Toronto

Posted on September 21, 2026September 21, 2026 by J. R. Patee

To appreciate the beauty of a snowflake, it is necessary to stand out in the cold. Aristotle

Arrived 6 hours late into Toronto , no problem, not that many freight trains through Ontario, which allowed us to catch up time. Last day felt good enough to go to dining car and meet other folks for a short bit.

Arrived and had looked at the hotel and according to map navigation was 700 meters walk across street and around corner. Along the way, through a delightful train station stopped at ticket office to see if we could upgrade to a sleeper Montreal to Halifax. The agent was trying not to laugh, while explaining those bunks are reserved 6 months to a year ahead. I guess we remain in just coach seats, for the 25 hour ride.

Our. 6th floor view of union station (actually about 10th floor but 6th of guest rooms

Stepped out of the grand hall into the streets of Toronto, and there in front of us was a huge building extending the entire block and upward. I checked Maps again and it said go across street walk around corner to other side of building and there was hotel. We opted to walk across the 7 lanes of traffic, which all traffic stopped, and walked in the front door, nearly tried checking into the restaurant, as could not find reception or check in. Finally in the nook reception, then took a while to figure out elevators (10 of them). Punch in “guest rooms”, then floor #, then swipe room card, then await elevator assignment. What is a kid who wants to hit all the numbers supposed to do? To go down one repeats the operation making sure you go to lobby.

We basically knew very little of Toronto, I mentioned there were two things I wanted to do, go up the CN tower, and go to beach on Lake Ontario. We knew not much else, but first thing in the morning, after the worst coffee ever in hotel room, moved on to our included tour of Toronto, which came with our tour package. Delightful,laughing character “Doug” was our driver guide. and he began with antidotes about various landmarks,, and historical figures. (Always nice to hear the local version as opposed to the official sanitized glorified one)

First stop though CN towers, which I did not realize were until about 2007 the tallest freestanding structure in the world . (Burj Khalifa, in Dubai, took the title then), now it is about 11th tallest in the world, although the viewing platform is only about 350 meters up of the 550 meter height.

I think it is funny I cannot go out on the glass floors, for whatever reason, I used to climb and exposure was not a problem but fhe glass floors I can’t seem to do. The. The boat guide told me the CN tower originally had a much larger area of glass but was never used. it was too expensive to remove so they just put carpet over most of it. I guess I did walk on the see through floor.

Then on to the market. We are talking food market and oh my. Incredible. Fish, beef, lamb, vegetables, on and on, in an unending variety. Jeanne though, although feeling good on departure was going down fast, and back in the van , Doug dropped her at the hotel, where, alas she fell sound asleep until my return hours later. Just tired, although slept well through the night. Must have been the poor breakfast at hotel restaurant and incredibly bad coffee available in room.

Then on to the island taxi, ferries, tours terminal. We boarded a tour boat to the barrier island a couple kilometers off from Toronto. Apparently used to be about 10,000 residents over there but a hurricane (yes hurricane in about 1920 wiped out most structures). It was rebuilt primarily with an eye to the people of Toronto. One island is wild, one has residences but the waitlist is some 50 years, and residences can only sell for original building prices. The biggest center island is, as our boat guide said like a Central Park. Primarily park land, although it does have a boat moorage on it, where you can live on a houseboat., of which none were extravagant.

Thus ended the tour, although crossing the pedestrian walkway a bike came through and Doug told him “hey red light for bikes”. The fellow turned and yelled back “it’s ok I am old”.

I told Jeanne I would get some Covid testing kits enroute home thus stopped at a drug store, picking up two. We were not convinced we were better and thought for sure we had Covid. Both Jeanne’s and my test were negative. Whew!

Asking Jeanne what she wanted for dinner, her response was Asian. Sort of leaves it open, but with numerous options. Found a hopefully good place called “dim sum king”, only a km away so walked, ended up in Chinese section of town and passed numerous good looking hole in the wall “Asian restaurants.”, finally arriving at DimSumKing on third floor and yea very good. Not exactly positive in our ordering as primarily Chinese although English subtitles and pictures, but awesome food.

Return hotel watched two old movies and slept great and slept in. Oh my. No decent coffee at hotel so somewhat difficult to begin day. They have coffee but some frothy thing which tasted bad. Headed across the street to food court in train station, variety to choose from, middle east, Thai, sushi, Japanese, Korean , noodles, Taco Bell, McDonald’s, chicken places, and of course Tim Hortons. I chose middle eastern. Jeanne chose Thai, but we had to get coffee from McDonald’s, which we consider some of the best coffee.

I have concluded the more you pay for a hotel the less you get. Ma Johnson in McCarthy was one of most expensive hotels ever and they did not even have electric plugs available in room. Alas !

After breakie (at noon) off to the Toronto aquarium) one of the best I have ever seen. Great exhibits, informative and moved people through without feeling overly crowded. Had a moving walkway through the below surface tanks you could just ride and enjoy, or get off anytime. I did learn how to sex a moon jellyfish and a shark. As noted quite informative.

Kelp forests are always relaxing to watch

Then told jeanne I would take her to what she missed yesterday on the islands, and took a water taxi across the center island. Delightful walk about and a short walk in the sand of Lake Ontario beach.

Dinner at the roundhouse below the CN tower. Roundhouse is a brewery built about the railroad roundhouse which formerly was used to redirect the engines to proper tracks.

Currently back on train moving on to Montreal, cruising along Lake Ontario, cruising at 150 km/hr

The Canadian part II

Posted on September 18, 2026 by J. R. Patee

Life is like a 10 speed bicycle. Most of us have gears we never use.

Charles m. Schultz

We left Saskatoon and noted the flats. I had thought Kansas and Nebraska were flat. The horizon just beckons you.

