2 cents an acre - The Easy Way

[Brian A]

Seward's Folly 
The Last Frontier
Land of the Midnight Sun

you know.....  Alaska!

You can do like some have done recently and ride all the way there and back.

OR..... you can do like I just did: Fly to Anchorage, meet Mill (who flew in from Boise), pick up rental bikes at Motoquest then ride a week and reverse the process, dropping off the bikes and flying back home.

I plan to do a ride report. Work is kinda busy so it might take some time, coming piece-meal as I get the time and mental inclination to share pics and put thoughts to words.

So for now, here's this. More to come later......

Somewhere along the Denali Highway about 50 miles east of Cantwell, Alaska.

[Guidedawg]

I'm starting to think this site is AlaskanRides - Bama Chapter.

And I'm looking forward to the report!

[Mulley]

I thought it was 2 cents an acre or is the nickle your contribution?  :P

[Brian A]

I thought it was 2 cents an acre or is the nickle your contribution?  :P

I stand corrected and will edit the title of this ride report.
Hopefully this hitch in the initial get-along is not going to be indicative of the quality of material to come.

[Brian A]

The sign at the top of the display rack at the store in the Atlanta airport read "2 for $20!".  I took one off the rack and held it in my hand and squeezed it. It was soft and felt like it might be a good investment.

Delta Airlines Flight 2469 
Boeing 767-300
Nonstop service from Atlanta Hartsfield International Airport to Anchorage Ted Stevens International Airport
Scheduled flight time: 7:49

I didn't have one of those round neck support pillow things but as I stood there with it in my hand, and considered 7 1/2 hours on an airplane, I thought it might be a decent investment. Falling asleep in an airplane is like falling asleep in church or in a business meeting. Your head seems to gain about 20 pounds and will stretch your neck out to the point where it feels like you might poke yourself in the belly button with your nose.

I took one of the neck support things to the lady at the register.

"The sign says '$20 for two. How much for one?' "
She answered and it was something a little above $17 (including tax).

"So $20 for two or $17 for one?"
"Yes sir."

"But I don't need two. I only have one neck."
"You can get a blanket as the second item."

I didn't need a blanket either but I would play along with their slick pricing scheme and buy two items. I got one neck support for my one neck and a blanket that I didn't really need. I stuffed the neck support into my backpack and opened the helmet bag and jammed the blanket into my helmet.

With an hour or so before time to board I sat down at the gate and opened my Diet Coke, took a sip and then just sat there to wait.

I don't remember exactly when I came to want to ride in Alaska. I think it was about 6 or 7 years ago. Something about the prospect just stuck in my mind and it became a bucket list item. And then, about 5 years ago, a friend I went to high school with, who had moved to Alaska, married and had kids, came home to visit. A group of us (old high school friends) got together one night for dinner and I mentioned to her that one day I planned to ride in Alaska. I think she sensed that I was serious and extended an invite to visit her and her family in Delta Junction.

Not much more was said or done about the matter until about 6 months ago.

I had mentioned to Mill last September while I was riding with him in Idaho, that Alaska was a good prospect for me in 2016. He had expressed interest and if not a hard commitment, certainly showed a willingness to entertain the notion.

I think it must have been sometime in early or mid April that I did a little research and almost on the spur of the moment, I picked up my cell phone and called Mill.

I don't remember the exact words spoken but it essentially amounted to:
"Hey man, let's go ride in Alaska later this year. You wanna go?"
"Yeah. Sounds good to me."

It really was about that simple.

