Bear Viewing

Dayton and Abigail got a chance to go with Paul on a bear viewing flight.  There was an extra seat so I got to go along too :)   We went to Brooks Range in the Katmi National Park.   Glenn Jr. and Carlin who fly for The Farm Lodge in Port Alsworth (and who Abigail worked for last fall) each took a load and  Paul flew us in the Cessna 180.  We couldn't take our plane because there isn't a runway there so you have to be on floats.  

We flew to Port Alsworth to in our plane and then got in the float plane.

Below, Paul tied up our plane to the nearest tree as we lined up beside the many other planes there to see the bears.

I was walking on a boardwalk that was about 12 feet above the ground out to the first bear viewing platform and this huge bear in the picture below walked right under me and stood up to scratch his back.  Based on the bark gone off the tree, it must be his favorite tree.  It was amazing, I could have reached out and touched him!

The bear in the picture above and below was the Grandpa of the group.  He was huge and he didn't move from his spot the hour and a half we watched him.  He just stood there and grabbed the fish as they came to him.

The bear at the top of the falls caught his fish in mid air.

The two cubs above were walking along the river ahead of their mother.  There were three of them and as we watched another bear made a rush for them and almost caught them before they scampered up the tree in the picture below.  Mom came and stood below them for about a half an hour then they all came down, Mom caught a fish within just a few minutes, and they carried it off into the woods to eat it in peace.  They actually carried it to a spot under the boardwalk that we walked in on.  Our turn on the viewing platform was over as they carried off their fish.  So, we got to follow them and watch as the three cubs fought over the fish and ate it while the mother stood guard.

Paul and I

Dayton and Abigail in the gift shop.

As you step out of your float plane, volcanic pumice rocks float all around you.  They got there when the Mount Katmai volcano exploded in 1912.  After we left the bear viewing area, we flew to Novarupta, a volcano that was formed when Mount Katmai erupted.  It the picture below you can see volcanic ash that forms the Valley of Ten Thousand Smokes.  The ash is 600 feet deep from the VEI 6 eruption.

The cliffs surrounding the valley are beautiful green and purple.

Lake Iliamna is the largest lake in Alaska.  As we flew over it on the way home, Paul pointed out an island to us that he says often has seals sun bathing on it.  The seals are able to move between the salt water of Bristol Bay and the fresh water in Lake Iliamna.

Dayton and Abigail in Alaska

After Dayton and Abigail's honeymoon, they flew up to Alaska to spend some time with us.  We got home to Nondalton just in time to greet them when they flew in.

 Lavonne's Mom and Grandmother came over to meet Dayton.  Sarah has chalk all over her face, but I thought this was a cute picture of Lavonne's Grandmother, Cheda Mary, showing Sarah how to crochet.

We have lots of projects that need doing around here and the kids didn't seem to mind working when they were doing things with Dayton.  He's a lot of fun and keeps everyone smiling while they work.  Below he and Quentin are putting up a rain gutter on the back of the house.

We went to Regina's for our monthly new moon celebration. Hazel and Augustine along with Cam and Nicole were in town and joined us.  They have moved to teach in another village so we won't be babysitting Hazel and Augustine any more.

We had a fun time dancing.  

One of our favorite hikes is the mountain behind Nondalton.  We took Dayton up to show it off to him.

Above the kids are waiting on the plateau for Paul and I.  Below I'm making it up the last few feet.  It is always good exercise :)

Up on the plateau there is a crevice where the snow never melts.  We had fun exploring it.

Below Dayton and Quentin are trying to put snow in each others faces.

Dayton brought his Go Pro along and we had fun making creative videos.

Abigail volunteered to hold the Go Pro to get shots of snow/ice balls hitting it.

I think Dayton got a little carried away in the photo above.  So Abigail attacked him :)

Below Dayton is making it look like he jumped off the cliff.

The way down goes much faster, but can get a little slippery.

Driving Back to Alaska

The drive from North Dakota to Anchorage went very smooth and very fast.   Having the motor home and being able to get good sleep when you're not driving makes it very nice.
We did find time to stop a few hours at Liard Hot Springs.  They totally remodeled it and it is very nice.

 Quentin and Anna were stopping up the water going over the dam.  Then one of the kids would sit on the other side and get a huge waterfall when they released the water.  One of the other visitors there that day called us the "Beaver Family"  :)

 It was a hot day so we wandered downstream a bit to cool off and play on this fallen tree.

 The kids tipped over backwards into the stream at the same time.  Benjamin and Sarah were a little slow, not quite sure they could trust Paul to catch them both at once.

There was also a brand new playground.

  We got into Whitehorse, Yukon late at night.  We got up at 0500 to swim for a few hours and then we hit the road again.

 The drive through Canada and Alaska is beautiful.  We always see lots of wild animals.