Illness continued, feeling sore, stiff, with a bit of cough. Felt not right to expose others so just stayed in room. If you are going to be sick being on the Canadian with Angela as a steward is not a bad options. Started feeling better yesterday and today feeling right up near good. Today we even ate meals in dining car on a table with table cloths and such finery. And the windows are bigger.

I, for some incongruous reason thought the trip ended yesterday. I had calculated us being almost 11 hours behind schedule and hence called our hotel to inform them we would be late on arrival. The clerk noted we had no reservation last night but did starting tonite. I checked and correct. Alas the 4 day trip I started on Monday was day 0. Tuesday was a full day 1. And I made the very rookie mistake of thinking once we left Winnipeg we were close. I forgot to look at map of Ontario. It is huge, larger than France and Spain combined

Thus this morning we awoke riding through wondrous forests with zillions of lakes. Almost none occupied. So pleasant to see remote areas, no cabins, no airplanes, an occasional canoe pulled up but for the most part forest and lakes. No cell coverage. Small towns, I suspect are work towns for railroad maybe 200-300 km (150 miles)apart. Then we turned south and an occasional cabin and recreational boats. Approaching Toronto

Overall. A delightful 103 hours.

The Canadian

Posted on September 16, 2026September 16, 2026 by J. R. Patee

I know not all that may be coming. But be it what it will. I’ll go to it laughing.

Herman Melville from “Moby Dick”

Train is good. Like Amtrak the freight trains own the tracks so passengers take a back seat and wait for the freight trains to pass. Left Vancouver 5 minutes late and promptly stopped for an hour to await two freight trains.

Our cabin bunks come down on left chairs move about

But when we were told of the Canadian and how it was much nicer, yes, very true. Not that Amtrak was bad, but mints on bed every night, food is better, cars are cleaner, windows clean, and our room is much roomier, although still quite tiny, but at least one can move around, and the ride seems smoother. I can set something down and mostly expect it to remain. And windows are washed.

As noted earlier in last blog our “tour company” said the walk from hotel to station was too far to walk, and but we risked it, 2.3 km (1 1/2 miles). No problem, dinner in diner of lamb shank, potato’s, and an incredible strawberry cheesecake, except that evening a cough we both had was getting worse, and muscles were quite sore, not as if we overexercised but stiff and sore all over. It worsened and we made decision to stay in room, hopefully not spreading it. Angela our attendant has made life bearable bringing menu and meals from dining car. Yesterday Jeanne had breakfast, poached eggs on toast with melon, and has brown potato’s. I had fried eggs to perfection,sausage, toast melon. All on our lap in our room.

The Canadian Rockies were amazing as expected and I did open door and look out left side windows in hallway at Mt Robson, one of the most spectacular Mountain View’s from a road. we did get off in Jasper and walked around for a bit in soaking up sunshine. The business area remains but the fires devastated the surrounding area, two years ago

Panorama of our 21cars and window washers

Currently sitting on a siding awaiting a freight train to pass. Saskatchewan is flat. I think a two story house would be good because then you would be highest thing around

Saskatchewan view train work vehicles getting ready to place new ties down.

Hence we continue onward I am feeling a bit better but jeanne is worse. Have kept the bunks in place and she is sleeping. Good!

Vancouver B.C.

Posted on September 14, 2026 by J. R. Patee

I may not have gone where I intended to go, but I think I have ended up where I needed to be.

Douglas Adams

Arrived in the evening via bus from Seattle as apparently schedules do not allow as many trains to connect from Seattle to Vancouver as one would like. Customs was very easy, with nary a question other than what are we doing here and then she was getting excited about our trip. Caught a cab the few kilometers to hotel, being a Sheraton and rather fancy for us, but it is what the tour provided. 23rd floor and a nice view.

Then a bus tour about town, part of the overall tour we paid for. As expected nothing great but did provide a quick overview of highlights and history of the town. Stanley Park, Granville, Gastown, chinatown, cruise ship docks were shown and all was good. Had a driver who did impressions of famous people noted along the way, Frank Sinatra, Richard Attenborough, English, Scottish, Irish, and others.

A friends daughter, who is Canadian, has a restaurant here in Vancouver, and Jeanne had made reservations. “Nero Tondo” on Powell street. It has only two servings a night 5:30 and 7:30 and only one choice on menu. We needed a walk and decided to walk the 1 1/2 hour 5 k (3 mile). Jeanne had missed the text from a friend here in Vancouver who said do not walk down Powell Street. All went well in the business tourist area where our hotel is, and through the area of Gastown, also full of tourists, but when we crossed over to the east side it the “homeless” appeared. Was not a problem as we looked on, stepped over and around, pondering how people get to that condition, but they do for a variety of reasons, but it makes one sad they do not have the life we have, or it provides a glimpse of other sides of the spectrum of life we call civilization. Jeanne said if she was alone she would have called a cab, I said if I had known of this area I would not have chosen to walk. But all good with good people watching, although for us a bit depressing. But Vancouver does have a homeless problem, but as everywhere else the powers that be like to hide it.

Dinner itself was awesome, between 10-13 courses all very small but explained in detail, all locally sourced, potatoes, eggs, seafood, vegetables. The food was all prepared in front of us from the salads, to little appetizers, mains, and desert All the plates were prepared then delivered to each table. We left quite satiated, ordering a Lyft cab for the ride home.

Sunday was a free day on our tour of Canada, and left the hotel in search of a breakfast place as only place at hotel was Starbucks, not our favorite. Seems the more expensive the hotel the less they supply breakfast. But a nice place found, then on to the light rail train station. 30 years ago Jeanne and I were here and remember the monorail about town which had been made for the world expo in the late 80’s. Unfortunately it had been removed, but our tour bus driver yesterday said the expo line was a good choice for just seeing a lot of Vancouver. Jeanne and I often will just ride a mass transit train or bus about town just to see what is out there. Today we rode to King George station, found a bathroom at Starbucks and returned.

