Travel from the farm (Alabama) to the boat (Sitka, Alaska)

Location:  Sitka, Alaska

We had a great time traveling back up to Sitka and are now in the process of getting the boat ready for our spring / summer cruising season.

February 12, Tuesday:  Travel day - We flew from Pensacola, FL to Boston, MA.  It was snowing when we landed in Boston, a big change from the warm, spring weather we left in Alabama.  We stayed the night at The Mariner's House in the North End and had a great Italian supper at Panza on Hanover Street.

February 13 - 18, Freedom, NH:  We drove from Boston to Freedom, NH on Wednesday to spend time with family.  Cathy and I snow-shoed through the woods behind their house to Lake Ossipee while Pete and Dave cleared snow from the deck and the driveway and did some mechanicking out in the shed.

Cathy snow-shoeing on Lake Ossipee, NH

We spent Thursday morning picking up food and delivering it to the Freedom Food Pantry

Pete and Dave helping to load food for delivery to a nearby food pantry.

Cathy looking up from the basement of the Freedom food pantry.  Pete and I sent the boxes
down via the dumb waiter while Cathy and Dave helped Doris stock the shelves.

Julie came up from Somersworth and she, Cathy and I spent the afternoon cross-country skiing while Pete and Dave went out for a snowmobile ride.

Pete and Dave suiting up to go snowmobiling.

Julie and Cathy putting on their skis.

B, Cathy and Julie out on the ski trail.

When we got back from our ski adventure, Pete and Dave were already back at the house.  Dave had hit a tree while going around a curve.  His chin and his right leg were banged up and bruised and there was considerable damage to the snowmobile.  Luckily, a SkiDoo mechanic showed up on the scene shortly after the accident and showed them how to re-attach the wind screen and, thank goodness, Dave didn't have to go to the hospital.

It snowed most of the day on Friday.  Pete and Dave worked on the snowmobile while Cathy, Julie and I went up to North Conway to do some shopping.  We spent a leisurely afternoon reading and chatting.

Saturday morning Erin, Mariah and Mia came up to the house.  We hung out for a while then drove over to Tamworth for the Ice Harvest Festival at the Remick Museum.  Patti and Al and their grand daughters, Sloane and Sienna, met us there.  We watched the ice harvesting process:  first blocks of ice were sawed out of the pond, next they were loaded on sleds pulled by a team of oxen and, finally, they were unloaded into an ice shed.  There were lots of farm animals including pigs and cows and we learned about Chinook Dogs.  Although the sun was shining, the wind was cold so we headed back to the house for Mia's nap and some family time.  For supper, Pete made a pot of chili and Mariah made corn bread, followed by ice cream with homemade chocolate sauce.

Mia (Erin's daughter, Pete and Cathy's grand daughter) at the Ice Harvest Festival.

Sloane (Al and Patti's grand daughter) at the Ice Harvest Festival.

The ice harvesting process

Sunday morning Cathy and I went cross-country skiing.  For lunch, Julie made meatball subs and creme brulee in her pressure cooker.  We spent the afternoon visiting, then Julie packed up to head home.  We drove into Wolfeboro for supper at Nolan's, where Amy bar tends.  It was really busy but she got to visit with us for a few short spurts between customers.

Cathy on the ski trail.

A view of the woods from the ski trail.

We woke up to snow on Monday morning.  We did a few chores, had lunch and then Dave and I headed south to Boston.  We stayed at Mariner's House and had supper at Pomodoro, a very small Italian restaurant on Hanover Street.

Pete clearing snow off the back deck.

February 19, Tuesday:  Travel day today - We flew from Boston, MA to Salt Lake City, Utah.  We arrived in Salt Lake after dark and checked into a hotel near the airport for the night.

Dave and I are members of Trusted House Sitters, a website that matches up pet owners who travel with pet sitters willing to take care of their pets while they are away.  Pet owners post details about their pets and their homes showing dates they need a pet sitter.  Pet sitters review postings and apply for pet sits that meet their time and travel criteria.  We applied for and were selected for two pet sitting assignments that worked with our travel schedule back to the boat.  Our first assignment was in Sandy, Utah near Salt Lake City.

February 20 - March 2, Pet Sitting, Sandy, Utah: I started Wednesday morning with a walk along the Jordan River Parkway Trail.

A sculpture near Cottonwood Park on the Jordan River Parkway

We checked out of our hotel, had lunch and then drove to Sandy.  We picked up my rental ski gear at Ski-N-See, checked out the local library and picked up a few groceries before arriving at our pet sitting assignment.  Our hosts, Candice and Robbie, welcomed us into their home, gave us an overview of our responsibilities and then we took Fluffy, their 5 year old golden doodle, for a ball throw at the nearby school.  Robbie cooked us a gourmet supper and we got to know each other better.

