Change (or maybe not?)

Last day of work — late

I was not able to contemplate the end of a work era during my last day of work. I was too busy.  In fact, by the end of the day, I was rushing around like a maniac, trying to get everything done so I could head out as planned for a celebratory dinner with George.  I made it–just barely.  Now I have time to think about the monumental change from work to non-work. It feels very, very good.

Which is not to say that I did not enjoy my work–I did.  And I will miss my friends. But it will be so nice to be able to go, do, and say pretty much whatever (and wherever) I want.  And I am looking forward to a more leisurely pace.

First day of retirement

9 a.m.  I woke promptly this morning at my usual time.  I rolled over and slept another hour. What a sweet feeling not to have to pack too many things into too short a weekend.  I thought I might have trouble unwinding from my usual pace, but I am already quite unwound.

9:30 p.m.  Ha, that was a joke.  I am still wound up.  I ended up running around all day trying to get all of the last minute things done so that we can leave on Tuesday.  We took a couple of loads to storage, cleaned the truck interior, hauled stuff to the trailer, shopped, and continued to sort through things.

It was a lovely day at the trailer storage lot.

Sunshine in the living/dining area (without the table). You can see the decal on the trailer stored next door.

Our neighbor dog, Minnie, couldn’t figure out what we were doing.

Zoe is worn out. We will try to slow down tomorrow.

She is afraid we will pack her tennis ball.

Sundogs

We have gone solar.  Finding the parts in Anchorage was a challenge, but the installation went without a hitch and the system appears to be working beautifully.  We haven’t seen any solar panels on Alaskan RVs and debated waiting until we got Outside for the install. But we decided to see if we could get it done in Anchorage and are glad we did. Everyone involved was enthusiastic and helpful and the work was completed faster than we expected.  How sweet is that?

We have three panels running down one side of the trailer roof.  The roof is rounded, giving the panels a slight natural tilt.  We did not want to have to manually tilt the panels (the less chores the better), but the permanent tilt means that we will have to keep the sun direction in mind when picking campsites.  We originally sized the system for two panels but decided to add a third so we could avoid the hassle of climbing a ladder to adjust the panel angles

The wiring from the panels runs into the interior through the refrigerator vent and then along the underside to the MPPT charge controller.  The charge controller is neatly tucked into a panel under a closet on one side of our bed.  It regulates the voltage to keep the batteries from overcharging and lets us know the amount of power produced by the panels and the state of battery charge. On a sunny day it provides up to 15 amps for several hours, which is more than enough to charge the batteries.

controller

A 600 watt pure sine wave inverter is installed in the matching panel on the other side of our bed. It takes 12 volt DC from the batteries and converts it to 120 volt AC, allowing us to keep our electronics charged and to power the TV while dry camping during football season.

inverter

Finally, we upgraded the batteries to two 6 volt AGMs wired in series, which are mounted on the same battery mounts as the previous ones, with an added custom cover to keep water from pooling.

George did a tremendous amount of research to see what would work best for our needs without breaking the bank.  It looks like the research paid off.  So far, we are impressed with how fast the panels charge the batteries, even without full sun.  Of course, it is way too early to tell how everything will work in the long run.  But, for now, I’m tickled with the idea that we can get our electric needs from the sun.  We are already plotting a home solar system for when we come in off the road.

 

Decisions

It is final sorting time. Throw away, give away, sell, keep.  Decision, decision, decision, for every thing we own, down to scissors, pens, and shampoo bottles.  It is cathartic to shed so much accumulated stuff. We have done it several times in moves to and from Alaska.  It always feels good.

There are space and weight limitations in the trailer, of course, so deciding what to bring is an exercise in speculation and imagination.  Will we use this pan more than this one? How many pairs of pants do I really need? Some things are easy–my insulated, spiked running shoes will not be going with us.

I am perplexed about what to do with my Chaga.  It is a birch fungus harvested from a tree that we had to cut down behind our house.

Chaga chunks

It is supposed to have all kinds of health-giving properties because it is loaded with antioxidants.  And Chaga from really cold regions like Alaska is especially prized. Whether it’s truly beneficial or not, I don’t know, but I do like to make tea with it.  I would like to bring it with us, but it is never pleasant to receive unusual scrutiny at border crossings.  The crumbly texture and yellowish-brown color of my Chaga pieces suggest that they could be anything from dried animal parts to some sort of hallucinogen.  They scream out for extra scrutiny.  “What is this, ma’am?  A fungus?  And you use it for what?”  Best to leave the Chaga behind.

We have also been pondering our route through Canada.  We have driven the Alcan several times over the years, so are pretty familiar with the traditional route.  I have never driven the Cassiar Highway and would like to try it for a change, but that means that we would miss Liard Hot Springs–a tough call.  We will wait to see what the road conditions are like and how many campgrounds are open this early before we make a decision.

Our favorite Alcan trip was one we took with the kids in 1983 from Fairbanks to the East Coast in our yellow van.  That trip planted the seeds for this one.  Here are some pictures.

George at our campsite somewhere in Montana or Wyoming.

At Yellowstone

It was a good trip.

 

Who leaves Alaska in the summer?

We still have big patches of lingering snow in Anchorage, but the days feel like spring. Here’s the trailer, still snowbound last weekend.

She (he? it? I’m not sure of the trailer’s gender) is plowed out now and getting ready for a solar panel install.

We are tentatively planning to leave on May 5.  But if we don’t leave then, eh, who cares?  It may be the most difficult time of year to leave Alaska.  Winter is finally over, everything is budding out, huge skeins of honking birds are migrating overhead, the woods have a spicy smell that I’ve only experienced up here, the days are getting long, and summer is about to hit full-force. We would normally be planning our summer hikes and camping trips now.

Here’s a sampling of some of our favorite hikes.

Lost Lake

Crow Pass Trail near Raven Glacier

Resurrection Pass

Tidal patterns on Turnagain Arm from Bird Ridge

George and Zoe at Rabbit Lake on chilly mid-summer day

Turnagain Arm from the Porcupine Campground in Hope, start of Gull Rock Trail

We are probably crazy to leave this time of year.  But but we are ready and looking forward to the sweet pleasures of a New England summer for a change–corn straight from the field, really ripe tomatoes, fried clams with bellies, fresh lobster, and (on a non-food note) fireflies.  It’s countdown time.