The Sound of Music

While traveling along the Eastern part of the U.S. of A. I heard about a place that I knew my wife would love to visit. It is located in Stowe Vermont. It is the Trappp Family lodge. This was the family that was portrayed in “The Sound of Music” movie many years ago.

SONY DSC — One of many signs along the way

I had scheduled dinner reservations ahead of time. The food was wonderful, the atmosphere was very relaxing and very beautiful. There was a gentleman that was playing the piano and selling some of his cd’s, he was a very talented individual. We also went on a wagon ride of the property which was relaxing.

We went during the fall (Early Oct.) so the trees were all very nice and bright.

We did not stay the night there, as we had other travel plans, but many people were. If your travels take you through Vermont I would recommend this place to visit, especially if you or someone who your traveling with enjoys that movie.

Crab Boat Tour Ketchikan AK

One of the tours that many people go on, while in Ketchikan is the crab boat tour. It’s about a 3.5 to 4 hour tour. I have been on it 4 or 5 times, usually taking someone who is visiting us. The ship is the Aleutian Ballad. The crew takes you out, shows you how crab pots work, they have some preset ones that they pull you for you. They show you different types of crab also from small ones to kings. The tour is very informative and the crew is very friendly.

At one point they attract some bald eagles. I have seen over 30 flying around the ship and feeding from the water, but toward the end of the season I have seen less than 10. They give you the opportunity to hold various sea creatures, if you want. This is a rain or shine tour. Best place is on top deck to get some good eagle pictures, on the bottom deck if you want to handle stuff. I believe that there are age restrictions for small kids.

Black Bears

Living in Alaska, on a remote island, in the second largest rain Forrest in the world (I believe), one might expect to see some animals. Well here in Ketchikan, one of those animals is black bears. From spring until fall there are a few locations where you can see bears in the wild, not in a cage or in a zoo. But real live, untrained, sometimes uncaring bears. We have lived here 10 years and it never gets old. We have had them in our front yard, just passing on through several times. Sometimes we just go and watch them fish.

Often about this time you can see mama bear with a cub or two.

if you get a chance to make it to Alaska and see the bears, just remember they are not pets, this isn’t a zoo, they are not trained. Don’t go near them if you have food. A bear will do what a bear will do. Don’t get between mama and her cubs. Enjoy the beauty, thank God that you get a chance to see nature and wild animals, take pictures and memories, just don’t ruin it for those who live here.

A Day in Ketchikan

So living in a tourist is nice in some ways, and not so in others. If you take an Alaskan inside passage cruise usually Ketchikan is one of your stops, either your first stop if your going North or your last if your going South. I made a DVD a few years ago, because it was something I really wanted to do. The DVD, “A day in Ketchikan”, displays several of the local sites and places to go. I sold some at a yearly craft fair called the Blueberry Festival. Others I sold in a few of the local shops for up to $15 each. Below are a few of the sections from it, one about bears and the other about eagles. Both contain some pictures that I took here. I just uploaded a digital cop of the DVD for only $4.99. If your interested please click the link below. Thank you.

Waterfall 1

There is a waterfall that’s about 10 miles South of Ketchikan Alaska. The water flows like this year around. When taking pictures of a waterfall try to have your camera on something steady to help reduce shake. Also if you adjust the shutter speed to a little slower then your water is more blurry and some people like that effect. If capturing video make sure your sound is not hindered or interrupted.

Real Alaska

So many people have no idea about Alaska, some think it’s West of Mexico others think that it’s smaller then Washington. The truth is that Texas is Alaska’s little sister. This depiction over the U.S. map shows it’s real size. The vastness, the size between towns and villages, the untouched wilderness. There are still unexplored parts. The population of the whole state last I heard was still below 800,000. A lot of towns in the lower states have that much or more. This has been home for the last 18 years. The wildlife is so increadable, the landscapes are so open. I believe everyone needs to visit the state sometime either on a cruise or a trip to Anchorage or Fairbanks, or watch the ididarod dog race. We do speak English, we do not live in igloos. There is not 6 months of darkness and 6 months of light. Alaska really is the last great frontier. There are many great people who call the 49th state home.

Real Alaska