So we have been back from Alaska for about a month, and what have we been up to...?

We have done two Alaska Presentations...

We have moved our motor coach from summer storage at our friends in Silver Lake to Manhattan Kansas (with the boys for a few weeks) and then to Altamont, Kansas. Each time we have moved the coach it has been in the rain. Our first move included the aid of a large tow truck as we found out that a motor coach does not do well in the mud. We also found out that as you move you need to be consistently checking each area of the coach. While slowing down and turning right into a small town, Altoona, Kansas we lost our basement slide out the driver side of the coach. By the time we were able to get back to the place that we lost the slide there were two folks who had already stopped and were helping to pick up the debris. Later a young man stopped to help and when talking realized he had graduated from Holton High School while we were there.  The only real issue was the tote that had all of our old pictures.  It was shattered and looked like it had snowed with our pictures in the ditch. This was one of the first pictures that Gwen found under the slide.....

Along with a few of the others that we found.....

Were they really that small at one time...?

We are getting comfortable in Altamont as well as with the Coach and starting to learn all the appliances, workings and quirks of the unit.

View from our front windows.......

We were to start at Amazon.com on Monday (9-17-12) but due some office issues at Amazon we did not start with Orientation till Thursday (9-20-12) and Friday (9-21-12). That is when we found that our schedule will be 5:30 PM till 4:00 AM Wednesday through Saturday. But hey, we get three days off and we can stay in contact with our boys when we get off work as they seem to be up that late on Friday and Saturday nights anyway..... 

We are in the Stow department. After items are delivered to the Amazon receiving department we then stow the items in the bins for the pickers to retrieve and fill their orders.

Next issue;
"What?  Gwen gets a dishwasher...."

Has it been over 2 weeks since my last post?

Well not much time today either, but here is a short glimpse of my last two weeks...

One day you think the next day will not get any better, but it does....

Then you make friends from around the world who just stopped by to say "Hi"...

See you all soon...

Well I was able to take Gwen out today....

Today was here day off and we got permission for her to go along on the Photography boat today.  She was able to see sea otters, sea lions, harbor seals, whales along with King Salmon, Coho and a few halibut.  She was also able to see Pineapple, Veta Bay, Granite and many other fishing spots here on the islands.  She was also able to see how quick the ocean can change from a calm body of water to a very choppy body of water.  She even got in on a few drops.....

Then I took her out to Craig for lunch and she was also able to shop at a real store....

She is now working on her book and will get on here soon and update you on her adventures....

but until then... have a good evening.

Just a few of the fishing boats that I have seen this week....

 

Sorry the computer battery is down to 15% will just have time to give you a few pictures....

Gwen is still working on her third picture book.  She is actually painting while I am down here posting and doing the laundry.  Yes I am multi-tasking.....  Yesterday was my day off this week so I took a walk and climbed a mountain....  I found this waterfall half way up the mountain....

Hope that you all have a good week....  Will post more later this week.

So, yesterday and today were wild days on the ocean.   Lots of wind and waves which create for an interesting ride.  Just imagine one of those kids roller coasters at the fair.  However the track moves with some of the hills higher than the others and the distance between them changes as well.  Then there is the rogue wave that is taller and had no back, that sends you into a 3-6 foot free fall in a 25 foot boat.  Oh my.....

Well on the way back yesterday I saw this swarm of birds diving and feeding just inside one of the inlets on my way back.  When I drove over I realized that it was eagles training their young ones how to dive and feed on herring....  I wondered if they would stay around long enough for me to get my long lens and extender on...?  They did.  Then would they let me get closer...?  They did...!   Would they let me get any amazing images?  They did...!

Now there is nothing left to say..........

I even have a few where their claws are so full of herring that as they are flying away, the herring are falling out of their talons....

This is from today.  As you can see, the sun does shine in Alaska some times.  But not always on the whole island as the same time.....

The stitches are out... Tomorrow I will be able to take off the butterfly band-aids and the head should be back to normal...  As normal as I can be...!
Had a day off today and caught a Coho Salmon, by the tail literally.  Gwen will have her day off tomorrow.  First salmon in the fishing box for this year. But I do have about about 35-40 pounds of fresh shrimp in the fish box and Gwen and I de-headed over 75% of them....!

That is a story I will have to post on the blog later...

Off to supper.  Will have to see what the Crew chef had for us tonight.  Last night we had BBQ Ribs, onion rings, twice baked potato's, Salmon filet's, rice pilaf and vegetable stir fry.  Not bad for a Tuesday night meal...  Hope Gwen does not get use to that menu...!

