Heading for Colorado

Trip Start May 06, 2010

137

Trip End Oct 14, 2010

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Where I stayed

Westmark Tok

Flag of United States Tok, Alaska
Sunday, August 15, 2010

The next couple of days are the only time during this entire trip where I don't have something fairly definite scheduled and where I have a little flexibility. While there's a lot to see in the park and the weather was wonderful again today, something I've rarely seen up here, I decided to head for Tok and get an early start on my eight-day drive to Telluride, CO.

Before I left town I headed back over to the quirky, little town of McCarthy to take some pictures. On my way back I noticed there were a few women nude sunbathing near the vehicle bridge, which is next to the footbridge I took. When I got to where the two roads merge I heard a 4-wheeler coming up behind me and a truck coming around the corner. I stopped off the side of the road to wait for the two of them to pass. I looked back at the 4-wheeler and saw that it was being driven by a kid around 14 or 15 with a huge grin on his face. He looked a lot happier than when I saw him earlier in the day.

I got back to my cabin and went to my car. I had left a towel on the driver's seat so I wouldn't forget to return it. I knew the office was closed and as I was trying to decide where to leave it I noticed that the owner of the lodge and another person were walking toward me and were just a little ways in from of my car. I walked over to hand the owner the towel. As we chatted the other person noticed that there was a black bear about 30 feet from us foraging on some berries. That's the second time I've had a black bear sneak up on me here in Wrangell-St. Elias. Many of the locals carry revolvers, just in case, and I found out the person who noticed the bear is among them when he pulled out his 44 Magnum. Things are different in Alaska.