The trip was a chance to get out of town, and for Ben to work more on his photo project of the Dalton Highway. Turtle was wound up the whole trip with plentiful wildlife to keep her excited. This was fine until she decided to chase a rabbit before the car had stopped! So...at a little over 10 mph, Turtle leaps through the half opened window (about where it is in this picture), hits the ground, and without missing a beat heads into the forest at full tilt. Ben and I ...hmmm...well, we just didn't know what to say! Confronted, Turtle just told us in her nonchalant manner that "I do my own stunts."
Much of the drive is through the boreal forest on dirt. There had been some heavy rain, leading to muddy conditions!
But, by the time we got through Atigun Pass onto the North side of the Brooks Range, the weather and scenery were just perfect! We camped at Galbraith Lake, where after 12 hours driving, we enjoyed a beautiful hike on the tundra. It was a perfect moment - good company, happy dogs, wildlife, and that intoxicating feeling of adventure in all directions.
Unfortunately, we had a stove mishap...like a "where's the stove?" mishap. That led to a coffee emergency this morning. It was 4 hours driving to Coldfoot where we enjoyed a great breakfast and coffee. It was good...real good!
We stopped for a break at Finger Rock, about half way back to Fairbanks. A breeze to keep the bugs down, and sun on your face sent us both to sleep. Turtle slept as well while Pella looked on in her dastardly way. For those of you that remember Mutley from Wacky Races, you have to admit that there's a resemblance! See the Sappy Birthday episode if you have a few minutes to take a trip down childhood memory lane and get reacquainted with Mutley!
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