me. Nothing was throwing me around inside of a terrible cage at the time. Help me!

Urgently,
Zoey

PS- Enclosed is a photo demonstrating my distress.

Muncho Lake, BC to Fort Saint John, BC 9:45 am – 6:00 pm, 385 miles

Matt and I started our day with a run. At nearly 3,000 ft higher than we are used to, it was difficult. But it sure was beautiful. The Northern Rockies surrounded us on all sides. We climbed above Muncho Lake, just as the sun was coming up. We saw an elk cross our path near the hotel as we turned around.

Us with the Canadian Rockies

We are getting really efficient at packing the car each morning. It feels like doing a puzzle that I’ve completed several times. Speedy. In just a few days, we will have lots less to bring inside as we drive south and escape the freezing temps at night.

The drive goes by faster when we don't have to stop for lunch...so I ate
this for lunch for a week straight.

I drove the first four hours to Ft. Nelson. It was the last part through the mountains—the most active day of driving for me. Up, down, fast, slow, hairpin turns. Really pretty scenery, but I hardly had any time to enjoy it.

The mountains shrunk in my rearview mirror until we entered a prairie just outside Fort Nelson.



Bison and beef farms replaced rows and rows of trees. The highway significantly improved. It was still obvious that it gets cold here, with a scattered mix of birch and spruce trees—not much variety. Our hotel was especially nice. I was surprised they allowed pets. It had a pool, hot tub, and sauna….of which we took advantage.

Whitehorse, YT to Muncho Lake, BC 8:30am – 6:00pm, 441 miles

This day of driving, our longest yet, at nearly 450 miles, seemed to pass quickly considering the length. We began our book on tape and had leftover pizza and salad for lunch, taking turns driving and eating. As we passed between Yukon and British Columbia several times, mountains continued to dazzle us, accompanying wide-eyed travelers on the journey. After the Continental Divide, the mountains steadily shrunk as the kilometers (I sound Canadian already, eh!) passed by my window. We saw some light snow in the high pass. Also rain just past Watson Lake. We stopped at the Sign Post Forest in Watson Lake. Zoey posed for a photo with me here.

Zoey and I with the Sign Post Forest, Watson Lake, BC

She was NOT amused. She grows accustomed to riding in the bumpy car more easily each morning. It is getting harder to catch her to put her in the cage each morning. We had to dig her out from under the bed this morning. She’s doing well though. She trusts that we’ll protect her and doesn’t run away scared like she did when we drove to move up here.

We stopped at Liard River Hot Springs.

Liard River Hot Springs

The water is SUPER hot and felt great after a long day of driving. We also drove through a herd of bison.



In all, we saw 50 of the 250 that live along the highway. Since they eat grass, they congregate on the grassy roadsides. They leisurely cross the highway, stopping with dozens of them still on the highway. We had to drive through the herd at a crawl to get through.

Teslin Bridge

Muncho Lake, BC

Our hotel is on Muncho Lake. We got beautiful views of the lake on a hillside above the valley. At dinner that night, we checked out the placemats. Basically what all the information says is “Poor us. We’re so far out in the wilderness that we have to charge a lot.” I bet they get a lot of questions as to why prices are so high. Both of the family-owned places we have stayed (here and Beaver Creek) have put up lots of signs about what not to do. I’m assuming people’s habits (using the bathroom without buying anything, reading books and putting them back without buying) cost them a lot each year, and it is compounded by their remote locations and higher operating costs. It was a beautiful log cabin hotel with delicious hamburgers. Mine was seasoned with rosemary and garlic and the most delicious burger I’ve ever eaten.

Goodnight!

Beaver Creek, YT to Whitehorse, YT 272 miles, 9:15am- 4:30pm

Sunrise near Beaver Creek, YT

When I returned to the hotel key, the owner asked now about our stay, but how the cat slept. She must be a cat person! …or that people don’t usually travel with cats and she was curious. Low fog made for a quiet Canadian Thanksgiving Morning drive. We stopped to help a guy towing a fifth-wheel camper behind his truck. He didn’t need any help, but did mention it was his second flat tire in 30 miles.

Kluane Lake

Matt with the mountains

Me with the high pass

Eventually the fog burned off to reveal the Notzotin Mountains and Kluane Range, and Mt. St. Elias, Canada’s second tallest mountain was partially obscured by clouds.

