And then there is the moose. I keep thinking about the photo of the purple moose on the side of the bakery. He is painted to look like fabric to me. So he will probably pop up on one of the art quilt exercises. I also sketched a couple of layouts for a quilt of Alaska travel memories. There are several photos that really inspire me to turn them into fabric and thread painting and maybe a watercolor block of the mountains. 
Before returning to Anchorage for the flight home, we visited the Reindeer Farm outside of Palmer. There was a moose, and a musk ox and Eddie, the elk. He was quite friendly and followed Trey wanting attention. Luckily they only have lower teeth in the front, so it was safe to feed him. The reindeer were very forward....they knew it was free food when people came in. What we didn't realize was that reindeer and caribou are the same animal. Caribou are wild and reindeer are domesticated. Their antlers are covered with a soft velvet fuzz. It is very sensitive and we were asked not to touch it. Antlers can grow up to 6 inches a day, and each year the animals loose their antlers and grow new ones. Guess that explains this pile of antlers.
We stopped in Eagle River at a nice yarn shop where Deana picked up Alaskan dyed sock yarn. Then we went to Earthquake Park at the edge of the city. In 1964, the strongest earthquake struck Alaska. In that area the ground dropped over 30 feet and slid into the ocean...homes, people, and everything else. There were photos too of the extensive damage done to the city. 
Anyway, 14 hours later I was home having sweet tea and ready for sleep. Thanks for sharing my blogging of Alaska memories. If you ever get the opportunity to visit Alaska, go. It is a trip worth the effort to get there. I'm off to practice thread painting and begin a design for the online class. Happy Stitching.
We drove out Glenn Highway to Glennallen and Copper Center. Both are very small towns, but the reason behind this whole trip. Russ grew up as a missionary kid in Copper Center and Tok area. The Chapel on the Hill story has been told over and over, and I am glad we made the trip to see it. This was the first post for him Mom and Dad to the Indians. It is just a small log cabin, but was the center and reason they went to Alaska. Russ tells of having to sit on the front row each week, about wild crocus coming up through the snow, about walking to the lodge area to the shop where his Dad worked some times and being whipped all the way home. 
We found the lodge--Copper Center Roadhouse--along the Copper River about 1/2 mile away. It is now owned by the grandson of the original owner, and he is developing the area around the lodge with old log cabins and building. One is now the Historical Society and a small museum, and a QUILT SHOP! The owners were so gracious and opened up everything for us. We really enjoyed browsing the area and talking to them all. The chapel area has been sold and the chapel building given to the lodge owner. He will be moving it to a new location next to the lodge this year. I am so glad to know it will be looked after and cared for in the years to come. So if you are ever in Copper Center, AK stop by Stitches from the Attic. We visited Mt. Wrangell Elias State Park, which is beautiful. The park is larger than Switzerland, and encompasses all the types of area of Alaska--mountains, tundra, and lakes and forests. Beautiful quaking aspens on the bluffs overlooking the lower tundra that lead to the mountains.
Heading back to our cabin we decided to stop by Lake Louise--tundra area-- and try to see caribou. We ate at the Lake Louise Lodge--surprise, surprise--overlooking the lake and islands! There were about 6 or 7 homes on the larger island. I asked if they were year round homes. Yes, people have their own power plant generators, and use boats and ATVs in winter to get across the lake. Talk about pioneer spirits. Our waitress said to look for caribou as we left and sure enough we spotted a couple of them munching on shrubs. We also saw a moose in the area too. Deana was dancing for joy. 
Tomorrow is our last day..... so back to the cabin to pack. Or rather cram everything in. Do you know how much room 31/2 yards of fabric takes? A lot more than I thought when trying to stuff it in along with everything else we bought....so it ended up in the carry on bag. 
The cruise was 4 hours through Prince William Sound to see and view 27 glaciers. A glacier forms when there is more snowfall than can melt in a season. It compresses and hardens. Over the years layers build up and debris and dirt are sealed between them forming black lines. The blue ice forms from pressure of the glacier. We drifted slowly through several ice floes and you could hear it crunch against the hull of the ship. We did see several "calving" events of the ice. Sea otters floated on large chunks of ice, and others on their backs in the water with the babies on their stomachs. there were flocks of birds, and a group of porpoises followed us for a while, playing, leaping and diving. On the way back to port we saw a humpback whale and her baby. She blew for us a couple of times and then raised her tail, called the fluke", and dove deep. The captain said that was a rare sight. Simply amazing.
After a stop at the Walmart for snacks and water and a knee support brace for me, we headed for the Tundra Rose, our cabin for the rest of the week. Everywhere we looked was a scene you wanted to capture. Each mile revealed a different vista, and we stopped at a lot of pull outs. 
This was a viewing area we stopped at along the Matanuska River. Deana and Russ found a way down to the river bed to look for rocks. The river is low right now, as the rainy season is about a month away. We got to the cabin, and went for dinner at the Sheep Mountain Lodge. The sourdough rolls were the size of a small loaf of bread! And we saw the Dahl sheep grazing on the mountain side. They actually have viewing sites to sit and watch for sheep and wildlife along the roads. Here's a view from our cabin early the next morning.
