We took it easy in the morning and I had my normal breakfast. There was a really low ceiling, and I couldn't even see Skyline Drive along the top of the hill! I worked up a blog entry. Ken and Chris came to the dock, and after they finished talking with someone else, we invited them into the RV for a tour. After the tour was over and we were about to say goodbye again, Chris let us know that the bear trip yesterday was their last trip ever, as in Emerald Air Service was shutting down. They already have their buildings and airplane up for sale, but they won't be selling their business per se because Ken and Chris are Emerald Air Service. They had been doing bear trips for 23 years, and were the first to do educational day trips. They were instrumental in changing the public's perception of brown bears from a ferocious animal that should almost be shot on site to a peaceful, yet still powerful, animal that can coexist with humans if we treat each other properly. Chris invited us each to take a pair of hip waders with us, so we went out to select a good pair. Chris discovered a pair of Cabela's hip waders with a rubber boot piece attached to a lighter-weight upper leg section, and J loved them. All of the used Hodgeman hip waders were starting to deteriorate where they flex above the ball of the foot, so Chris went into the office and brought back a brand new pair for me to take — unbelievable. I had been saddened that Emerald Air Service was shutting down, and now I was being blown away by their unbelievable kindness! We said goodbye again, then went back to the RV for a bit before leaving in the Jeep at 10:15.

We went to the Emerald Air Service office on the Spit to pick up some free t-shirts, and Ken and Chris were there. We picked up some t-shirts, and Ken suggested that we take a hat too, and J picked up a copy of Living In Harmony With Bears. We left at 10:39 and returned ...

To the RV. We finished prepping things to move, then left at 10:51 with me in the RV and J following in the Jeep.

We stopped at the Alaska Islands and Oceans Visitor Center at 10:55 so I could look at an exhibit by local nature photographers. J had gone there yesterday while I was on the bear trip, and she wanted me to see one photograph in particular. Unfortunately, they were taking down the exhibit when we arrived, but I was able to see the picture that J wanted me to see. There were also many other nice images still on display, and I enjoyed the stop.

We went to the Petro Express to get 12 gallons (45l) of gas in the RV so we could make it back to Anchorage and cheaper gas. I hooked up the Jeep while J did the fueling. We left at 11:25.

Shortly before reaching the junction of the Seward Highway, I realized that we wouldn't have enough gas to reach Anchorage. :(

We stopped at the Tesoro in Girdwood at 2:56 to get a few more gallons of gas so we could continue on to Anchorage.

We stopped at the REI in Anchorage at 3:49 so I could pick up some Camp Suds soap. I had been using Coleman camp soap, but after using the small bottles to refill a Sani-Staytion pump soap dispenser, the soap that's coming out now is getting thicker and thicker and no longer seems to be as effective as it used to be. I had used a small bottle of Camp Suds when I was at Wonder Lake recently, and that worked great, so I'll switch over to using that in the RV. I had started using the Coleman camp soap because it was available at WalMart so we wouldn't have to carry as much around with us. We left at 3:56.

We stopped at the Carrs grocery store on the northeast side of Anchorage around 4:12 to fill up the RV and the Jeep. The pumps were spaced such that I could fuel both at the same time. :) We left at 4:37.

We stopped at the brand new Best Buy on the northeast side of Anchorage at 4:48 to pick up a new Epson Artisan 800 printer/scanner for J. Her old Epson RX580 started having roller problems and the paper had been jamming all the time. We recycled the old printer for a $10 fee, but we also got a $10 gift card too. We left at 5:00.

We went to a nearby Taco Bell for takeaway. I had a 1/2-lb combo burrito, J got a taco supreme, and we split an enchirito. We each had a caramel apple empanada for dessert. We left at 5:38.

We got to D&RA's around 6:29 and J went straight inside to visit. As I was unhooking the Jeep, RA came home after taking her granddaughter to see The Lion King musical in Anchorage. I leveled the RV and hooked up the electricity, then went inside to visit too. Tootie, their golden retriever, was happy to see me and climbed up on the couch and me so she could get some nice attention. :) We went back out to the RV around 7:45, and I processed images for the next blog entry.