My vacation in pictures

Here are some of the 300+ pictures that Denise and I took on vacation!

Day 1: Travel, Saturday, June 23
We had a direct five-hour flight from Chicago O'Hare to Anchorage airport on Saturday evening, June 23. We arrived around 11pm Anchorage time. It doesn't get completely dark this time of year in Alaska (AK), so when we arrived it still looked like early evening.

Day 2: Sunday, June 24
We slept in and then went to church with Heather and Selah at Prince of Peace Mennonite Church. They meet in a Catholic retreat center. It was a small crowd because of summer vacations and church conference, but it was still a good service.
After church we decided to drive up to Flattop Mountain, which usually gives you a good overview of the city. Since it was cloudy and rainy we couldn't see much. But on the way up there, we did see a MOOSE just standing by the road. For those of you who know me well, you know how I like moose! :) Unfortunately, this would be the only moose I would see the entire trip. I think he stopped eating and posed just for me.


After lunch we decided to go out in the rain to the outdoor farmer's market in downtown Anchorage. I really enjoyed it despite the weather and got a nice moose pin and some other souvenirs here.

Day 3: Monday, June 25
Today we drove about 40 miles north of Anchorage to Independence Mine State Park and Hatcher Pass. After turning off the main highway we drove about 18 miles into the mountains - it was beautiful. It was still pretty cloudy and drizzly but the scenery was still good.

Scenery leaving Anchorage:
This is the road we drove into the mountains:
We really enjoyed looking through some of the buildings and learning about the history. It is amazing to think that they basically walked away from everything when they closed the mine in 1938 - leaving supplies in the buildings, etc. Most of the buildings have been restored but some are beyond repair and are falling down the mountain.

After enjoying a picnic lunch we drove up higher in the mountains to Summit Lake, which still had some ice on it and was surrounded by patches of snow!
To be continued...