Eds final view

just want to give a total overview here. Lots of things we haven't mentioned. Like being about 20 miles fron Tok Alaske and hearing Tammies phone chime 4 times with text alerts. Finally, cell service after 2-3 days. That was good! Seeing 2 stores in 1 mile. That was also good. Being 200 miles from Anchorage and driving over hills almost like terraces. The road was wavy due to thaw I suppose. Found Anchorage to be like any other city. All the services you see here. Had some killer Sushi at a place called Dish. We ate several meals at the chow hall on Elmendorf AFB. A good breakfast was like $6 for both of us. That was a nice change because the same breakfast was $34 in British Columbia.

The flight home was l-o-n-g. Boarded the plane at 12:45am. I don't like to fly so I had asked a Dr, for a script that would tske the edge off. He prescribed Xanax, which I had never taken before. Tammie asked, are you taking your medicine? Yea, I'm taking a xanax. She thought I was lying! People, I probaly looked like a stroke victim. Drooled most of the way home. Tammie asked, how can you sleep so much? Convinced at that point that I had indeed taken medication. WE would do it again in a heartbeat. The ultimate way would be to fly into Dawson Creek, and drive from there. Not much WOW factor in looking at wheat and corn fields. Want to say thanks to our followers. I certianly hoped you enjoyed the ride along. If any of ya'll ever do a blog, please include us as a follower. And one more note in closing, seeing my friend Randy after 30 plus years was priceless.
Signing off,
Ed

Vacation is over!

Wow. I sat down for the first time tonight and read our entire blog. I realized that we didn't blog after our first day in Alaska. Don't know why, we had internet access in our room.
We really enjoyed our week in Alaska. We drove out to Turnagain Arms two days to see the Beluga whales. Didn't see any (kind of thought we might have, but can't be sure), but the drive was nice. The mountains in Alaska are breathtaking. Not really something you can truly capture with the camera. We toured the Alaska Museum of History. I learned a lot about the state and really enjoyed the museum. Tons of artifacts and interactive ways to learn about their history. We ate some great sushi at Dish and the Taco King was excellent. Gwennie's was also a favorite. Had a little encounter with some disrespectful young people, but I'll let Ed tell you about that. We stayed on the Air Force base. Had basically a little apartment, but the only television was in the living area. We are used to our bedroom tv. The bed was as hard as a brick. I really missed our tempurpedic mattress.
We also ate on the base quite a bit and our average meal was around $7 for both of us. We found ourselves saying "let's go to the chow hall and eat" haha. After spending about $100 per day on food on the road, we felt like we were making up our losses.
Ed and I enjoyed each others company and are still getting along pretty good. I guess two weeks of togetherness was a blessing. I think I understand him better now.
We got home Friday night and a limousine broke down on the interstate. Bryant was driving, so we managed to intercept them and get the passengers to the concert in Bryant and Amber's Scion. Ten people in that car was a sight to see.
Anyway, we finally got home around 9:30 PM. Then had to work all day Saturday (Ed-Crown and me-Bottomfeeders). Sunday was also spent getting catering stuff back where it was supposed to go. And now we are into the new week.
Makes me want to get in the car...

We are in Anchorage!

WooHoo! We have arrived in Anchorage, Alaska, our final destination. It took eight days to get here and we are so glad to have arrived with no car problems. We turned the Escalade over to its new owner and he is very happy. He said that this limousine in the only Escalade limo in the state of Alaska. That is pretty awesome.
We then asked him if he could recommend a rental car service. He has a really good friend that owns a rental car company and we are now driving a Ford Explorer at no charge for the rest of the week! The people here are very friendly. We ate at an old Anchorage restaurant and the food was awesome. We are hoping for some good sushi tonight.

We are staying at the Air Force base here for $39 per night as Ed is retired reservist. Gomer (the guy we sold the limo to) gave us some good ideas about what to do while we are here. Apparantly, since I turned 50 this year, I can get alot of things for free. At lease there is something good about turning 50!
Tomorrow we are going to drive out to the Turnagain Arm to see the whales chase the fish. We are so exited to be here and we feel that work is over and now we can play.
We miss everyone at home and this is the longest we have been away from our businesses since we started them. We are so blessed to have our children to help out while we are gone. Thanks Amber, Bryant & Todd. We love you and will see you this Friday!

