Posted on by admin

Wrangell, Alaska: Home To Collin, Ethel, Zak And Mac The Dog.

We had met Collin and Ethel for a quick breakfast in Seattle in September before they had to head back to Wrangell. They were finishing up a long trip to drop Zak off at college in Salt Lake City so the visit needed to be brief. This time we got to spend about a week catching up with them. The last time we were in Wrangell was in 2013 when we were on our way to bicycle the Alaska Highway from Haines, Alaska to Bonner’s Ferry, Idaho.

This is the view of Wrangell from atop Mount Dewey. This hike was a short half mile but very nice with a good view at the top.
Collin and Mac The Dog showed us the way to the observation platform on Mt. Dewey. We would hike up to it at least once a day to work off some of the holiday calories.
As was the case on most days this time of year, Wrangell was shrouded in fog for a good part of the day. We did get a nice picture of these two trees embracing in the fog..
Rainbow falls was another wonderful hike through a thick rain forest. Southeast Alaska has a climate a bit like the Pacific Northwest. It had snowed a few inches over night and was raining and 35 for our hike to the falls.
Even though the sun poked through the clouds for a minute, there was no rainbow at Rainbow Falls today. This is the spot that Collin recently proposed to Ethel A magical spot it is.
A grand hike was had by all!
Petroglyph Beach is a nice spot near town where one can find neat rock carvings assumed to be created hundreds, if not thousands of years ago. We loved the driftwood stump that was the backdrop for a picture here 5 years ago too.
What has changed more? Us or the stump?
Scary looking petroglyh!
This one seems a bit more jovial.
The ravens of Wrangell are bigger than the crows back east. They have a much louder and distinctive caw too. He kept a close eye on us as we looked over the stone carvings on the beach.
A low flying cloud prevented us from seeing the snow covered mountains surrounding the island town. The cloud did make for a nice picture though.
Mac is not telling everyone my domino values is he?
Collin’s recent purchase of a fat tire bike works well for him. Lots of sand and snow to ride it through in the area. I did try it out so you never know…….
I had to give the new bike a try. Very different and very cool.
Time for a hike in the National Forest…..Well, the Island’s golf course is right in the middle of the forest.
There were no golfers on this PGA certified 9 hole course. Being New Year’s Day we had the place to ourselves.
This was a very nice view from one of the fairways.
Luckily we were dressed for the rain today. We did not see one umbrella on the island even though it is technically in the rain forest zone.
We found it interesting that this sign was necessary! Our guess is that there would be very little road maintenance from April 16 to October 14 also.
A nice totem pole outside the Post Office/Customs Building.
Collin got to serve me a New Year’s Eve celebratory beer as he was working his second job after slaving away in the CPA’s office all day.

We had to include a picture of this menu. We did not try the “catch of the day” but the burgers we had at J&W Fastfood were absolutely wonderful
Zak showed Collin and me how the game Crash Bandicoot is really played. We were mastering this game long before Zak was born but that did not stop him from kicking our butts.
I helped Collin assemble the Peloton cycle he ordered as a Christmas present for Ethel. Very cool machine.

Almost completed. Now the tech part with the monitors etc.
Ethel, trying out her new gift by riding a simulated ride with other cyclists all over the world.
A fun time was had at Zak’s Cafe for New Year’s Eve. We had great food and nice conversation. The cafe is owned by Ethel’s sister Katherine and her husband James. They did indeed name it after son Zak.

3 Replies to “Wrangell, Alaska: Home To Collin, Ethel, Zak And Mac The Dog.”

  2. Wouldnt it be neat if those rock carvings were left by some of the original people to cross over into America who knows how long ago? Cool stump. Cooler that it still remains after all this time. Is Collin the only bartender on the island? Just curious.

  3. Used the snow and cold day to get caught up on your adventures. Surprised at your Alaska weather. It was warmer than I expected. I am glad you were served fresh dead fish as opposed to old dead fish. The question I have is, did you obey the no shooting from the roadway sign?

Comments are closed.