Our friend, whom we met some years ago in the ski jumping community lives here in Vancouver with her two boys, one whom is an upcoming ski jumper who is progressing up the ranks. Her daughter just left home for college in Halifax where we end our train ride across Canada. She and the boys met us, drove us to their place, then on to a delightful hike above North Vancouver. Reservations had been made at a wonderful Italian restaurant and after a walk about the waterfront of North Vancouver. A wonderful afternoon. I told Anya our tour bus guide yesterday said he could not recommend any particular Italian restaurant, stating “just walk into one and it will be great”.

Vancouver has been good. I love the diversity. Anchorage is diverse but its diversity is hidden unless you get in the right community. Vancouver is up front, Today on the streets the languages I identified, (correctly or incorrectly who knows) were English, Spanish, Hindi, Ukrainian, Cantonese, and I suspect many others I could not recognize. The town is clean with garbage cans and people that empty those disposal areas, (at least in the tourist, business and residential areas). It is easy to get around and I never felt unsafe despite the above occurrences.

Vancouver real brother-in-law estate is expensive though, at least from a real estate perspective. Apparently average price of a 1600 square foot 3 bedroom 2 bath house is 2.3 million dollars. whew.

And today Monday we depart on the train. The tour instructions said to take a cab from hotel to train station. Looked it up and 2.4 km. Walked it easily past the football stadium where World Cup held.

One note is after Toronto we are on our own, as in no tour, the way we normally travel. But again setting up hotel got taken by Expedia. Have been burned by them many times. A friend in Vermont has decided to come visit us in Montreal, and we invited him to stay with us. I went on website and it turns out it is Expedia. For two nights we were paying $790, Expedia said to add an additional person would cost an additional $800. Nope no way. With some looking I found the phone of actual hotel and called. She was amazed at Expedia and said she hears that often. She increased our booking to 3 people and said it was $760, $30 cheaper, but we will not get money back as originally paid to Expedia. We try to be on lookout for such but difficult sometimes. One thinks I have the proper site but turns out it is a third party.

Now sitting in waiting area before loading train.

Planes, Trains, and automobiles

Posted on September 12, 2026 by J. R. Patee

Just start by creating your day. Then create your life

Prince

A few years ago Jeanne and I circumnavigated the United States it was a wondrous little adventure, traveling, seeing, visiting and somewhat experiencing something new. There were various writings I did, written on this site from 2 October 2024 to 2024. In a conversations with others along that route many folks highly recommended the Canadian rail across Canada. Many said it was far nicer, hence we have signed on to crossing Canada by rail. As usual when you cross one thing off the list one adds two more. Quit keeping lists.

We started planning and getting reservations in February. It was difficult to find just the Canadian rail website through all the advertising. Again the commercial interests crowd out the independent traveler. When we did finally find just the Canadian railway, it was completely sold out, more than six months ahead of time. Geez, who thinks that far ahead? Obviously to numerous others, but not me. We thought well let’s look at the tours. Numerous options and we picked one which was the trip we had wanted, except they arranged hotels and an occasional tour. Price was much more than if we had done it independently, but space was available, we signed up for this time period, sent in our money and sat back. Easy peazzee!

Two days later a friend emailed pondering a reunion of our Colorado college friends. Her invite went something like

“Would you like to go to an alumni reunion a hundred or so people you hardly know or get together with or a dozen folks you really care about?” Of course, near immediately, 5 or 6 of us were in and soon it was a dozen. The Oregon coast was decided on as many of us have spent memorable times there. Originally Mary had set 11-13 September as a weekend, but Jeanne and I were committed to Canada rail starting the 11 September. Mary checked and realizing we are all retired and weekends mean nothing, she changed to 8-10. Yahoo

And a wondrous 2 days with about 15 of us. Some I had not seen since Colorado College when I left in 1970, others I have kept in contact with on occasional get togethers, others I have kept in contact- all though were close. It was as if we were never apart, what Jeanne calls comma friends- you are close, go off for decades and do your thing and come back together to carry on where you left off, with more life experiences. We had at least established our personalities enough in college we were who we were.

College was a defining time for us. I remember coming from conservative Utah and had read about “hippies” and read they were not good people. Then I met some! They were good thoughtful people, or just like everyone else with a whole variety, and not everyone thought or acted or lived like I had. Open ones mind. Sometimes the things we are taught are not necessarily correct. This is where education comes in, to teach you to think, analyze and ponder. I remember riding the chairlift once with someone I very much admired and they told me they “smoked dope”. I was blown away, I had been taught that was evil and would be the end of my life, but I thought about it and realized marijuana was not going to end the world, although in those days penalties of the straight world were extreme. the world has progressed.

When in high school and deciding where to go to college, the one story I tell is I knew I should go to one of those back east to some liberal school for a good education. But the east had no skiing which I had heard was icy, and skiing was a part of my life. Of course all skiing for me compared to Utah. Hence I found Colorado College which was east of the Rockies which entered it in the competition. My view was simple east and west, and east was east of the rockies. I had been across country and seen the “east” and it was flat and no skiing. To this day people will tell me St. Louis is west, and I just shake my head. Prejudices!

It was a delightful time catching up, learning of our adventures and misadventures, retelling stories from over 50 years ago and where we were led, from our decisions. For two days we laughed, told stories explained and heard explanations, ate, walked on the beach, walked in the forest, cooked and had a wondrous time. Amongst us during the intervening decades we had become artists, scientists, nurses, architects, ranchers, firemen, writers, doctors and the spaces in between.