Maps and Ed

Well I just wanted to say that today Ed ASKED me to look at the map. He continues to say we didn't need them, but he sure was interested when I told him what the next town was or how many miles to the next town, etc. I used my yellow highlighter to route out our trip. We only veered off the garmin route once (and saved one hour). Ed keeps saying how wonderful gps systems are. I agree. I don't think we could have made it with the maps alone. We really would have killed each other. I remember a Florida trip once and Ed threw the Atlas out the window in a fit of rage> I think it had something to do with me cutting out all the pages I thought we would need, so it was missing a few pages. Anyway, I am saving all my maps and am going to spread them out on the floor when we get home so get a visual of just how far we have come. We are so blessed to have had no car troubles, no sickness, and a very pleasant trip. I don't think I would want to do it again though. Ed says he wants to go to Maine. I could probably handle a trip that short!

Ed's view

Sorry we've missed a couple of days. After we left Dawson Creek and got onto the Alaskan Highway, we basically dropped of the digital planet. The road was straight and really long. We were anxious to really get into the hills and see what is was all about. Well, it happened. You see a sign that says "check brakes here", (sure if you're a sissy) and anyway this mean't you were giong to be going down a hill. Some signs said 6% grade, some 8% grade. And the wild thing was that that hill might be 3 miles of winding only to get to the bottom of the mountain to a bridge and be stopped by a red light, I'm not lying! Bridge construction. Most gas stations on the Alaskan are powered by their own generators. Many gas stations have boarded up for the season. One time there was a 130 mile stretch of nothing. You pray you don't have a mechanical problem or hit large game. We did not drive at night because this is when the animals really come out. We saw a black bear, a couple of moose, and a whole bunch of bison, and 1 wolf. (wish I had had my Stun Gun) People are out there on motorcycles, bicycles, a lot of campers, and 1 really cool Limousine. We were rockstars everywhere we encountered people. In White Horse yukon, we were asked for our autographs. Went to the Harley place in the yukon and it was closed> White Horse looked like a really cool place to vacation. Very tourist friendly. Caught a room lastnight at Haines Junction. Got to catch the only football gme on TV. BAMA. Too cool. breakfast was $34 today. If you ever travel that road....BRING FOOD. The rooms are pricy as well. I filled up last night. Drove 60 miles this AM and bought 6 litres, the other man at the pump had a 40 gallon tank, he bought 43 gallons.?????May'be the pumps were tweeked. You don't argue, you just pay and go, AYE. Got to the border, Mr drug dog climbed in and toured the car. No drugs found. The last 200 miles were like a roller coaster. But the scenery is awsome and worth it. We are blessed to be able to make this trip. Our room tonight is $149. OK but its not worth it. We did have options though, drive 3 more hours only to pay the same price or more.

Finally in Alaska

We made it! We are now in Glennallen, Alaska staying at a little lodge. Our A/C consists of opening the window or turning on the floor fan. Fortunately, it is pretty outside and we don't need air conditioning. We have now been on the road for seven days. We have seen the most beautiful countryside and mountains. Traveling up the Alcan highway was an experience. No cell phones for almost three days and no internet (which is why we haven't blogged). We had to stop for the buffalo in the road and have seen alot of wildlife.
This has been the experience of a lifetime. This trip makes going to my parents house in Oklahoma a short trip! Ed and I have gotten along amazingly well with neither of us ready to kick the other out of the car.
The limousine is definately uncommon. So many people have stopped and taken a picture of the car. Most of them assume we are famous or we are carrying someone famous. They seem a little disappointed when we tell them we are just common folks. One truck passed us and we looked out the window to see two very white human butts staring at us! That was very unexpected. We certainly didn't expect to be mooned on our trip! We stayed in Haines Junction in the Yukon Territory last night. Just as we got in our room, believe it or not, the Alabama game came on TV. We were so happy to see the Crimson Tide win their first game.
Food is very expensive now. I guess it takes a lot of $$$ to get it here.
We had our best food to date just as we crossed into Alaska. It was a hamburger and BLT.
We are headed to Anchorage, Alaska tomorrow and will be spending the week there. I have been scoping out what we can do for four days. We leave to come home on Friday. Ed said we are going to try to stay at the Airforce Base in Anchorage.
Hope y'all are enjoying hearing about our travels.
We have enjoyed writing about it.