Candice and Robbie headed for the airport Thursday morning and we settled in to our routine with Fluffy.  Most mornings I took Fluffy for a nice long walk in Dimple Dell, a regional park with great hiking trails close to the house.

Fluffy on a morning walk at Dimple Dell. 
This was early in the week while there was still lots of snow on the ground.

Fluffy at Dimple Dell. 
The weather warmed up and most of the snow on the trails had melted.

In the afternoons, we went to the school behind the house for a ball throw and then a short walk around the neighborhood.

Fluffy at the school yard during a ball throwing session.  This was early in our stay with lots of snow on the ground.

Fluffy telling us it was time to go to the school yard to play ball.

Fluffy taking a break at the school yard.  This was later in our stay after the snow had melted.

Of course, we had some play time and cuddle time indoors.

Fluffy with her flying duck toy.

Fluffy and Dave watching TV.

We really enjoyed our time with Fluffy and we did manage to do a few other things while we were in the Salt Lake City area.  There was a ski bus stop near the house so I rode the bus up Little Cottonwood Canyon and spent a day downhill skiing at Alta and another day at Snowbird.  We went out for lunch at a local Persian restaurant, for supper at a nearby Indian restaurant and to the movies to see Green Book.

Top of the Sunnyside lift at Alta; an easy run to start the day. 
It snowed most of the day.

Looking up at the Big Emma run from the Creekside bus stop at Snowbird.

March 2, Saturday:  Travel Day - Salt Lake City, UT to Boise, ID  We had one last walk around the block with Fluffy then headed to the airport for our flight to Boise, ID.  We landed around noon and went into downtown for lunch and a stroll.

The Idaho State Capital building, downtown Boise, ID

March 3 - 5, Boise, ID:  We had a few days before our second pet sitting assignment so we rented a place in Boise's Hyde Park neighborhood and did some exploring.  Dave's ankle is still healing from his snowmobiling accident, so he rested and kept his foot up.  Sunday morning, I went for a hike from the Old Idaho Penitentiary up to Table Rock.  The trail was super muddy so I took a circuitous route to get to the top.

View of downtown Boise from Table Rock

Looking down at the Old Idaho Penitentiary from the Table Rock Trail.

Sunday night, we walked to North End Pizza for supper.

Large Hyde and Seek Pizza

Monday morning I went for a hike on the Oregon Trail Reserve southeast of downtown Boise.

Looking down at the Boise River Diversion Dam from the cliffs on the Oregon Trail Reserve

Description of the natural rim openings that wagons used to get down to the Boise River

A view of the rim opening behind the sign.

Monday afternoon, we drove to Idaho City and spent the afternoon soaking in the hot spring pools at The Springs.

The main pool at The Springs.

March 5 - 10, Dog Sitting, Star, Idaho:  Tuesday morning I went for a hike in Camel's Back Park and Hulls Gulch Reserve, very close to where we were staying.  We checked out of our place, had some lunch, watched a movie "The Mule", hung out at the library and then went to our pet sitting assignment in Star, Idaho, just north of Boise. Our hosts, Tony and Teresa, along with Rusty and Addy, greeted us and walked us through the house and the dogs' routine.  We all went to supper at Bardenay, a restaurant distillery in nearby Eagle.

Tony and Teresa left on their trip Wednesday morning and we settled into our routine with Rusty and Addy.  In the mornings, I took Addy for a walk on the neighborhood trails.

Addy, a 4-year old fox red labrador retriever, was full of energy. 
This is her, ready to play ball, after a 2 mile morning walk.
After the first day, we played ball, then went for our walk, and then played ball again.

Addy on a morning walk near the Boise River.

Every afternoon, Rusty and I went for a walk around the neighborhood.  Addy did not like being left behind so Dave played ball with her in the back yard while Rusty and I walked.

Rusty, a 14 year old German short hair pointer, prancing around the back yard while Addy played ball.

Rusty warming himself near the fireplace.

Both dogs had fun, quirky personalities and they liked to "help" us do things, especially if it meant a treat as a reward.

Rusty and Addy with B in the kitchen. 
They are waiting for a carrot stick, one of their favorite treats.

Rusty and Addy helping Dave put on his socks.  

Dave and Addy playing with her toy.

Rusty and Addy snuggling with B on the sofa.

Rusty and Addy helping Dave barbecue.

We had a great visit and enjoyed our time with the dogs.

March 11, Monday:  Travel day - Boise, ID to Sitka, Alaska.  We said goodbye to the dogs on Sunday afternoon and went to pick up Tony and Teresa at the airport.  Monday morning we flew from Boise to Sitka.  We'll spend the next two weeks de-winterizing the boat, painting the bottom and getting ready to get back on the water.

Until next time...