"On the road again, going places that I've never been." (Imagine Willy Nelson and his gravely voice singing away.)  Do I ever tire of the adventure?  I am glad you asked.  In short, no.

I have been planning this trip since the eighth grade.  Never had the time, too busy, etc.  Now I am going before things get worse and all my retirement income evaporates into thin Bush air.

I am going North to Alaska, North because I can, North because it is Summer Time and that's what us flighty birds do.  
 
For starters I have imported some images from my GPS mapping software, to give everybody an initial idea of the scope of my plans.

In summary, I am driving north through Canada and then dropping into Juneau where I will be meeting up with my daughter Christa who is flying in from Hawaii via San Jose, CA.  We will tour Juneau together and then hop on a two day Ferry ride to Prince Ruppert.  We will drive from Prince Ruppert to Prince George where my daughter will hop on another plane back to San Jose.  I have not given any thought to an actual plan after Prince George.  I know I will be headed to Glacier National Park in Montana and beyond that, North Dakota to meet up with my sister.  After North Dakota, I will endeavor to return to California, eventually.  Eventually being mid July or maybe later.

(My lovely Hawaiian daughter in a two piece in Alaska.
                What a visual!  Let's harvest some goose bumps!)

I am leaving from San Jose on Thursday, May 22, provided I am packed and ready.  I need to make it to Juneau by the Third of June in order to pickup my daughter from the airport.  So I have to do 2,560 miles.  If I do 300 miles per my usual day, I need 8 1/2 days.  I am allowing 12 so I should be able to make it in plenty of time.  (Stay tuned for updates as I progress northward bound.)

We are going to tour Juneau for four days and then jump on a ferry. The Ferry from Juneau to Prince Ruppert, takes two days and costs five hundred bucks for the two of us and the car.  

We leave on Friday afternoon and arrive on Sunday Afternoon at Prince Ruppert.  The Ferry makes five stops along the way: Sitka, Kake, Petersburg, Wrangell, and Ketchikan

It is only 445 miles from Prince Ruppert to Prince George, so having five days to make it, should allow us some touring time as we mosey along.  We have to get to Prince George by Friday, high noon, in order for my daughter to make her flight back.  We get to tour together for 11 days total.  I haven't spent this much time with my daughter since her High School days.  My hope is that this trip will turn into a camp fire story for her and myself for many many generations.