Eds view

OMG, what a day. Got out of Calgary and don't miss it. Didn't really see enough to be judgemental. It was a big and nice looking place. I can't say this enough, Canada has the best highways ever. Even all the way up here to Dawson Creek. We drove about 80-100 miles of nothing but timber and then all of a sudden its wheat fields and alfafa fields.We saw a huge herd of buffalo, we saw really old barns, and we saw very few people. I think it really takes a special person to live this far north. There are a ton of camper dealers in this part of Canada and we did pass alot of campgrounds. Argiculture is the real blessing on Canada. Massive farm equipment.

Dawson Creek reminds me of Elk City around 1980. Packed with roughnecks in crewcab 4x4's. It has all the trappings of a boomtown. I hope to see more of it tomorrow before we leave. It was 85 degrees today. Rain tonight and cooler tomorrow. Thought we would be in the mountains today. We'll see how it goes. 1600 miles to go!!!!

Got my new maps!

Got my maps of Alberta, Canada and British Columbia, Canada. Still need the Yukon Territory and the Alaskan highway map. I feel pretty confident that I will get them tomorrow. We have the Garmin, which Ed absolutely loves, but I like the maps for backup. I don't know why, but I feel better with the paper backup.

We traveled from Calgary, Alberta to Dawson Creek, British Columbia today, around 600 miles. The landscape was pretty much the same for the most part. We did see herds of buffalo today. Canada has corn and wheat, just like America! I don't know what I really expected in a different country, but people are basically the same...haha

We are headed out in the morning on the Alaskan highway 97 up into the yukon territory. I'm a little concerned. Lots of miles between towns and looks like we are headed into the mountains.
Saw lots of buffalo today. Also corn and wheat. And lots of vast unoccupied land. Didn't know there was that much vacant land in this world. However, haven't given it much thought until now. The people in Dawson Creek have been very friendly.
Server at restaurant said that they are in an oil and gas boom here. Lots of fancy trucks here. We are having an experience of a lifetime and are enjoying ourselves very much. Thanks to Amber, Todd, Bryant and Kevin for keeping things rolling in Tuscaloosa. We are sad that we won't be able to see the first ballgame of the Crimson Tide, but we are planning on listening via our computer.

Eds view

What a day. Started out in Billings Mt. We got detoured leaving Billings and had to drive thru the airport-like we were dropping off. Left town on a 1/4 tank. Not reccomended! Gas stations should be praised. We bought a gas can there also. Later on we went into new construction and drove on gravel for about 10 miles. Saw some cool wind farms and scenery. Got to the border, Tammie has that look of guilt so I ended up losing my prized stun-gun. Not a smile to be found at customs. My hats off to Canada for its roads. Excellent roads and no curves. We drove about 200 miles into Canada and much of it included looking at these huge mountains to our left. I guess sometime tomorrow how it's going to be driving thru them. I expect a headache.

Tammie couldn't get her hands on a new map today. Feel certian that will change. Oh, and let me tell you you where wheat comes from, here. Wheat forever. I had no idea.

Wednesday night - Day four

Well, we made it through the Canadian border crossing after a little delay. Ed told them we had a stun gun in the limo and they took offense to that. The confisgated the stun gun and put us through some hoops, but eventually let us through without any problems. They looked throught the car (not thoroughly). I guess they were looking for some type of contraband or maybe some more weapons! I told Ed that he should have never mentioned the stun gun, but he felt it was better to tell them up front that to take the chance of letting them find in it the car.
Canada is much like the US. Same fast food restaurants, Wal Mart, Home Depot. For some reason, I felt as though it would be different. If I didn't know I was in a different country, I wouldn't really know the difference. They have wheat and corn here too!
It is a long way from one province/city to another and we are looking forward to seeing some mountains.
Will write tomorrow.
Not sure where we will stop tomorrow. I am going to get me some maps tomorrow!

