Day 4 - this is what we fondly called our cattle tourist day...but I must say, that even with the numbers of people that were on these excursions, that it was all planned well, informative and went very smoothly. Again, the day dawned overcast and dreary, but for the most part the rain held off and we thoroughly enjoyed ourselves.
We started out with a ride on a sternwheeler river boat, narrated by a local radio announcer....what a voice and he had the greatest humor and delivery....
There were many types of homes along the banks of the river, but this was one of my favorites....just looked like it fit the area so well.
Pontoon planes are a very common sight here....and they had one of the local pilots take off and land to the side of the riverboat...pretty cool!
There was quite a bit of debris in the river....guess those glaciers aren't too picky about what they push along in front of them!
We stopped at the compound of a former Iditarod winner....Susan Butcher, who succumbed to cancer. Her husband still lives here and trains dogs, along with some of his other pursuits. It's amazing to see how much these dogs LOVE to run....
Part of their training is to trust their trainer in situations where they are not comfortable...like getting in a boat...
And they're off...
....coming back around....
....and now for a treat...cooling off in the frigid waters!
Then it was on to a fish camp...
....and fish wheel (native apparatus for quickly catching salmon)
....and a demonstration of preparing the fresh salmon for smoking....
Next on our tour was a hunting camp...
Looks comfy, hmmmm?
A ceremonial robe made of a several different types of furs....valued at over several thousand dollars!
There's my hunter!
And the ever present outhouse with the well-recognized symbol!
Time for a little shopping and lunch before we head on to the next excursion. By the way, lunch was Miner's stew, with yummy roasted vegetables and a delicious salad.
On to the Gold Dredge....Willie has been looking forward to this!
Again, we were in a large group of tourists, but it was done so well....and so informative!
We're here!
And we'll get to pan for our very own gold! Think there is any it that little bit of "paydirt"?
We'll soon find out!
Oh, for you doubters, yes, there was! Willie had $10 worth in his pan, and I had $15 in mine!
Willie's face was lit up like a little kid's in a candy store! Me, I'd rather go outside and "shoot" some of the sights around the dredge!
Outside we had a chance to get "up close and personal" with the Alaskan Pipeline. The oil pipeline is actually about half the diameter of what you see here....the rest is insulation!
It is not bolted to these supports, but rather rests on Teflon pads to allow for movement in the event of an earthquake!
We closed out the day with a Salmon Bake and local theatre revue....probably our least favorite "tour/excursion" of the whole trip! I did find some cool things to photograph, tho'!
And tomorrow the wheels of the tour bus will keep on turnin' as we head for Denali National Park....where I am sure more beauty awaits us!
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