Hikers in Oregon with a history of Colorado

Then onward to our trip, several pieces having to fit together as a puzzle, transport varieties, hotels, eating. Hopefully flows evenly. Four os us began our journey back to Portland via rental car returning to the airport. We took our time taking just over 4 hours to do a 1.5 hour drive. Stopped at rest areas, hiked, stopped at a roadside cafe, just enjoying last moments with each other, before returning to our other lives. We dropped off Jacqui and Maralyn at train station for their return to Seattle, returned car to airport, and our friends Sheila and Steve picked us up and out to dinner we went, alongside the Columbia river, continuing the conversations with different friends from years past and into the present. They dropped us at the hotel near train station and we departed the next morning for Vancouver B.C.

roadside restaurant highway 26 outside Portland Oregon

Train to Seattle, transfer to bus, due to better connection, and into Vancouver. Have not been here since miss nineties, a I remember a wonderful city, clean and vibrant, easy to get around. Thus far the same but far bigger. Our tour included a bus tour of Vancouver this morning. Bus tours are never our thing but included and was a nice little drive bout to the highlights, Stanley park, Granville island, Chinatown, gas town. Just a drive about with stops for short walks. Interesting driver narrator did all sorts of impersonations telling the stories and history.

Hotel arrival Vancouver not our usual type of hotel but included in tour

Granville Island Public market

And for another viewpoint of the same story check out Jeannes blog

Jeanne’s blog

And now to explore more and on eastward via train

Yukon River

Posted on July 17, 2026 by J. R. Patee

Only boring people get bored

Maralyn Crosetto

A semi sudden invitation came up to join a group floating the Yukon River from Whitehorse, in Yukon Territory, to carmacks, Yukon. It is a distance of about 176 miles ( 283 km) including lake labarge. Apparently normal float time is 8-9 days with usually 2 days for the length of the lake.

The people inviting us were of our age and we had not known them, but thought it would be good. For Jeanne it would complete the Yukon River from Whitehorse as far down as Eagle, Alaska. For me I have done all except the area from Dawson, Yukon to where the 40 mile river joins the Yukon. Below Eagle the floatable river becomes a much larger logistical challenge with multiple day shuttles, and is not common except in more expeditionary travels. Timing was not necessarily good for us with visitors, and busy summer activities, but when an offer pops up, one cannot always wait for a better time.

Hence we left for the 700mile (1125km) drive to Whitehorse over 2 days. Overnight at Fast Eddy’s motel and restaurant in Tok,Alaska, before crossing border, without incident, in Beaver Creek, Yukon.

We had had a logistical meeting in Anchorage, and my first meeting Greg, Shannon, and John. In Whitehorse we had a delightful evening dinner, where we further got to know one another. We all clicked and seemed to get along. John had been a judge in the state of Alaska, prior to retiring 7years ago, since then spending time traveling, playing tennis and a yearly kayak trip. Greg, an MD, and wife Shannon, a nurse, work extensively in Tanzania, Africa, raising several children through educational support, and a charity network.

Wednesday morning we delivered our supplies and boats to the boat launch in central Whitehorse, and arranged parking for 2 cars. I assembled our collapsible 2 person kayak. (A incredibly designed Feathercraft, made in Vancouver, Canada) and somehow we managed to load our massive amount of supplies into the boats. Jeanne and I have not been on a kayak trip in several years, and although the memory is there, we somehow forgot how little you actually need.

Finally departed about 2 pm in heavily laden crammed boats, floating along and into the wilderness. Yes! The first day we made 22 miles (35 km) to a wondrous camp just above lake labarge. Both Jeanne and I required some assistance cramming ourselves into the cockpits, and attaching spray skirts, rather embarrassing, but get over it.

It took us 4 days to cross the lake, partially because slow, and the 4th day wind came up forcing a halt to progress, until the waves diminished to a more manageable level for our skill level. Camps were proving harder to find than expected due to higher water levels of past weeks rains. I had downloaded the topo maps to the phone, which had potential campsites marked. We had obtained a river guide but it was very rudimentary. Past trips we just camped on river bars and beaches, all disappeared in higher water levels.

Campsite at old village of Hootalinqua, confluence of Yukon and Teslin rivers

Big Salmon River camp abandoned village site

Unfortunately my phone decided to go dark on day 5. I could text via the inreach GPS,but slow and cumbersome. I did text my friend Zak in anchorage, if he could research how to restart. He came through with a reset solution which would not erase the data. Over the next days I probably reset the phone 50 times each time restarting as usual then going dark. On the last day it suddenly worked gain. I had worried about photos taken before the dark, but utilized Jeanne’s phone for photos. Technology is not dependable.

Overall the trip was awesome. We did it in 9 days, the river moving at a rapid clip, often flowing at 7-9 mph (11-14 kph). Not many animals, although did see a moose one night swim across the 400 meters, then turn upstream and swim upstream against the current for another 400 meters. Squirrels, numerous birds. We saw an occasional motor boat of locals but for the most part remote and alone. A spectacular river float. One is alone.

Arrived above carmacks and due to current at the carmacks takeout, exited the river. A small houseboat had anchored for a stop on their float from Whitehorse to wherever the boat ended (Dawson, Eagle, Circle, haul road bridge, or the Bering sea)

Alaska

Posted on July 3, 2026 by J. R. Patee

“Man did not weave the web of life; he is merely a strand in it. Whatever he does to the web he does to himself.”

Chief Seattle

My sister has not been to visit us since about 2021, although we have seen each other, numerous times during that time . This year they decided to come visit in Alaska. Yeah! Exciting! Hence we feel the need to show them Alaska, although they have been here several times.

For the first couple days just sit back and relax, just enjoying the company of each other. Somehow over time I have lost the urge to constantly be going going going. I gave up lists of things I want to do because the list never gets shorter. Each item checked off seems to add a minimum of two more items. And as the Spanish proverb says “there is nothing better than doing nothing, then nap after”. Fear of missing out (FOMO) does not apply. Just enjoy the company.

But that does last only so long, one must move about and explore. Hence we are in McCarthy Alaska. Drove here yesterday, a 310 mile (500 k) drive. 8 hours, with the last 60 miles (100 k) gravel. Always a question when last graded as the washboard can be extreme and 10 mph max. They had just graded the road a week or two ago which also means freshly cut gravel, which one piece managed to pierce our tire. Crazy that modern cars have either no spare or a “donut” tire. Ours has a donut but our history with either is tenuous.