July 4th 2012...  Gwen made it to the town of Craig Alaska, and Rick survived the day.....

Well the day started out like any normal day, there was fog and a sunrise.  Rick got up at 5:10 AM and headed for the harbor.  He completed his morning boat check and created his list of locations for the 20+ boats for the day and was out by 6:20 AM heading north.  By 7:20 AM he was out off the coast of Baker island when he felt the power drop in his engine.  Since there he did not have his back-up kicker (a 9.9 hp trolling motor) he headed for the Pineapple and the Rock pile another fishing spot about a 45 minute drive through open ocean  across the inlet by Cone island and up to Noyes island.  The ride was uneventful but there was a noticeable loss of power in the motor. 

                                                     This is Pineapple Rock, do you think
                                                     is looks like a Pineapple?

About two minutes out from the Pineapple he powered back and stopped the boat to prepare for the first morning shoot of fishing boats.  He decided to check the engine just to see if there was any visible issue with it.  Once he opened the engine compartment he saw the issue.  One of the injector lines had sprung the leak and was spraying diesel fuel all over the engine and into the bilge of the boat. 

So... he shut the engine off and called for help as once the engine was off there was no way to control the boat he was dead in the water.  But he did have his camera and a fishing pole.  However there were no boats to take pictures of so he decided to fish.  Well the limit of Halibut is two and he had that limit in about 30 minutes and the support boat "Double Ott" was about 60 minutes out so he just relaxed and took images of the passing trollers.  So about two hours of mechanics work his boat was up and running and was only about to get half of the images that he normally would get in a day. 

     Looking East from Cape Ulitka on the north side of Noyes Island

Once he returned from his events on a water he gave his fish to the fish cutters and returned to the dock to get his camera equipment and clean up the boat.  On the way back he was talking to a fellow crew member who was repairing the ramp to the dock.  So as normal Rick was talking more and paying attention less to where he was walking.  During the day one of the broken boats was placed at the top of the ramp on a boat cradle.  While talking and not paying attention Rick ran headlong into the boat with his forehead.  Well long story short, Gwen got to ride with Rick on an 45 minute emergency boat run into Craig Alaska and visit the Minor Medical Clinic for five stitches to his forehead.  That was not what she was wanting to do on her first trip "off the island".

Today we actually had the first time that Gwen and my day off coincided, but still were unable to get "off the island".  We were able to sleep in and take a three hour hike.  What a beautiful day...

One last image to leave you with.

Are we really that far out in nature.....?

And are the animals really that wild....?

Rabbit, Rabbit....

To all who know that term, I got you.  To those who do not, I still got you.  "Rabbit, Rabbit" is an old tradition where you try to "Rabbit, Rabbit" people you know on the first of each month, before they can "Rabbit, Rabbit" you.

Well today on the water was a new experience.  It was the opening day of Saner and trolling season on Alaskan waterways.  It looked like rush hour on any normal American highway, but with boats the size of semi-trucks and larger dragging ropes, lines and nets...

So on a trip from one fishing spot to another I may see one other boat in an hour, today I lost count.  I will venture to say that today the Alaskan coast is missing more than a few fish...

But it did make for a few photographic opportunities....

Two images today, I better stop....

Will write again later.......

Another week is in the books here in Alaska.......

I wake up every day amazed that we are here.  I have been able to drive my boat solo across a few inlets with less than a quarter mile visibility with only my plotter and radar.  Talk about faith....  Heading into 600+ foot deep water with 6-8 foot swells and/or waves, knowing that land is out there.  But it is a few miles away, if I go in the right direction....  I feel that there is some sort of life lesson here in this adventure.

My boat has been running great for the past few days.  I have also found an area on my daily morning run heading out into the ocean that has great cell phone reception for about 15-20 minutes.  If you would like a call at about 7:30am Alaska Time, let me know.

I am also starting to get on a roll with the pictures here.  I am getting good reviews from both staff and guests.  Some of the guests are getting into the store looking for the daily images, before I can get there and get them posted.  We area also selling them, which i guess is why I am here.

Well reality is starting to hit some of the staff here.  We have been here about a month "stuck" in an island on an island and some are getting island fever.  If you are lucky enough to get off the island and boat to Craig, Alaska.  I will remind them that they still end up on the same island, but it is a more civilized part of the island.  There are paved roads, cars, power lines and people along with a True Value, grocery store and two sporting good stores.....  Oh, I can't forget the pizza place.  That said we have had two staff leave for various reasons.  Even in all this beauty there can still be conflict and dissatisfaction.  Again, I feel that there is some sort of life lesson here in this adventure.

