We left Anchorage on Saturday and drove the 700 miles to Haines in three, slow-paced days. The timing was perfect for the fall foliage and we couldn’t have asked for better weather – that was until we arrived in Southeast Alaska. Since we crossed the border from Canada back into the US and into the Alaska panhandle it has been pretty standard Southeast AK rain. But it is amazingly beautiful nonetheless and still my favorite part of Alaska (Mike favors South-Central.)

Just a couple of hours outside of Anchorage is the Matanuska Glacier.1-DSC_8416Here is a fact I learned in our Milepost: Originally the Alcan Highway was built for (and by) the military during WWII and when it was opened to the public in 1946 it was renamed the Alaska Highway. (The Milepost is a must-have if you are traveling to or from Alaska by car!) 1-DSCF25371-DSCF2555Copper River Valley02-DSC_847304-DSC_8497This gray jay tried to steal our breakfastGray Jay06-DSC_851009-DSCF259808-DSC_8596Trumpeter SwansTrumpeter Swans14-DSC_863811-DSCF261810-DSCF2628Lake Kathleen in the Yukon13-DSC_8620The lake was so clear I photographed this trout  from the dock12-DSC_8618Bald Eagles in Haines1-DSC_8676Haines, Alaska1-DSC_8653Do you notice the rain in this photo?18-DSC_8766Tlingit Totem Pole on the Chilkoot River17-DSC_8713Brown Bear19-DSC_8780This must be the coolest video I have ever taken!