* I did a bit more research, sent some e-mails, made a few phone calls and things started to get firmed up. Soon enough the arrangements were getting inked.
* Rentals were arranged with Motoquest (http://www.motoquest.com/).
* Mill and I did a 3-way phone call with Brenden at Motoquest and he made suggestions on where to invest our 7 days riding.
* I ordered 'The Adventurous Motorcyclist's Guide To Alaska'   and found it to be a great reference ( http://adventuremotorcycle.com/media/media-adventurous-motorcyclists-guide-to-alaska-new)
* Mill and I would meet in Anchorage on Friday July 29th.
* We'd pick up the bikes Saturday morning July 30th.
* Ride through Friday afternoon August 5th when we would return the bikes.
* Between the two of us we had lodging arrangements made before we left for Anchorage.
* I spent 4 or 5 hours with Google maps and Garmin Basecamp and had tracks laid out in full for every day. Right down to the point of turning into the parking lot at the end of each day.


And that is how it all happened. That is how I found myself sitting in the Atlanta airport with a new $20 neck support/blanket combo, a $2.70 Diet Coke, my backpack and my helmet bag.

Before too much longer it was boarding time. I made my way to my aisle seat, put my backpack and helmet bag in the overhead storage bin (retaining my neck support thing but leaving the blanket stuffed inside the helmet) and sat down.
I watched a movie and listened to songs on my ipod. I read some in the Motorcyclist's Guide Book. The flight was during the day so they served soft drinks and peanuts/cookies every few hours. I put that neck doughnut thing around my neck several times.

I think I slept maybe 40 minutes. Probably more like 35 or 36. Possibly 37, but I'll be generous and call it 40.

I figured if I split the investment cost equally between the neck doughnut and the blanket I didn't need, it would be $10 for the doughnut: $5 there and $5 back. So I had paid $5 for 40 minutes of keeping my nose from trying to poke itself  into my belly button. I couldn't decide if that was a good investment or not.

Maybe it was about that time when I felt the nose of the 767 pitch slightly downward and soon the flight attendant announced initial approach into Anchorage.

After landing I got my suitcase and sat down at an airport restaurant to eat dinner. Mill was about 3 hours behind me (which turned out to be 4 hours due to a flight change).
I was hungry.
It was my vacation.
I would be on a motorcycle at that same time the next day, riding in Alaska.
Whether or not the neck doughnut had been a good investment didn't matter.
I was about to pay airport prices for a pretty decent dinner in an airport restaurant.

The food was good. The waiter was a super nice fella.

I looked down at the neck doughnut thing snapped around one of the straps on my backpack.
I decided it had been a good investment.
And so had dinner.
And so had been every dollar I had spent so far to get me to Anchorage.

Tomorrow morning, I'd be riding in Alaska.

[norton73]

Yee-Ha! another great story in the making!

[Chitza]

I'm starting to think this site is AlaskanRides - Bama Chapter.

Geez, the jealousy sure is getting thick around here 8)

Even with me. I'm jealous of the roads Brian and Jared rode that I didn't.  How weird is that?

[Crandon]

Been to Fairbanks, Delta Junction, Anchorage, and Unilaska for work but after reading this and the Bama Bums rides to Alaska I have determined on my next trip for work up there I will take a couple of extra days and ride the roads.

[Brian A]

Mill had arranged accommodations for our first night in Anchorage and for our last night. Both would be at the same place. He had gone through Airbnb. We stayed with a couple in their house about 15 mins from the airport. It was a nice place and the folks were super cool.

We had the downstairs to ourselves. Each with our own bedroom, a bathroom, a small sitting area, a coffee maker and little bag of homemade cookies to welcome us. It was a fine "Welcome to Alaska" experience.

There is a reason Alaska is called "The Land of the Midnight Sun". I think it was about 11:00 o'clock when we went to bed and it was still daylight outside. Like wash your car and cut the grass daylight. I felt like I was going to bed at 5:30 in the afternoon. I woke up once (I think around 4:30 or so) and it was daylight again. Apparently it got dark for a few hours while we slept but I can't attest to the fact.

We got up around 7:00, made coffee, showered and prepared to leave.

I sat my stuff by their Pathfinder and waited to leave.



