June 21, 2008. From McKinley to the Big Boat. Upon arrival at the lodge, all hands head for the deck to while away the evening ogling the mountain.
[ . . . and to work on our tans.]
[Howie and Donna part company allowing a clear refective shot of the mountain and the photographer.]
[Tourists from Minnesota.]
[The Cub Reporter finds the ideal spot from whence to ply his trade.]
[I was really, REALLY concerned that I would fall asleep and miss this once in a lifetime opportunity. But I made it – I got the above four shots of Mt. McKinley at midnight on the summer solstice!]
[What we were looking at from the deck.]
[Then to Talkeetna, where I tried to sign up for a climb (not!).]
[Here’s the report I filed at the time: “It was May, I believe, 1978 . . . I led a daring team of risk takers, the Lake Darling Daredevils, up the dreaded north slope, a/k/a Lutefisk Gulch. The weather was beautiful at the outset – Sven even noticed a sunburn and how it was creating a bad golf sock line. But at the 15,000-foot level, the climbing party began to complain about a shortage of smelt and krumkake. At 17,000 feet, Ole and Lena turned back – something about a rash caused by woolen underwear. Shortly thereafter, altitude sickness hit the remaining team – cerebral edema was a real threat. It was at this point we all later recalled running into three yetis on the mountain – one was peddling sub-prime mortgage loans, and even had all the paperwork. She was cute, in a hirsute sorta way. We’re not sure if we made it to the top or not – one of the sherpas had extraordinary foot odor that created a light-headedness among the group. We don’t recall how we made it back down, but at the bottom we discovered Lars and Irma had severe frostbite. Lars subsequently lost three toes on his left foot as a result, but he said not to worry – it corrected his previous tendency to always list to the right. We’ve talked about trying to climb the mountain again – Tollef has had second thoughts about his mortgage loan.”]
If only you could put this creative talent to good use……….. ~ Frank L
[Downtown Talkeetna]
[Ruthie finally gets to kiss a moose!]
[Then it was a 5-hour rail trip, through the now famous Wasilla, through Anchorage, along Cook Inlet, to Whittier where we found our boat.]
[“Does Dave have any more lupine garnish?”]
[Tunnel]
[“I see our boat!”]
[Just slightly larger than the Moby Obie. But then this thing couldn’t negotiate the Darling-Carlos channel!]
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About tomobert63
The Journey Begins
Thanks for joining me! This is the follow-up to the original, “alexandriacardinals.wordpress.com,” which overwhelmed the system’s ability to handle it any more. Thus, this is “Part 2.” As the original was initially described:
10-26-07-4
“It all began in a 5,000 watt radio station in Fresno, California” . . . wait a minute, that was Ted Baxter on the Mary Tyler Moore Show! Let’s see . . . oh yeah, it all began in 2003 when retirees, i.e., old people, in Alexandria, Minnesota, who had no desire to become snow birds, went looking for mid-winter entertainment here in the frozen tundra of West Central Minnesota. We discovered girls’ high school hockey, fell in love immediately, and it remains our favorite spectator sport to this day. Initially, and for several years, reports on these games were e-mailed to those who were actually snowbirds but wanted to keep abreast of things “back home.” It was ultimately decided a blog would be more efficient, and it evolved into a personal diary of many things that attracts tens of readers on occasion. It remains a source of personal mental therapy and has yet to elicit any lawsuits.
~ The Editor, May 9, 2014
p.s. The photo border around the blog is the Cardinal girls’ hockey team after just beating Breck for the state championship in 2008. It’s of the all-tournament team. The visible Breck player on the left is Milica McMillen, then an 8th-grader – she is now an All-American for the Gophers. The Roseau player in the stocking cap I believe is Mary Loken, who went on to play for UND; and the Cardinal player on the right, No. 3, is Abby Williams, the player we blame most for making us girls’ hockey fans who went on to play for Bemidji State.
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Photos contained herein are available for personal use. All you have to do is double click on any of the photos and they will become full screen size. You can then save them into your personal “My Pictures” file. They make lovely parting or hostess gifts, or holiday gifts for such as Uncle Ernie who wants to see how his grand niece is doing on the hockey team. If any are sold for personal profit, however, to, for example, the Audubon Society, National Geographic, Sven’s Home Workshop Monthly, Curling By The Numbers, or the World Wrestling Federation, I only request that you make a donation to the charitable organization of your choice. You have two hours and fifteen minutes. Pencils ready? Begin!
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alexandriacardinals 