Wednesday afternoon.  The wind is blowing.  It is raining and it is 54 degrees in the afternoon.  The wimpy residents of Alaska are grousing.  Will spring never come?  We, who don’t know any better feel that it is supposed to be always cold in Seward’s Icebox.  So, we took a hike this morning from the Eagle River Nature Center.  Struck out on bear, despite warnings of their presence, and saw only moose and a marvelous dipper bird.

I’m itching to get out but we’re sitting in the rig.  Anne is on the phone with Elley.  Outside huge flakes of snow are falling gently and ornamenting the spruce trees and our Blue car, Candy, with blotches of white.  The ground is getting blotchy too.  I guess the fire danger is no longer “high” as reported on the park service sign at the entrance to the Nabesna Road.

Enjoyed a great stay in Skagway.  Saw it turn from a ghost town to a boom town when the cruise ship passengers streamed into town.  They boarded trains, buses, tour vans, and even Hummers to go up to White Pass.  We took our car to watch them unboard, shiver, and stair into the white.  Then they took pictures of the wild, pictures of each other, and pictures of themselves.  They had entered upon what seemed to them all the Arctic and it touched them.  We drove on and stopped to make short walks along the road.  Off road was a few feet of slushy over a vici

This is the town where landed many of the prospectors (stampeders) hopeful for that find of color in the Yukon Territory of Canada.  The Canadian government made as a requirement of entry the possession of a year’s worth of provisions.  These had to be relayed over the 3,700 foot high Chilkoot Pass and down to a lake.  There they could raft to the Yukon River and float the rapids to Dawson City.  Ambitious souls.  We will drive over the top.  That will be challenge enough. 

We’re tired after our first day of touring and birding the Juneau area.  The generator and furnace are on.  Anne is frying fresh salmon.  All is well.  We were surprised to wake up to sunshine this morning.  The forecast was for storm.  Some of that came through the night.  The seasonal employee we met this morning told us that here forecasts are only suggestions for the weather.  It seldom follows them.  I told him we changed our plans because of it.  He said that was wise.

We’re situate in a lovely NFS campground ten miles from Juneau Alaska.  Arrived by ferry at 4:45 a.m. this morning.  Our literature said the campground opened today, but we found the gate locked.  We called the office to remind them of the opening.  A ranger knocked on our door at Noon to tell us it was open.  He remarked on our A.T. sticker and said he had through-hiked the trail in 1984.

I report on our three day day sea voyage from Bellingham WA to Juneau AK.  It is called inland but we crossed two open water areas.  The first was merely rough.  During the second the ship climbed great swells and dropped its bow with a groan.  The next wave crashed against the bow and sent sheets of spray across the bow and over the windows of the observation deck.  At least one wave must have drenched the windows of the bridge above. 

The rain has stopped and it is 54 degrees in northeastern Washington.  Lately it has been warmer in Alaska.  Good thing we depart by ferry for Juneau tomorrow evening.  Will arrive May 1st.  Hard to believe the time has come.  We called to find that the snow is gone from the coast.  That was great news.  Ten years ago we arrived to find it reaching the shore.

Raining this afternoon and rather cool.  We’ve become hardened for Alaska.  Still we had one fabulously clear day traveling from near Mt. Hood to here at the foot of Mt. Rainier.  At first had the one snowball in our rear view mirror and later faced the somewhat ominous Rainier looming in front of us.

We are camped in the Pacific Northwest.  The natives complain that spring refuses to come.  Weather continues cold and rainy despite the cherry and tulip blossoms.  The rivers are flush and the ground soggy.  After a few days of gray fog I became depressed.  Then, arriving here after leaving Ashland OR the sun emerged and cheer returned.