The lady who lived there gave us a lift to Motoquest. They were open when we got there at 9:00 am. The folks were all super friendly and the bikes were clean and ready to go. We signed the necessary paperwork, transferred our gear to the hard cases and put all the stuff we would not be taking back in our suitcases for storage at the facility while we were out riding. Fortunately it was not raining so that made getting ready a lot easier.

Mill doing his thing.



Their insurance required we demonstrate our ability by riding around the parking lot before we left. We did so and were given the green light.

Us. ready to go.



This is Robin. A very cool girl with lots of spunk who rides. Apparently a lot.
She was great to deal with and fun to joke around with.



With all the paperwork and prep behind us, I turned on the GPS, turned on my SPOT tracker and we pulled out of the parking lot.

Before we left Anchorage we stopped to get something to eat. We hadn't had a proper breakfast and both of us were really hungry. We stopped at the Pita Pit on Old Seward Highway. I got a breakfast pita and it was awesome good. Eggs and cheese and bacon and bell peppers and onions and mushrooms. All cooked on the grill then stuffed into a big soft pita. That thing was awesome.

As we were finishing up Mill grunted a disgusted grunt and then voiced his disapproval at what had just happened. We were not 15 minutes down the road and he had somehow managed to leak a lot of pita juice onto his shirt and riding pants. I found it hilarious and got really tickled over the affair. I joked with him that we were not even out of Anchorage and he had already soiled his riding gear.

Mill, with pita juice.



I think he got a wet paper towel and tried to clean it off, but it was not to much benefit.

With our hungers satisfied, we got our helmets, jackets and gloves on and hit the road.

We would be heading south, for our first night's stop in Seward. Our ride would be on down the Kenai Peninsula on Alaska Highway 1 - The Seward Highway - to our destination.



Not far south of Anchorage the highway turned SE and ran along The Turnagain Arm. The Turnagain Arm is famous for having one of the strongest bore tides in the world. There was a paragraph or two in the book I read that mentioned it, with a BIG warning: Do NOT venture out onto the mud. You can get stuck. There have been cases of individuals getting out onto the mud and getting stuck. Then, despite the best (unsuccessful) efforts of rescue crews to extract them in time, they drowned when the bore tide came rushing in.

I figured that would be a pretty crappy way to go so we heeded the advice and stayed on the asphalt.

Mill, with the Turnagain Arm mud in the background.



Both of us, at a different stop along The Seward Highway. (using a little tripod)



Same spot. A nice Japanese dude came over and offered to take our pic.



The ride was really nice. lots of clouds obscured much of what I am sure would have otherwise been some beautiful views. But no rain and the temps were - best I can remember - around 70 or so. We made our way on down the road and stopped for a pic here.



Me. There.



The highway made a hard right bend at the tip of  the Turnagain Arm and headed back SW. A 1/2 hour or so down the road we took a right turn and made the ride out to Hope, Ak. Hope - population 192 - sits on the south shore of the Turnagain Arm, directly across the way from where the pics above were taken. There is not much in Hope. A campground right on the shore, with a small cafe and a place to buy beer and soft drinks and snacks and such.

And then there is another little cafe place that is famous for their pie. We stopped there. I got some (great) clam chowder and Mill got some fruit topped cheesecake thing that was awesome.

One other thing in Hope is a small clutter of junk in a lot on the side of the road. I couldn't pass the opportunity.



Soon enough we were back to The Seward Highway and headed towards Seward.

But before Seward, we would stop and take a hike out to see Exit Glacier.  That and Seward for the next addition to the Ride Report.

If you want to know more about the bore tide: http://www.alaska.org/advice/alaska-bore-tide

[Brian A]

I had never seen a glacier before. Or if I had, it hadn't been enough of an event to have stuck with me.

Flying to Anchorage took us over the Canadian Rockies. Although I had an aisle seat, I was able to lean over and see out the window plenty fine to see numerous glaciers ten's of thousands of feet below.
They were huge.
Massive.
Massively massive huge.

Even when viewed from 37,000 feet ASL, you could not mistake them for being anything less than incredibly large rivers of ice. Extremely slow moving rivers, but rivers none-the-less.


