UPDATES!!!

Hello all!

Sorry its been so far between blog entries, we spent the last 4 days in the backcountry of Denali!

So here is a summary of the last week or so:


We spent an awesome couple days in Banff and Jasper and found a replacement for Jeremy: we picked up a hitchhiker. We had an experience and made a new friend.

We have seen many grizzlies off the side of the road, herds of buffalo blocking our way.

We were re-united with Jeremy in Fairbanks and headed off to Denali National Park.
Because of our group size we only had a few options on where we could camp in the backcountry. We opted to take the shuttle 90 miles in to the end of the road at Kantishna. On the way up the road, we saw numerous wildlife including a grizzly only 30 ft off the road snacking on the ribcage of a fellow Denali Park mammal (moose calf?). When we arrived at the end of the road we hiked in 7 miles to an epic campsite with Mt. McKinley as the backdrop. The mountain slowly revealed itself throughout the day and when we finished setting up camp we had a completely unobstructed view of the massive peak. They say that only 1 in 3 visitors to the park gets to see it. It was an unforgettable experience for all of us.

We made it to Jake's mom's house in Palmer last night. This morning she cooked us an amazing breakfast that we had all been imagining during our backcountry trip. Today we will recharge our batteries, do some laundry and hopefully rid ourselves of our stench from days with no showers.

The Big Blue Alaska Crew

Glad you made it

Jeremy, that sounds like a cool trip, glad you made it up there, I know you guys are all there now. Lots of wildlife it sounds like. Everything in FL is fine, just storming lots. Dad is back in town from FCA camp, going to pick up now, take care and be safe.
FL momm a

Alive and tramping on my own!

After my disappointing visit to the Canadian border I swiftly hitched a ride from the last stop of the Glacier shuttle and hopped on the Amtrak to Seattle. A few days there and I managed to find a cheap flight to AK via the infamous Craigslist. I love CL! I arrived in Anchorage Tuesday night and was picked up by a good samaritan who offered me her spare room for the night. In the morning she took me to REI and then to the 42nd and Spenard hostel.

I took the bus downtown and met a girl named Julie on the way. We had coffee and then parted ways to explore downtown Anchorage. We met up later for dinner and checked out the World famous bar "Chilkoot Charlie's". We decided to rent a car the next day to explore the area further. We drove south along the Seward Highway to Beluga Point. We saw a pod of whales in the distance and plenty of other wildlife. We explored a bit more and then had dinner in Anchorage again and went for a walk along the Coastal Trail where we encountered a moose and a calf along the way. We also ran across a local couple walking there dog. They were very kind and were trying to convince me to move to AK. It wouldn't take much convincing for me to do so. This place is amazing!

In the mean time I managed to find a ride, once again via Craigslist, to Fairbanks. A group of triathletes were taking a motorhome up for the Sourdough 1/2 Ironman Triathlon. I gave them some advice on training and they gave me a ride for $50 which included meals. The train from Anchorage to Fairbanks is $112 so I thought it to be a great deal.

The group dropped me at the GoNorth Hostel on the West side of Fairbanks. The Hostel was unique and had numerous cabins scattered about with 5-6 beds in each. It even had a Tipi in the middle of camp for an added touch. Hitched a ride to the laundromat and made it downtown a couple hours ago. I am patiently awaiting the arrival of the Big Blue crew and can't wait to get on with the rest of our trip.

Adventure Bound,
Jeremy
P.S. Pics to follow

Canadians are tough!

Well, we are one person light now through Canada...Grev could not get through the border because of something that happened 5 years ago...bad boy! We have often wondered what he was doing, and I am pretty sure it is NOT seeing a bear today on the highway like we did! couple more days until we get into AK and hopefully meet up with him! Peace out, we are tramping now!

Vegas odds

jeremy having a moose even look at him...... 25-1
josh getting a mustache..... 10-1
shannon not whining..... 2-1
lauren losing something.... pick "em
jake cutting himself......... 12-5
scott doing something really dumb..... pick "em
abby raising her voice..... 74-1
anyone that i missed wondering what the heck they are doing with this group.... pick "em
shannon's and jake's dogs dying while they are on the trip...no line

cost of the trip

big blue-3000 bucks
cheap hiking boots- 50 bucks
camping on someone elses land- free ( unless you get shot at)
experiences you will not forget- priceless

this is NOT your mom

haiku abby style

pile in the van
how many miles to go?
alaska awaits

a love affair starts
jake caught with his pants greasy
one man and one van

M & M time

We drove Big Blue all over the Denver Metro area yesterday. He was going strong for a good 6 hours. He will be building up his endurance leading up to the trip with a week long taper before July 2nd. He has also been getting a lot of interest from other suitors on Craigslist (sorry Jake). After posting an ad on the AK CL page, I received a call from a guy in Texas who is very interested in Big Blue. He will be sending a down payment to Scott (Big Blue's pimp) for services-to-be rendered. This seems like a win-win for all of us. Well almost all of us. Jake may need more therapy after seeing Big Blue take off with another man.

Awesome bloggers!

I have really enjoyed seeing everyone's new posts...oh wait, there hasn't been anyone new for...ever! PICK UP THE SLACK!

Speechless

Jake makes me so proud. His love for male vans is amazing....and wierd. I don't know how we got to this point in our lives where Jake wants to be inside a van, but we are here and I am dealing with it as best as I can. He has therapy sessions 2 times a week now and we are hoping for the best.

