I've been accepted to college!

[shaniawarrior]

Hey guys!!! I got THE packet today saying I've been accepted to Radford University! At least I know I'm in one college now!!! :D I still haven't applied to my #1 choice yet though. Where ever I go, I know it won't take long for people to know me as the big Shania fan. LOL I just can't wait to get away from home! Now the hard part: What Shania stuff am I going to take to college?

A HYPER Shania fan,
Desiree

[cbspock]

CONGRATULATIONS WARRIOR!!!!!

-Chris

[Bryce]

Way to go Warrior!!!! :D :D :D

As for the Shania stuff. Just take the essentials. Which I guess would be evrything. LOL

Bryce

[FV]

CONGRATULATIONS WARRIOR! :) Way to go! Bring everything you have about Shania with you..ask Talk for advice! :) he has everything in that dorm room! LOL :D

[shaniawarrior]

Thanks guys! You're right Bryce! Let's see, that would be 38 CDs, 2 concert programs, 3 posters...LOL JK :D If I go to Radford, my roommate will be my best-friend, so I'll be able to bring a lot more Shania stuff b/c I know it will be safe with her. :D :D If I go to St. Lawrence, I'll ask to be in the "Beaver Dam" which is a hall just for Canadian lovers!!! I know I would fit in there w/all my Shania suff!! :D

A HYPER Shania fan,
Desiree

P.S.<--Talk, ever had any of your Shania stuff stolen from your dorm?

[talkalot24]

Hey Warrior,
CONGRATS!!! I know how you feel! :) Gee, what Shania stuff to bring? MMM, everything! :) I just ordered a Shania poster for my dorm room that is 1 foot tall and two feet long!!! I can't wait to get it!!!!!! :) :) :)

[Roger]

Well done, warrior. You're in!

Roger

[Roger]

Oops! I seem to have posted twice. anyway, well done again!!

Roger

[ 12-05-2001: Message edited by: Roger ]

[Twain Crazy]

Great Stuff!! :D We are all so happy for you. I think this is wonderful news & (I along with all your shania online family) wish you all the best now and always.

BTW I have to say I LOVE all your posts it's awesome to see I'm not the only one totally nuts about Shania. Hey too bad we lived so far apart we could hang out and have a Twaintastic party. Of course I'd wish for all members to come too.
All this talk makes me think of our Timmins fanclub party -WAS THAT THE BEST OR WHAT!! :D :)
Oh I can't wait until the next one perhaps the Diva will join us....OMG I'd die totally if that happened. Hey I'd sure love to try one of those Shania Sub Specials! I could draw her image on the paper wrap of the sub or something..lol :)
Best to all my friends here!!
Twain Crazy!

[cbspock]

Looks like TC and Warrior could open a busines. lol :)

-Chris

[Jud]

Congrats Warrior! And Good luck for your studies!

[shaniawarrior]

Hey Twain Crazy! I'm gonna hang up those drawings of yours in my dorm! They are awesome!!!!! Yes, the club party in Timmins was GREAT!!! I can't wait until we all get together again! I never had so much fun on a vacation before. :D If we lived closer, we'd be having Shania parties every weekend! LOL So, want to open that business? LOL I could make the subs, you can design the wrap, and then we'll grow into a HUGE buisness and become Shania's favorite sub. Next thing you know, she'll have a KK every morning while recording the CD and a Shania sub for lunch...oh, and she'll come to the "Shania Sub Express" to celebrate winning another CMA award! LOL (Man, do I have a LOT of imagination or what?) :D

A HYPER Shania fan,
Desiree

[byrdman]

I'm getrting together a menu for the Xmas party. Breakfast is a Krispy Kreme donut accompanied by a Tim Hortons coffee. Lunch is a veggie Shania sub, a side of dill pickle chips (see the Hamilton, Ontario concert), washed down by half a dozen root beers! :cool: Dinner is Shania's Potato Roast with a bottle of water and a straw like Shania drank from in Shania Twain Live. :)

Al

[Sheri]

You GO, girl!!!! Congratulations!!! I am sooo proud of you! :D

[Mary R]

All Right Warrior! Way To Go! Congrats!
Mary R

[DOC BILL]

Hey Warrior-CONGRATULATIONS!!!!!. Great job. I do have a guestion though. On your applications when it asked about your interests did you put you were a Shania Twain freak? DOC

[Steve F]