Russ and I headed to Victory Camp just a few miles away, and spotted a moose on the side of the road. What a sight! Victory Camp has grown and modernized from what he remembered. There is a beautiful lodge and different theme camps now. Both of the lakes still had ice on them. Such beauty. Rick is now the director and began showing us around. But a quick call and Nadine arrived to give us a grand tour. Nadine is considered the grand matriarch of the area as she and her husband were the founding missionaries here. At 90 years old, she still drives the gravel roads and knows every one by name. It was a great privilege to spend time with her. She took us to lunch at the Long Rifle Lodge to see "old Alaska". The lodge had wonderful food and views and was filled with life size bears, muskox, and moose. As we were leaving, Nadine walked us out the back hall where old photos from early camp days line the walls. Very near the end of the hall there was a photo of about 15 kids in the back of an old Ford pick up truck. My husband was looking at it and suddenly said "There's Dwayne"--his brother. And standing right behind him was Russ. Of all the old photos they could have hung, they chose one with both of them in it.
We spent the afternoon at Matanuska Glacier Park. It is the largest glacier that is easily accessible by car. About a 20 minute hike around the very rocky, steep marked path took Deana, Trey and Russ to the black ice. ( I stayed at the viewing area because of my knee.) The black ice is part of the glacier that is covered by dirt and silt. You could hear the ice crack and break off ---it sounded like a rifle shot as it reverberated off the mountains. 
This is where the river begins at the glacier. On the way out of the park we stopped along the bank of the river for a hunt for a small enough piece of "driftwood" to take home. And we did manage to get it into the suitcase.
And then my wonderful husband said, "There's another rack you haven't looked at." Boy, were we in trouble.....prints of glaciers, and the northern lights, mountains, and totem poles. And it was buy 5 and get 1 free....so I did. I know I blew my stash busting diet, but what a great way to do it. 
Just a bit about the raven and the totems. I thought that totem poles would be a common sight. I only found a few--mainly at the museum and rail depot. So I picked up a small book on the history of totems. Totems are ceremonial pieces many times. The celebrate an event or a person. The chief of the clan might have several outside his home, or as a door support. Totems tell a story and are usually read top to bottom. The raven is a common figure used on totems, and he represents a trickster/creator---the duality of his nature. The legend says he stole the sun from his master and hung it in the sky. So often the raven has a flat disk in his beak. 
The photo to the right is a more common sight in Anchorage. The symbols are very stylized and colorful. This one is over the window at the gift shop.
I headed to the grocery store this morning and grabbed a jacket out of habit, I guess. Ugh! The humidity hit me in the face....you are not in Alaska now. There is very little humidity there, and the spring days warmed very quickly to comfortable temperatures. 
It originally was a rooming house for gold miners, and part of it was destroyed by the earthquake in 1964. I loved the "air conditioner" in our room, too! Right next door was Grizzley's gift shop, very aptly named. They wheeled him out every day and took him in at night. Or actually when they closed. There is not a lot of night right now in Alaska, only about 3 hours or so. By 5 or 5:30 am it was quite bright outside. And it is still daylight at 10 pm. 
The Anchorage weekend market opened about 10 am. I was ready to go about 2 hours before that. The market is open air and they begin setting up about 7 am. It was fun to watch the trucks pull in and set up all the tents and such in such a short time. In the photo the market is on the left...and you can see the mountains surrounding the city. There were all types of crafts and artisans there. I met a flute maker and he even played one for us. And a native carver, who is passing on the family business to his young son. They do carvings in soapstone and antlers. Just amazing. I bought a spirit face carved out of cottonwood, which is abundant there. We also found buttons cut from antlers. Just had to have a couple for an art project for this trip. 
So while we browsed and shopped, Trey ate his way through the market. Reindeer sausages, lemonades, corn fritters (which I had to have because they were delicious) and I'm not sure what else. I loved all the street signs set up to mark the intersections. And that was just the morning.....afternoon was the quilt shop, The Quilted Raven. I'll save that for tomorrow's post. 
The bags are packed, including chocolate. We decided to take the computer, so maybe I will be able to post a few photos. I spent the afternoon working on some thread painting. I finished the daisies and tried a couple cosmos blooms. They need practice. And I need more shades of thread, not just a light and then something close to it. They do have thread in Alaska, so.........! For inspiration I took a quick tour of the garden late today. My favorite iris is blooming right now. It is such beauty and really is that color. I just had to capture it since it may be done by the time we get back. Happy stitching.
Rather than letting things fall between the cracks, I have been allotting Mondays to my Art Quilt Workbook projects. It has worked for me and I am on schedule and up to date. I finished up the collage exercise and the theme projects. The top photo is the collage exercise...Take the Leap. I tried a different edge finish on this one, just a pillow case style finish. I think I would have liked a binding better.
I got slightly off track this week when I realized I needed to make a small quilt for a new mom to be. The small "taggie" was a quick and easy project. My stash did not provide enough infant style fabric, so I decided to make a stash busting project in cool blues and greens. Just an everyday-use me- quilt.
And one more sight from the garden....the memory garden. Each plant there is planted in memory or honor of someone. This is the rambling rose bush that we call Dwayne. Dwayne was my husband's brother, and just as prickly as his rose. We miss him.
This is a Carolina orchid, a past along plant from a friend. The blooms are only about 1 and 1/2 inches across and really look like a very tiny orchid on an arching stem. Hopefully next year there will be more of them.
And the poppies are appliqued now onto the water color wall hanging. The centers are thread painted in black. I really like how they just pop with the thread accent. I have the border picked out and will get this one finished up this week. I have decided not to add the right side to this one after all. So now I have the start of other wall hanging, and an idea of what I will use for an accent on it. 
