Welcome to the next post in my series highlighting states we have visited throughout the years. I hope you will enjoy coming along for the ride! I will be featuring the states alphabetically and next up is
Alaska
Alaska became the 49th state on January 3, 1959. The capital is Juneau and it is the only state capital that can only be reached by air, boat, or birth. The largest city is Anchorage.
We spent 50 glorious nights in Alaska in the summer of 2013.
I loved meeting so many wonderful Alaskans and hearing their stories. Wildlife, glaciers, boat trips, a flight seeing tour, eagles, halibut fishing, Denali National Park, taking the RV on the Alaska Ferry from Skagway to Haines, and a train ride on the Alaska Railroad are just a few of the amazing things we experienced while we were there. Our favorite place was Haines. The most exciting thing we did was take a flight-seeing tour from Talkeetna to see Mt. McKinley and land on Ruth Glacier. The farthest north we went was Coldfoot, north of the Arctic Circle.
Pullen Creek RV Park, Skagway, Alaska
Waterfalls along the Klondike Highway
Arriving at the Haines ferry dock
Watching for whales in Haines, Alaska
Bald Eagle at Chilcoot Lake State Park, Haines, AK
Haines boat harbor
Deadliest Catch!
Mendenhall Glacier
The free George Black Ferry crosses the Yukon River from Dawson City to Top of the World Highway.
Poker Creek Alaska
The signposts show other towns named after chickens. Who knew there were so many?
The Pedro Dredge in Chicken is a National Historic Site.
Santa Claus House, North Pole, Alaska
Downtown Talkeetna.
We went really close to Mt. McKinley
Loving every minute of our time on Ruth glacier
Home of author Mary Lovel in Sherman, Alaska
The Alaska Railroad runs right behind our campsite
Such an amazing sight to see their tail
Stellar Sea Lions on day trip to Juneau
Calving on Aialik Glacier one
A pair of Orcas on Columbia Glacier tour from Valdez
There were Puffins in the water
Sea Otters on Columbia Glacier tour from Valdez
Wandering Dawgs at the Arctic Circle
A good look at the Alaska pipeline as it goes underground
Four of these fish are ours!
Mount Redoubt sunset in Ninilchik, Alaska
Anchor Point is the most westerly highway point on a continuous road system in North America
Our first moose sighting was this cow by a pond
Lukor liked it on top of his house
Polychrome Overlook, Denali National Park, Alaska
Caribou grazing in Denali National Park
Do you see the profile of a face on the right side of the rock?
Chunk of ice from the Columbia Glacier
Fireweed behind our campsite made the beautiful view even better
Mama bear looking for more fish near Valdez
Every day was memorable, every day was special, every day we saw something spectacular. Was it worth driving over 14,000 there and back? Absolutely!
To read previous posts about the states featured in this series just click on the state name: Alabama
Our next destination was Mississippi River State Park in Marianna, Arkansas, about 150 miles north of Lake Chicot. When we stayed here two years ago we traveled on Arkansas highways between the two state parks. Since we had never traveled on the Mississippi side of the Mississippi River we took the long way and drove through Mississippi on Highway 61 (also known as the Blues Trail). Almost every town we drove through had some kind of Blues museum and signs pointing to historical sites.
We returned to Arkansas by crossing the bridge into Helena. With only about 20 miles to our destination, on Highway 1 in the middle of a construction zone, we ran right into a powerful thunderstorm. The rain was coming down so hard Henry could hardly see and the wind was rocking us as we slowly made our way north. The shoulder on our side of the narrow two lane road was lined with safety cones so there was nowhere to pull over to wait out the storm. At one point the rain was blowing sideways. We inched along until we finally came to a place wide enough to stop. Once the storm passed we continued to the state park and had good weather the rest of the day.
Beech Point Campground in Mississippi River State Park is located on a peninsula in Bear Creek Lake. Almost every campsite has a great view of the lake.
Early morning on Bear Creek LakeBear Creek LakeOur campsite was a great place to watch the herons, egrets, and turtles in the lakeGreat Blue Heron with two turtles
On our first morning we drove into the town of Marianna to pick up some of the delicious barbeque we had discovered two years ago. Jones Bar-B-Q Diner serves up James Beard Award winning pulled pork with a vinegary, sweet BBQ sauce and coleslaw. That’s it. He opens early in the morning and is usually sold out by 11:00 am. As we glanced through his guest book we saw names from Europe and Tokyo as well as closer places like Memphis. You can read about our first visit here.