Ok what a day. Took the shuttle van the 5 miles ( 8 k) up to town of Kennicott . This is the area of kennicot mine and was one of the largest copper mines in the world and the where the start of the Kennicott company began. Currently the area is within the Wrangell St Elias National Park and the mine area administered by the park service.

Jeanne first visited McCarthy in 1982 the first year she was here. I first visited probably about 1989. We have had a few visits since, always memorable. My friend Zak and I did an awesome hike in the backcountry in about 2018 or 2019 (goat trail). Jeanne and I coming here during covid time. Both trips involved spectacular back country mountain flying. The Wrangell mountains not only have some of the biggest mountains in North America but are spectacular and remote.

In December of 1983 Jeanne was working triage in the emergency room at night in Anchorage. A fellow came in with belly pain , having hitchhiked the 300 miles from McCarthy in December. It was a quiet night so she spent hours talking with him about life in remote alaska. 3 months later he was 1 of 6 people who survived a mass shooting. Just happenstance they had dropped their mail with a friend to send on the mail plane coming in on the once a week mail delivery. Someone else was also waiting and shot 8 people, of which only 2 survived, as they were to meet the weekly mail plane. 5 other people were gone on various trips and did not meet the mail plane. That was the entire winter population of McCarthy in 1983.

Ok back to today and we were talking with a seasonal park employee and Jeanne asked about a fellow she once knew who had survived the shootings. Turns out he owns one of 2 restaurants here. Tonite we had dinner with him. Small world. We have travelled in different worlds and circles, but been within convergences numerous times. He knows our friend Geoff in Utqiagvik having dog sledded across the top of North America. One never knows where one’s path will lie.

But back to today and the visit to Kennicott. Did a delightful hike to an overview of the root glacier. Then signed up for a Tour of the mill. The park service has gone in and partially restored the 100 year old 14 story wood building where the mine brought the ore from the hills above. Jeanne and I had in years past, before the park service, gone into the delapidated and falling apart building exploring, which was fascinating but we had no explanations of the processes of refining the ore for transport via train the 167 miles to Cordova on the coast where it was transported to Tacoma Washington for final refining.

The mine was discovered in basically 1901 and a railroad took 6 years to build. The land rights, as they were, were made and the mine began operation in 1911. In 1938 the sudden decision was made to close and with literally within hours the last train left and Kennicott became a ghost town. It was again “discovered” in the 1950’s and in about 1988 National Geographic did a story about the town.

Kennicott rail depot with copper refining mill behind

We learned much of the history of the mine today from our tour guide. The park service has gone into the mill and created a “safe” walkway down the 14 story refining mill and our guide gave a wondrous dissertation of the refining process and history.

After the dinner and during the walkabout town (5 minutes max end to end) we discovered our tire had been repaired (for a minor fortune) but recommend it serve as only an emergency for the emergency donut tire. We are in a bind. More to come!

Ok onward no reception, or very spotty. Yesterday we arose early expecting to take a long time on the drive to Glenallen. Somehow we managed to get a friend to go to our house and pull out the stored 4 stored winter tires, get them to the only shuttle bus from Anchorage to McCarthy, by 7:45 am. They would drop the tires off at the only tire auto shop in Glenallen, who we had not yet been able to contact. After 9 am we were able to contact them once we had cell service.

Again, cell service is very dicey. Turns out ATT does not cover the area of McCarthy hence we were using Verizon of my sister’s mobile phone. Big business kindergartners cannot learn to share. Irritating! and very little reception along the road back to Chitina.

We shuttled and hiked our bags to where car parked. (Road stops about a kilometer before town due to Kennicott River. Formerly, there was a hand tram for crossing but now a pedestrian bridge. Arrived at car and as the tire repair fellow said tire was repaired, but appeared even with repair to have a bit of a bubble. It looked as an emergency tire to the emergency donut tire. Had placed the donut on the rear in case of a blow out, and we began, the 59 miles (99k) of gravel road to chitina and the 70 miles( 115k) to Glenallen and the tire repair place. We did it in 6 hours due to did not want to speed on the donut tire which is rated for a max of 50 miles (80 k). But we did it.

Arrived at 2 pm and proceeded to wait until they could fit us in. Tires arrived from Anchorage a few minutes after we did, so all good. At 5 pm tires repaired, threw the bad tire away (after spending $325 to repair it to emergency standard). The tire shop said we could leave the 3 good tires out front to be picked up by friends, Zak and Natasha, who would be returning from a trip to Valdez in a few days. Placing three tires in our car would have cramped our driving quarters. The mechanic said the bad tire had an excellent repair but would not have lasted. We were lucky.

On to Valdez via beautiful Thompson pass. I believe someone spilled the green pigment and all the plants were in glory.

Arrive Valdez at 8. Zak and Natasha met us after a day of climbing and utilized the shower in our motel room, dinner, sleep and up early to catch ferry to Whittier at 5:30 am.

A little visit

Posted on April 20, 2026 by J. R. Patee

Our life is what our thoughts make it.

Markus Aurelius

It’s funny how I only seem to write when I’m traveling! But, honestly, that’s such a small part of my life. Still, when people see us, they always ask, “Where next?” I find life pretty exciting here at home, too. This past winter was great—one of the better ones in a while, with average snow and cold, but you just dress warmly, and it’s all good. As they say, “There’s no such thing as bad weather, just bad gear.” I find that’s pretty true.

I’ve been missing my sister and brother-in-law for a while, even though it was just a year ago they joined us on the Alaska Dream Cruise to Southeast Alaska. I just wanted to visit and spend some time with them, enjoying morning coffee and taking walks around the neighborhood. Nothing too big, just being together and soaking in the atmosphere. So, I decided to go to Kalispell, Montana, even though they’re coming to Alaska this summer, but we’ll be touring instead.

