For almost two decades I've been living my childhood dreams in Alaska. I've explored practically every nook and cranny of the Kenai Peninsula by water, horseback, bush plane and by foot. I've walked on glaciers, forded streams, and lived years at a time in a wall tent. I've panned for gold on more steams and creeks than I can count. I've helped work a gold mine on Quartz Creek and I continue to prospect at every opportunity.
I was raised in a small town In South Central Texas and we were very poor and as a boy of almost 8 received my own 22 rifle. I had been hunting using dad's for a couple of years already. I loved the outdoors and spent all my free time hunting squirrels, rabbits, birds etc for the dinner table and I did a lot of fishing catching bass, crappie, catfish, crawdads, turtles etc. I literally fed our family with the game and fish I harvested. I couldn't think of life being any better. I would get up early in morning before school and ride five miles on my bicycle to fish for an hour or so before having to ride to town and school. When I was 8, I fished for 365 days straight doing research. I had a page for everyday recording stuff like outside temp. barometric pressure, wind and weather and the results of my fishing day. I also had a page for every fish I caught (I did the research on bass) and recorded their length and size and all the details of the catch: depth of water, clarity, the strength of the strike, lure and its color, and speed of and method of retrieve. Also any structure that the fish was in (near moss beds, overhangs on bank stumps rocks etc) The biggest thing I learned is that if you wanted to catch a fish you had to get a hook wet, so I fished often, almost all the time.
I remember as a young boy about 8 I had this obsession about Alaska and the Alcan highway. I read everything I could find in Outdoor Life, Boy's Life, Sports Afield or books from the library--anything I could find on Alaska and the Alaskan Highway. I dreamed of horseback adventures with long strings of pack horses working my way into the wildest of country hunting for moose, caribou and bear. The mountains and tundra fascinated me and I dreamed constantly about it. I spent hundreds of nights every summer at this small lake (at the time I thought it was huge but probably was only an acre or two) some five miles away from home. I would lay on the bank, barefoot in my shorts and tee shirt listening to my transistor radio and staring up into the starry night sky-dreaming. I would cast my line out with a grasshopper or some bait and wrap the line around my big toe so I would know if I had a bite. I could spend most of the night just laying there dreaming of Alaska, Africa and Australia, but primarily Alaska.
I never lost those dreams and as a teen and in my 20, 30, 40's I would get the urge to pack up and go to Alaska and was always talked out of it by people around me, with stuff like I was just not facing reality or just running away from things etc. 11 years ago, I owned two small retail shops in Corpus Christi, Texas (or I guess I should say they owned me). I was on a buying trip to a small town outside of Corpus buying some concrete bird baths, etc for my store and they had this old ugly cargo van for sale for 600 dollars. It was primarily red so the rust fit right in and I thought it would make a good vehicle to haul the heavy concrete items so I went to look at it. I sat in the seat and looked back into the empty cargo area and Alaska hit me with such force I knew without a doubt I was on my way. I saw it all in a glance, bought the van on the spot and within 60 days gave away and sold everything I owned at about a dime on a dollar. I spent about thirty days fixing the van with extra batteries, 12 volt lights, a closet, bed area, music and racks for guns and fishing poles and propane cooking stove and I was on my way.
I will never forget the day I took off with about a thousand dollars to my name and took off to live my childhood dreams. I spent almost two months traveling around the western US visiting and seeing places I dreamed about: the Painted Desert, Mesa Verde, Colorado; I hiked the Grand Canyon and I climbed the west rim of Virgin River in Zion, Utah, then Bryce in Utah, then Canyon and arches. I went to see the Tetons and hiked there, though I hit a lot of snow (it was March). I spent some time in Wyoming: I loved the Boundurant area and an avalanche kept me from going through Jackson Hole so I went west to Idaho and saw the craters of the moon and then to Oregon and traveled the coastal road through to Seattle and finally to the Canadian border. Like I said, my dream always included the Alaskan Highway and here I was heart pounding in Canada finally going to drive that famous highway. I went through Calgary and then took highway to Baniff and went through the Columbian icefields to Jasper and was amazed at all the elk--they were everywhere-huge bulls laying around all over town...wow. Then I went to Prince George and off to Dawson Creek: the official start of the Alcan Highway and in a short bit I was In Fort Saint John (I fell in love with some people there and have to this day made regular stops there). (In eleven years {now higher} I have driven this highway 15 times) I loved every mile of this drive and experienced driving in my first white out (living in Texas, I didn't see snow) and here I drove through blizzards and snow storms and was amazed at all the snow covered mountains, Ice covered lakes etc and was in complete awe. I loved the Summit Lake area and Toad River area is still my most favorite part of the Alcan to drive. In last eleven years {now more} they have widened and straightened the Alcan horribly. I miss the old winding roads that followed contours of mountains especially in Steamboat area, it is now relatively straight but the stretch from Watson Lake to Fort Nelson is still not straightened and I love it all 550 Km's. Do stop in Toad River if you go through there-it is approx a one building town but some awesome folks at the cafe-store-gas station-garage and there is wifi internet now. I love their breakfast! The deer and wildlife in this area are astounding. There are buffalo all over the roads and caribou at times unending as they cross the road.