If Gwen and I ever get a day off together then I might have to take her "off" the island for Pizza.  I sure she would accept the change from all of our prior dates to Sam's club for a hot dog and four-berry sundae.

Today we actually saw blue sky.... through the clouds.  We don't get blue sky a lot here.  It is mostly gray sky, gray fog and gray rain.  Maybe that is why it looks like a rain forest here.  I can't complain as that makes for great pictures as the fog does reflect the light quite well.  However, three days of sun in the past month does leave us missing the sun.  Now I know that there are many of you in the midwest that would trade abundance of sun for our lack of sun, but I can't do that right now....


P.S. I added a picture for you......

So how was my first day going solo in the boat?

I actually blew the front seal of my boat's engine about 2 hours into my tour and had to return to the harbor after only taking 3 pictures....

Day two of my first week soloing in my boat:  I was actually in a spare boat as my engine was still in the shop.  Then about 4 hours into my day the power steering hose blew in the boat.  So, back to the harbor.  That is after waiting about 2 hours for the mechanics to find me.  They got lost twice on the way out to assist on my way back....

Day three started out the same way for someone else....  I had to make a run to the local sea plane dock in Craig, Alaska with the Marketing guy for the Waterfall Resort because another boat broke down and the shuttle boat was sent our to cover the broken down fishing boat.  Then, the guide for the shuttle boat (Craig) and I headed out for pictures after our 2 hour detour.  We witnessed a battle between two bull sea lions on one of the rocky capes, with the loser heading back into the sea...  Above the jagged rocks where the sea lion beds were thousands of bald eagle's keeping a watch on the spectacle below.

Tomorrow I have my first day off in the past 10 days....   I will not be up at 5:15am....!   Tomorrow...

But, I will not ever get tired of driving around looking at all of my God's creation...!  There are hundreds of whales and sea otters.  Thousands of eagles and fish...   Snow capped mountains, many islands with small inlets and coves.  I just stand amazed that I am here!

Rick's first day off does not coincide with Gwen's.  Gwen got to sleep in a couple of days ago and do laundry and clean the room.  She also got a chance to visit with some of the other staff here at Waterfall.  There are many wonderful people working here.  It is a great chance to get to rub shoulders with people of all ages and backgrounds.

I (Gwen) have been able to create hundreds of fruit baskets for the guest rooms, stock and re-stock all the drinks sold here and some of the clothing...fill out hundreds of Alaska Fishing Licenses and even got to be the Salmon Derby Hostess for a day (filling in for Stephanie's day off).  The Derby Hostess records all of the biggest salmon and halibut caught on any of the 25 boats that day and announces the winners at the evening meal.  Tomorrow will be a "turnover day" for me, which means that we will be checking out about 85 people and welcoming the same number in the afternoon!  It will be very busy!  Huge groups of men (mostly) very eager to get right out to their boat to fish!

I better get to sleep.  We are getting used to going to bed before 9pm, so that we can be up and to work by 6am.  The sun only sets for about 3 hours a night here, so we go to bed in the light and wake to the light!  We have been thoroughly enjoying the hard work and time to live in this beautiful place!

Our Blog is starting off a bit slower then we had hoped.  But the internet is even slower then we had hoped.  We are restricted from sending any images over the internet here.  We will try to update it as much as possible and then if/when we get to town we will update with images.

I have been out on the boat a few times in the ocean but tomorrow will be my first day out solo.  I have seen whales, sea otters, and seals.  I have caught a ling cod and a halibut.  Just today i walked out of the warehouse and saw an eagle drop down about 50 yards away.  It picked up a fish out of the water and flew away.

The other day we (all the guides, customers and I) were all called back due to severe weather.  The winds were getting up over 35 mph and the seas were choppy with 2-3 foot white caps.  We (my trainer and I) were on our way back when a boat with customers broke down out on the ocean.   We were called to go back the 2-3 miles of rough open water and transfer the guests onto my boat and get them off the ocean.  However, on the way out, the tow boat caught up with us so there was not much time spent out there.  Just the 6 mile round trip on the ocean.

Will let you now how my day goes tomorrow.  I will also let Gwen have some time on this as well.......

Rick

Alaska at last.....

We finally made it to Ketchikan on Friday...

Saturday it was rainy and cloudy all day...  but we are here.

