Gypsies at the Fair

We closed with no problems. We now live in the RV. We live where ever the RV takes us. And right now we are living in the field at the Alaska State Fair. We are a little cramped in here. We had to just kind of stuff everything where we could find a place. As we go along, we'll use stuff up and reorganize as need be.

The fair has been fun. Friends of ours came by yesterday and we spent some time with them. It was nice to have someone to walk the fair with. And there were a LOT of people at the fair yesterday. It had to have been over 70 degrees or more yesterday. And sunny. Today has started out cloudy and chilly. But we don't care. We just go with the flow.

Speaking of birds (was I?)...there must be hundreds of sandhill cranes flying over the fields out here every morning and evening. Lines and lines of them. They circle looking for thermals. And the noise! Enough to wake you up in the morning.

Had enough of the cranes? I haven't. They are one of my favorite birds. They rank up there with loons and chickadees. But in case you are tired of me talking about them (be aware that I will be talking about them more when we get to New Mexico), let me tell you this. I heard a downy woodpecker fly by yesterday morning. There, feel better? There are more than just cranes in this state. But right now my BIADD (bird induced attention deficit disorder)is focused on the crane migration. Mainly because everything else is gone.

Going to try to take some pictures of the fair. I forgot my camera yesterday. Food was calling and I couldn't think. We don't know where we'll be when the fair is over, but it will have to be somewhere near Anchorage.

The journey has begun........

One more day!

We close on the house tomorrow! Then it's off to the fair. We're almost outta here!

Have to go finish cleaning and moving out all the last minute stuff. I should get internet at the fair, so I'll write again from there.

Driveway, Sweet Driveway!

We're home for a few days. Have to finish cleaning out the house. Then off to the fair.

Santa Claus and Cranes

We went to North Pole today to check out the Santa Claus House. It's a big store full of North Pole, AK stuff and Christmas ornaments. Santa wasn't in. Mrs. Claus was. She was knitting. They have an RV park and reindeer you can look at. The town of North Pole is strange. They have put in round-abouts since we were there last. All the light poles are in the shape of candy canes. Even the McDonald's sign is striped red and white. I'd simply go crazy if I lived there.

Also checked out the cranes again. They're still there. All of them. This isn't much of a birding festival, though. We went to check out the Alaska Bird Observatory, and it was closed! The biggest bird festival (OK, the only bird festival) in the Fairbanks area, and one of the biggest bird related "place" was closed. They really don't make a big thing out of this festival. They have a couple of events, but it's mostly just "come look at the cranes." Which I did. Again and again. LOVE, LOVE, LOVE Sandhill Cranes!

Then we went to the farmer's market. It was much bigger than I thought it would be. There were lots of vegetables, but the prices! You can really tell it's been a lousy year for growing. The vegetables looked good, but produce from Valley farmers in less expensive. Looking forward to checking out markets in the lower 48. We'll miss most of them more likely, but there should be something left for us.

We leave tomorrow for Anchorage. I don't know where we'll be staying tomorrow night, so I may not have email. I'll check back in when we get back to Anchorage.

Bye for now!

Cranes, Cranes, and more Cranes

Cranes...

Cranes...

...and more Cranes.

Went to Creamer's Field today. It hit 70 degrees here, and was very sunny. But I didn't mind since I got to see Sandhill Cranes! LOTS of Sandhill Cranes! And just as many Canada Geese. There was also a nice flock of Greater White-Fronted Geese and dozens of ducks. Mostly Mallards, but a few Widgeons thrown in. No Cackling Geese. We'll be going back tomorrow. I'll see if I can steal one or two of Bill's pictures, because his will be better than mine.

The dogs are having a good time here in Fairbanks. They got to swim in the Chena River and then we found a grassy field at the library where Eugene could play catch. We'll be going back there a couple of times so he can release some energy. Meika likes chasing birds out of bushes and sniffing everything she can find.

Until tomorrow....

The Unofficial Start to the Trip of a Lifetime

We're in Fairbanks this weekend for the Tanana Valley Sandhill Crane Festival. We left yesterday afternoon and stayed at the Lower Troublesome Creek Campground. Or, more specifically, we stayed in the huge parking lot, since the campground itself is for tents only. But it was late and who was going to complain? The truck driver that showed up around 3am? Don't think so.

