2012 in Review: Alaska Adventures Galore - PART TWO!

Hello there!  If you haven't checked out Part One of my 2012 Alaska Adventures, please mosey on over to see a recap of January - June 2012.  (Pssst, click the "Part One" link above...)  Here's the second installment of my video and photo synopsis of 2012's adventures.  This blog features some of my experiences from July - December 2012.  Enjoy - and know that you, too, can have these awesome adventures if you just put your mind to it!

​Cleared for landing - Juneau, Alaska.

Somewhere in Southeast Alaska (near Juneau).​

Fourth of July Trip to Haines, Alaska

All aboard the Alaska Marine Highway!​

With my buddies, Ben and George.  ​

Pilot approved!

Mom's First Trip to Alaska

No trip to Juneau is complete without a stop at Tracy's Crab Shack.  She's got the best legs in town!​

Commercial fishing near the Shrine of St. Therese.​

​Whale watching with Captain Larry of Orca Enterprises.

Tracy Arm Cruise with Adventure Bound Alaska

BIG splash!

Soulful eyes.​

Quenching my thirst like a real Alaskan.

Mom and I at the Sawyer Glacier.

I love all the action in this sunset shot: cruise ship, fly fisherman, and purse seiner fishing boat.

Summer 2012 was a busy cruise ship season for Juneau.

Seen in downtown Juneau.

​Jumping for joy because I got to take this Cessna 182 from Anchorage to Palmer and back!

Icefield and Dog Sled Tour with Coastal Helicopters


Kodiak Island and a Washed Up Whale

​Saw huge bear tracks up and down the beach near the rotting whale, but the majestic Kodiak Brown Bear was elusive.

Pillar Mountain on Kodiak Island

​And When Back in Juneau...

For ONE SINGLE DAY in 2012, Juneau saw temperatures in the low 80s.  Sonny Bunny was beyond miserable, as was half of Juneau.​

One of the last cruise ships in town for the season.​

2012 was a terrific year because of new friendships shaped and old friendships reconnected.  2012 showed me I am blessed beyond measure!

2012 in Review: Alaska Adventures Galore - PART ONE!

It’s already the third month of a new year, but I find myself still writing 2012 on letters, checks, and postcards.  Perhaps it’s because I’ve just been too busy to notice that little detail.  Or maybe – just maybe – I’m still recovering from all the whirl-wind adventures of 2012. 

At the start of last year, I made the steadfast resolution to make the most of Alaska.  For me, this meant meeting new people, learning new things, deepening my relationship with myself and God, and attempting a new adventure each day. 

2012 was the year to discover that Alaska is both a fairly SMALL state and also a BIG state. We all know Alaska is HUGE (bigger than Texas), so there's countless adventures in every nook and cranny of the state.  And Alaska's small because it's actually easy to get involved in the community and acclimated to the culture.  Making friends up here is a breeze as long as you keep an open mind and show folks just how excited you are about living and playing in the Last Frontier. 

Close friendships with real Alaskans can make all the difference in whether or not you love living here.  In fact, my love affair with Alaska has been spectacular first and foremost because of all the terrific people I have met.  So to the folks who made 2012 so awesome, here's a big THANK YOU for impacting my life, in more ways than one.

Here is a recap of the top adventures, fun introductions, and all around take-your-breath-away moments of my 2012. Because there were so many spectacular experiences, I am sectioning this recap into two parts.  This blog is a synopsis of January - June 2012.  Enjoy!

Above the Arctic Circle in Kotzebue.

Donning ski goggles for my first snowmachine ride in Alaska.

Charlie's Angels on the frozen Chukchi Sea.

Scaling an iceberg at the Mendenhall Glacier.

​Running with the Reindeer, alongside Wonder Woman.

Celebrating survival!  Post-reindeer-run at Humpy's in downtown Anchorage.

And then there was IDITAROD 2012!

​Iditarod 2012 Winner, Dallas Seavey.

No, I did not wet my pants.  This is the "after-shot" from the splash action video ​above!

End of season fun at Eaglecrest Ski Area.

Rogue drivers beware in Homer!​

Kayaking at Echo Cove near Juneau.​

Finding little treasures while tide pooling at Shaman Island off the northern coast of Douglas Island where I live.​

​No wildlife were harmed in the making of this photo.

Rainbow over Juneau - a common sight.

Tennessee Kinfolk on Christmas Day

My Dad was born and raised in Warren County, Tennessee, and most of the family still lives in Centertown.  I hadn’t been back to the Volunteer State since the summer of 2011, when I traveled to the family farm to spread my Dad’s ashes.  Being back in the area brought back bittersweet memories of when we finally put my Dad to rest. 

Needless to say, it was nice reconnecting with my Kinfolk.

A cow mailbox, a charming farm.

Fried pies.  Ridiculously tasty.  Heart attack on a plate.

Sitting down with the family.  Aunt Reba, Uncle Pug, and Uncle Junior (left to right).

Uncle Pug in his Sunday shirt. 

Uncle Junior and his big grin.  I love his smile.  He reminds me so much of my Dad.

With my cousins, Tim and Ronnie.  Good people.

With my Dad's brothers and sisters.  They are a spittin' image of my Dad.  And I adore the fact that all four of us are wearing plaid flannel.

Uncle Pug and Uncle Junior.

Sweet family.

A country cat. 

The family farm.

A sweet cake at my Aunt Ruby's house.

The headstone my Uncle Pug had made to commemorate the area where my Dad's ashes were spread.

Meanwhile, in Tennessee.

Back in Bama.

Cotton fields at the Tennessee/Alabama line.