Everything is green.... from the mountains (well at least the bottom 2/3rd's!... tops are still white)...

to the rocks...

...the roofs.

even the roots and ground are green.

We have seen our first 8-10 Alaskan Bald Eagles, a few gray whales from across the bay and about 3 harbor seals.

This little guy was just below a large fresh water rapids and I think was just enjoying the cold fast moving water.  He would swim up roll on his back and just slowly swim up in the fast moving flow.

Just a side note, we have come to really enjoy the food and hospitality at the Sweet Mermaids, which is just a couple doors down from the Gilmore Hotel, where we are staying.  Good food, great coffee and really nice staff.  When we come back, this will be a place we will definitely stop again!

So if you ever take a cruise to Alaska and or stop by Ketchikan, we would recommend them.

From Alaska and until the next time....

"Will we... or won't we leave?"  That is the question.....

 Wednesday, May 30th did not start like any other day.  It was our last day in Silver Lake.  We needed to finish packing the RV.  We were not sure where it would stay for the summer yet, and we needed to get to Manhattan, KS for the night.  Well, things went much slower than we thought, as we still had to disperse many of the final few items that we could not fit on the RV or would not go to Alaska (thanks Mike and Kathy...  their sale will be on June 15th & 16th on North Topeka Blvd.) Our kind neighbors forced us to take a break for a lunch at Gambino's and then washed a couple loads of laundry so we would not have to do that once we got to Manhattan that evening.

Thankfully, we were able to get the Tiffin RV parked at some other friends who have a large yard, and were willing to babysit it for the summer.

We then packed our final few items and headed for Manhattan, KS. After traveling a block and a half we turned around in a drenching storm with hail.  About 30 minutes later and with no power we tried a second time to head to Manhattan, through downed trees, single lane construction with no control lights but made it to Gabe's house by 9:30pm safe and sound!

On Thursday May 31, we headed to Kansas City International Airport at 8:30am for our 1:05pm flight.  All was going well till we arrived at what we thought was going to be a tricky check-in, with six checked bags.  After waiting for over 20 minutes we found out we were in the wrong terminal.  Yes, it was an Alaskan Airways flight but it was actually on an American Eagle flight.  By this time it was about 12:15.  Once we were checked in and had boarding passes we were told to run to the gate.  We made it there with five minutes to spare, quick hugged the boys goodbye and rushed through the security checkpoint.  Then we heard the announcement,  "Due to severe weather at Chicago O'Hare we were on an 1 hour delay..." We would not take off till after 2:30pm.  Our flight in Chicago for Seattle took off at 3:35pm and we arrived at 3:50pm.  We now had 6 hours to kill before we could leave on the next and last flight of the night to Seattle.  So we took a walking tour of O'Hare airport and saw the "Tunnel of Lights" (thanks Gabe)

and the Hydroponic Gardens (thanks Chicago Police Officer / Tour Guide).

So, we waited for the 7:40pm flight that took off at 10:10pm for Seattle.  We arrived in Seattle at 1am local time and 4:00am our time.  We re-booked our Ketchikan flight AGAIN, collected a few RON kits.  (I told them that I was not Ron and needed a "Rick and Gwen kit", but they still gave us the RON kits) and we used them....nothing like a toothbrush and deodorant when you have nothing else!

It is also amazing what a little sleep and a shower can do for you.  On June 1st we got up at 8:00am (11am our time) and made it  to the airport to leave for Ketchikan at 10:00am.

Arrived in Ketchikan on time at 12:00pm local time, but about 18 hours later than our original itinerary.  We saw over four cruise ships in port when we arrived.  That did not matter to us, we had made it....we ferried over from the landing area to the main island and waited for a cab.  The first one that drove up was pirate.  He had a patch on one eye and wore suspenders, but got a call before we could get to his cab.  I think that may have  been a good thing as we look back over the events of the past two days.  We did get a cab and arrived in our room at the Gilmore Hotel at about 1:30pm.  We were settled in Alaska....

Then the Norwegian Pearl decided to notify us that she was leaving at 2:00pm and was blowing her horn right outside our window....this was the view.  We were told that there were about 8,000 tourists in town that day.

That is fine.....
We have made it with ALL six of our bags a well.....

We are off to breakfast and take a few pictures with my real camera, instead of Gwen's iPhone.

Till next time...

Four Days and Counting.....

Gideon has graduated officially. He was able to get his diploma this past week. On, Friday May 25, we moved him to Manhattan, KS with Gabe. Then we started the one week count down.