Exit Glacier is at the terminus of The Harding Ice Field and is know as a "Drive-up glacier" which means, no surprise, you can drive very near to the glacier then walk the remainder of the distance.

Mill and I took the spur road off The Seward Highway and rode out to Exit Glacier. Wow! what a big chunk of ice! And to think what we could see was just a (ice) drop in the bucket that was the remainder of the glacier and The Harding Ice field. We learned that Exit Glacier, like pretty much every Alaskan glacier, is receding due to global climate change.

* Side note/Editorial comment: It sort of chapped my butt to read the Wikipedia info on Exit Glacier and see the article blame the recession of Exit Glacier on anthropogenic (man-caused) global warming. When in fact, scientists have documented the glacier has been receding since the early 1800's, which just so happens to be..... the maximum distance the glacier is documented to have extended which occurred in conjunction with.....The Little Ice Age. *

Back on track now.... Mill and I walked the 3/4 mile or so out to the close-up viewing areas and took some photos.

Exit Glacier.  The "tracks" are sections of rock and soil that were eroded and picked up along the way as the glacier flowed through the mountains.



A zoomed-in view.



This is where the glacier was in 2005



Glaciers create huge quantities of rocks and gravel. Seriously. Lots and lots of rocks. From pea sized up to the occasional multi-ton chunk of granite, left sitting wherever it happened to have been pushed when the glacier melted and said goodbye to the boulder.

Exit Glacier is in The Kenai Mountains.  I feel inclined to give credit where credit is due: The Kenai Mtns and the Chugach and The Alaska Range, and others, might not be part of "The Rockies" but make no mistake, there are as many big mountains of granite and as many smaller rocks and boulders in those ranges as I saw in Colorado or Idaho.

The river of water from glacier melt and some of the field of gravel rock left behind as the glacier retreated.



With the Exit Glacier experience behind us, we motored on south towards Seward.

Seward, Alaska. 
Population ~2550
Named after US Secretary of State William H. Seward who served under Presidents Lincoln and Johnson.

Seward fought for the purchase of Alaska from Russian. A deal he eventually negotiated. 
586,412 square miles bought.
$7.2 million

2¢ an acre

[Brian A]

As we made our way on day to Seward (pronounced Soo-word) we rode out of the fairly nice weather we had seen since leaving Anchorage and rode into clouds and light rain. This was to be the first of many riding-in-the-rain and clouds and fog experiences we would have during our week of riding in Alaska.

Seward sits at the tip of Resurrection Bay and is Alaska's only deep-water, ice free port. It was founded in 1903 at the terminus of what is now The Alaska Railroad. Seward sees an average of 80 inches of snow each year. It is Mile 0 for the annual dog sled race along the Iditarod Trail.

In 1964 a magnitude 9.2 megathrust earthquake occurred with the epicenter 95 miles NE of Seward. It lasted four minutes and thirty-eight seconds and  was the most powerful earthquake ever recorded in North America, and the second most powerful ever recorded world wide. Seward suffered major damage from the earthquake, tsunami and fire. But that was 43 years ago and while books say remnants of the damage can still be seen in a few places, we saw nothing but light rain in a small town which gave every indication it owed its existence to being located on the shore of Resurrection Bay.

We stopped at the harbor when we got into town. Fishing boats, pleasure boats and sail boats abounded.




The books and pics all speak to the presence of spectacular mountain views all around Seward. For us it was "What you see is what you get.".



Our room for the night was at The Hotel Seward. Built in 1905, it was a neat place. A warm, inviting atmosphere and friendly staff. Our room was in The Historic Wing. A modest room, clean and comfortable but with no in-room facilities. There were two shared bathrooms (very modern) at the end of the hall.



After we checked in we hauled our hard cases up to the room and decided to go straight away to eat. We rode back down to the harbor and ate one of many seafood places - The Alaska Seafood Grill. The rain had stopped so we sat outside on the deck and ate. It was very good food and a nice dinner to end our first day of riding in Alaska.

