Between Adventures
After the excitement of the Fourth of July, the next two days were about as unexciting as travel days can be. Sometimes that's exactly what you need. There are blog posts to write, photos to edit, laundry to do, gear to organize, and a chance to simply slow down before the next adventure.
July 5th
I didn't get back from the Anchorage fireworks until about 12:30 a.m. Even then I wasn't ready for bed. Around 1:30 I received a reply to an email I'd sent earlier in the day, so naturally I answered it. It was one of those uniquely Alaskan nights where darkness never fully arrives. The sky sits in a long, drawn-out blue hour, leaving your brain unsure whether the night is ending or the morning is beginning. Eventually I fell asleep without setting an alarm and didn't wake up until 10:30.
Some dates have a way of slowing you down. Without really trying, I found myself thinking about people who had been important parts of my life, old friends, family gatherings, and years that now seem much farther away than they really are. My brother reached out with a Fourth of July message while everyone else was off enjoying their own holiday weekend.
I don't spend much time looking backward anymore, but certain dates have a way of bringing old memories to the surface. They don't make me sad. They simply remind me that those years happened, and they'll always be part of who I am, even as the road keeps leading somewhere new.
The rest of the day was spent doing something every travel blogger eventually has to do—catching up. I edited photos, wrote blog posts, organized files, and finally managed to get current again. It isn't glamorous work, but without those quiet days behind the laptop, none of these stories would ever make it onto the website.
July 6th
The following morning was all about preparing for a 2 hour flight to Dutch Harbor, AK.
Since I hadn't driven much during the previous week, the van's batteries hadn't received much charging from the alternator. I topped off the fresh water tank, plugged into the campground's 30-amp service, and let the batteries recharge to about 80 percent (batteries 960 Ah of storage). Then it was time for all the less exciting chores that come before a flight: showering, emptying the growing collection of bottles, cans, cardboard, and trash, and organizing everything I planned to take.
I went through my usual travel checklist several times, making sure I had the right camera equipment, batteries, chargers, cables, first-aid supplies, vitamins, identification, clothing, and everything else I'd need for several days in the Aleutian Islands. A forgotten charging cable at home is an inconvenience. Forgetting one in Dutch Harbor can become a much bigger problem.
The gear inspection also revealed that a few things had reached the end of their useful lives. My merino wool hiking socks were getting pretty thin, and my water-resistant hiking pants had definitely seen better days. I put together shopping lists for REI, CVS, and Best Buy before leaving Anchorage. Around six o'clock I made an early dinner before finishing up the last of the packing.
I should probably say a few words about the Anchorage Ship Creek RV Park since I spent nearly a week there. The location is hard to beat. It's only a few minutes from downtown Anchorage, making it an excellent base for sightseeing. The showers were clean, hot, and had no time limits, which is always appreciated after several days on the road. Unfortunately, that's where most of the positives ended for me.
The campground sits beside active railroad tracks, and trains regularly blew their horns for what seemed like minutes at a time. It's also directly beneath the flight path for Anchorage's international airport, so aircraft passed overhead throughout the day and night. Vehicles came and went well into the night, and overall the campground felt older and more worn than many of the places I've stayed during my travels.
For me, I'd give the Anchorage Ship Creek RV Park a 3 out of 5. The convenience of being so close to downtown is its biggest advantage, but if you're looking for a quiet campground, this probably isn't it. People have recommended Palmer north of Anchorage, but also 50 minutes away.
By 7:30 that evening I was headed for the airport. My flight to Dutch Harbor would leave at 6:00 the following morning, and I wanted to avoid any stress before an early departure. Long-term parking at Anchorage's airport was easy to find and cost $13 per day, up from the $10 rate I'd seen mentioned last summer.
By 8:30 I was in bed. Ironically, the airport parking lot turned out to be one of the quietest places I'd slept all week. Compared to the campground, it was almost peaceful.
The next morning, I would finally be on my way to one of the most remote communities in the United States, Dutch harbor, AK.