On another note..we are so excited! 2 more days and we are on our way to WV! Bringing the kayaks and puppies...it is going to be a full truck! peace out.

I have actually witnessed Abby carry 15 people 3500 miles...quite impressive considering the frame she has:) 4 more days until we leave florida to start are travels...we are going to WV for a couple of weeks and then off to denver to meet Big Blue. I would like to take a few sentences to tell you what I would like to do when I meet Big Blue. First I would like to take a look at her frame. Next I want to check out her headlights followed by her tail pipe to see if everything is in good working order. After I get done with that I am definitely going to check her oil...make sure everthing is well lubricated. Finally, I would like to know what it feels like to be inside of her.
Oh no, I feel so embarrassed right now, I just realized that Big Blue is a Big Dude...oh well, I stand by my statements!! MOOSE

meh

im jealous of big blue...i can carry 15 people too...im not going to lie, im pretty good at carrying 15 people 3500 miles...ive won awards for it...

Bear It All

First things first, big blue is simply amazing! When I first laid eyes on Big Blue, I got a semi...tingle in my heart. Imagine the stories Big Blue will have about the youngins that will occupy her for 3500 glorious miles.

Now on to my safety story about bears.
When I was a young lad, about 22, I had a job in AK for a couple of months where I was sent out to different places (by plane only) to work on cabins. My job was to put finish on the outside of this amazing cabin. One day I was working on the back of the house and I ran out of finish...so I climbed down the ladder to refill my bucket. While I was down there, I put some bug spray on and filled my bucket. As I was heading back up the ladder, I thought I heard something rustling around at the foot of the ladder....at the time I didn't think anything of it because I thought it was just the ladder rocking back and forth. As soon as reached the top, I turned around because the rustling did not stop. Much to my amazement, there was this huge black bear sitting on his rump staring up at me. I am sure all of you know that black bears are descent climbers, so I was starting to freak out a bit at this point, but I pulled myself together and and taught that bear a lesson! After I got out of my daydream I realized that it must have been a young bear because of the way he was acting...so curious and dumbfounded. I ended up watching this bear for about 15 minutes just playing with all my stuff on the ground. The thing the bear was most curious about was my can of OFF...it swatted at it, licked it, stepped on it, and the most hillarious thing, bit into it. As soon as he bit into the can it sprayed all over his face. It was like watching a little kid looking into the end of the hose and dad turning on the water. Booboo freaked out and sprinted into the woods...I have never laughed so hard behind a cabin. The moral of the story is, never get a job. Period. TRUE STORY!

Shhhh. Big Blue is sleeping.

He is at rest. Patiently awaiting his departure from the South Denver Metropolitan Area. His Blueness slowly fading with every minute of the intense Colorado sunshine. He basks in the sun, soaking up the rays hoping he never forgets what it feels like. For he knows that all too soon his days will be spent in the Alaskan climate, bombarded by overcast days full of rain. And so he waits.

He knows that he will never again have passengers of the high quality he will carry to the Yukon wilderness. He has accepted this and looks forward to this epic journey from the lower 48 states to our nation's 49th. Until then, he sleeps.

Following are a few pictures of Big Blue in all his glory. Notice the sleek contour of his body. The pleather seats that shape to your body to offer the utmost in comfort The sliding door on the passenger side allows easy exit and entry for all passengers. Also be sure not to overlook the seemingly endless window space. These characteristics, along with his ample storage space, enable Big Blue to offer a group of 9 adventurous souls going from Denver to Anchorage everything they could ask for in the chosen mode of transportation.

What's in store for us? Only he knows!

To Steph Who Cannot Come

We will miss you!! It won't be the same!! YOU make everything fun :(

Now You're Talkin

I take back that last post. It was basically to get you guys writing.

This was officially the quickest week ever. I like when times flies by when you are anticipating an epic trip, BUT it is inevitable that time will fly by on the actual trip if you get in that mindset. Knowing this I have officially enrolled in a 4 week course on time control. This course is offered at the local clock tower at noon every day. WE have to wear robes and goofy hats to cater to the time spirits of the third moon. We will learn how to speed time up to the trip while learning how to instantly transform seconds to hours the day we depart. I hope I learn it well enough to teach all my compadres the tricks of time control on our trip. I have no doubt the longer days will help the practice of time control but still, you gotta prepare when taking on epic trips. First class is Monday. I'll keep you posted on the curriculum.

Till then, BigBlue Sleeps...

The Daily Ponder

The anticipation is indeed mounting! I have many doodles on my desk calendar that depict the upcoming adventure. It is embedded in many of my student's brains and quite honestly, I think they are annoyed. I will keep annoying them until the very last day of class for two reasons. first reason- they have annoyed me all year. Second reason- I am very excited.
As far as Big Blue goes, I have absolutely no doubt that the trip will be nothing more than another chapter in its long and glorious novel. If only I could have been there to see Baby Blue grow into the distinguished and powerful van that we all know as BIG BLUE. Bring it on meese (moose plural).

Big Blue in the parking lot

As anticipation mounts for us, I wonder how Big Blue is feeling. He sits in the Snap Fitness parking lot patiently, silently awaiting the open road. I imagine he has these thoughts constantly running through his engine: the freedom of the Montana highways, the suspenseful time crossing the border, the fear of hitting a moose while cruising along at a comfortable 55 miles per hour, the challenges of the Alaskan Highway, and the inevitable parting of ways with the crazy group of nine people who spent three weeks within his walls. Has anyone else thought about how he feels about the trip?

this blog sucks

SO FAR