Back in our room, we watched a little TV and with nothing more to do, we went to bed. With it still broad daylight outside.

The next morning we would head back north, retracing our route to Anchorage, then continue out of Anchorage heading north.

Away from anything remotely resembling a decent sized town.

[Brian A]

Side note - I remember this song from when I was a little kid.

I can't being to count the number of times I found myself singing it inside my helmet while riding in Alaska. Pretty much always singing it in my mind, but sometimes it would be out loud.

"Where the river is winding, big nuggets they're finding. North to Alaska, we're going north the rush is on."

I always liked the song. Now I like it even more.

[Brian A]

Before moving on, this happened in Seward. I think it was two days after we were there. Apparently a whale attempted to breach right under a small boat. The whale knocked a hole in the boat, sent one passenger into the water and the others sprawling in the boat. The slowly sinking boat did manage to get a tow back into Seward harbor and all aboard were OK.  http://www.ktva.com/humpback-whale-hits-boat-near-seward-981/

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The sun went down and it got dark.
The sun rose and it got daylight.

I was never aware of either event taking place, but barring some bizarre occurrence, I feel safe assuming both took place.

I woke and wiggled around in the bed a few minutes, enjoying the comfort of the sheet and light blanket over me. We had slept with the window open and temps in the 50's made me appreciate the cool temps with the blanket to keep me warm.

Not long after we were up and getting ready it started to rain. Not a downpour, but far more than a sprinkle. We would definitely be starting the day in full rain gear. And that is what we did.

We rode out of Seward in light rain with low clouds and pretty much zero opportunity to see the beautiful mountains we knew were all around. We stopped for gas and were then back on the road headed for Anchorage.

Our ride back to Anchorage, just like our ride down to Seward had done, would take us through the Chugach National Forest. Established in 1907, the Chugach includes 6.91 million acres, making it the third largest US National Forest. It includes much of the Kenai and Chugach Mountain Ranges. But, as fate would have it, we would not be seeing much in the way of mountains. There were occasional periods when the rain would stop and the low clouds might give way to a higher cloud deck and some improved views, but under the gray sky, colors tended to be muted and most all the higher snow capped peaks were hidden in the clouds. But, an hour or so after leaving, things changed.

We rode out of the rain, the low clouds began to break up some and the sun came out. We had the chance to see some beautiful scenery. The mountains were more visible and all the colors in the vast numbers of wildflowers came to life.

This was our first stop. No more rain gear. Sunshine and some nice views.





My steed for the week (more on it in a later update).




Sometimes you just have to stop and lay down in the flowers.





And sometimes you have to sit in them.





And sometimes you have to take a dookie in them.





Just kidding! Mill didn't poop in the wild flowers. He just squatted down on one knee for the photo.


And that direction is where we are headed!



We were back on the road soon and the ride was much nicer. No more rain, for now at least and the road was nice.
Back along Turnagain Arm we rode. Then back north to Anchorage. We stopped in Anchorage for gas and a snack. There was a big event in town: Arctic Thunder at Joint Base Elemendorf-Richardson was taking place. We stood in the parking lot of the gas station and watched F-22 Raptors flying around.

As we rolled north out of Anchorage, we were in the initial stage of leaving modern municipalities and the trappings (both good and bad) of highly commercialized urban and suburban life in our rear view mirrors. An hour or so later we were off the major highway and onto surface streets and in much more rural, less populated areas.

We were headed for The Talkeenta Mountains and Hatcher Pass Road (aka Fishhook Road). With a stop at Independence Mine State Historical Park.

[Brian A]

As we rode out of the greater Anchorage metro area, I began to get a little better feeling about what was ahead.

