The people here are like people everywhere- friendly. Our next door neighbors in the campground had grilled fresh shrimp our first day here and shared with us. They also help identify bears high up on the mountainside adjacent to the campground. The man at Mark's Auto Repair squeezed in a lowly request to get a tire fixed even though his shop was overflowing with business.
So, it is on to Wasilla and the Matanuska Air Service to meet Grant and Debby for the first time. We will then get into our rhythm for our summer part time job, property caretakers for them as described in our March post In the Beginning.
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We left Valdez around 8:00 taking the Richardson Hwy in a northerly direction to Glennallen, AK. There we picked up the Glenn Hwy taking us in a southwesterly direction.
We again are able to see snowcapped mountain ranges. As we near Palmer, AK, we can identify the Matanuska Glacier, something we were not able to do around Valdez because the snow cover there was still to deep making everything look white. We also go by Gunsight Mt, so named for the square notch at its top, and by The Kings Mt., so named for it pyramid shape.
The Glenn Hwy is in generally good condition, but like all northern highways it has its frost heaves which are not as readily marked as they are in Canada.
We arrived in Wasilla around 3:00 when the GPS on my iPhone decides it needs to do a “rerouting”! It worked fine when there was only 1 highway going to Wasilla! So, my navigator convinces me the best thing to do is to call the Chapmans at Matanuska Air Service for directions. Of course this asking for directions is contrary to my male instincts. However, since all we have is an address and no street map of Wasilla, I agree to call.
Debby Chapman happily and accurately give us the various turns and roads and streets to take. Peggy writes the info down. After our call is complete I go back to the GPS app. Sure enough “Karen” has rerouted accurately and is in agreement with Debby’s directions. Way to go, Karen!! Better late than never.
We pulled onto the Matanuska Air Services premises and Debby is there to lead us to where we will park our trailer. We found that both Debby and Grant are as pleasant and fun in person as they were during our phone conversations with them from Omaha.
We parked our trailer in its spot and set up. After we have supper, Peggy and I take a few photos of the grounds and find Grant and Debby sitting at the lake shore. We shared some good stories and laughs.
We watched airplanes land and take off both from the lake and the runway across the road from us. This is going to be fun just from the standpoint that airplanes are so fascinating to watch.
We then went for a walk around the neighborhood. It is amazing at the number of homes that have aircraft parked in their yards or driveways. The streets provide taxiways for them to get to the airport.
That pretty much wraps up our drive from Omaha to Wasilla! We still have much to do and see in Alaska. There is the Kenai Peninsula, Denali NP, Fairbanks, day boat tours to Glaciers and whale watching, and charter fishing trips.
Because the lake that their cabin up in the mountains is at is still ice covered, Grant and Debby will not be leaving this weekend so we are not on “formal duty” to watch the property. This will give us time to explore and learn to find our way around the Wasilla area.
We can’t contact the cable tv/Internet company until Tuesday, but Wasilla has about 13 over the air channels. This should be enough to get us through the weekend. Years ago we never even brought a tv camping with us. Evenings were spent around a campfire. But now, Peggy and I are nothing but a couple of “camping dudes” (some would call us “camping snobs”).
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