And That's a Wrap!

This was our fourth Alaskan RV Adventure; the others were in 2010, 2014 & 2016. (See my other blogs on each of those trips.)  This was a trip made possible through friends we have in Fairbanks, with whom we have been bartering our timeshare in Hawaii for their 29' Winnebago. It's worked out well for both families!

RVing is liberating, allowing you to really go with the flow, so long as you don't overbook things or underestimate the drive times between places. We pushed the limits a couple of times, but we knew what we were in for. Also for the first time ever (for us) . . . it rained EVERY SINGLE DAY! Some days there were also times of clearing and sunny skies, or the rain was mostly overnight. But it was weird to have rain throughout Alaska (Fairbanks, Denali NP, Kenai/Homer, MatSu Valley, Valdez and back up the Richardson to Fairbanks). Fishing was pretty miserable 2 of the 3 days out in Prince William Sound too, due to the rain.

Regarding the RV and gasoline expenses . . . we drove the motorhome 1,547 miles. We purchased 225.34 gallons giving us 6.87 MPG (which is consistent with prior years with this same 2006 29' Winnebago). We spent $553.01 for fuel, so the average cost/gallon was $2.45. We also used 7 gallons of propane @ $3.49/gallon for the 15 days (for cooking & heat).

For those who are interested, the lowest we paid was gasoline was $2.27/gallon (Trapper Creek . . . almost always the least expensive in AK when we've been there over the summer). The most expensive, again consistent with past trips, was in Valdez at $2.93/gallon.

This year was unusual in that the only meals we ate out were our very first (breakfast our first morning in Fairbanks) and our very last (dinner just hours before catching our flight out of Fairbanks 15 days later).   Dinner aboard the Sea Duction with Jan & Eric were our two really nice meals . . . steak dinner our first night, and fresh halibut w/roasted carrots the second.

We shopped at Safeway and Fred Meyer for groceries, and ate pretty well. Breakfasts were everything from eggs & bacon to pancakes and sausage.  Dinners were generally pretty simple . . . spaghetti or sandwiches . . . or a nice DiGiorno frozen pizza!  And some evenings we indulged with s'mores or freshly picked raspberries over vanilla ice cream.

Here is a sample of our meals and desserts over the two weeks!

I really hope folks have enjoyed this blog and the photos!  David & I believe this very well may have been our last trip to Alaska.  Those who know me, know I say "Never say never . . . and never say always" but we simply don't see us returning in the near future.

We are now in "retirement planning mode" which means saving money, focusing on getting our home ready to sell and downsizing from a four-bedroom home FULL of stuff, to far less when we leave Wisconsin for a smaller retirement size home somewhere in the rural south.

I love Alaska and hope to maybe make it back one day . . . so who knows?  We've been blessed with many fabulous trips and wonderful experiences.  We have made friends over the past 15 years, since that very first "once in a lifetime" trip to Anchorage that we took thanks to my work sending me there in June 2006.  I know, rough break!

Once in a lifetime!  HA!!!  That was how I convinced David to join me that very first time . . . and now we've been back five times together (2010, 2014, 2016, 2019 and 2020)!  I have also been five other times solo or with other friends interested in Alaska (2007. 2008, 2010, 2011 . . . all winter trips involving sled dogs,  mushing and winter activities; plus my solo trip in 2011 for the Denali Road Lottery in September).

Thank you ALASKA for being there . . . thank you for the gift of adventure and marvel.  But I want to especially thank all of the wonderful people I've met and learned from.  The Alaskan culture is unique and inspiring. I truly hope this isn't "goodbye" forever.