Then we get to my favorite town in all the world: Whitehorse, Yukon, in Canada. I love the small town and the people here are the friendliest I have ever met. There is a statue in main square of town of a guy and his dog headed to the mine fields and it is dedicated to all those that have the courage to follow their dreams.
Anyway, I finally made it to Alaska on April 4th and what a feeling...words lose me and are unable to come close to the feelings and thoughts and jubilation in my soul (I will never ever talk people out of living their dreams. I realize all my friends were so wrong and it is sad that so many people dream and never live it) I am living my childhood dreams I am in Alaska. I drove here on the Alcan (oh my) anyway I was in Tok and eating at Fast Eddies and learned there was a controversy about where the official end of the Alcan was some said it was merely getting into Alaska, others said it was Fairbanks so that settled it: I was going to Fairbanks so that there would be no question I drove the entire highway. Spent three days there and then went to Anchorage and spent a day and then started driving south to Seward but turned off towards Homer and went through Cooper Landing and it still amazes me that I actually have ended up in that beautiful town. I was in Homer about 8 days after I entered Alaska and was looking for the road to go to Kodiak (a funny story here: when I left Texas I kept telling everyone that I was going to drive until I hit the end of road) well in Homer at the end of spit, I stopped into a place called Lands End and asked where the road to Kodiak was and they said you are at the end of the road. All I could say was hot damn I made it. I had no idea that is what they call Homer, wow and I didn't realize that you had to take a ferry or fly to Kodiak. So here I was with approx 180 dollars to my name and not knowing a soul and it was mid april and I was quickly running out of money and found out there are no jobs in Alaska until the summer. I visited the employment office everyday and they finally told me that there was this job in Cooper Landing that sounded a bit different and weird in that they couldn't understand what it was all about. They made the call for me and I talked to George of Gwins Lodge for a couple of hours and then decided to visit that coming Sunday. I went to Cooper Landing and after about a four hour talk, I got the job at Gwins Lodge helping manage the store and lodge and the outfiting operation. I was told there was no money until June 15 when the fish came (sockeye salmon fishing opens june 15th or so when the fish return to the Russian river but they agreed to hire me with room and board in meantime) Wow, things were working out so fantastically and working at Gwins was the best thing I have ever done as I got to meet and go with all the guides and bush pilots and horseback guides of the area and to this day have fantastic relationships with almost every guide in the area.
I drove a cab for eight winters with Alaska Cab in Soldotna and Kenai and then didn't go back to Gwins but went to work with a guy that has become my best friend and helped him get his horseback operation going. He now owns about 33 horses and takes people all over the back country. Working for him was the very fulfillment of every single dream I have ever had. I not only was able to enjoy going into the wilderness with a string of pack horses and hunt and bag moose and caribou, I have officially become a wrangler and have the knowledge and skill to do all of the trip from saddling and packing horses on. I have truly lived and am still living my childhood dreams beyond my wildest imagination. If you look at my pictures on the photo pages you will just find a small sampling of the things I have been blessed to do and the grand adventures I have enjoyed. It is absolutely amazing and now I am helping others by way of my gold prospecting adventures. If you get a chance to come to the Kenai Peninsula, by all means stop in if only to say hi. I have a perpetual pot of coffee on the wood stove in the wall tent and you just need to bring your own cup!
I get my biggest thrill in watching visitors have a good time and especially like to help people custom make their vacation. With the fish, there seems to be a million people here overnight trying to catch one and it can all seem so overwhelming (it really isn't but unless you know where and who it can be) Looking forward to seeing you this summer.
My wish for you this year is the same thing I wish for myself: peace and serenity, good health and prosperity.
