I can't believe that Courtnnie is married and has a baby on the way. When I first heard about Court moving to Alaska I thought no way in hell will she get passed Mississippi without screaming for warm weather. God bless that woman she proved me wrong and is living the life with her fantastic husband in Alaska. I would say that I'm jealous, but if anyone deserves this amazing life changing event its Courtnnie. I'm so thankful that she found such an amazing man who serves our county in the Coast Guard and who serves her at home. What more could a woman ask for really?
I decided that while they are on their 3 year track in Alaska with a baby on the way, this would be a perfect time to go visit. Luckily for me it gave me a free place to stay and a travel companion since I wasn't bringing anyone with me. Plus I think Courtnnie seemed to enjoy showing me how rugged she was while dealing with the Alaskan weather and shopping. Both are treacherous. I swear if it weren't for Walmart and McDonalds you could just about assume that you were on another planet.
It was definitely my kind of place! I absolutely loved the way life was up there. It was slow moving, calm, beautiful and friendly. Here's a quick little story to explain how laid back people are up here. To get to Kodiak you have to fly into Anchorage and then take a "puddle jumper" to Kodiak. When I arrived in Anchorage they told me that none of the flights from Kodiak have come in or gone out because of the weather. Being that my flight was the last one for the evening they pretty much told me that I don't have a shot in hell on getting on the flight. Since I didn't have anywhere else to go I ended up waiting until it was time for the flight to leave anyway to see if anything had changed. Twenty minutes past the time our flight was supposed to leave a girl makes the following announcement. "Visibility in Kodiak is around 2.5 miles and the regulations require 3 miles, but since its getting late and well we want to go home, we're gonna give it a go!" I'm sorry, you're gonna WHAT?! I looked around at the other people that looked like natives and asked if they were serious. Apparently they were since everyone started to line up.
Now here in the states (yes I know Alaska is a state, but if they don't believe it why should I) we wouldn't normally hear anyone say "we're gonna give it a go" when it has to do with FLYING! This is when I knew I wasn't in Kansas anymore... or anywhere else in the states.
I decided that while they are on their 3 year track in Alaska with a baby on the way, this would be a perfect time to go visit. Luckily for me it gave me a free place to stay and a travel companion since I wasn't bringing anyone with me. Plus I think Courtnnie seemed to enjoy showing me how rugged she was while dealing with the Alaskan weather and shopping. Both are treacherous. I swear if it weren't for Walmart and McDonalds you could just about assume that you were on another planet.
It was definitely my kind of place! I absolutely loved the way life was up there. It was slow moving, calm, beautiful and friendly. Here's a quick little story to explain how laid back people are up here. To get to Kodiak you have to fly into Anchorage and then take a "puddle jumper" to Kodiak. When I arrived in Anchorage they told me that none of the flights from Kodiak have come in or gone out because of the weather. Being that my flight was the last one for the evening they pretty much told me that I don't have a shot in hell on getting on the flight. Since I didn't have anywhere else to go I ended up waiting until it was time for the flight to leave anyway to see if anything had changed. Twenty minutes past the time our flight was supposed to leave a girl makes the following announcement. "Visibility in Kodiak is around 2.5 miles and the regulations require 3 miles, but since its getting late and well we want to go home, we're gonna give it a go!" I'm sorry, you're gonna WHAT?! I looked around at the other people that looked like natives and asked if they were serious. Apparently they were since everyone started to line up.
Now here in the states (yes I know Alaska is a state, but if they don't believe it why should I) we wouldn't normally hear anyone say "we're gonna give it a go" when it has to do with FLYING! This is when I knew I wasn't in Kansas anymore... or anywhere else in the states.
Needless to say, I made it in to the small little town of Kodiak with a super cute Courtnnie to greet me. She brought me home to her house and we waited until morning to explore the area.