The week started with lots of text messages saying they’d seen the public broadcasting show about volunteers, which seemed to highlight my volunteer work at the ski jumps. It’s part of a series about volunteers in Anchorage. During the past winter, a reporter and videographer interviewed and filmed about 3-4 hours of material. From that, they were able to find some good stuff and make me look pretty good. If you’re interested, you can find it at

https://www.pbs.org/video/jr-patee-nsaa-ski-jumping-volunteer-every-little-bit-zfeswi/.

unfortunately it is 300 Mb too big to load here. Alas. 2 minutes 27 sec

So, we woke up super early, way before the 2-hour arrival suggested for airport arrival, which was before our flight at 7 a.m. As usual, our Lyft ride was delightful, and our driver was a lovely lady from Micronesia. She came to Alaska 10 years ago to visit and ended up staying, becoming another tourist who forgot to go home. It seems like a common theme!

Then, because of Alaska Airlines’ scheduling, we had a 6.5-hour layover in Seattle. It’s not one of my favorite airports, but we managed to walk through all the terminals and had time for a nice lunch.

At lunch, I started chatting with a lady next to us who transports high-end show dogs. She had just dropped off two dachshunds or chihuahuas—I can’t remember which, as I didn’t get to see them. It was fascinating to hear her story about judging at dog shows and the world of fancy show dogs. Everyone has a great story.

My sister Barb and her husband Steve had downsized from their house of about 40 years, a few miles north of their new condo. It seems like a common thing now, especially for a certain age group trying to downsize and avoid all the stuff and maintenance. It’s quite a feat in today’s world, where it’s hard to resist buying more and giving your money to others.

So for three days we laughed, played the game of aggravation (family game of ours played for many generations), discussed whatever, laughed some more, discussed who knows what, walked every day about the neighborhood, although on day three we did drive up to Glacier National Park for a hike there on the road not yet opened due to the remaining snow over the pass on “Going to the Sun Highway.” A delightful hike to the McDonald Creek waterfall.

McDonald Creek Falls Glacier National Park

And as per usual my sister has prepared a sensational lunch prepared which we ate at Apgar campground after sweeping off the snow and water from the picnic table.

Back home, my niece Sara came over with her new dog, Elmer—a bouncy Boston terrier full of energy!

But, oh no, I got a sinus congestion and runny nose somewhere south. I felt fine in Anchorage, but then it seemed like the Pacific Ocean had taken over my nose, soaking it up and transferring it to my handkerchief. Ugh! I wasn’t feeling terrible, just very tired. It’s always a bummer to get sick while traveling, but it does happen more often than you’d think.

We were thinking of heading straight home and skipping the 3 days in Seattle with friends, but we waited until Saturday at the airport to decide on our next move. We decided to shorten the trip by a day, which would actually be a good thing to do when we got back. Apparently, it was a bit of a letdown for the friends in Seattle who had planned a fun 2-3 days of activities. But, hey, things change! All good!

Seattle has grown a lot over the years. It’s tried hard to keep that small-town feel, but it’s definitely a big city now. But it has lots of parks, and if you don’t have a car, it’s easy to get around. You can take the light rail, buses, or Lyft or Uber for the shorter distances.

We met up with our friends Jacqui and Maralyn, whom I went to Colorado College with back in 1968—it feels like ages! We’ve known each other for a long time and have had so many adventures and stories. That afternoon, we decided to visit the Kubota Japanese Gardens in south Seattle. It was such a change from the snow of Anchorage and Montana. The flowers and budding trees were a riot of colors—pink, red, green, blue, purple, and yellow. Our eyes were overwhelmed with colors after a winter of white, gray, and dark.

The light rail to Everett, where our nephew and wife Liz, was another delightful Lyft ride from the train to their condo. I always enjoy chatting with the driver, learning about their stories and daily lives. This time, the driver was originally from India and a Sikh. With his Punjabi accent and our English, we managed to understand about half of what he was saying, and learned a lot.

As Liz grew up internationally, visiting places like Shanghai and the United Kingdom, she prepared a wonderful Irish meat and potato dinner.

Another Lyft ride back to the train, this time with a driver from El Salvador, who tried to explain immigration from an immigrant’s perspective. It was fascinating and hopefully gave us a better understanding of the silly things happening in the world today.

Sunday and a morning sitting in Jacqui’s condo overlooking west Seattle, Puget Sound, and on to the Olympic Mountains, Oh I do love a view of mountains. Refreshes ones soul. We sat read the news of the day, drank our coffee and just enjoyed each other.

Then back out into the world where a full day’s activities awaited. First, a trip to the market. I called it “Pikes Market”, but was severely reprimanded that to call it that exposes oneself as unknowing of Seattle. Whatever. We were to meet Maralyn coming from south Seattle and took a bit of coordination to meet at noon. She called me at ten minutes to noon saying she was at the agreed restaurant, awaiting our arrival. I said we were on the steps not very far away. Alas, Seattle is a very hilly city and there are steps everywhere. When we did not arrive near immediately, she thought us lost but we arrived shortly thereafter. Yet one more delightful meal, while overlooking Elliot Bay. A walk back to Jacqui’s car which we parked near the Sculpture Gardens. Maralyn is an artist and Seattle has numerous public art displays. Whenever we visit she has a new and exciting art to show us, although in this case we had seen the Olympic Sculpture Gardens before, but always a treat to see new stuff and old stuff from a new timeline.

One thing I have found about cities is one walks a lot. I mentioned to Jacqui one does not see fat people in the city, although she corrected me, to yes you do not see them as they get other means of getting about than walking.

