September 12, 2013 Thursday
Day 68

Cold, cold, cold. Low 30s and bright and sunny this morning. We looked out of our camper and saw the fall colors had popped even more - yellows, greens and rusts against bright blue skies and white snowy mountains. We never tire of this beauty!

We saw several dall sheep high up on the mountain right across from our campsite. Got away by 9am, heading to Valdez today, about 200 miles away. Saw more dall sheep along the way.

Stopped for gas at Eureka Lodge, established 1936. Ate breakfast in their restaurant; most customers were hunters, just in from or on their way to their hunt. Lots of ATVs and camo gear. Food was great; it was a fun place to people watch and we had nice talks with some of the guys.

Driving along, we began to have vIews of Mount Drum, 12,012 feet and Mt Sanford, 16,237 feet. Completely snow covered, they look majestic rising up from the horizon line in front of us. We are reminded, again, of how dominant the forces of nature are. Puts the significance of our existence in perspective.

On the outskirts of Glennallen, we got on the Richardson Highway which runs along the Wrangell-St. Elias National Park and Preserve, past the Chugach Mountains. We had views of the trans-Alaska pipeline.

In the beautiful Copper River Basin, we stopped for our picnic at Worthington Glacier State Recreation Site. Worthington Glacier is a National Natural Landmark. Pretty Impressive.
We are always amazed at the definite change in the air temperature when we are near a glacier. You can really feel the cold as you approach. We had our picnic in the car. Brrrrr
Got out and walked their trails a little bit, getting so close to the glacier and lake. Small chunks of ice were floating in the lake.

A most spectacular drive above timberline through Thompson Pass, elevation 2678 ft kept my mouth open in awe! Literally, you feel like you are on top of the world, above mountains, rivers, valleys, etc. You can see for miles, a vastness that is indescribable. It is so different from what we are used to back east where so much of the lands are developed.

For the last several miles of our trip, we entered Keystone Canyon and we drove past magnificent cascading waterfalls virtually everywhere you look.
This has been one spectacular drive today. We are so fortunate it was sunny with few clouds. It could have easily been a day when the weather is "socked in" in which case we wouldn't have been able to see all this beauty.

Arrived in Valdez about 4pm, checked into Bear Paw RV Park; our site is right on the water, Port Valdez, near the boat harbor. Lots of boat activity. Nice.

Drove around town, then to the waterfront and the boat harbor. Had salads and pizza at The Fat Mermaid. Great food, crispy crust, great place for people watching and conversation eavesdropping.

Wildlife Sightings
Dall Sheep