Of course the first thing I wanted to do was eat some real Alaskan food. We ate at a place called Henry's and the only thing I can say about the food was it was EXPENSIVE. You really don't hear much about Alaskan food unless you kill it or catch it yourself. I was lucky enough to taste a recent catch of Pink Salmon and Halibut that her husband Nate had caught just a few days prior. It was delicious!
While we were out in town we were told by some lady at one of the local tourist shops that we could walk a nature path and see Puffins. If you don't know what a Puffin is it looks like a cross between a Tucan and a Penguin. While Courtnnie and I went down some pretty sketchy looking paths we decided that maybe it wasn't such a good idea to walk alone without her dog or a gun considering Alaska is known for their bears. Just a few more steps on the path and sure enough we see a bear track. We decided that Puffins could wait for another day.
The weather in August in Alaska was beautiful. I ended up bringing clothes that were a little too warm for the weather that we had. It was like November in Florida minus the palm trees and snow birds. We went on a lot more Courtnnie and Jenni adventures which I miss dearly. One of the trips we made was too the beach where all of the pink salmon were headed upstream. Both Courtnnie and I caught a "pink" with our bare hands. We couldn't eat them because they were practically dead after the exhausting swim they had, but it was still awesome to say that "I caught an Alaskan Salmon with my bare hands". How many people can say that?
Of course the first thing I wanted to do was eat some real Alaskan food. We ate at a place called Henry's and the only thing I can say about the food was it was EXPENSIVE. You really don't hear much about Alaskan food unless you kill it or catch it yourself. I was lucky enough to taste a recent catch of Pink Salmon and Halibut that her husband Nate had caught just a few days prior. It was delicious!
While we were out in town we were told by some lady at one of the local tourist shops that we could walk a nature path and see Puffins. If you don't know what a Puffin is it looks like a cross between a Tucan and a Penguin. While Courtnnie and I went down some pretty sketchy looking paths we decided that maybe it wasn't such a good idea to walk alone without her dog or a gun considering Alaska is known for their bears. Just a few more steps on the path and sure enough we see a bear track. We decided that Puffins could wait for another day.
The weather in August in Alaska was beautiful. I ended up bringing clothes that were a little too warm for the weather that we had. It was like November in Florida minus the palm trees and snow birds. We went on a lot more Courtnnie and Jenni adventures which I miss dearly. One of the trips we made was too the beach where all of the pink salmon were headed upstream. Both Courtnnie and I caught a "pink" with our bare hands. We couldn't eat them because they were practically dead after the exhausting swim they had, but it was still awesome to say that "I caught an Alaskan Salmon with my bare hands". How many people can say that?
I can't remember a time when I felt this close to god or nature. It made me feel alive after being dead in my life for so long. So much has happened in the last couple of years and this was the first time I felt life deep in my bones. Maybe it was the weather, maybe it was all the beautiful views or maybe it was because Courtnnie and I had a chance to reminisce. Either way, I enjoyed every minute of my trip. From the moment I got on the plane I started enjoying myself and my life. I've been a mover and a shaker for as long as I can remember, but visiting this state made me want to just sit back and enjoy mother earth.
While I love living in a state that has sunshine, warm weather and palm trees year round it was a blessing to get out and see such an amazing part of our country. This was absolutely a life changing trip! It made me want to pick up and move to Alaska or at least to some place where cell phones, internet and cable aren't relied upon as much.
I must say Thank You to Courtnnie and Nate for allowing me to stay in their home and show me around this beautiful area. It was so incredible it makes me want to see it again and again.
Don't forget to check out the rest of the pictures!
While I love living in a state that has sunshine, warm weather and palm trees year round it was a blessing to get out and see such an amazing part of our country. This was absolutely a life changing trip! It made me want to pick up and move to Alaska or at least to some place where cell phones, internet and cable aren't relied upon as much.
I must say Thank You to Courtnnie and Nate for allowing me to stay in their home and show me around this beautiful area. It was so incredible it makes me want to see it again and again.
Don't forget to check out the rest of the pictures!