My Journey to ALASKA

[(RIP) rustygates]

I woke up to a beautiful morning with the sun streaming through the coloured glass windows which were the height of three floors,it was 7:30 am,and the airport was filling up with people arriving from the cruise ships to fly to their final destinations,the Japanese all had cameras around their necks and the Germans had loads of luggage each,the airport workers were either First National Eskimo Indians or Vietnamese but very few from the Lower 48 (America) there were many smaller outfits flying out of ANC up to the oilfields at Prudoe bay and Barrow,like Frontier Airways and Era Air, there is a small town on the west coast of Alaska called Wales,yes i've spelt it right honest have a look!there came a platoon of US Army personnel, they were all over 6' tall and built like brick outhouses carrying weapons and haversacks, and didn't they look mean,they were shown into the area which was cordoned off for them, and they did not mix with any other army personnel either,and stayed there for a couple of hours then straight through security and away,the knuckle draggers never even looked at them.We stayed behind the glass sculpture on our benches, the sculpture was an amazing piece of glass panels,it was called EUPHONY it depicted the two seasons of Alaska the 9 months of Twilight and Darkness and the 3 months of Summer by Warren Carther. we were behind the far right panel behind the elevator.

 

[(RIP) rustygates]

Again we went to the AA desk at 5pm,having spent the day in and around the airport,trying out the various cafe's and bars,there was everything we needed right there, but it was not cheap, large coffee from starbucks over $2,the food was good and varying in tastes.i showered and changed before going to the AA desk, i was hoping that i was not going to be here longer than "Tom Hanks" in "Terminal," the girl at the check in desk could not believe that we were still there, there was a possibility that we would get a flight at 10pm that night (heard that one before) we got showered and changed etc, and went through the security and yes got searched and the bags,but by now they knew what was in the bags and recognised the gold scales. Whooopee!!, it was 9pm and we waited for our names to be called and we could not believe it,we were flying out tonight,boarded at 10pm and then the delay, the toilets were not working,typical after 30mins we were off not to Denver but to Dallas DFW on flight 279, it was sad to leave ANC airport i had got into the routine and a lot safer than downtown Anchorage, that was a 6hr flight and we slept most of the way there.

 

[(RIP) rustygates]

We arrived in DFW Dallas and we were searched yet again and checked everything for explosives and drugs, eventually got to the carousel to claim our bags,no bags they were on their way to LHR London Heathrow, so we went to the desk and complained and AA bought us breakfast, organised a flight to Raleigh Durham airport in North Carolina on a first class tickets, stopped at the airport till 5pm boarded a Boeing 777 bound for Heathrow,we had changed into our suits and we were flying first class seat 8j which was a bulkhead seat with 2 windows space,champagne was flowing,watched a couple of movies, then pressed a button and the seat opened up into a bed,pillows delivered and "bose" headphones on,then fell asleep,woke up over Plymouth UK and had cereal and fruit juice and landed at terminal 3, found our bags, then my mate who works at AA at Heathrow picked us up and i drove back to wales.
All thanks to my rnate who organised the journey and getting us first class seats when he could, at a ridiculously low cost.we went on standby tickets,hence the delay at ANC.

Some more artifacts belonging to Bob.
Miners lamp

 

[(RIP) rustygates]

Gold pokes
Candle holder with a cork on the pointy bit
Small gold dust hand scales

 

[(RIP) rustygates]

One of Bob's letters
this would have been flown up to Wiseman

 

[(RIP) rustygates]

the envelope.

 

[(RIP) rustygates]

front of letter

 

[(RIP) rustygates]

A letter to Bob

 

[(RIP) rustygates]

Side 2 of the letter

 

[(RIP) rustygates]

Another letter,these letters could take weeks to arrive if the plane was stranded in bad weather

 

[(RIP) rustygates]

Part of the shopping list given to the pilot for his next trip up to Wiseman and Nolan

 

[(RIP) rustygates]

Part 1 of Bob's Naturalisation papers

 

[(RIP) rustygates]

Part 2

 

[(RIP) rustygates]

This epic story is coming to an end,there are more artifacts diaries etc and the tragic story of Fred Haflinger,who we met on the way up to Wiseman,he was a gold prospector who lived in Livengood and had trouble with a particular grizzly that tried to get into his cabin.

If anyone wants more let me know or if they don't.

rustygates.

 

[solarman216]

This is a truly brilliant post, have enjoyed every bit of it, you have some really wonderful memories, photos and personal possessions, in remembrance of a great trip and a relative from times past, if you have more I would like to see, but I guess I am only one, and it has to be said a lot of work on your part, so thank you so much for sharing it with us, Rick

 

[briggie]

yup , been fantastic to read ( and see ) your adventures ..... keep it coming :thumb2

 

[larson]

This epic story is coming to an end,there are more artifacts diaries etc and the tragic story of Fred Haflinger,who we met on the way up to Wiseman,he was a gold prospector who lived in Livengood and had trouble with a particular grizzly that tried to get into his cabin.

If anyone wants more let me know or if they don't.

rustygates.

MORE PLEASE.. i will read and those that had enough can look at technical stuff instead. its nice to have a good thread on something a little different

 

[firebobby]

Loved reading it and looking at your fantastic pictures, thank you for posting.

 

[bry]

A wonderful story.Thank you for the time and effort sharing with us.

 

[(RIP) rustygates]

Thanks for the positive messages,as iv'e said before it was a journey of a lifetime and we went not expecting anything, but came back with some mind blowing experiences and finding out so much about Bob and his friends up in Nolan and Wiseman and then travelling around this vast open country was amazing as well.Having George and Clutch with us up to Wiseman and Nolan was priceless.
On our way up to Wiseman we stopped off at Livengood,which was about 6mls off the Elliot Highway,just a piece of wood with a fading arrow with livengood painted on it,it was a busy place some years ago when the gold rush was at it height but there were only a few cabins left and a very small amount of miners, Fred Halfinger was one he had mined there with his father and when his father died Fred carried on, he was a good friend of George's, the cabin was well looked after and well stocked as Fred would spend most of the summer mining on his land,and had loads of machinery lying around.