Congratulations Desiree. I know you had talked about coming to Maine to go, but Terry and I are happy you are moving up and on with your education. Hope you get a roommate who: "has no inhibitions, makes, no conditions, wants to make some noise, really raise a voice, yeah wanna scream and shout!" Well, at least about Shania anyway. I don't think that would be good for an overall personality. :D

Steve

[shaniawarrior]

Actually DOC, in the personal essay I had to include, I put that I know it won't take long for me to become known as the "Shania fanatic" and I went on about Shania for like the rest of the essay. LOL For my other essay for St. Lawrence, I had to write about the one person that has had the most influence on me and why. Gee, I wonder who THAT could be. ;) St Law. is only 30-45 mins away from Canada so if I get accepted there, Bryce, look out b/c I won't be too far away!!! LOL JK :D

A HYPER Shania fan,
Desiree

[Joni]

Way To Go Warrior!

Joni

[rtc]

Congrats Warrior!

Amanda

[Darrell]

way to go Warrior! :cool:

[Surfette]

Congratulations Shaniawarrior!

[Shunyeuh]

:D :D Way To Go Warrior! and good luck with whatever school u decide to go to! :D

Shunyeuh

[Junebug16]

Congrats Warrior! That is great! I haven't applied to any colleges yet...I am a prorastinator! LOL

bug

[Stan]

Congratulations Desiree!! I am so proud of you!! Radford is a great college. I went ot Old Dominion University.. in Norfolk, VA.
Since you are a Virginian, I thought you might have heard of it!
:)

[Bob]

Originally posted by shaniawarrior:
<STRONG>Actually DOC, in the personal essay I had to include, I put that I know it won't take long for me to become known as the "Shania fanatic" and I went on about Shania for like the rest of the essay. LOL For my other essay for St. Lawrence, I had to write about the one person that has had the most influence on me and why. Gee, I wonder who THAT could be. ;) St Law. is only 30-45 mins away from Canada so if I get accepted there, Bryce, look out b/c I won't be too far away!!! LOL JK :D

A HYPER Shania fan,
Desiree</STRONG>

Hi Desiree. Glad to see you're getting invitations to college. Those folks love to pick your pockets for tuition in exchange for making your brain work overtime. For all the work that serious college students have to do, colleges should pay THEM!

My school used to play St Lawrence in basketball. Where's the one you mentioned? And where's Radford?

Any way you can turn your enthusiasm for Shania Twain into a related curriculum and degree? If yes, you could qualify for a PhD before long.

Bob

[shaniawarrior]

Thanks again everyone! Stan, yes I have heard of ODU. I was actually going to apply there, but decided not to b/c I only had to apply to one in-state college. Bob, Radford University is in Radford, Virginia and St. Lawrence University is in Canton,NY,
not far from Lake Placid, NY where Shania used to live. Just imagine if I went to St. Law and Shania still lived in Lake Placid! Can we say road trip? LOL J/K :D

A HYPER Shania fan,
Desiree

[Stan]

Warrior, Radford is a beautiful town. So where is this University near Lake Placid?
We go up to Lake Placid (all the way from SW Florida) every year. By the way, there is a Lake Placid in Florida too.. ha! but doesn't look anything like the one in NY. It sounds like you love the mountains! I received my B.S. in meteorology from ODU and grew up in Virginia Beach area. We moved to Florida in 1987. Her home in NY is about 45 minutes NW of Lake Placid. A really nice place to visit up there is the Lake Placid Lodge in LP. Shania has done quite a few photo shoots, etc. there.
Stan

:D

[ 12-08-2001: Message edited by: Stan ]

[shaniawarrior]

Stan, you are correct when you said I LOVE the mountains! I LOVE the wilderness! :D I was very impressed by the surroundings of Radford University. The town is completely surrounded by mountains. I will definitely join the Outdoors club there if I decide to go to RU. The university by Shania's old house in Lake Placid is St. Lawrence University. It's a private university in Canton, NY. I love everything about it! It has a Canadian Studies program where basically the entire class is held in Canada! :D The class goes every weekend (or almost) and studies what makes Canadians different from Americans. It sounds really enjoyable. Plus, if I had to do a report on a famous Canadian, I'd definitely get an A++ on that! :D

A HYPER Shania fan,
Desiree

[Roger]

Warrior, it gives me a strange feeling to know there are Americans studying us. I feel like a specimen in a lab. But basically I personally feel this is long overdue. We Canadians know so much about you Americans. We are overwhelmed by your TV, movies and magazines. As our former Prime Minister Trudeau once said, when a mouse is living at close quarters with an elephant, the mouse pays very close attention to the elephant. One wrong move by the elephant and no mouse...