Wall Drug Store-Wall South dakota

went to see the Wall drug store. We saw the signs for over 200 miles, so we felt it was stop worthy. We got off the interstate and were led through the heart of Wall by the signs on every street corner. All i can say is the owner of the wall drug block is probably also the owner of the town. They have developed a full city block and made it a tourist attraction. Actually, it was pretty cool. We ate at the cafe inside and were very satisfied with their open faced roast beef with mashed potatoes and gravy. Will probably try it at BF. What was interesting was the fact that we you leave the "Wall Drug block", the signs lead you straight out of town with no venturing downtown!
After two 1/2 days of corn, ww finally got to see miles and miles of gorgeous sunflowers. As we drove west, the land started getting more hilly. We started seeing more animals and fewer crops. We are almost to the Canadian border!

Ed's view

Looking back on Tuesday, it was a long day. 600 miles. We went to Mt Rushmore which is 30 miles off the interstate and up a l-o-n-g steep hill. Pretty country. Looking was for free, parking was for $10. Tammie tried to beat the Garmin and we took HER shortcut. We got passed by a pararie schooner while waiting for road construction. Things you may find useless here are 1. cellphones, 2. chainsaws. We did collect many more maps. Our highlighters are running low on ink! But it has been fun so far. Still no Mt Dew. I don't feel any healthier. Today we will cross the border, I'm a little nervous. We've never transported 31 hispanics this far before.
It's time to roll. Everyone have a great day........

Day Four - Wednesday

We stayed in Billings, Montana last night. We visited Mt. Rushmore yesterday. It was an awesome sight. There were people working up there on the top of their heads. I don't think I would want that job.
Saw miles and miles of sunflower fields yesterday. Never really thought about how they were grown and harvested. I love sunflowers.
The terrain is definately different in Montana. No crops to speak of, just a lot of very uneven terrain. Saw some elk, sheep, horses and cattle.
Today we cross the border into Canada. Kind of excited and a little scared from here on out. Feel safer in my own country, I have to tell you.
My rear end is starting to get a little numb, but I still have not ventured to the back of the limousine. Trying to keep Ed company up front. I am a good wife.

Day three - Tuesday

Left Mitchell, SD at 830 this morning. Less corn today and lots of sunflower fields.
Stopped in Wall SD to see the famous Wall Drug store. Saw billboards about it for 200 miles. Pretty interesting way
to make your mark in a place that you would otherwise never stop.
Headed to Mt Rushmore and then towards Montana! The
people are not as nice as us southeners.

Day 2, Eds view

What a trip so far.No Mt Dew for 2 days. I feel like I need group therapy. At home, Tammie usually fall asleep in the car before we get to the mailbox. Not this trip, acute insomnia! Guys, if you take a long trip with your wife, take 2 GPS. She's going to hold 1 to compare to the Atlas that I had no business buying. How much can a person argue with a GPS. I felt like it was a bad omen on the first day when a pair of Doves flew into the windshield and burst into flames!!

Good news for corn users, there will be no shortage this year. We've been in a corn field for 2 days. I'm sure there are crop circles out there somewhere. No idea that our country grew so much corn. Don't show up in Iowa with a hand full of pea seed, you'll be booted across the state line. Saw the corn palace, Got goose bumps!

Day two part two

We finally made it through the state of Missouri. It took us almost 24 hours. Up the right side across the middle and up the left side. We then entered Iowa for awhile. We just crossed into South Dakota headed to Sioux Falls. Corn fields everywhere!!!!!! The price of corn will be great based on the supply we've seen.

Day Two - Monday 8/31

Got a pretty good nights sleep. Looking forward to getting closer to our destinatin.
Missouri has a lot of corn. I feel like I am in the middle of my facebook farmtown game!
Ed and I ate the contintental bfast at the hotel. As we were leaving, I spilled my coffee all over the table. I requested help from mgmt and jokingly said "my husband spilled his coffee". Well, Ed didn't appreciate my humor. I told him if the tables were turned he would have done the same thing.

Day one - Sunday

We left home around 8AM on Sunday, August 30, 2009, day one of our hope to be excellent adventure to Alaksa. We have already traveled through Mississippi, Tennessee, Arkansas and we are now spending our first night in Columbia, Missouri.
We traveled a little over 600 miles today and we are still talking! We almost got into a little tiff earlier, but we agreed that we had a long way to go, so we chilled.
The ride has been pretty boring, but the weather is really cool here at a chilly 65.
We are going to Cracker Barrel to eat and then are going to rest up for day two.