This was Zoey’s least favorite day so far. Frost heaves for a couple hundred miles—poor kitty. We had an ice cream stop in Haines Junction.

Milkshake in Haines Junction

It felt weird ordering a milkshake as I stood there shivering. The fact that I felt weird about it means that my Alaskanness is wearing off already.

The drive from there to Whitehorse was laregely uneventful. We did see some sheep, elk and bison, but none close enough to photograph well. But as Matt mentioned, it’s better they are far away than on our car hood.

Bison, bison, everywhere

I was impressed by Whitehorse. It was easy to find trails to get our mid-week eight mile run in. Mostly by running along the Yukon River, we got a nice feel for what the town is like. As mentioned by Matt, “It’s like Fairbanks—minus all the drunk homeless people.”

running on the Yukon River trail, Whitehorse

train tracks parallel the river and path

My running buddy in the sunshine by the Yukon River

I like Whitehorse. Too bad we can’t stay longer. This place and surrounding Kluane Lake deserve further exploration. *le sigh* …someday. We also found ads for the International Relay Race, a 100+ mi relay running from Whitehorse to Skagway, AK along the Klondike Highway. Sounds fun and GORGEOUS!! I’ve been meaning to add to my “Things To Do Before I Die” list. …. Hmmm…

FAIRBANKS, ALASKA to EUREKA, CALIFORNIA Fairbanks, AK to Beaver Creek, YT 311 miles

Us with all our friends a few nights before we left.

October 10, 2010 9:40am – 5:30pm

We had planned to leave at 10:10am on 10/10/10, but the first snowfall of winter prompted us to leave earlier. So by 9:40am, we were on the road. The snow fell quickly and the road became a slippery slide that we inched down most of the day. The typically 1h45 trip to Delta took nearly three. After Delta, snow was patchy and slippery road snuck up on us.

Birch Lake, Richardson Highway

Near Salcha, Richardson Highway

Richardson Highway near Salcha

The fresh snow clung to all the trees, bushes, and signs. It was really beautiful. Until today, much of the area was dingy snowless brown. Now it looked new and clean.

We didn’t do much more than a few photo stops. Zoey did well though. I think she’s still a little terrified and will do what we ask just because she’s afraid we’ll dump her out in the wilderness and drive away if she doesn’t cooperate.

Tok, Alaska visitor center cutout picture with Zoey

We stopped in Tok to take photos and get gas. As we pulled out of the gas station, a woman driving on the highway slowed quickly and slid to a stop just inches from our front bumper. As it turned out, Matt had left his gloves on top of the car while he pumped gas and drove away. She saw them and stopped to alert us, even though she put her car and life at risk to do so. She didn’t want us to lose our gloves when driving in the winter. I hope Californians are as nice as Alaskans. Here it seemed that everyone was watching my back, especially in the winter.

Matt and I had planne to get a photo of Zoey with the Canada sign, but we’d have to carry her along the busy highway to do it. I didn’t want her to jump out of my arms in fear and die by passing cars. So you’ll have to take my word for it : my cat is now an international traveler.

Welcome to Canada and the Yukon, ou on vive en deux langues.

We stopped for the night at 5:30pm AKDT, just after we entered the Pacific Time Zone and Canada at Beaver Creek, Yukon Territory. The town is literally three hotels/gas stations/restaurants. On a half mile stretch of road, the cops pulled over three cars. Remind me not to speed tomorrow. While dining at Ida’s, a very friendly older man came up to talk to us. He was returning to Fairbanks and talked to us about his work as a consultant for the Weather Bureau (now called the NWS) and how in the 70’s, the government tried to get rid of surface observing stations in favor of satellite and how it took the intervention by President LBJ to finally settle the matter—to keep the surface weather stations. We watched a movie on satellite TV. The commercials were especially funny after being used to the lame Fairbanks ones. Ie-Mattress Ranch.

I'd really like it if we could still be friends.....