Canadians know we are a small country population-wise and generally (but falsely) considered to be boring, but it is still amazing how little Americans know about us. We are the other America. The one that didn't revolt. Instead of a country born in the violence of revolution and a century later torn apart by a bloody civil war, we are a country that gained our independence oh so gradually but peacefully. We have differences among ourselves greater than any that separated North from South in the USA yet most Canadians consider the idea of fighting about our differences to be unthinkable. We are like you on the surface but profoundly different in our social values.

Okay, lecture over, Warrior. If that didn't put you off Canadian studies, nothing will...LOL

Roger

[cbspock]

Roger, your just lucky Benidect Arnold [when he was still on our side] lost the Battle of Quebec, or Canada would be divded into states by now. lol :)


-Chris

[shaniawarrior]

Roger, I have done various reports on Canada since I've been a Shania fan. Actually, I've done a report on Canada every year for school since the 6th grade. :D I too feel that Americans should learn more about Canada. When I went to Canada in 9th grade to visit a school, our student guides asked if we had a Canadian history class because they had an American history class. They were quite surprised and disappointed to learn that we did not. I was the only one in my group who could name all of Canada's provinces/territories sadly. I think it would be fascinating to learn more about Canada. I absolutely love it each time I visit. I plan on making Canada a frequent vacation spot once I get older and on my own. I want to live close to the boarder. I actually started to take French in 8th grade because I had my mind set on living near Canada and visiting it quite often even back then. :D

A HYPER Shania fan,
Desiree

[talkalot24]

Some of us Americans have good social values! :)

[Bob]

Originally posted by shaniawarrior:
<STRONG>Stan, you are correct when you said I LOVE the mountains! I LOVE the wilderness! :D I was very impressed by the surroundings of Radford University. The town is completely surrounded by mountains. I will definitely join the Outdoors club there if I decide to go to RU. The university by Shania's old house in Lake Placid is St. Lawrence University. It's a private university in Canton, NY. I love everything about it! It has a Canadian Studies program where basically the entire class is held in Canada! :D The class goes every weekend (or almost) and studies what makes Canadians different from Americans. It sounds really enjoyable. Plus, if I had to do a report on a famous Canadian, I'd definitely get an A++ on that! :D

A HYPER Shania fan,
Desiree</STRONG>

Hi Desiree,

That outdoors info sounds great. You'd have been fun to have along with my nephew and me on my trip in Alaska wilderness in September.

Meanwhile, how's your mom holding up on the financial plans for your college?

I remember her in Timmins. A very nice lady.

Bob

[Bob]

Originally posted by Roger:
<STRONG>Warrior, it gives me a strange feeling to know there are Americans studying us. I feel like a specimen in a lab. But basically I personally feel this is long overdue. We Canadians know so much about you Americans. We are overwhelmed by your TV, movies and magazines. As our former Prime Minister Trudeau once said, when a mouse is living at close quarters with an elephant, the mouse pays very close attention to the elephant. One wrong move by the elephant and no mouse...

Canadians know we are a small country population-wise and generally (but falsely) considered to be boring, but it is still amazing how little Americans know about us. We are the other America. The one that didn't revolt. Instead of a country born in the violence of revolution and a century later torn apart by a bloody civil war, we are a country that gained our independence oh so gradually but peacefully. We have differences among ourselves greater than any that separated North from South in the USA yet most Canadians consider the idea of fighting about our differences to be unthinkable. We are like you on the surface but profoundly different in our social values.

Okay, lecture over, Warrior. If that didn't put you off Canadian studies, nothing will...LOL

Roger</STRONG>

Roger,

Thanks for your perspective. I'm especially interested in your stark contrast between the two countries in terms of their method of achieving sovereignity and unity (war).

1) To what do you (or Canadian historians) attribute that less aggressive approach?

2) Do you agree with the point made on the recent TV network documentary "Why The Rage?", which had young people from other (especially muslim) countries saying the reason they hate America (even though they want to come to college here) is because we are a big bully, who in their view, has never been brought to it's knees, like every other country has? They say we are too proud, bragging about all our good points, and all the things we've done. And we use our power to our own advantage more than is fair.

To hear the conservatives and some of the leadership in our country, only traitors question our country's motives or methods while we're fighting terrorism. They equate reflection and self examination with harm and no possible good. You and Bryce might call them extroverts instead of introverts. I don't favor the Neville Chamberlain approach (appeasing Hitler) either. But I think there can be a more sensible middle ground.