OK the bad part of Seattle is driving. During the day we covered a lot of Seattle, downtown, then to the Japanese Gardens near Lake Washington then to south Seattle, Oh my – not for the faint of heart, or those not used to such daring. But we survived parking within a kilometer of the gardens where we spent a couple of hours just enjoying the trees, flowers, fish, geese, turtles, rabbits, colors, and serenity.

Then it was yet time again for a meal, this time Maralyn, as usual, knew a great new Honduran restaurant in south Seattle. Delightful waitresses who seemed to really like what they were doing and serving. Always fun to converse with the “service staff.” Then the drive back to just north of downtown Seattle and blessed rest and sleep. Awoke to coffee news and plans already made for the day. Jacqui drove us to the train and 45 minutes later arrived at the airport, unusually not overcrowded and returning home a day earlier than expected but with more time to get another day of downhill skiing, and Jeanne to some classes to collect continuing education credit. Life, oh, it is sweet.

Steamboat Springs Junior National Ski jumping

Posted on March 18, 2026 by J. R. Patee

Unfortunately, many people do not consider fun to be an important part of their daily agenda. For me, that was always a high priority in whatever I was doing.

Chuck Yeager

A few years back, after thinking about retiring, I got hooked on the ski jumping scene. I totally fell in love with it and now volunteer quite a bit at the jumps here in Anchorage. I did not know much about ski jumping at first, even though I grew up downhill skiing, racing, and took up cross-country skiing here in Alaska. Skiing has been such a wonderful sport to be involved in, and it’s not just a lifelong thing; it has so many different aspects, varieties of activities, and levels..

As I’ve gotten older, volunteering has become more common. The city has given me so much, and I feel like it’s time to give back. The skiing world seems to appreciate its volunteers, no matter how much they contribute. I truly believe that having a variety of activities makes the world a better place. Not everyone skis, but being part of a community makes it a better place. And I’m proud of the communities, whether I’m personally involved in them or not.

Ski jumping is a small, fairly specialized group, mostly with younger athletes. I’ve jumped myself, but that’s not really why I volunteer. It’s a group of parents, people, and kids who have found their place. Kids start at 5 years old and progress, sometimes going on to become national and world champions, sometimes passionate for a few years, then moving on to other activities, leaving the ski jumping word for other interests. I’ve talked to several parents who are disappointed when their kid leaves ski jumping for another community because our group is somewhat unique, welcoming, and caring. As one coach told me years ago, he doesn’t care if he has good ski jumpers (he was being dishonest), but he wanted good citizens. I’m all in.

I mainly help keeping the facility running smoothly, which means handling plumbing, electrical work, carpentry, snow conditions, hill preparation, and ensuring everyone’s safety. Gaining these skills is a real plus, as I believe lifelong learning is key. I often work in the background, which suits me just fine. I put in a lot of hours, and when the administrators offered to pay me a bit, I was happy to accept. I’m retired and don’t need the money, but I told them it would be nice, though not essential. I did stipulate that if they paid me, it had to be what I thought I was worth. Being smart people, they accepted my offer to volunteer. Ski jumping doesn’t have much money, and I haven’t seen a program in North America with enough funds. My wife, Jeanne, has volunteered and repairs and makes the small kids’ ski jump suits. Now, both of us are fully involved.

Over the years, I’ve learned a lot and still learning, although I haven’t quite figured out how to teach kids to jump, but it’s great to see them learn and improve. While the coaches will tell the kids how to improve with some minor details after each jump, when I’m asked, I usually say, “That was a good jump, next time go farther.” When I occasionally fill in for the coaches, I joke that it takes a few weeks for the real coaches to get back with the correct form.

Since ski jumping community always needs volunteers of all kinds, I’ve now jumped into the judging world! In ski jumping, a competition is all about two things: how far you jump and how well you do it. There’s a formula that gives you points for the distance you fly, which is super important. Then there are style points. Ski jumping is a sport with its own special rules about how you jump. No tricks allowed! Style is all about how you fly, land, and progress down the hill, with specific points for each part. I’ve been taking classes and traveling to learn how to judge properly over the last few years. Even though it’s a bit of a personal thing, there are really clear rules about what’s allowed and not allowed. A friend once said that any activity judged subjectively isn’t really a sport. A lot of people might disagree, but ski jumping is pretty clear about how far and how you jump with every aspect given a specific criteria. Right now, I’ve gotten certified at the national level, which is the highest I can go because of my age. Now, I can judge local competitions and even national ones!

National Championships, especially for juniors, are four-day events with lots of excitement. The athletes are the stars, and the venues make sure they have a great competition and a good time. Parents come to watch, and there are often fun activities for them too. There are opening ceremonies, different competitions (individual and team), a bracketed elimination, and a closing ceremony. My job was one of five judges who judged style, while others measured the distance. For many this is the first time on the national stage. Plus, there are lots of people behind the scenes who keep the hills in top shape for a national championship.

Steamboat Springs is a charming town in northern Colorado, known for its history in ranching and skiing. When I was in college in Colorado, our team often traveled to races in Colorado Springs. It always seemed like a nice place, not as fancy as some other spots. We always stayed at the Rabbit Ears Motel, and I’ve stayed there many times since—Great Divide Bike rides, other ski jumping events, and a great place. Like anywhere, it’s changing and has changed a lot, and people are still debating whether it’s good or bad. It’s just growing and evolving.

Steamboat Springs has a big ski resort, but there’s also a smaller community skiing hill with training facilities for ski racing, mogul skiing, tricks, sledding, and a jump facility with ski jumps of 10, 30, 40, 75, 90, and 120 meters, though some are not being maintained right now. Howelsen Hill, started in 1915 by a Norwegian immigrant, is the first and longest-running ski area in the United States. The Rabbit Ears Motel and downtown are just a 1 km walk away with a great trail along the Yampa River.