It's warm here. Very warm here. The folks that live here think so too. After all the rain and floods, they're glad for the sun. Today we went to the Silver Gulch Brewing Co. Had too. If I drag Bill to bird festivals, the least I can do is go to every brewpub in the country. Besides, he shares.

Going, Going, Gone!

We sold it! Finally unloaded, eh, I mean sold, our house. Didn't take too long after we put up the signs. There's a big weight off our shoulders.

Now we need to find one. We're seriously thinking of looking when we get back. To tell the truth, we're back to the conclusion that we will just keep our options open and if we find something else along the way, then that's what we'll do. We've been doubting our Seward decision. Just thinking about all the stuff we'll be missing in "the real world." There's a lot of country out there and maybe it's time we saw all of it. Of course, me? I want to live in Hawaii. Kona, Hawaii.

So, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints have put up a new church across the road from us. I'm not sure if they planned it this way, but they have what amounts to a pond in the back. It is now loaded with some 75 or more Greater and Lesser Yellowlegs. And a few ducks that I couldn't make out as I didn't have my binocs. Quite the find last night when I was walking the dogs in the rain. Again. There has also been a juvenile Harlen's Red Tailed Hawk hanging around (think I know why now). He is with an adult and just makes an awful racket. But it's nice to know that there are hawks and eagles in the area.

There were a couple of Sandhill Cranes flying over the RV today. They were heading back to the Wildlife Refuge. And then later today, geese! They are back up in the air. I like geese. I think they have the cutest faces. And I've noticed over the last few days that there is quite the flock of chestnut-backed chickadees in the woods across the street from the school we're staying at. And a red-breasted nuthatch. Plus, all the usual birds are around on a daily basis: black-capped chickadees, common redpolls (just a few), magpies, and stellar's jays. Yesterday I noticed that the white-crowned sparrow pair are out and about with at least 2 juveniles. Maybe 3. And the juvenile black-capped chickadees have finally learned to stear! No more dodge-bird when walking on the sidewalk next to the house.

Missed a dog

Didn't get the picture of Meika up on the last post. Here she is.

A Beautiful Day

Today was another beautiful day in Anchorage. That's 3 days in a row! Can it be? Is is summer? Just might be. Yesterday we had an actual, real live thunderstorm!! Lightning, thunder, dark clouds, lots of rain; the whole nine yards. And both the dogs slept right through it.

The fall migration is not only in full swing for some species, but completely over for others. The swallows are gone. Most shore birds are gone. And it's getting harder and harder to find a gull. We'll be going to Fairbanks in 2 weeks for the Tanana Valley Sandhill Crane Festival. It's at Creamer's Field. I've never been there, so I'm not sure exactly what to expect, but I doubt it is as big as the one in Homer. Or Cape May for that matter. And I certainly hope the Sandhill Cranes are still there. There was a picture of them in the paper today, and the caption said they were gathering at Creamer's Field. I'm hoping that all the rain and flooding they have had in Fairbanks in the last week or so doesn't change their plans. I hope the RV park is still in Fairbanks as it is along the river. I'm just glad I got a couple new birds this year. And I should rack them up big time when we leave the state on our trip.

We're still trying to sell our house. We're running out of time. I told Bill we needed to list it earlier, but does he ever listen to me? He wanted to have everything done and perfect before we put it on the market. Considering he had a whole year to finish the windows and other stuff, it should have been done long ago. (The answer to the question is no.) So, it's looking like we may have to list the house with a broker, take the loss on the commission, and wait until we get back to find someplace to live. I may be living in the RV another whole year if we can't find something! This was supposed to have been simple. We've been planning for over a year and then one day, poof!, the whole thing fell apart. The housing market when haywire, gas prices went sky high (which, by the way, our gas has gone down to a whole $4.36/gal.), and my last job basically sucked making it necessary to me to leave it early. I will never move again.

So, I'm going to try to post 2 pictures of the dogs. Since AT&T wireless basically sucks in Alaska, this may not work. My internet connection is slower than dial up on a bad day.