I wonder if the real traitors to our country's (and the world's) progress aren't those who ignore the causes of terrorism and engage in overly aggressive progress for our leaders in power and wealth, and for our country; with too little regard for progress of followers in our country and for progress of other countries.

Although we've helped other countries quite a lot, have had the Marshall Plan, and helped rebuild Germany and Japan after World War II, seems like quite a bit of that was started under less conservative Presidents and administrations. Also we've had McCarthyism where anybody who looked impartially at the pros and cons of capitalism versus communism, was not only regarded as a traitor, but was investigated, black-balled in career, and/or imprisoned.

There are faint echoes in my mind, of my great grandmother (who I never met) saying to my aunt as a little girl (she's now 98): "So stoltz!" about her country of Prussia near Koenigsburg in NE Europe The Prussians were at one time, the most powerful military force in Europe and had the shiniest boots and uniform buttons. And their health care and society was the best organized. But they got too proud. They spent too much time looking down their noses at others and pushing them around. And the others ganged up on them and banished them to the dustbins of history.

You did your soapbox. I did mine. (Yours was shorter and better. I have to go take care of my aunt, and didn't have time to edit this into a clear, brief statment.)

Bob

[shaniawarrior]

You've been to Alaska Bob?! Awesome!!! I have ALWAYS wanted to go there! As far as the financial stuff goes for college, my parents are stressing BIG TIME (as is everyone elses right now). They are pushing me and naging me every day to apply for scholarships. I've applied to two and am working on another three. Right now, the number of scholarships will decide what college I go to. If I get a lot, I'll probably go out-of-state if not, or if the scholarships I get make the in-state cost almost down to nothing, then I'll go in-state.

A HYPER Shania fan,
Desiree

[Roger]

Originally posted by talkalot24:
<STRONG>Some of us Americans have good social values! :)</STRONG>

Talk, I said Canadians have different, not better, social values. I don't dare touch the question here of whose values I prefer (try to guess!) so I'll resist the urge at this point to start another lecture...LOL

Roger

[Roger]

Originally posted by Bob:
<STRONG>

Roger,

Thanks for your perspective. I'm especially interested in your stark contrast between the two countries in terms of their method of achieving sovereignity and unity (war).

1) To what do you (or Canadian historians) attribute that less aggressive approach?

2) Do you agree with the point made on the recent TV network documentary "Why The Rage?", which had young people from other (especially muslim) countries saying the reason they hate America (even though they want to come to college here) is because we are a big bully, who in their view, has never been brought to it's knees, like every other country has? They say we are too proud, bragging about all our good points, and all the things we've done. And we use our power to our own advantage more than is fair.

To hear the conservatives and some of the leadership in our country, only traitors question our country's motives or methods while we're fighting terrorism. They equate reflection and self examination with harm and no possible good. You and Bryce might call them extroverts instead of introverts. I don't favor the Neville Chamberlain approach (appeasing Hitler) either. But I think there can be a more sensible middle ground.

I wonder if the real traitors to our country's (and the world's) progress aren't those who ignore the causes of terrorism and engage in overly aggressive progress for our leaders in power and wealth, and for our country; with too little regard for progress of followers in our country and for progress of other countries.

Although we've helped other countries quite a lot, have had the Marshall Plan, and helped rebuild Germany and Japan after World War II, seems like quite a bit of that was started under less conservative Presidents and administrations. Also we've had McCarthyism where anybody who looked impartially at the pros and cons of capitalism versus communism, was not only regarded as a traitor, but was investigated, black-balled in career, and/or imprisoned.

There are faint echoes in my mind, of my great grandmother (who I never met) saying to my aunt as a little girl (she's now 98): "So stoltz!" about her country of Prussia near Koenigsburg in NE Europe The Prussians were at one time, the most powerful military force in Europe and had the shiniest boots and uniform buttons. And their health care and society was the best organized. But they got too proud. They spent too much time looking down their noses at others and pushing them around. And the others ganged up on them and banished them to the dustbins of history.

You did your soapbox. I did mine. (Yours was shorter and better. I have to go take care of my aunt, and didn't have time to edit this into a clear, brief statment.)

Bob</STRONG>

Bob, I'm not going to touch your second question. For one thing, I am not enraged at you Americans. On the contrary, I like Americans and always feel at home in your country. I'll let people who are enraged at you explain that.

