~ John Burroughs, Naturalist (1837-1921) ~

June already! For those of you in lower latitudes, June signifies the arrival of summer. For those of us in Alaska, spring has finally burst into color around us. Wildflowers are appearing alongside the roads, and in the woods. All colors and hues; some so tiny it's easy to miss them until you get up on top of them. Others seem to glow with an inner light, and turn to follow the sun's movement across the sky. My world is not only green; it is pink and purple and yellow and white and blue.

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I'm writing this entry while sitting in Homer. I don't know if I'll be able to upload it today, as the internet connection here is still not working correctly. I believe there is DSL in the laundry room up at the office, and if there is, I'll get this posted.

Sunday, June 3rd - Fairbanks to Tolsona Wilderness Campground, Glenn Highway

Steve and I decided to leave a day early - on Sunday. Spur of the moment, we decided to drive down the Richardson Highway as opposed to the Parks Highway. There are only two ways to get to the peninsula. The first is to drive the Parks Highway from Fairbanks to Anchorage, and then onward to the Kenai Peninsula. The second is to drive the Richardson Highway to Glennallen, and then get on the Glenn Highway to Anchorage. (You could also incorporate a drive across the Denali Highway, but that road is mostly gravel and not the best road to tow a camper on.)

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When I ended my last entry, Steve and I had spent the afternoon exploring the Anchor Point area. It was raining on us when we left Homer and began the 15-20 mile drive up the Sterling Highway. By the time we reached Anchor Point, the weather started to clear. What a welcome relief. These rainy trips to the peninsula have really sapped the energy out of us. Why is it we feel so lazy when the weather is less than perfect?

As we were loading up the truck with my photography gear, I noticed large flocks of gulls flying overhead. I followed their path to the rocky beach below. There, they met up with even more gulls and perched in an organized group on the shore. More and more kept arriving each minute. Some of them tucked their heads under a wing, but most screamed raucously at each other. That was the first time I had seen so many gulls in one place, and sitting so organized. Steve told me they were waiting for the tide to come in.

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We have had so much rain over the last week and it's been so depressing. I was depressed to have chilly and rainy weather when we were down in Homer, and it followed us home. The positive thing about the rain is that it keeps the wildfires at bay. The negative is.... well everything, when you're tired of seeing it!

I have had some beautiful color in my days lately. My first dose of color came on Tuesday. Steve took my car in to have the oil changed on Tuesday afternoon, and when he came home I heard him moving around in the garage for a few minutes before he came into the house.

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What an amazing week we had while Donna was in town visiting. I know that this will be a vacation she won't soon forget and neither will we.

Donna brought the sunny weather with her, which was the most fantastic thing besides seeing her! We had nearly record temperatures the entire time we were traveling, and all of our excursions were under mostly sunny skies and warmth. In fact, I didn't pack enough warm-weather clothes and had to buy a couple of t-shirts along the way to stay cool. What a big difference from last year at this time, when Diane was in town and we had to wear long underwear on the wildlife cruise. I am so thankful.

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