The Biggest Little Fair in Alaska: Kenai Peninsula State Fair in Ninilchik

The Fair is this coming weekend! 

Stay tuned for some pictures and commentary, but in the meantime, go here for more information, schedules, and more:  Official Fair Website

Alaskan Beaches: Razor Clam Digging and Sand Castle Design

We take all interested guests on a razor clam dig, once a week---always a much lauded experience---but it's fair to say that the play-dough-like consistancy of Alaskan beach mud calls out loudly for tactile engagement of other kinds.  Here, Kaillee Skjold and Josiah Martin take a brief moment off from clam digging to construct a sand castle---with a moat and the decorative value of snail shells thrown in for good measure.

Last year, my kids and I found three baby sharks caught in a tide pool, waiting for the cold waters of Cook Inlet to come back and give them a chance at life.  My children stood guard as the sea gulls circled hopefully above, the salty sweet smell of kelp filling the air around us.  

There is no such thing as a "casual" walk on the beach, here by the waters of Cook Inlet, no matter which beach you visit.  It is a richly meditative experience, each and every time, and certainly one not to be missed.          

RVing in Alaska: Slow Down and Smell the Spruce Trees!

Roger and Ruthanne Jansen, Work Campers at the Diamond M Ranch this summer,
exemplify the fine art of making the most of every moment!

Not everyone has the time to take a leisurely trip through Alaska, but it's important to remember that a vacation is only a vacation in so much as it is a vacation!  If you maintain a fast pace and a tight schedule, hustling from one stop to the next, concentrating on the map and the milage and the next stop, you may be in Alaska but you're missing almost everything Alaska has to offer. 

Don't let the cities and the roadways fool you.  There's nothing tame about Alaska.  It's still a land of rugged wildness---a place where you can breathe deeply, stretch out stiff limbs and remember what it is like to be alive again.  Many RVer's understand this, so instead of scheduling a whirlwind tour of the state (going a mile wide and an inch deep), they pick one specific part of the state to really "get to know," to richly experience and enjoy.  Make no bones about it---the quality of their Alaskan vacation time is unparalleled.

So if there is one piece of advice we could give you, as you plan for your Alaskan vacation, it is this: make it a priority to fully enjoy the piece of Alaska that you find yourself in.  Walk on the spongy tundra.  Breathe in the salty freshness of the river mouth.  Stay up late for a one-of-a-kind "midnight sun" sunset.  It doesn't have to cost money, because it's not about money.  It's simply about engaging with your surroundings and drinking deeply of the richness all around you. 

As the saying goes, a good motto both for RVer's and for the rest of us,

"Wherever you are, be all there."

Alaskan Homestead Cabin