The Anchorage-Seward-Anchorage ride had been through some remarkable scenic areas and appeared to be a fairly heavily travel tourist route, and likely a route that saw a good number of Anchorage residents head to Seward for the weekend. We had seen quite a few nice open water fishing boats being towed between Anchorage and Seward, so I figured plenty of folks were off to try their weekend luck for Salmon and Halibut and Cod and whatever else folks in Alaska fish for in saltwater.

We were on the Glenn Highway for maybe 30 minutes. Where the Glenn split to go northeast and the Parks Highway started, heading west/northwest, we left both and headed due north on Trunk Road which would lead us to our turn onto Hatcher Pass Road.

Hatcher Pass Road is 60 miles long, with about 23 miles being dirt/gravel. Located in the SW part of the Talkeenta Mountains, it is said to offer great views of the Talkeentas and The Chugach and The Alaska Range. While the weather was improved, there was still more than enough clouds to prevent anything close to clear views of distant mountains.




We stopped to check out the Independence Mine area. I am glad we did. It was really interesting.

The Independence Mines got their start in the mid 1890's when the first active claims were staked in the area. The early mining interests joined forces to become the Wasilla Mining Company. The W.M.C. operated the mines from 1934 through 1943 when WW II brought a halt to the gold mining efforts there. Mining resumed in 1948 but ended soon after in 1950.
The Independence Mines produced a total of 140,000 ounces of gold at the time the mines closed in 1943. I did not find any info on how much gold was produced the final 2 years of operation.

There has been no mining in Independence Mines since 1950. W.M.C had expected to resume mining operations one day, but never did. This lead to the mining community buildings and equipment being left in place.

And it all still sits there today. The effects of weather are at work 24/7/365, slowly but surely wearing down the old wooden structures.




But some of the buildings still soldier on, looking a little worse for wear, but still pretty much solid, seemingly shaking their fists in defiance at mother nature.










It came as no surprise that the mining community was not afforded the benefit of electrical service via wires strung in from some faraway place. But, they had electricity. A really big generator sat on a pad. This is the rating plate on that generator.




And this. The air cleaner for the diesel engine that ran the generator.





There was an old miner's cabin at the top of the ridge. I'd guess it was 3/4 mile distance from us. Sitting right on top of the ridge. I guess the fella knew how to build a cabin for it to still be standing.

I used max zoom on the camera to get this pic.



I stood there a few minutes and thought about the guy who built that cabin.
What drove him?

Was it greed? Was he hungry for wealth? Did he lust for what he imagined he might buy with the money he sought by filling a little cup or bag, an ounce, (give or take) at a time?

Was it adventure? The challenge of fighting all of nature's forces, to dig in granite, looking for little flakes and specs than meant money in his pocket?

Was he a dreamer? Not necessarily dedicated to the cause of counting success by a few flakes and specs now and then? Not satisfied with a smattering of gold left in the sluice box after a day of back breaking work? Was he the one who dreamed of striking it rich? Finding the mother lode.

Or maybe he was a man who had no other options. No work. No skills. Nothing to count on as far as a "regular" job goes. Did he mine because it afforded him work, with at least the possibility of a big payoff?

I wondered the same thing about all the miners. What drove them to endure such hardship. Brutal cold and rough working conditions. Granted, The Independence Mine community was a fairly decent place in its day. With about 16 families and around 200 miners, the community had about 25 buildings and offered all the basics on-site (trucked in).

But there were those who came before the community. I wonder about them most of all. They were there, on their own, looking to find gold and stake a claim. Some managed to do both. I kinda like to imagine the guy who built the cabin on top of the ridge did both. He earned it.

There was one of those tourist telescope things at the little pavilion we were standing under. I turned it towards the cabin and put my camera lens up to the eyepiece and focused the telescope as best I could, working in conjunction with the camera autofocus.

I got this picture of the cabin. 

Good for you prospector. Your cabin still stands there, giving the occasional wondering soul something to wonder about.

I figure it will still be there, sitting on top of that ridge, when this wondering soul is somewhere, far away, 6 feet under.






Mill sat down to take a break and look through his pics. He had a fly on his cap.




