While in Baja last winter, we got an email from Gene and Joyce Shea telling us they’d stumbled across our blog and were enjoying reading it. We responded, asked a few questions about them, and mentioned we were planning a trip to Alaska shortly on the heels of returning home from Baja. Turns out Gene and Joyce had already committed to serve as Camp Hosts at Deep Creek Beach State Recreation Area this summer, and we quickly became bloggin’ friends (or pen pals, as we’d have called ourselves back in the day). Gene became our “travel consultant” offering tips on traveling the Alaska Highway, commenting on our draft itinerary, and sharing thoughts on “must sees” and ways in which traveling in Alaska is different from other places. We’ve been extremely grateful for all their help, began reading their blog in early May as they headed north, and came to feel we knew them and were friends. As of last night, that became literally true!
Gene and Joyce had us to dinner in their Arctic Fox 5th wheel trailer last night! Gene grilled pork chops, and Joyce cooked delicious scalloped potatoes, had applesauce to go with the chops, and baked peanut butter-chocolate bars topped with berries for dessert. We brought the salad and wine. What a great evening it was! We stayed for FOUR hours, talking and talking, laughing and enjoying each other’s company. Between dinner and dessert Gene loaded us into his pickup truck and took us on a quick tour of a few points of interest around Ninilchik, places we’d like to re-visit in more leisurely fashion today or tomorrow.
So now our “virtual” friends have become real friends, and we look forward to crossing paths as we continue to travel in the coming years. They live in Montana big chunks of each year and promise to visit us if the find themselves in the Pacific Northwest.
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