HENRY'S DREAM COMES TRUE

37 YEARS OF DREAMING ABOUT ALASKA AND YUKON

When I met Henry in 1974, he told me some day he would love to go to Alaska and northern Canada.  It took a long time, but we finally did it.

I have written the blog mostly from my perspective, so this entry is dedicated to Henry’s trip.   I often would ask, how would you describe what we say today, or what did you like or not like, I would get about a 3 or 4 word answer.

So I will have to tell you what I saw as Henry’s trip.

He is a "Wine Glass is half full" kind of person.

No matter how lousy the weather got, it could be raining, it would not take long and he would say, "the sun is coming out".  Always the optimist.  One day I challenged him, I said there is no sun, there are only clouds and it is raining.   "No", he said,  "the clouds are thinning and you can see through the clouds where the sun is, so therefore the sun is out". 

squeezing the trailer onto the Ferry

He backs up the trailer like a pro, me I am totally useless when it comes to guiding him.  I just stand there and watch him. He sets up camp, hooks up, levels, stabilizes and never ever complains.  Always happy to do what he has to do. 

At a look out he jumped on top of pick up at the site of Dawson City to film

Usually does the dishes, or at least helps.

When I had my meltdown about the dust in the trailer on the Dempster hwy, the next day I was in the office on the internet, went back to the trailer to get something and found him trying to dust and clean.  

At Diamond Tooth Gertie's in Dawson City

Cookind dinner in the pouring rain

He loves his campfire, so no matter what the weather, as soon as the trailer was set up he would make a camp fire. 

Dinner always has to be cooked on the open fire.  Even if there is a stream of water running through the firepit, he still cooks our dinner over it.  At River Rock Campsite on the Dempster, it was pouring rain.  He said,’no matter I will just make a bigger fire”.  I said, “I could fry, or bake the fish”, no he would stand out in the rain and grill the rock fish and potatoes over the campfire, while I made the green beans and salad inside in the dry, non mosquito environment. 

River of rain water following under his campfire in Chicken Alaska

Talkeetna General Store & Pub.  He loves the old towns

In Talkeetna, after our flight around Mt. McKinley, we went into the woods and chopped down dead trees and cut firewood for the next few weeks. 

Trying to save a float plane from floating away in the wind at Herschel Islan

 

A couple of times, I was near tears because of the millions of mosquitos.  Never a word of complaint about the besty buggers from him.  He just made sure he always had the Watkins with him, so if we needed it he could give it to me.

Cheena Hot Springs

Henry has always been fascinated by old machinery that was used in North America.   So I would catch him very often stopping to inspect these relics that were all over the place.

An other old machine 

Old dredger at Pioneer Village

Henry is a driver.  He loves to drive, god help you if you need to pee before the gas tank is empty.   So he drove, and drove and drove and drove.   No longer putting in the miles of his younger days, but come mornin you better be ready quick because we are hitting the road NOW!  We now have put in 11,000. kilometres.

In the evening he would always find someone on the campsite to share stories with. 

One of his goals was to dip his feet in the Artic Ocean,  well he got to do it. Twice!  

Dipping feet into Artic at Tuk

Dipping feet into Artic Ocean

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 Alaska, Yukon and the Artic Ocean are a dream come true for him and he is loving every minute. 

Happy Birthday Henry