Back on track

I'm exhausted and punchy and surrounded by open suitcases bursting with clothes of varying degrees of ripeness. I'm also feeling a ton better. And I'm apparently known as "that sick lady" by the rest of our tour group.

We caught up to the rest of our group last night after taking a bus to Anchorage and then a train into Denali National Park. Today we were once again officially part of Tour 17B instead of "that couple who is trying to catch up." We blended in just as much as we did the first day. I'm the one with dark hair. I really shouldn't have bothered coloring before we left.

We're in Fairbanks right now. It's well after 10pm. It looks more like 4pm. We started the day with a 5:40am tour out to the wilderness of Denali. It was 8 hours -- with lots of stops -- on a refurbished school bus. As horrible as it sounds, it was actually quite wonderful, especially with the Dramamine and Coke easing my still tender stomach. We saw all sorts of animals in their natural habitat, including several moose, caribou (NOT good eatin'), sheep, red fox (sadly, no LaMont -- Rob's joke, and I'm still laughing), wolves, and yes, the highly coveted grizzly bear. It was a great outing and felt only a fraction of its insane length.

The march to drive myself to exhaustion continues tomorrow. We have a gold mine tour, followed by a sternwheeler cruise, capped off by a flight up to the Arctic Circle for photo-ops and bragging rights. Really, it all made so much sense in December...

With any luck, we'll be home and collapsed under a very happy cat by Saturday night. And thus will begin my vacation from my vacation. A recap will follow but all in all, even with the detour, this has been a truly fantastic experience. Alaska is breathtaking. Everyone should see it at least once. But be sure to wash your hands. A lot.