Thursday, June 23, 2011

Alaska Trip Day 10 - Wasilla & Anchorage

We woke up ready for our last day in Alaska. After a great breakfast of reindeer sausage at the inn we headed off for a fun day before flying out. We loved our rental mini van.
Our first stop was at the Iditarod Trail Race Headquarters in Wasilla. I have always been fascinated by the Iditarod. I remember reading books about it as a kid. It is such a great story. We all really enjoyed getting to experience the parts of the race firsthand.




Kate loved the statue of Balto!

The winner's trophy.

We got to take a ride on a summer sled. It was awesome to get to ride pulled by dogs.

Ben just kept saying wow over and over. He loved it!

We then got to play with some of the dogs.

They were gorgeous. And they love to run!! They would bark restlessly until they got to run and then they would just take off when the driver called "mush."
We enjoyed checking out an old time sled.

We then got to play with some 10 day old puppies. They were so cute!! Ben was so nervous to hold it but he did a great job.

Kate was a little rough. We had to watch her!

I think Matt was in love.

After the racing headquarters we went over the to Saturday farmer's market in Wasilla. We got to enjoy some local goods. We bought some handmade soap and pottery.

We had to stop by the Wasilla city hall. This is where one Sarah Palin got her start.
And just in case you were wondering you could not see Russia from Wasilla. We checked.

Ben got a cute little puppy friend to take home. He named him Sled.

So we took a little side adventure to this town we were told was really cute. It was a total dump. All there was was this old ship in the middle of the water. Oh well. It was funny and the kids got a good nap.

We then headed into downtown Anchorage. We ate lunch at the Glacier Brewhouse and then walked around downtown.

It happened to be the Summer Solstice Street Festival. I guess this is a big deal for Alaskans because I think everyone of them was there. It was a gorgeous day - sunny and about 70 degrees. It was the peak of their summer. They were all wearing shorts and tank tops. We still thought is was pretty cold.

We enjoyed checking out the different exhibits and vendors.

After that we went up to an overlook of the city. There were some amazing views.






I love this picture.




It was then time to start heading to the airport. We did stop by the lake beside the airport to watch the sea planes take off and land for a little bit. This is the way the majority of Alaskans travel around.



It was then time for the long journey home. We went to Detroit then Memphis and then Huntsville. We left Anchorage at 8 pm and got back to Huntsville at 11 am. It was a long night travelling but the kids did awesome. A little Benadryl and they slept great!!

I hope you have enjoyed seeing a little bit of our amazing trip. It really was a trip of a lifetime. We had so much fun seeing all of the amazingly beautiful sights. It was great to see God's beautiful handiwork and be reminded of what an amazing God we serve. We had so much fun getting to spend time with our awesome family! Thanks so much mom and dad!!!!!!!!!!!

1 comments:

Katy Forester Brooks said...

Emily- I've made it through all 10 days with you! :) My sister went to Alaska two years ago and I still hear about it almost daily! I guess Alaska gets in your blood. It looks like you all made tons of memories...thanks for sharing!