We had a snack and got our gear back on, then were back on Hatcher Pass road, headed for The Swiss Alaska Inn, in  Talkeetna, Alaska.

Will pick up in Talkeetna for the next update.

Ciao for now.

[Brian A]

We finished out the remainder of Hatcher Pass Road and dead ended into the George Parks Highway. We stopped there at a little building, sitting all alone at the intersection. They served baked goods and coffee and cappuccino and lattes and other similar items.

I got a doughnut and some fancy latte thing. I don't ever buy stuff like that but decided to this time. I guess because I was on vacation and maybe partly because I was in the middle of Nowhere, Alaska and wondered what some fancy latte would taste like from the little shack sitting on the side of Parks Highway.

The latte was good. Not that I have much experience with various lattes to compare it to, but it tasted good and the doughnut was good too.

Sitting there, with Mill, on an old painted picnic table, in a far-bigger-than-necessary gravel parking lot, I noticed something odd.  There was a structure, built of lumber and plywood, out near the highway. It had signs for the latte and doughnut shack on either side so those passing by on the highway might be tempted to pull in and sample the goods. Also, a few other misc signs and banners were nailed to the wooden structure. I would guess it was maybe 15 feet high.

And what was odd? There was a fair sized flat screen TV bolted to the side of it, up near the top, facing the gravel parking lot. No weather protection. No awning to protect it. Just a TV bolted to the side of this tower thing, about 12-14 feet off the ground. I couldn't believe it was "for real" so I walked over and ducked down enough to get inside and take a look. Sure enough, power cord and HDMI cable were hanging right there.

I walked over to the latte shack and asked the guy there. He explained that he had put it up not too long ago and had tried it out and it worked. He planned to show their winter snowmobile excursion and dog sled rides and other stuff, to try and get folks to stop in and help his business. I asked if the weather had not messed with it and he said "No, not so far.".

Crazy the stuff you see......

We hit The Parks Highway and finished off the 60 miles to Talkeetna (Tal-keet-nah).
The ride was nothing spectacular. It was - no surprise - pretty cloudy and not much to see due to that.

Our reservation was at Swiss Alaska Inn. I had a little bit of expectation, thinking there would be some sort of "Swiss" influence in the building or architecture or decoration. Or.... something? ? ?

Nope. The folks who run it are Swiss, and aside from that it could be called "The Generic Alaska Inn". It was actually pretty decent accommodations. Nothing fancy, but nice enough. We had own bathroom this time.

There was a restaurant in the main/office building but they only served breakfast.  The lady suggested a 10 minute walk on a trail through the woods to dump us out on main street in Talkeetna. So that is what Mill and I did.

Talkeetna is a small town. Not really a town so much as a cluster of buildings. It's what is officially called a "census designated place" which I assume means some folks live there but it isn't really a town. The census designated place is 43 square miles (which would make it a decent sized town - if it really was a town) with a population of around 800 people. It's an old "town", started in 1916 as a district headquarters for The Alaska Railroad. I think now it exists pretty much as a small touristy area with plenty of cool, old historic buildings. We ate at a nice restaurant on the outside deck and watched people come-and-go. The food was excellent.

No pics from this segment of the trip. Nothing worthy on the 60 mile ride from the outdoor TV/latte shack up to Talkeetna, and I forgot to carry my camera with me when we went to eat, so no pics of Talkeetna.   Here is a random Google image of the Wildflower Cafe (where we ate).

https://cdn4.gbot.me/photos/HA/c4/1370198881/-_Wildflower_Cafe_in_My_Gu-20000000005886027-500x375.jpg

After dinner we walked back the The Generic Swiss Alaska Inn and flopped on the bed and watched TV for a while, then, with the window open, we went to bed. Still daylight.

Monday morning would see us roll out of Talkeetna, headed for Denali and then across the Denali Highway to near Paxson.

Teaser - more liquid sunshine. Our first stop. A few miles down the road, for gas and some breakfast.