This year, the weather in the western United States hasn’t been great for skiing. Many areas had their worst snow year in decades, including Steamboat Springs. The hill crew put in countless hours to keep and maintain the jump for the competition. Somehow, through magic and incredibly long hours, they pulled it off. Maybe a few standards had to be lowered to hold the competition, but the officials certified the jump as OK, and the competition went on, despite ice, wind, warm, and cold.

Preparing to march into opening ceremony

Lighting the torch Opening Ceremony Ali Hall Photo

Walking up (the magic carpet was not working at 7:30 am)

75 meter hill jump and judges stand with 40 meter in-between Ali Hall Photo

The sport is inclusive and very helpful when needed. When a binding or clothing item, or some equipment didn’t work, teams helped each other create a friendly atmosphere.

And ski jumping has two variations. One is just the ski jumping the other is nordic combined, which utilizes both ski jumping and cross country ski racing into one combined sport. Folks will ski jump then cross country race according to how well they do jumping. The first one across the finish line at cross country wins the event. The nordic combined can be quite exciting.

Then there was the return home. I have come to the conclusion that traveling 18 continuous hours is too much for me. I arrived for the shuttle at the motel, went to airport, flew to Denver, layover for 3 hours, fly to Seattle layover for 1.5 hours and fly to Anchorage where my baggage did not arrive with me, and fell into bed 18 hours after arriving for the shuttle.

I had to fly United airlines out of Hayden airport at Steamboat Springs and reclaim my baggage in Denver then recheck in with Alaska Airlines. The attendant at Hayden airport worked some sort of miracle and managed to check my baggage between airlines, so I would not have to leave airport and return going through the long security lines. Thank you United airlines clerk. But alas baggage did not make it to Anchorage until it was delivered to our house yesterday evening 19 hours after my arrival in Anchorage. Delayed me having to do laundry for a bit.

Anchorage Winter 2026

Posted on February 2, 2026 by J. R. Patee

There is not past, no future, everything flows in an eternal present.

James Joyce

Winter has progressed here and as my friend Geoff says “this is the 52nd unusual year in a row”. This year is the same. Seems every fall we ask each other our predictions for winter. Two years ago we had huge amounts of snow (I believe it was about 135inches (3.4 meters)) Last year I cannot remember the amount but it was warm and rained a lot. Not unusual to get a warm up and rain, but used to be unusual for it to last more than a day or two. Last year it was horrible with ice. And I find temperatures just above freezing are the worst. One gets wet either rain, or sweating. If it is below freezing one can dress so much easier.

It is best to not try and predict the future too much, although with climate change one can predict a definite warming trend. Geoff also says Anchorage had a near perfect average yearly temperature of just below freezing, now it is just above freezing and that freezing line makes a huge difference. Cannot always count on being able to enjoy whatever ones desired activity. One has to develop a quiver of different activities, hence winter biking has taken off, and ice skating with its variety of modes (speed, hockey, figure, cruising)

This year has been actually a relief. We had a two day warm up with a bit of rain, but no wind. The snow we made. at the ski jumps, remained and then it was snowed on top making going outside pleasant. Overall the snow was very late in coming though which slowed the skiing activity. Alyeska the local downhill ski area had posted “caution early season conditions” until mid January. I have wrecked a lot of skiis getting out too early. Unknown gullys, ice, sticks, brush and groud create a lot of hazards.

Last week I finally braved going to Alyeska, and it was a total joy to be out and sliding down the slopes on thin planks. Seems though the world wants to get on skiis as fast as they can and the resorts love to open up early. I find though why not wait until conditions are better, warmer, and more daylight. The season hopefully lasts into May, although by then the resorts and a lot of people are ready to move on to other activities. I find spring skiing is the best.

Although far from perfect, Anchorage is a wonderful city. The trail system is acknowledged one of the best in the country, and with hundreds of kilometers of groomed cross country trail. Always seems to surprise people when they travel elsewhere and discover they have to buy a pass to ski or bike. The Nordic Ski Association maintains the trails and encourages donations but paying is voluntary. Of course it would be difficult to collect a daily fee as the trails wind all over Anchorage and their are hundreds if not thousands of entry points.

The community is amazing here. People will make ice hearts and distribute about the trails. Just brightens ones life to find a sculpture hidden amongst the trees. I have not found any this year, but often a local coffee shop will distribute free coffee cards, again hidden along the trails. For New Years someone had gone to a local lake and chain sawed a big circle, which then rotated around. Apparently last year they go so many people on it all were standing ankle deep in water. And coming up is the Tour of Anchorage annual ski race. 50 km starting near our house and traveling up into mountains, down through downtown along Cook Inlet, around airport, and ending at Kincaid Park. A delightful ski, through town and cheering crowds on incredibly groomed trails.I confess I have not done it in 6 years but used to be the highlight of the ski season, for us. Ski alongside Olympic skiers and beginners and awesome scenery.

Thus no grand adventures and travels this winter, but just being here for the winter has been an adventure. All were counting down the days to winter solstice when Anchorage sunrise is at 10:12 am and sunset at 3:41 pm with a high for the sun is about 5 degrees above the horizon, just cruising along the horizon. Currently now the sun gets 12 degrees above the horizon and we gain 5 minutes and 20 seconds of light every day, half way between solstice and the equinox. Hooray. I can’t help it, but I do like sunshine.

And without any grand adventures to post, here are photos from past couple of months here in Anchorage.

	Maralyn Crosetto on The Canadian part II
	Karen Copley on The Canadian
	Maralyn Crosetto on Vancouver B.C.
	spookydaze150851deec on Planes, Trains, and autom…
	Maralyn Crosetto on Planes, Trains, and autom…

	Maralyn Crosetto on The Canadian part II
	Karen Copley on The Canadian
	Maralyn Crosetto on Vancouver B.C.
	spookydaze150851deec on Planes, Trains, and autom…
	Maralyn Crosetto on Planes, Trains, and autom…

jrpatee

J. R.,s bike rides, tours, and philosophies