Your first question. Hmmmm. Big subject. At the time of your revolution, the French speakers in what is now Canada distrusted the Americans more than the English who had just conquered them so did not join it. The English speakers in what is now Nova Scotia just never developed the desire. Remember at the beginning of your revolution, only one in three persons in the 13 colonies actually supported the revolution.

Since that time, in the 19th century Canadians had a horror of American style violence and looked to the British Empire to protect us from it. In such an environment, we were hardly likely to revolt against the force that we saw as protecting us. Our rebellions of 1837 were never aimed at independence from the Empire but at securing more democratic government within it. Why haven't we fought a civil war over Quebec? I think it has to do with the fact we are already so decentralized that we are able to muddle through in spite of our differences. Canadians don't have a mindset to hold people against their will but Quebecers also sense that in a world of ever larger blocs of countries, creating a new one with only 7 million people doesn't make a whole lot of sense. I'd better shut up. Only Quebecers can speak for Quebecers.

Roger

[cbspock]

Since that time, in the 19th century Canadians had a horror of American style violence and looked to the British Empire to protect us from it. In such an environment, we were hardly likely to revolt against the force that we saw as protecting us.

Hmmm???. I think the last time Canada and the USA were in any battles was during the Revolution, [the battle of Quebec], since you guys were aiding the British against us. The only other battles I can think of was the French and Indian war, which pre-dated our Revolution. I know a lot about our Revolution, I studied it in college, I took a course called "Anatomy of Revolution", it compared the English, French, American and Russian Revolutions, We discussed the cycles a Revolution goes through. Then i took a course on just the American Revolution, an interesting book you may want to look into Bob, is "For Want of a Nail", it is an 'alternate history' book, it explores what America, and Canada would be like if the American Revolutionaries lost the Battle of Saratoga, which is considered the pivotal battle of the Revolution, since it got the French involved, in supplying us with arms, men, and training.

Wasn't Canada cut up between the French and the British, and the French lost it during the Nepoleanic Wars??


I'd don't know talkalot I think we were just insulted, the Canadian's are sounding kinda snooty..eh? :D They make us sound like a "hive of scum and villiany" :p :p :p
What has Canada ever given us....The robot arm on the space shuttle, and oh Shania Twain..so I guess we can forgive the Canadian bit of flag waving..lol :p :D :D so don't mind mine..hehehe... http://www.theunholytrinity.org/cracks_smileys/contrib/navigator/usa.gif

-Chris

[ 12-09-2001: Message edited by: cbspock ]

[Bob]

Originally posted by Roger:
<STRONG>

Bob, I'm not going to touch your second question. For one thing, I am not enraged at you Americans. On the contrary, I like Americans and always feel at home in your country. I'll let people who are enraged at you explain that.

Roger</STRONG>

Well thanks for your good sense Roger. I kinda worried myself about delvinging into that topic here as I left in haste for my Aunt's town. It's best done elsewhere, and by private email if need be.

And thanks for your brief reply to the other question. I can always trust you to get to the point - as long as the topic is one we're in general agreement about.

Bob

[Bob]

Originally posted by cbspock:
<STRONG>

Hmmm???. I think the last time Canada and the USA were in any battles was during the Revolution, [the battle of Quebec], since you guys were aiding the British against us. The only other battles I can think of was the French and Indian war, which pre-dated our Revolution. I know a lot about our Revolution, I studied it in college, I took a course called "Anatomy of Revolution", it compared the English, French, American and Russian Revolutions, We discussed the cycles a Revolution goes through. Then i took a course on just the American Revolution, an interesting book you may want to look into Bob, is "For Want of a Nail", it is an 'alternate history' book, it explores what America, and Canada would be like if the American Revolutionaries lost the Battle of Saratoga, which is considered the pivotal battle of the Revolution, since it got the French involved, in supplying us with arms, men, and training.

Wasn't Canada cut up between the French and the British, and the French lost it during the Nepoleanic Wars??

</STRONG>

Thanks for the feedback cb. You can probably run circles around me on historical facts. My interests run more in the vein of historical novels. The leather stocking tales, Drums along the Mohawk, Little Red Foot etc just lit me right up. The fact that the stories took place in the setting of the US Revolutionary war was somewhat secondary for me. For 'tis I, Chingachgook, last of the history fact readers.

When it came to the Civil War, I read the biography of J.E.B Stuart which turned me on. Then I got into Bruce Catton's anthological tomes. I read them during high school unassigned, like novels on my own time. I'm guessing that most college students drudged through them like the text books that they were.

