Tom and Carol's Great Adventure: THE REALLY REAL ALASKA

Our first trip to Alaska was to be a combination of travel adventure and family time. Carol had not seen her sister Kris for 10 years so we planned about half time of each. But since we had Kris as a resident guide, host and provider of transportation we really wanted our travel adventure to be away from the tourist Alaska.

Our hike up Flat Top had lots of people as it is the most hiked trail in Alaska. But it gave us a taste of the sheer size of Alaska.

On the way to Denali we stopped at Talkeetna which was authentic Alaska 30 years ago but now is a miniature Gatlinburg. Great lunch but we won't go back.

Denali was a WOW experience and an absolute "must do" but still all tourist.

MacLaren River Lodge was closer to what we were looking for. 100 miles of dirt road to get there with no people in sight. A dry cabin on a small lake. Talking with local people who had been there for 20 years. We were the only over night guests.

McCarthy got closer. A town of 32 people. A "hotel" with 9 rooms and shared bath facilities. Our second night we were the only ones there. And the only access is a footbridge across the Kennecott River.

The last night on this part of our trip I booked what AirBnb called an Historic Alaskan Homestead Retreat.

If you've clicked on the link you can see what the accommodations are. Rustic barely covers it. Log cabin. Outhouse a short walk away. Propane stove. No electricity. Nearest neighbor several miles away. 60 miles to the nearest grocery store. All of that fit our plans but we were completely unprepared for our hosts.

Beatrice and Jim Hitchcock are a living treasure of what Alaska used to be. And in a few rare instances like this one, still is.

Jim came to this plot of land with his family as part of the Homestead Program when he was 10 years old.

Seventy Five Years ago.

There were several requirements to "prove" your claim to the land you staked out. You were required to live on it for at least three consecutive years. You had to build a structure in which to live. Tents did not count. You had to cultivate at least 1/8 of the land. Jim says that it was fortunate that the rules didn't say what to "cultivate" - Jim's family grew turnips - or whether it had to be commercially viable - there was no one to sell them to.

The log cabin Jim's dad built in 1944 is still standing and used for storage. Jim built several more on the property for children, nieces and nephews. And now they rent one out for lucky people like us.

He bought a sawmill in 1955 and moved it to the property.

Sorry for the finger. Carol did not take these pictures.

So many memories for me. My Grandfather Cook was a sawyer for the later part of his life. I remember standing in awe as he rolled the logs onto the carriage, set the "dogs" and ran the log into the saw.

This lever controlled the width of the board.

This exact setup is operated in several locations around the country as "museums". Jim just uses it like he always has. He had a knee replaced a few weeks ago so he hasn't starting it up yet this year but will soon.

In 1958 he started Caribou Cabin Company building cabins and providing log kits.

He is currently building a new home for Beatrice and him.

Lion's Head Mountain from their "backyard."

The front.

My dad used to say that there were three types of woodworkers. "Cabinetmakers, carpenters and barn builders." PLEASE click on this picture and look at it full size. Jim is a cabinetmaker who works with logs.

The wood for this cabin as well as all the others Jim has built came from his land. I asked how he cured it in the Alaska climate. I didn't see a drying shed. Remember earlier when I said the buildings in Kennecott were in remarkable condition because wood didn't rot like in the lower 48? Well the spruce in Alaska has been hit several times by beetle infestations. This is not all bad in that it only seems to kill the mature trees. This makes room for younger healthier trees to thrive. But the dead trees remain standing and curing for years. These are the ones Jim cuts.

Here are some pictures of our cabin.

The front door. Ground level.

The back door with second story entrance. Used when the snow gets too deep to get in the front.

The outhouse. Note the shower curtain for a door. More about that later.

And an elegant outhouse it is. The purple foam in the corner serves as an insulated seat in cold weather.

One of the upstairs bedrooms.

The second upstairs bedroom.

They were very cozy and inviting. Which was a very good thing - here are the stairs.

Andrew and Finn getting settled in.

The living room.

Dining Room.

A delicious surprise waiting for us.

Kris starting a fire.

Stocked Pantry.

Our view of Lion's Head.

The Patio.

When I showed Carol the AirBnb pictures she got excited when she saw the sink. But then I pointed out that there were no faucets. Or drain pipe except to the bucket.

Remember those tiny steps and the shower curtain door on the outhouse. They might seem unrelated but not in Carol's mind. Sometime in the last year or so a bear got into the cabin. Luckily it was uninhabited at the time. Somehow it made it up those tiny stairs and for some reason thought that the foam insulation was his way out.

Here are the marks he left.

The connection to the outhouse? Carol was slightly uncomfortable with a shower curtain for a door after she saw these claw marks.

An advantage of living way out here is getting friendly with the wild life. This is a Gray Jay eating from Kris' hand.

We drove half an hour to the nearest restaurant and again found wonderful food in the wilderness at only slightly exorbitant prices. The Long Rifle Lodge.

Grilled Chicken Salad with LOTS of bleu cheese.