Alaska Day 25, A Ghost Story

Day 25

 Tuesday June 26

      It was pretty gloomy when I woke up.  The steady patter of rain made for an uninspiring morning.   I had been hoping to hit some of the hiking trails around town before heading out.

    The rain died down to a fine mist and I decided to risk the short trail to Horsetail Falls.  I had a tourism office map and followed it past a gray, concrete building.  It’s called the Buckner Building.  It was built in 1953 for military housing, but closed and abandoned in 1966. 

     Just past the building, there is indeed a sign pointing to Horsetail Falls.  The map has it at the dead end.  Unlike the map, the road loops back to town and there were no further trail signs or obvious pullouts.  Curious.

     The fine mist of rain had dissipated to the point that I decided to take the shot and try the Portage Pass Trail.  This was the one I had really wanted to do in the first place.  The first mile is a steady climb up a gravel path.  It’s workout for the legs, but not too bad.   

     When I left the parking lot, it was that sort of light rain you don’t really think about.  You wouldn’t dream of bothering with an umbrella if you were walking out to the mailbox or running errands.  You probably wouldn’t even pick up your pace.  It was a presence, if you thought about it.  It picked up a little as I climbed.  It was still just a light crackle on the top of my hood.  No worries. 

     You crest the hill at the mile mark.  Down below is a small lake. 

     In the foggy distance, Portage Glacier.  I really considered continuing on.

     Once you climb down a wet, muddy set off rocks, it’s a fairly level trail out to an overlook of Portage Glacier.  I looked at the muddy rocks.  I pondered.  In the end I turned around.  I had already been caught in the rain on this trip and I’ll freely admit, I’m not a fan.
     Back at the car, I had a little over a half hour until the northbound tunnel access, so I stopped into a place called the Lazy Otter.  They do fishing charters and tours.  They also sell pretty good coffee.  With a little time to kill, I went back to the hotel to chill with their wifi.  When it was time to leave, I walked out with the manager.  There was a break in the clouds and the sun came out.  He said it wouldn’t last. He was right.  By the time I drove the two minutes to the waiting area, the sky was turning leaden again.

     Since trains to get first priority, and the one into town was a little late, we all had to wait before they let us through.   There were only a dozen cars and a handful of trucks and RVs anyway.

     I grabbed the camera driving through the tunnel, pointed it ahead and snapped this one.  It's not the best, but you get the idea.

     On the other side of the tunnel, bright blue sky.  

     About a half hour later, I took the turn south towards my eventual destination, Seward.  After all that gray in Whittier, I was enjoying the sunshine. These are from a random rest area.

     Laying there in the dry grass and bright sunshine to take this one felt so good!

     After a brief stop at Estes Deli in Moose Pass for a sandwich, I drove on.  Eventually, I would pull into Seward.  I was staying at the Van Gilder Hotel.  

    Originally built as an office building in 1916, it became a hotel five years later.  The hotel is rumored to be haunted by Frannie, a woman who was murdered in Room 202 in 1947.  I was in 307 and didn’t see or hear anything.   Just for kicks, I did a search and found a website dedicated to haunted places (www.hauntedplaces.com)  They mentioned the hotel, but didn’t provide any real information.   But, as we all know, the fun is in the comments.  The first reply was from someone claiming to have been on staff here.  She corrected the room number of the murder and described Frannie as a blonde woman in a blue dress.  Apparently she likes to  sit on freshly made beds and has been seen sitting in a chair in the corridor in the second floor.  The former staff member also relayed reports of two men occasionally seen behind the front desk and the sounds of children laughing.  A former guest also reported the sound of running feet.  Once again, I heard nothing.

       It was a little early to eat, so I grabbed the camera and walked around the few blocks that constitute downtown Seward.  This sign was outside a Chinese restaurant that looked  like it hadn’t been open for quite a while.

     Peppered around town are murals by local artists.  This one represents the Mount Marathon Race. It takes place every fourth of July.  The race distance is only 3.1 miles.  But, it’s to the top of Mount Marathon and back.   No one is completely sure how it started, but the general consensus it that it began as a bar bet sometime around 1912.   Word got around and people kept trying to beat the best time.  Passengers on steamships heard about it and tried it.  In 1915, Seward organized their first official race.

   Eventually, and as you’d expect, I found my way down to the water front…

   There are two historical markers.  One is dedicated to the founding of the town.  In 1895 the area was surveyed as a possible southern terminus of the Alaska Railroad.  The fact that the harbor didn’t tend to freeze made it even more appealing.  In 1903, John Ballaine of the Alaska Central Railroad landed in Resurrection Bay and made it official.  Seward would be a railroad town.  It still is. 

     Ressurection Bay was named a few years earlier by a Russian captain who was forced to take shelter from a bad storm here.  The storm cleared on Easter Sunday.  Thus the name.
     The second marker shows the starting point of the Iditarod Trail between Seward and Nome.  It was a series of trails used by the native Alaskans that covers over a thousand miles.  The trails got heavy use during the gold rush.  As the gold played out, the trails were all but forgotten.  That changed in 1925 when a diphtheria outbreak hit Nome.  With no roads to get there, medicine had to be carried via sled dog across the 674 miles from Anchorage along these trails. 
    So, is this a cool looking library or what?

      Random things seen walking about.

     I stopped into a place called Resurrection Coffee House and Art Gallery.  Dylan was making the coffee and chatting up the customers.  I found a quiet corner and chilled.  The walls are covered with paintings and drawings from local artists.  There are also hand crafted coffee mugs.  It's an interesting place and the coffee was great.  

    Dinner was across the street from the hotel at a place called The Highliner.  It was uninspiring.  I wouldn’t have mentioned it except for something Timothy, my server, told me.  I was asked for ID on my first day in Alaska and was told it’s a new law and they HAVE to ask.  The state jacked up the penalties if they're caught not asking.  Timothy told me the rest of it.   If you get a second DUI, your license/ID gets a red line on it.  If the server, bartender or liquor store clerk sees a red line, they’re not allowed to sell you ANY alcohol. 

   After dinner, I came back to the room and swapped out the shorter lens with the 70-300mm camera lens.  After adding another layer(it was getting quite windy) it was back onto the streets of Seward, eventually working my way back to the waterfront.  

    After shooting some clouds in mountains, and some random birds, I lucked out and caught an eagle slowly flying by.   That made my night.

Coming Up,

Christmas in New York