Bob

[Roger]

Originally posted by cbspock:
<STRONG>

Hmmm???. I think the last time Canada and the USA were in any battles was during the Revolution, [the battle of Quebec], since you guys were aiding the British against us. The only other battles I can think of was the French and Indian war, which pre-dated our Revolution. I know a lot about our Revolution, I studied it in college, I took a course called "Anatomy of Revolution", it compared the English, French, American and Russian Revolutions, We discussed the cycles a Revolution goes through. Then i took a course on just the American Revolution, an interesting book you may want to look into Bob, is "For Want of a Nail", it is an 'alternate history' book, it explores what America, and Canada would be like if the American Revolutionaries lost the Battle of Saratoga, which is considered the pivotal battle of the Revolution, since it got the French involved, in supplying us with arms, men, and training.

Wasn't Canada cut up between the French and the British, and the French lost it during the Nepoleanic Wars??


I'd don't know talkalot I think we were just insulted, the Canadian's are sounding kinda snooty..eh? :D They make us sound like a "hive of scum and villiany" :p :p :p
What has Canada ever given us....The robot arm on the space shuttle, and oh Shania Twain..so I guess we can forgive the Canadian bit of flag waving..lol :p :D :D so don't mind mine..hehehe... http://www.theunholytrinity.org/cracks_smileys/contrib/navigator/usa.gif

-Chris

[ 12-09-2001: Message edited by: cbspock ]</STRONG>

Gee, I don't want to dredge up old disputes between our two countries. But, yes, we were at war again in 1812. Interesting thing about that war: you Americans think you won it; we think we won it. Americans invaded Canada, as I recall, both in Quebec and southern Ontario but we pushed you back in both places. I think your history books don't stress those theatres of war.

Canada was never cut up between the French and the British. The British forces defeated the French in 1759 on the Plains of Abraham at Quebec City. The French ceded all North America to the Brits in the Treaty of Paris of 1763. After that, the Brits stupidly lost the 13 colonies. It would have been so easy to satisfy the grievances of the colonists and they could have been kept within the Empire. Can you imagine if there had been no need for your Revolution? We would have been one British style country from Mexico to the pole. Linked to the mother country in one trans-Atlantic super country, we would have been unbeatable. Of course, now your country is unbeatable anyway as the world's only super-power. But you could have been a super power a century earlier.

Roger

[ 12-10-2001: Message edited by: Roger ]

[Bob]

Originally posted by shaniawarrior:
<STRONG>You've been to Alaska Bob?! Awesome!!! I have ALWAYS wanted to go there!
A HYPER Shania fan,
Desiree</STRONG>

Desiree,

Here's a little of what it was like. You could almost close your eyes and imagine you came along.

Alaska in summer, especially August and Sept has a lot of rain and clouds. Most tourists come up on cruise ships along the coast, with day trips inland well organized by travel agents. With only 1 day or so to visit it, Denali National Park and it's 20,320 foot Mt McKinley in the Alaska Range is rarely visible and many come away disappointed.

I chose a different way, organizing the 2 wk trip myself and making all my own reservations. It was a lot of work but it prepared us well.

We flew from Chicago's O'Hare to Anchorage in mid day Sept 5. As we approached landing, we saw the coast in the sun, with the blue Pacific waters, the islands rising up with green slopes to snow capped peaks and gleaming white glaciers. It was my 22 yr old nephew's first plane flight and he was higher than a kite, literally and figuratively. We flew over 3,000 miles for about 6 hours and arrived only 3 hrs after we left, due to the time zones.

We stocked up on wilderness camping gear, including camping fuel and big cans of bear spray which can't go on planes. Early next morning we headed 200 miles or so north by bus to Denali Park. On the way, we saw "termination dust." Snow had fallen on the lower mtn peaks and it meant winter was only about a week away. Near the park entrance, we checked in and set up our 2 tents in the campground. We hauled all our food and anything with any unnatural odor such as soap, toothpaste etc, 200 yds to the mandatory "bear locker" for the night. The northern lights were partially visible at night, through the clouds, which thin out in the colder air. By morning, we had frost on our tent.