I have about half of the coach washed, polished and waxed and Gwen has started to move items into the coach. Last night we were able to move the flat files that Gideon made in woods shop this year into the basement of the coach. It looks like we have also found a covered storage area in Topeka for the coach, we have tried multiple places but no luck.

Note:

Motor Home (noun): a large motor vehicle equipped as living quarters.

Coach (noun 'koch): a large usually closed four-wheeled horse-drawn carriage having doors in the sides and an elevated seat in the front for the driver.

Camper (Noun /'kam-per'): a portable dwelling for use during casual travel and camping.

I like the sound of the Coach, even though the coach has already been named "The Nomad."

Nomad (noun no-mad): a member of a people who have no fixed residence but move from place to place usually seasonally and within a well-defined territory.

Our Mascot

Until our next post.....

So here we are, wandering around the house and thinking, "what have we been doing in the past 2 months that has made us so tired....?"

March 15th we sold our house...
March 17th to March 25th we spent Spring Break with my folks in Pensacola, FL...
March 29th through March 31 we were in Box Elder SD to set up our new state of residency...
April 4th we had our 1st April birthday...
Saturday April 7th we drove our purchased RV home from Manhattan, KS...
April 20th we had another birthday...
Saturday April 21, 28 and May 5th we had large whole house tag sales...
The following weeks were sales on CraigsList...
May 6th was a going away party from our friends at NorthLand Christian Church...
Gwen's last day at the Silver Lake Public Library was on May 16th...
Rick's last day at the Kansas Department of Labor was on May 17th...
May 19th was Gideon's Open House with friends and family...
May 20th Gideon graduated from Silver Lake High School...

What started this whole process?  Oh that's right! We accepted positions at the Waterfall Resort, west of Ketchikan, AK and purchased our one way tickets form May 31, in early March.

We wonder why we are tired, but I cannot worry about that YET...  I have to go wash and wax the RV this week and we need to pack it full.  Gideon is getting ready to move in with Gabe in Manhattan.  Gabe is already working his summer construction job.

Do you ever sit and wonder, "what is normal?" or "when will life slow down?" or even "does life ever slow down?"

I am contemplating if I will ever have some time to just sit and wonder.....

Till our next post....

The Saga continues

I will try to sum this up in a short paragraph or two.  So much has happened since Rick's last/first post that we have barely had a chance to breathe!
We sold the house in early March and are renting it back until May 31st, when we will fly to Alaska to work at the Waterfall Resort.  Rick got his dream job of being a photographer for the resort for the summer.  Gwen will work at the General Store and help sell his pictures!  Check  out Waterfall's website at www.waterfallresort.com to see where we will be!
We will return to KS from Alaska sometime in late August where we will hang around until October.  We have already secured jobs at Amazon.com as part of their CamperForce.  We will help fill orders at their distribution center in Coffeyville, KS until December 23rd. 
From there we plan to drive back to Manhattan, KS, where we will spend Christmas with Gabe and Gideon...possibly driving to Tuscon, AZ to see Rick's parents.
Here are some pictures of the beautiful new home we will be living in.  These are pictures the former owners took when they were trying to sell it.  They are wonderful folks that live in Manhattan and were extremely patient and helpful to us in purchasing this.

We have seen God prepare the way for us each step of the way for us to get to this point.  There are so many "back stories" it is unbelievable almost! Ask us and we will be happy to share those with you.
This weekend we will be having a major Moving Sale to get rid of anything that does not fit into this new home...that does not leave much to keep.  We are excited to see where we will be able to go and what we will be able to accomplish with God's guidance in our future.  Come along with us on this trip!  We want to share it with you.

Ok, for all of you that are wondering what in the world is going on....?  We will be filling you in over the next few weeks.

This all started around Christmas time when we saw a news show on TV talking about the new nomads.  People who travel from seasonal position to seasonal position across the US of A.   Gwen and I started talking about it and brought the idea up to Gabe and Gideon and they seemed supportive of the idea.  Gideon just requested that if possible could we stay in Silver Lake until he graduates on May 20, 2012.

Then on New Years eve we were taking Sr Pictures for a friend and his mom started discussing how her mom was wanting to move to Silver Lake, KS.  She just did not see any home that she thought would suite her needs.  She also stated that she really like our location in Silver Lake.  Well after a few sideline discussions, Gwen stated that we might be willing to sell our home.

Well after putting images of our home up on line along with a few visits we came to an agreement and a possible sale date.  Now once you start thinking about selling your home, what other thought process might need to change?

That will have to wait for another day.....