days eight & nine

We got some great pictures yesterday but I haven't been able to upload them! I tried last night at the dumpy little motel we stayed in, and again today at this sweet cafe/bakery we're right now eating lunch at. I took pictures of crazy road signs we encountered because the AlCan Highway is full of crazy surprises! It is the one road into Alaska and parts of it are gravel! When I tried to blog last night I, a., couldn't upload any pictures, but b., was interupted by an old man who wanted to talk. Turns out he was one of the soldiers who was assigned to developing the AlCan back in the 40s. From what I have read, the road was made after Pearl Harbor was bombed and the government wanted a way to get supplies up to Alaska. The man last night said there was originally over 1600 miles of road made then. These days it is somewhere around 1400 miles as road construction has cut out corners and straightened things up a bit. So yesterday was a beautiful day for driving-- for slow driving because we traveled many gravel stretches and right next to mountain walls where signs warned to be on the lookout for falling rocks. We wondered what those falling rock signs were meant to accomplish. Ash and I agreed that one probably wouldn't actually see the rock falling and it would be better to travel along the mountain wall just enjoying the beauty and get squished and never knew what hit you. As it was, we were looking for falling rocks and scared we might get squished. If I were in Dept. of Transportation, I'd save the money those falling rocks sign must cost and put it into actually paving full lanes of traffic (there were long stretches where exactly half our lane was paved and the other gravel).

Another fun surprise was when we first passed a sign warning about caribou on the road. We laughed and thought about turning around to take a picture of the sign to go along with our collection of sign pictures. But as we discussed and turned a corner, sure enough, there were a couple caribou on the road. That was one well placed sign. That was money well spent. And we saw many more caribou after those first.

And we saw bison. I had hoped we'd see bison. I've heard stories of whole herds being in the middle of the road and having to creep your vehicle around them. I really wanted that experience. And we nearly got it! I have great pictures of bison to upload someday. We saw bison walking along the road and bison laying beside the road, and then a whole herd laying on the side of the road. All my pictures are super close because we were super close... super close in the safety of the truck. I was even scared to roll the window down to get a better picture because those animals are so big and scary looking to me, but I did roll the window down halfway and I could hear that big old bison's hooves and him panting/snorting as he passed us. We really do have some great pictures to share from yesterday.

Other adventures from yesterday include going to Liard Hot Springs. We had thought about getting out our swimsuits and staying awhile, but the day started out COLD and there was no way I was going on a nature walk out to a little pond in my swimsuit! So we just stepped in up to our ankles and the water felt wonderful! Our legs were red from where they were under water-- it was so warm. We regretted our decision to not bring the swimsuits, but we were glad to get back on the road a little sooner. We feel so close to Alaska now. RIght now we are in Haines Junction and will be crossing the border in a matter of hours. We could pull into the Valley late tonight, but will probably sleep somewhere are pull in early tomorrow! We are anxious to get some things settled-- like where to live and Ash starting his job.

About the job... Ash has been reading An Unstoppable Force by Erwin McManus. Well, I have been reading chapters to him as we drive and we have both enjoyed this read. McManus is calling the Church to be a living organism rather than an institutional organization. We just read a chapter about how the church should be known for love... in fact an oasis of love where people are drenched in liquid grace. I can't wait to get back to the Valley and begin life as part of this community of believers. I am so excited for what God has led us into.

So I'll probably try those pictures again later tonight.

And I'll see you in the next day or two, Amanda!