We got up before dawn and hustled up the road to the Entrance Visitor's center and caught the first day trip shuttle bus (green school bus) out to Eilson Visitors center about 60 miles down the hilly, winding remote gravel road along the north side of the Alaska Range, where the wildlife sancuary and Wilderness Preserve was set up by Don Sheldon and his pal, Teddy Rosevelt almost 100 yrs ago. It alternated rain, sleet, snow and sunshine every 20 minutes or so. The first snow of the season signaled Denali wildlife it was time to move from summer range to winter range. Because of this, we saw twice as many animals as most visitors do. Moose, coyotes, lynx, fox, wolves, caribou, grizzly bear, eagles, ptarmigan, Dall sheep, etc.

Spring breakup of snow and ice happens fast in central and northern Alaska. Only 3-4 days. When the sun comes, it lasts a lot longer than down here in the lower 48. It lasts almost 24 hours in mid June and with the rich volcanic soil, the flowers bloom profusely in splendid array. When fall comes, it's the same in reverse. Only a few days of fall color, even less with sun to display it's magnificence.

So for us to take our first drive into Denali and see the first snow of the year, beautiful fall color, all these animals AND the sun showing the Alaska Range; well, we were just beside ourselves with disbelief over our good luck. I was snapping photos like a person possessed, returning with some 500 of them 2 wks later.

Our driver was telling us about the history of the place, and about the geology, the wildife etc as we encountered them. He got a little nervous driving on the gravel road with steep hair pin turns in the 2-3 inches of wet snow going up some of the passes with no guard rails and cliff-like drop-offs from the outside edge of the road. He asked if we wanted him turn around more than once, but we told him no. And we were rewarded when we got to Eilson. McKinley was in spendid view. On the way back, we got off the bus at Sable Pass and hiked about 10 miles along the road to Teklanika River Campground with a delightful young couple from New Zealand. We met a few other road hikers along the way but did not encounter any dangerous game. There was a large nursery of Dall sheep (ewes and lambs) high up one mountainside just where the vegetation ended. Then we caught another shuttle bus back to the entrance campground for the night.

Next morning we packed up all our gear and sweated our way under the heavy load, to the pickup spot to catch a camper bus and ride for 8 hrs and 85 miles to the end of the road at Wonder Lake. When we got there, we met some other campers who were really glad for human company and even more happy that we brought the sun with us. They'd been shivering in the cold rain and sleet for days. They were as thrilled as we were to see Mt McKinley in the afternoon sun, clear as a bell. Even though it was 27.5 miles away to the south, it was HUGE as we looked up at it.

Mt McKinley rises up from a level, 3,000 foot plain on it's north side, almost 15,000 feet without interruption, along the Wickersham Wall up to the top. Most other high mountains like Everest, rise from the shoulders of high mountain ranges; so there is not such a dramatic uplift all at once, right from the bottom. That's what makes McKinley and it's reflecting lakes below, such a photographer's dream, even if it is very elusive behind the clouds.

We spent nearly 3 days there, hiking, freezing at night, dodging wild animals, taking pictures and adjusting to the necessities of survival in the wilderness. We got stronger and healthier every day. And we had nearly full sunshine every day. By the time we came back, it was so much better than what we could have reasonably expected, we felt like the whole trip was a phenomenal success, even if nothing else good happened for the remaining 2/3 of our Alaska trip. We got pictures of a bull moose in a kettle pond one evening, just over a low rise out of sight from our campsite. Another day, we hiked north toward Kantishna, an abandoned gold mining town. We encountered an off duty park ranger who asked us if we'd seen the big boar grizzly just above the road we'd just passed. (YEEKS!) Another time we hiked 2-3 miles down to the McKinley River bar, through a dense, black spruce forest. Huge bear tracks in the path. Getting darker and more gloomy in the deep, rugged forest. Great place for an ambush. Then a big pile of bear skat with berries still undigested. On top of bear skat was wolf scat! With all these characters marking their territory so unmistakably, it made us feel pretty small. We decided maybe we didn't need a picture of a grizzer quite that close up after all and dug out our bear bell and tinkled our way out of there. Yet still another time, a big grizzer passed by upslope some 150 yds above our campsite. Some nearby German campers lit out after it with their cameras. 5 minutes later some Japanese campers lit out after the Germans with cameras. A few minutes after that a couple of Americans (Me and Mike) lit out after the Japanese. That poor bear, no privacy. Still, as we climbed the ridges above Wonder Lake, we were often lost in hollows and tall vegetation and we worried that the bear might have turned around and we might come nose to nose unexpectedly, with decidedly unpleasant consequences for us. It was with great relief that we eventually saw the Germans coming back, motioning that the bear had gone the other way. But for our fear and adventure, we got rewarded with some great photos of the whole campsite from high above, in the afternoon sun, looking across the wide river valley of the McKinley River, in radiant fall color, with the Alaska Range gleaming in the background like a white neon light in the sun. What a sight!!!

