Monday August 15th, 2022
Denali National Park to Moon Lake Recreation Site
Shower day. I make coffee and break camp. Head to the Riley Creek Mercantile. Pay $4.50 for a shower token shaped like a bear. I enter the first stall. Door is wide open and I don't see the OUT OF ORDER sign. I take a quick and shivery lukewarm shower. See the sign when I come out. No point in asking for my money back, though. I'm already clean. And very awake.
The ride from Denali to Fairbanks is uneventful. Tree-lined road with clouds and not much to see. I battle with my demons. Critical voices in my head. I'm doing it all wrong, I'm wasting time, wasting money, I look dumb, what must people think of me... Typical anxiety stuff. I suppose these voices are always talking, but out here on the quiet wild roads their loudness makes me question my sanity. I'm not schizophrenic, I reassure myself. Just present with my internal turmoil that this life-changing adventure will hopefully assuage.
I'm not a fuckup. Even if I was, there's nobody out here to notice, care, or compare myself to.
And I do feel a shift. Not quite sure what it is, yet, but inside change is happening. Growth. Good seeds being planted.
I poke inside a couple stores in Fairbanks on my way through. At a co-op I buy some local honey, local tea, and a co-op t-shirt with a crow on it.
Alaska Highway 2 towards Moon Lake Recreation area is long. I set the cruise control and keep one eye on the road while my right hand scrawls sloppily in my journal:
Loneliness of solitude setting in. Dempster starts tomorrow. Nice lake rest area outside of Fairbanks. Lots of sun now. Straight for miles. Nothing to distract me from the remaining self-doubts that I have yet to conquer and resolve.
Pilot is in the back right now nestled in the sleeping bag. When I talk to him through the rearview mirror I can only see his ears and mohawk.
Stopped to pee at a parking turnout. Mosquitos are back.
My original itinerary includes a night in Eagle, which means traveling a pot-holed road north for three hours so I can pay ten bucks to rough it on BLM land and shit in the woods like a bear. As fun as it sounds, I've decided to skip it. I want to get a head-start on the daunting Dempster Highway. Tomorrow I will be glad I saved myself this extra day. Tonight I will revel in the endless golden hour at Moon Lake with my little dog.
The Milepost guidebook promises a three mile hiking trail around the lake, but if it exists, we don't find it. Instead we enjoy some lakeside romping and a nice long lounging session at the picnic table.
A muskrat paddles across the lake, just a little nose sticking up behind the wake of the fast-moving paws that churn the water. Pilot growls. I take a photo but the light is too low for a good shot.
A small part of me wishes I was sharing this experience with another human, but most of me is grateful to be doing this on my own, with only my tiny best friend as company.
I journal some, but there's not much to write. The sun is low and warm and hypnotic.
For years I lusted after the "lone wolf" types, not realizing that what I thought was attraction was actually a desire to nurture that part of myself. Now she's here, little me, little wolfie me, roaming the country with her teeny pack mate.
Good night, Moon Lake.
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Very cool post right here. 👍🏻
There's an honesty and brutal simplicity to it that works so well with the travel theme.
Nailed it. :)
I think when you're in nature your real voice comes out.
And it's a good 'un!
Aww thank you m'dear! It's crazy, too, I've come such a long way from even these accomplishments. The Work rocks.
Well looking forward to hearing more of that voice of yours :D
Sorry for the delay my side! I miss stuff. Also on the go here. I'm busy working that out so this doesn't happen again.
Happy crows and open spaces. Stay you ❤️
No worries about the delay, I myself sometimes spend several days at a time away from the hive, hence "delays" seldom get noticed.
❤️
Oh... I hear you.
Nice to know! I feel such pressure to thank everyone for connecting all of the time and answer everything asap. It's why I leave my phone turned down :D
Same my side so stay you!
Have a beautiful day, sister ❤️
My phone is on silent 99% of the time unless I'm expecting a text to meet Pilot's friends at the dog park. Which is why whenever I do get a text alert Pilot starts whimpering...
It helps me to remember how short my attention span is with social media, make a comment and forget about it twenty minutes later until I am reminded again by someone's response. Hopefully it works the same here, too. I made my "shit post" over two days ago and actually forgot I posted anything... woops! Could mean I'm busy. Or could mean I'm old.
😆
Or it could mean you're busy enjoying the moment!
I leave my phone on silent forever. No notifications at all. No ring tone. I gave up on being connected 24 / 7 some years ago.
I connect in my own time. At my own pace. And still too much!
I didn't have a smart phone for some months in 2022. Sms and calls only. It was fantastic!
Anyway. We might be getting old. That made me laugh.
But we are who we are.
Stay you. ❤️
!LUV
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An all-natural beauty. Thanks for showing us this piece of Alaska
My pleasure!
bello lugar me gustaria conocerlo algun dia saludos desde venezuela
Saludos desde Portland! Tal vez algun dia viajaras a Alaska.
Impossible friend my situation is not easy Venezuela but what Cuba
They say Cuba is beautiful! The music is amazing.
Cuba is beautiful but the socialism doesn't fit with me.
venezuela has good music , plaza , island , river , waterfall , snow , jungle , plain we have all but volcanoes
Venezuela sounds like dream!
All the photos are beautiful. Nice selection. Congratulations.
Thank you so much!
👍
I think you made a typo there, but either way, nature is really amazing in that part of the world. It's incredible how beautiful nature is in its true wilderness and especially when it's not bothered too often by people :)
LOL wooops thanks! I guess that's my subconscious trying to go back again this summer.
Raw nature is the best!!
Mesmerizing location, so relaxing... Thank you for discovering such a wonderful location...
😊
Thank you @innerblocks and @thekittygirl!
I agree. Amazing nature !LUV
Thanks for looking!