Jone’s Bar-B-Q DinerJone’s Bar-B-Q Diner
A drive on the gravel section of the Arkansas Great River Road (also known locally as the Low Road) took us through the St. Francis National Forest beside the Mississippi River. We took a short side trip through an ancient pecan grove to the confluence of the St. Francis and Mississippi Rivers. The area is undeveloped now but a parking area and overlook are planned for this beautiful, peaceful spot.
Henry and Blondie under the willows beside the St. Francis RiverConfluence of St. Francis and Mississippi RiverBeth and Blondie beside the mighty Mississippi
Another day we drove south on a gravel portion of Crowley’s Ridge Parkway (the High Road) to Helena for a visit to the Delta Cultural Center. Interesting displays tell about the history of the 27 county region of the Arkansas Delta. Blues music originated in the Delta in Mississippi and Arkansas and one room was dedicated to Arkansas musicians who contributed to the Blues.
Delta Cultural Center
We planned our trip to watch a live broadcast of the longest running blues radio show in the United States. The Peabody Award winning “King Biscuit Time” radio show has been on the air since 1941. The disc jockey Sonny Payne has been broadcasting the daily show since 1951. We heard him broadcast show number 17,583. Every one of the shows started with him announcing “Pass the Biscuits!”.
Sonny Payne broadcasting the King Biscuit Time Radio ShowKing Biscuit Time Radio Show broadcast booth
The old train depot houses more exhibits about the region.
Delta Cultural Center DepotOld Man River Display at The Depot
While we were in Arkansas we traveled on several scenic byways. In addition to the Great River Road and Crowley’s Ridge Parkway we also drove on the Levee Road, The Trail of Tears, the Civil War Heritage Trail, and in Mississippi were on the Blues Trail.
Two years ago we traveled through the Mississippi Delta area of Arkansas and fell in love with the area. So naturally when we began planning our trip to Oxford we decided to cross the Mississippi River into Arkansas and return to two of the places we enjoyed back then. When we told our friends we were going to Mississippi by way of Arkansas they looked at us like we were crazy.
Our first stop in Arkansas was Lake Chicot State Park. I posted about our first visit here. After a long day driving through part of Alabama and all across the state of Mississippi, we crossed the Mississippi River into Arkansas and arrived at the campground hot and tired.
Lake Chicot State Park Site 7
We got set up in time to watch a beautiful sunset over Lake Chicot.
Sunset over Lake Chicot
The lake was beautiful in the early mornings.
Morning on the fishing dock
Lake Chicot is the largest natural lake in Arkansas and the largest natural oxbow lake in the United States. It is a popular fishing destination and many varieties of birds can be seen here.
Egret on the fishing dockCypress trees at Lake ChicotCypress trees at Lake ChicotCypress trees at Lake Chicot
On our first visit here we had our first taste of delicious Mississippi Delta hot tamales so of course getting some more was on the top of our to do list. One day we took a drive back across the Mississippi River to Greenville, Mississippi to pick up three dozen hot tamales to go from Doe’s Eat Place. We were in heaven as we ate some of those spicy tamales for dinner. The rest are in our freezer to take home. I posted about our first visit to Doe’s Eat Place here.
Doe’s Eat Place in Greenville, MississippiThree dozen Mississippi Delta hot tamales
One day we took a self guided driving tour along the levee which runs along the Mississippi River to protect the area from flooding. A gravel road runs on top of the levee and the scenery changes from borrow pits to farms to woods as you go along.
Egrets flocked to the trees beside the borrow pitsBorrow Pit beside the leveeCattle with Cattle Egrets beside the leveeCattle with Cattle Egrets beside the levee
Cotton is the number one crop in this part of the Mississippi Delta and we passed many fields on both sides of the river. Soybeans and sorghum are also big crops in the area.
Fields of cotton as far as the eye can seeCotton is the number one crop in the Mississippi DeltaCotton Bolls
Next up: A return to another favorite Arkansas State Park in the Mississippi Delta with some scenic drives, a museum, and award winning barbecue.
We’ve been watching painted buntings come to our feeder in the back yard for the last couple of weeks. For several days every time I set up my camera to capture these beautiful birds I scared them away. They are very skittish and fly off when they sense the slightest movement.
I never gave up trying and my patience finally paid off when I was able to get a few shots of a pair at the feeder.
Pair of Painted BuntingsThe male kept on eating after the female flew off.
Male Painted BuntingAfter she left he came around to my side of the feeder so I could get a good look at him. The food must be better on this side!
Wandering Dawgs 