On the way back from Wonder Lake to the park entrance in the camper bus, we stopped mid-way at Eilson & I went inside to use the rest room. I noticed a peculiar situation in there. TWO faucet handles and ONE was RED and said HOT! A slow smile grew upon my face as I realized that my days of painful freezing water were over and I luxuriated as the warm water flowed, welcome over my hands.

At the end of the day, we called Caribou Cab and got a ride from the park entrance up the main highway about a dozen miles to Healy and Motel Grand Nord. Hauled our gear to our room and stood there dumfounded at the luxury of being back in civilization again.

About 3-4 days after we left, the park closed for winter. Only the rangers stay in winter, patrolling with their dog sleds to keep villians from poaching the park wildlife.

Speaking of villains and return to civilization; the next morning, on the bus ride back to Anchorage, the planes flew into the Twin Trade Towers and life would never be the same in this country.

That event grounded the planes. So we didn't get to fly to Juneau, the rainforest and the Klondike as planned. We did see and do other things including climbing and hiking in the Chugach Mtns behind Anchorage, flyfishing for salmon in the Russian River in the Kenai Peninsula, and some boating out in the Kenai Fjords to see glaciers calve etc.

It was the trip of a lifetime for me. There, now wasn't that fun Desiree?

Bob

[cbspock]

Roger, I think the only battle we actually won in the War of 1812 was the Battle of New Orleans.

Well, of course you fought against us, you all were lacky's of the British Empire..lol :) [no offense]

and we also bought the whole mid-west from the French, "the louisana purchase". D

as to the British settling with the colonists, that was never going to happen, during the French and Indian war, the British basically kept their eyes off of what the colonies were doing, then after the war, they decided to heavily tax the colonies to make up money spent for the war, something they had not done to that point, and as we protested, they passed the "intolerable acts" or what they called the "Townsend Acts", and that was the last straw.
-Chris

[ 12-10-2001: Message edited by: cbspock ]

[Roger]

Chris, I don't know if anyone has the patience to read all our stuff but, if they are, they are getting a history lesson!...LOL

We were not lackeys of the Empire, we WERE the empire!!

The whole problem with the British attitude towards the americas was: they didn't value us. India was the jewel in the crown as they said. India brought in the most money, followed by the east and west Indies. North America wasn't seen as very profitable for Britain. They had absolutely no vision as to the potential of North America. So they wanted the money back that they had "wasted" defending you.

A century later (1837) when the rebellions took place in Upper and Lower Canada, they didn't make the same mistake they did with the USA. They sent out Lord Durham to investigate and recommend how to fix the situation. He recommend more democratic government. They gave us more democratic government and then the colonists (us, the Canadians) were happy to stay in the Empire.

The important thing now is, Chris, that Canada and the USA are friends and allies. We have fought on the same side in two world wars, the Korean War, the Gulf war and the present war.

Roger

[cbspock]

:) :)

-Chris

[Roger]

Bob, what a wonderful trip. Thank you for sharing it with us. If we must stray from Shania topics, yours is a whole lot more interesting than Chris's and my bantering about history.

Roger

[drumbeat51]

HI Dee,

Congratulations, well, I was thinking here wonder if you are going to major in History, in particular, Shania Twain History?? Hehehe, LOL, well, that is great you were accepted..

[Sheri]

My parents and I used to travel up to Windsor, Ontario (familiar sounding place)for Canada Day (although I remember it being called Dominion Day??) every summer. Detroit would put barges of fireworks on the Detroit River to celebrate. The people there were always very gracious. I've talked to many tourists visiting here from Canada since I've moved here. One thing I've noticed is that non-French Canadians tell reeeeeally nasty French Canadian or Quebec jokes. What's THAT all about??

[Roger]

Oh Sheri, if you remember Dominion Day, you must be a lady of a certain age...LOL! That was the original name of Canada Day. I still sometimes call it that.

As for anti-French jokes, well let's just say there has always been a deep French-English schism in Canada. I look at it this way. I would rather see hostility come out in jokes than in violence.

Roger

[Sheri]

Thanks a LOT, Roger. I'm forty-gasp-gasp-sputter-four. I just have an EXCELLENT memory (when I so choose :) )

[drumbeat51]

Hey Dee,

Congratualations!!!, well, you deserve it and good luck in your college years and career!! :)