Angel Creek Trail, Nov 2008

Spring : was slow to start when we arrived in Fairbanks on March 1, 2008. In fact, our snow didn’t go away until May. Likewise, our relationship with Alaska was slow to warm. We were timid in our exploration of the Last Frontier. Our first road trip was to Nenana. Friends had mentioned that hiking is available everywhere..so we planned to wing it and stop somewhere that looked good. We drove just past Nenana, to see the Alaska Range. We didn’t find a place to stop. I sat in my snowpants for the entire ride, hoping to make friends with my new state. It was a toasty ride, but no luck that day. It wasn’t until Memorial Day that we ventured out on our first hike : Denali Park. Fresh snow fell that morning, but I was instantly mesmerized by the untouched beauty and the fact that I could see for miles and miles without obstruction.

Denali National Park, May 2008

A long trip back to Michigan in June for a wedding caused our relationship to screech to a halt. She finally let me back into her life in August when I went on my first backpacking trip on Kesugi Ridge. It rained a lot. She was resisting a relationship. But on our last night, we had gorgeous views of the Denali and a river valley below the ridge. That trip inspired us for a do-over with gorgeous weather promised in the forecast. We hit Denali Park again for backpacking and it was the most beautiful trip thusfar.

Denali and Her Friends, August 2008

Summer : actually began that winter. I was fascinated by how cold affected everything. Ice fog made driving treacherous. Alaska and I tested each other and running in the cold became a fun game.

After a particularly frozen run at -45F

How cold could I hold out? Between Christmas 2008 and New Year 2009 was the longest cold period of our entire time here. It lasted nearly two weeks. Temperatures didn’t rise above -35F. It was frickin’ cold, but we handled it well. My coldest record was set at high noon a few days after the new year came, -49F. Alaska and I had our biggest, knock-down, drag out fight the first day of the cold snap. After driving about half a mile on my frozen, square tires (they really do freeze flat on the part that rests on the pavement when parked—takes awhile to beat the frozenness out), I realized something was wrong. I had a flat. I was lucky to end up close to Matt’s office and he was on a shift where he could easily leave, so he came to help me. But changing a flat at -40F is NOT fun. Nor is driving on the spare on black ice. Also, after the car left the repair shop, the ice had melted into the door frames. I tried to pull the car door open as steam rose from the cracks. Instant frozen. Great. That was our darkest day.

High Noon on the Winter Solstice 2008

Spring after my first winter was highly anticipated. It seemed even more exciting after the winter we’d had. Reward for surviving the frigid winter. Make-up sex for all the fighting we’d been doing.

Castner Glacier ice cave, February 2009

Summer 2009 was especially action packed. I ran my first marathon (Mayor’s Marathon in Anchorage), and spent nearly every weekend in the Alaska Range, on the coast, and up the Haul Road. This was our most active summer.

Tor on Mt. Prindle Trail, July 2009

Alison Point, Valdez, July 2009

Sun through the thick wildfire smoke, July 2009

MacLaren Summit, August 2009

Atop Atigun Pass, Dalton Highway, August 2009

We backpacked, ran, drove six of the nine Alaskan highways---by the time the leaves turned color, we were exhausted. And totally ready to enjoy a quiet winter together. This, I’m afraid, is where our relationship’s flame began to dim.

Fall : Alaska and I continued to enjoy each other’s company. We reminisced over all the great times we’d had and occasionally had new adventures. No longer did we spend every weekend together. Matt and I enjoyed several weekends in Fairbanks, unmotivated to go out and explore more. We felt that we’d seen all we wanted to, crossed everything off our bucket lists. Although Fairbanks holds her own charms, the real gorgeous parts of Alaska were the places where nobody lives. Just me and the wilderness. Alaska and I had several good trips in 2010: Anchorage, Seward, Valdez, and a great trip to introduce her to our friends. Matt and I spent most of the time running instead of backpacking, but we managed to get out and enjoy all she had for us---albeit at a faster pace.

Denali North Viewpoint, April 2010

Turnagain Arm from Mt. Alyeska, April 2010

Northern Lights from Goldstream Valley, April 2010

Savage River Trail, Denali Park, July 2010

Exit Glacier and Harding Ice Field, Seward, July 2010

Winter : All is calm. Meloncholy hangs in the air. In a few days, Alaska and I part ways. We both knew from the start that our relationship was temporary, but it doesn’t make breaking up any easier. We part ways amicably and promise to meet again someday—to keep in touch. But for now……Thanks for the good times, the bad, and everything in between.

Mt. Prindle trip, the only trip I wore my mosquito net every moment I was outside the tent,
July 2009

August 2010 sunset from my home