Our mission was Tok and we made it in good time. After leaving Anchorage we stopped at Ida Lake for an hour to say goodbye to Dad. Though I had driven to the cabin at least once a year since Dad passed away this was the first time I had been down on the water since we scattered his ashes on his birthday in June 2001. The cabin has had new owners since 2002 so we drove to the public access area which was across the lake but were only able to see the far edge of our old property. Peppermint Island, where we had the ceremony, was not visible but just being on the lake was more meaningful than I can say.
The wild peppermint that Dad named the little island after grew on the bank where Brian and I stood. I picked a few sprigs. I had never really noticed the mint before and it’s potency coupled with how much Dad loved this place brought immediate tears. The lake was so beautiful. Small, calm, a light crosswind making the delicate ripples I so fondly remember staring at for hours in earlier summers. The scene was at once filled with peace, sadness, and so many memories. I was reminded how much Dad loved this place and it was easy to see why. Ida Lake was a respite, a sanctuary, a place where, as corny as it sounds, time and everything else stood still and you were nestled in nature. I hope very much to come back, perhaps even buy property on the lake and have our kids learn to fish on it in a little paddle boat like we had. I was very thankful to have Brian with me. It felt like the closest thing to him meeting Dad as we’d ever come, which was priceless.
After trespassing on some property to get a few shots between the trees of Peppermint Island we climbed back in the car and officially commenced our road trip. We drove for near two hours and stopped for dinner in Glenallen at The Caribou Inn and Café. Dinner wasn’t bad! Brian had a halibut sandwich since he figured we wouldn’t get to have halibut much longer as we were leaving Alaska, though I reminded him it probably wasn’t fresh, seeing as how we were pretty darn north and nowhere close to the ocean. He knew, but still there’s something unique to having halibut in Alaska. I had a cheddar and roast beef sandwich and my, oh my, they sure didn’t skimp on the cheese. I scraped off at least one, big fat slice worth of cheddar which had oozed out of the sandwich. To top it off, we shared a slice of cherry pie a la mode.
Stopping at the gas station the attendant, who appeared to be in his early 20s, informed me when asked that he lived in Glenallen all his life but today was his last day. He was moving to Wyoming…as you do.
Brian and I listened to “Positive Discipline” by Dr. Jane Nelsen as we drove the 139 miles left to Tok. She is a mother of 7 with a degrees in family/marital counseling and education. Her main principles focus on “teaching children self-discipline, responsibility, cooperation and problem-solving skills” by teaching parents to apply healthy boundaries and rules using respect. It was great getting to talk afterwards about the principles she encourages and we both agreed with her methods. At times it was hard to focus on the tape because the view turned from flat and pretty boring to spectacular. The Wrangle mountains on our right hand side were STUNNING, though I didn’t get a very good shot of them with the cloud coverage.
We arrived in Tok around 8pm and checked into The Golden Bear Motel. We decided to go for the cheaper, non-renovated room. It was suitable and we felt like we were slumming it old school with the puke green carpets, faux wood TV, and a shower barely hanging together. I did make sure not to sit bare bummed on the comforter -you know all the horror stories about how filthy those things are in motels. When I reminded Brian as he was climbing into bed of how dirty they are he flung the comforter on the floor in one horrified swoop, which made me laugh.
We had a good nights sleep on a very firm bed, stretched out our kinks, had a decent breakfast and now are Canada bound. Commencing day two, stay tuned for the next day’s adventures!
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