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Thursday, August 10, 2006

The first days

I don't have much free time or computer access right now, but it seems prudent to let my friends and family know that Geo and I made in to Juneau. We left Palmer and drove, drove, drove through the night. Around 3 a.m., I stopped at a lookout near the pass at Haines Junction and passed out on a bench for three hours before driving the last 100 miles to Haines to catch my ferry. That Alaska highway is really not built for a loaded-down Geo driving in the ungodly hours of the morning. I made it over the endless potholes and gravel patches OK, but I came precariously close to running out of gas when I drove 150 miles without seeing an open gas station — and, more importantly, I ran out of any access to cold caffinated beverages. Still, I gotta hand it to Geo. He's been through a lot, and he's been a good car.

Right now I'm homeless and logging in long training days at my new job. I'm staying at a National Forest campground on a lake near the Mendenall Glacier. It's fun to wake up every morning to a view of large chunks of ice floating in the deep blue water, but living in Juneau in a tent during the rainy season is not as romantic as it sounds. I have to take showers to dry out.

I've found the time to do exactly one bike ride, and haven't even really spent any time looking for a home yet, so my plan tomorrow is to spend an entire day riding my bike to all of the available places within a 12-mile radius. Only a 70 percent chance of rain tomorrow. Not bad.

11 comments:

  1. You *must* be crazy.

    You took a new job in a new city and you're living in a tent?

    I'm 46 years old and if I had to do it over again..........I woulda probably did something similar.

    Have fun :-)

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  2. Jill, you are truly amazing! Your drive to LIVE your life provides a means for multitudes to vicariously live too. Keep doing what you do.

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  3. Hi Jill, good to hear you're in Juneau! Nice wolf pic, by the way! I snatched it for a desktop background! Have a great one and good fortune in the house hunting!

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  4. Good luck with the Juneau housing market. You'll pay more in rent, but you'll make it all back renting out every inch of floor space during Folk Fest.

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  5. So glad you are there safely. Now I am looking forward to reading that you are safe and sound in a warm home soon.

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  6. So cool to see you made it ok, and living in a tent rocks. Well, for a little bit, anyway. Hope you find a nice place soon, and enjoy your new town.

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  7. I second rick j's comment! Quite the adventure you're on!! Too cool!

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  8. When my wife and I finished the Appalachian Trail in 2001 and decided to relocate to northeastern Minnesota we ended up camping in a nearby State park until we found a place. The hardest part was not having a phone. We kept getting voicemail when we would respond to ads for rental places. We couldn't leave a message because we didn't have a phone for people to call us back on. Luckily we finally called a number and a real live person answered. That one worked out for us.

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  9. You look tired get some rest...

    Good luck on finding a home =)

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  10. I've been enjoying your blog and promise to send many good vibes your way! I feel your pain when it comes to driving long distances...as one who lives in the SECOND largest state in the U.S. (but don't let my fellow Texans see that I typed that!)...getting between places in Texas is often a multi-hour affair...

    Take care Jill!

    Justin

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  11. Cool beans!

    Man, this is the kind of adventure you can talk about for the rest of your life.

    Relax, it will happen when it happens. Try to enjoy what you can and write all about it. Its all good!

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