Alaska RV Tour - Part II of Anchorage, Alaska

On Friday, July 23rd I left Lynda and the dogs at the RV Park and went downtown with the Trek to get an oil change, have the tires rotated, and fill up the propane tank. I had an appointment with the local Chevrolet dealer - that which shall not be named. When I made the appointment, I asked how much the oil change would cost and the service representative said he would check and call me back. But, I never heard back from them and was soon to find out why.

After driving into town and figuring out the one-way streets, I was able to get into the dealership service area. And then I found out that they wanted to charge $150 for the oil change and $125 for the tire rotation, although they could not balance the tires. Yikes! After telling the customer service representative the dealership is gouging motorhome customers, I walked out and used the GPS to locate a truck tire shop. Those folks rotated and balanced the tires for $60 and recommended another place for the oil change. I paid $74 for the oil change and it was done within 45 minutes. Then I filled up on propane at a gas station near the RV park and was back home by 11 AM.

We spent the rest of Friday relaxing and I decided to make a nice dinner, including roasting some potatoes in the microwave/convection oven. And this is when the oven made an awful groaning sound and then quit... for good. Yes, it was kaput! In all fairness to this microwave/convection oven, it was 13 years old and we had been using it every day. Anyway, I tagged along with Roger the next morning, Saturday, while he was running some errands. We went to two or three places but I could not find any microwave/convection oven combinations. So then I borrowed the van and ran around some more. After hitting at least 8 stores, I gave up and returned to the Trek with a microwave and a separate convection oven. What a pain! By that time, we had to get ready to go out to a group dinner and I could not finish installing the new microwave. I would have to finish it off later that night.

So our group went to dinner at the Sourdough Mining Company - as it turns out, this place is right next to the tire shop that took care of the Trek on Friday. I had to chuckle at that. Anyway, the Sourdough Mining Company specializes in serving large quantities of food to large quantities of people and so the food is average at best. Its a fun place for kids, but that's about it. After the meal, we went to the show next door, "The Adventures of Dusty Sourdough". This is really all part of the same experience; you can take in this show after dinner if you want.

Afterwards, we went across the street to the Wildberry Products and Chocolate Factory and watched a film about Alaska. Then we went next door to see their infamous chocolate waterfall and walk around the gift shop. I actually relented and bought something: a 4-DVD set entitled, Alaska, Into the Wilderness, which we'll watch when time permits.

Although we were both tired when we got back to the RV, I finished installing the microwave before going to sleep - we were going on an all-day tour in the morning and then leaving for Homer, Alaska the morning after.

The next day, Sunday, most of our group rode the train from Anchorage to Whittier, where we boarded the Klondike Express for their 26 Glacier Tour which goes 135 miles around Prince William Sound.

Although the day was rainy and cold, this was a really good trip! We spotted numerous sea otters, a small group of sea lions, and (of course) lots of glaciers.

Here is a map of the Klondike's route and the glaciers we saw... click here to see our photos of the tour.

And, in case you haven't already seen them, click here to see our other photos of the Anchorage visit.

Next, on to Homer Alaska - stay tuned!