Happy Father's Day

I can't believe that we've been on the road for nearly a month.  We left home on May 21.  We spent nearly three weeks in Canada.  While we had good cell phone and Internet connection for most of it, I had a little password snafu that I couldn't get fixed while I was "out of the country", so I wasn't able to post to my blog.  We made it to Alaska on June 10 and, since then, when we aren't out site-seeing, Mom's been busy taking care of some business and she's told me to keep my paws off her computer.  😞

Anyway, things are settling down a bit, so I'll do my best to catch you up on our travels, but first, I'd like to wish Happy Father's Day to everyone.  Especially my Dad who gives me the best life a dog could hope for.  This is us at the start of our trip.  He made me this great platform, so I can see out through the windshield (and so that they can store stuff underneath).

I'd also like to wish Happy Father's Day to Grandpa Earle in Texas.  I got to meet him in December when we visited.   This is Grandpa Earle with Dad and my Aunts, Susan and Mary.

I'd also like to talk a little about my Mom's Day, my Grandpa Ralph.  I won't get to meet him because he died when Mom was a girl but he's part of the reason we have come here.  When Mom was a little girl, her Dad would plan big family vacations.  He really wanted to take a trip on the Al-Can Highway, but Grandma was pretty apprehensive.   Grandpa planned a vacation that got as far north as Dawson Creek (the start of the Alaska Highway) when Mom was about 8 or 9.  She remembers that they were there on a Saturday night and went to church.  After Church, several of the members of the congregation crowded around their car because they'd never seen a car like her family's car.  I've shown you this photo before of how they rolled in their station wagon, but it doesn't show the whole car.

That's my Grandpa Ralph facing the camera, closest to the road.

I found this photo on the Internet.  Mom says that's what their station wagon looked like.  It had windows in the roof.  That's what was what attracted the people of Dawson Creek.

Pretty cool car!

While they didn't go further north that year, Mom knew that one day her Dad would plan a trip and she'd be back in front of the Milepost 0 for a trip North.  Back then, she thought it would be in the 70's on a family vacation.  She never expected that it would take more than 50 years and that she'd plan it herself, but she finally made it.

Mom, back in front of the Mile 0 marker in downtown Dawson Creek, BC wth Dad and cousins Nancy (left) and Marie.  

Our whole traveling Caravan - Marie and Nancy with their girls Cheuy
(she gets a stroller) and Darby with their truck and trailer on the left. 
Mom, Dad, and me with our camper on the right. 
This is the "new" sign by the Visitor Center.

Next time I post, I'll tell you about some of our adventures in Canada getting to Mile 0 and then try to catch up over the next several posts, so that I'm posting more about the events, as we are doing them.

A map of our Northbound trip

Current location as of 6/18/2022 - Fairbanks, Alaska, #25 on the map above..  We've been here a week, did a side trip north of the Arctic Circle (#23), and plan to leave tomorrow and expect to be in Valdez (#27), by next weekend.

Happy Father's Day

Love,

Jake