We made it! We arrived in Anchorage just after 10PM Saturday night. The sun was still above the horizon and it offered us unobstructed views of the snow covered mountains and numerous bodies of water that we grew to love last summer.

And especially this epic picture of the Great One. Denali! The pinkish hues of the setting sun added a beauty to it.

We are in a different location in Anchorage than we were last year. We rent a furnished apartment while we are here. As is typical in most of Alaska (that I’ve seen), freedom rings true in the ownership of property. The upkeep, or lack there of, of upkeep. I.e. no HOA’s. So as we drive into the neighborhood, a wooded area, there are nice homes. And then there are some rough looking homes. We pull up to our location. A quaint and well kept home with a garden level apartment that we will occupy.

We get out of the car and gather a few belongings. As we do so, I hear the neighbor talking loudly. It sounds like a young man talking on the phone. He’s telling his friend that so and so fought hard to find a girlfriend and now he’s being a f*&^$%^& p*&%$. You get the picture.

We walk down the stairs to the back entry. Thankfully it’s a well appointed apartment. Bright white and polished grays. Clean and cozy. The young neighbor with the apparent idiot friend no longer audible.

As I looked around the apartment, I came around the corner into the kitchen, fumble to find the light switch in the dark and was startled by an extra large rooster statue, sitting on the counter. One skinny leg hanging off. It looked as if it could come to life and end mine. Naturally I had to have a little fun with it on TikTok. (Make sure to follow our second season on TikTok! We are also on Instagram!) I envision many photo ops in my future with said rooster.

We unpack a little and settle in for the night. Thankful to have made it safely and feeling as if we had never left.

Perhaps we left a bit of our hearts here last summer.