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After a few final meetings back in Fairbanks, I have one last weekend in Alaska before returning to England.
Some old pals (Karen Clautice and Carol Hoefler) get together and decide we should head down the
Richardson Highway to the Black Rapids Lodge south of Delta. We plan to end my Alaska book tour with a fun girls' weekend
out. Here's what a bunch of good old Alaska girls get up to.
| Along the way we stop at the pipeline. |
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| New friend -- a curious baby moose. |
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| We don't stick around long -- mama moose is near. |
| We arrive at the Black Rapids Lodge. |
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| As beautiful as the surroundings. |
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| Here's our room. |
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| The perfect place for a pajama party. |
| And here's our view at midnight. |
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We stay up late into the night catching up and drinking
home-made kahlua. Carol has brought her computer and is finishing writing up the history of 7 generations of her husband
Vaughan's Inupiat family combined with an Arctic folk tale on the creation of the 7 Inupiat tribes. Karen takes equisite
photos (including several on this page) while my job for the night is to draw a cover image for Carol's folk tale.
| Here is what I come up with. |
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In the morning, someone (not me) gets the idea that
we should climb to the top of Donnelly Dome. Realy? Are they serious? It's 2,400 feet above the ground level and I haven't
climbed up a dome like this in years. But they're serious about it, so after a good breakfast, off we go to see how it
goes.
| As we head up, it gets kind of steep. |
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| I am not sure we will reach the top. |
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| Finally we make it to the top! |
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| May 6th, Karen Clautice, Carol Hoefler, and me. |
| Up here the wind is howling |
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| but on this windy summit, girl power feels pretty good. |
It's time to say goodbye to the top of the world. Hard to
believe that in the morning, I will be heading back to England to a very different part of the world.
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It has been an unforgettable book tour filled with
so many vivid experiences and memories. Thanks to all the people who hosted me along the various legs of the journey
and made it all possible, and thanks to everyone who has followed the book-tour on-line and has come along virtually with
me. I hope this book tour scrap book has given you enjoyable imagery and some food for thought as we each make our own
pathways into the future. As my old friend Doug Buchanon, the patriarch of the Alaska climbing world once said to
me about the various journeys we take through life, "Have a great adventure!"
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From Alaska with love, xx Mary
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