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At the risk of sounding cliché,
I've got to tell you...
"There's no place like home!"

Yes, we are back on the farm...
safely home after our two week adventure in Alaska.
And "WOW" what an adventure it was!
Alaska is everything you would imagine it to be...
and then imagine it 50 times bigger, and 50 times more beautiful, 
50 times more wild (wilderness)...
and you might be close to imagining what an amazing place it is.
If it is on your bucket list...
move it to the top.


But since this is not a travel blog....
I will not go into detail here.
I will be eventually posting my pictures and a little summary 
somewhere out there on the internet...
and if you are remotely interested, I will let you know when that happens.

But for now I will share just a quick summary.
This is how I spent the majority of my two weeks...


And through my lenses I captured these images
(out of about 1000 photos that I took)...

We were amongst the lucky 30% of travelers who actually get to see Mt. McKinley.
It is almost always shrouded in clouds.


And even better than seeing it from afar,
we flew right up to it and landed on a glacier.
(a glacier that is sometimes used as one of the camps for climbers.


We saw many glaciers, but perhaps the most impressive was this tidewater glacier
that is 6 miles across and rises 400 feet above the sea.


Of course the sights that thrilled me the most were the inhabitants....
(don't worry, we weren't that close... I used a good telephoto lens!)

Caribou...


Moose....


Black bears....


Grizzly bears (a mama and her two cubs)....


Dall sheep...


Sea lions...


Seals...


Sea otters...


Humpback whales and Orcas...


We visited sled dog summer camp and rode behind a team of Iditarod dogs...


And that was just a tiny taste of what we saw!
The austere beauty that awaits around every turn is hard to describe!
I absolutely loved Alaska!

But of course....I love the farm the best
and am so happy to be home!

And when we arrived home we were met by 5 very happy dogs
and nine new little souls!
Yes, 9 tiny ducklings hatched last week.
(And there is one mama duck who remains sitting on another nest!)


I have much more to share with you about the farm....
but will spread it out over the next few days.

One last thing, though...
for those of you who wondered....
Little Leo (our barn kitty) made an amazing recovery.
He ended up not needing surgery.
His appetite returned and he has gained all of his weight back.
He is symptom free....and back to all of his old tricks!
YAY!!!!!!!!

Comments

Clint Baker said…
Such Breath taking photos!
http://theredeemedgardener.blogspot.com
Anonymous said…
I for one will look forward to more Alaska photos. Hubby has mentioned us retiring there but although it's gorgeous I think I'd rather just visit like you did.
Unknown said…
Wow, how fabulous, can't wait to see more of your trip. I will be headed that way in the next year too. It's so close, how could I not!

So glad Leo has recovered! Welcome home!
Gone Country said…
Welcome back and YAY for Leo!

Hubby's cousin is in the military and he and his family were stationed in the hospital at Anchorage a few years ago. They LOVED their time in Alaska and want to go back some day to live. I wish we would've been able to visit them while they were there. I always hear from people how amazing Alaska is.
Candice said…
Always love your gorgeous photos. And these are spectacular. Welcome home!
Cindy said…
Wow, what beautiful pictures! Glad you are back safe and sound. :)
Junebug said…
Welcome home! I look forward to you sharing Alaska with us. Amazing photos!! Ahhh Leo, so happy to here you are back to normal.
This N That said…
I don't know where to start..Good news about Leo..Beautiful pictures.Mt.McKinley is amazing..It was clouded over when we were there..Your pictures brought back some fond memories..Looking forward to more..
Welcome home. Beautiful photos!!
BaileyWife said…
Welcome Back HOME! Can't say we missed you, because you posted awesome posts each day...it was like you never left! :) Enjoyed reading them every day! ~Kim
Anke said…
What a fantastic vacation! Your pictures are gorgeous and I for one, cant' wait to see more.
Jennifer said…
Sounds like a fantastic trip! Looking forward to seeing pics of your Alaskan adventure.

Happy, happy news about Leo!!
Meghan Grace said…
Your pictures are stunning! Now I have added Alaska to my bucket list! Fabulous!

The best news ever to hear that Leo is OK. My mom and I have both been praying for Leo and waiting to hear how he is. Great news!!!

Welcome home, Bev!
John said…
Glad you are back, and hooray for Leo!
Amy said…
Awesome shots from Alaska. I'm so excited about Leo...Thank goodness he made a full recovery..his sweet baby pics were so sweet. Looking forward to more good news from the farm.
Welcome home Bev. What gorgeous photos. Everyone who travels to Alaska loves it. Maybe someday I will be able to go.
Suzan said…
My parents traveled everywhere and their favorite place is Alaska because of all the wildlife!! Yearly- Dad took 25 men up for a week when the salmon and halabet were running for fishing. When I retire- that's the first place we're going!! You're pictures are beautiful!!
Tina said…
love the moose picture
Kris said…
Sounds like it was a fantastic trip!!!
Julie said…
Great photos! Can't wait to see the rest.