Copper River

Good things come to those who wait.

We'd waited several weeks and behold, our schedules meshed

and we both had Friday and Saturday off!

Time to head south on the Richardson Highway to the coast,

our destination the Port of Valdez.

We followed the pipeline on its last 400 miles to its terminal point.

The trip's scenery was--again, I am at a loss for words.

I've worn out marvelous, beautiful, and breathtaking...

I feel I am at one with this earth, a part of the mountains, the lakes, the tall firs,

cascading glacier-fed waterfalls and meandering rivers.

In the midst of this wonderful scenery, no words are needed.

We gazed upon God's creation out all the car windows,

silent much of the time.

Sighing. Reflecting. Feeling small. Alone yet not lonely.

The Copper River was named for the mineral found in abundance there.

In its time, in made this area wealthy.

Today it is just lovely, the mining industry gone.

Located in the Wrangell-St Elias National Park

(the largest park in the USA, twice the size of Switzerland and

with taller mt peaks from 4 separate mountain ranges),

we spent the night at the Copper River Princess Hotel.

Though the clouds hid most of these high peaks, we studied the poster

and searched for shadows of the snowcaps in the distance.

True to the other Princess Wilderness Resorts we've been in,

this one also had a theme.

Copper.

The fireplace mantle, outer walls, registration desk and trims were of copper.

The lamp in our room had a copper base.

Very nice touch.

The resort is tucked high on a private road and rather hidden.

The back wall was all windows facing the mountains.

Its window boxes overflowed with color and variety.

These are the restaurant windows, mountain-viewed and trimmed with

an array of flowering planters.

The deck tables were inviting, but the chill in the air drew us indoors to the crackling fire and soft chairs facing the vista.

We'd had mostly rain on the trip,

but the sun made a welcome appearance late in the day.

We took the opportunity to zip up our warm coats and even put on some gloves

and venture out to admire the grounds.

How special to have this time together in a new place.

A new adventure.

And much more in store for the next day when we'd follow that

pipeline for 100 more miles.

Can you look behind us and see both the Copper River and the pipeline?