Monday, May 25, 2015

NORTH TO ALASKA

I have been planning this trip to Alaska for almost forever.  This morning I departed home and headed west.  Yes, I am driving, driving very slowly.  This is not my first trip, the Navy sent me to Adak and Attu in the Aleutian Islands, and I made driving trips during the summers of 1973 and 1976.  The latter trip I had hoped to find a job there and stay. That didn't happen.  I've wanted to do this driving trip for the longest time, and this past fall I talked my wife, Ellen into doing it.  Previous trips were roughing it a bit, but this time I'm traveling a bit more comfortable. This is our new rig.

The purpose of this grand road trip, as with all my road trips, is to make images.  I looking for those things and scenes that talk about our culture.  Sometimes sad, sometimes poignant, sometimes melodramatic, sometime hilarious, but always relevant to my central theme: a landscape with a cultural overlay, the iconic and the ironic.

Today I photographed this in Petersburg, New York.  It is very difficult to make a Y-turn with 25-foot of trailer dragging behind you.  It was five miles down the road before a place presented itself large enough to reverse direction.  Even then it's immensely difficult find a place on the side of the road to pull off safely.  I saw these broken stairs but had to drive almost five miles before I could reverse direction, but so worth effort.
 
I hope to post almost daily, but as we move further towards Alaska, I expect to have less opportunity to plug into the web.  Onward.

6 comments:

ZZblaine said...

Terrific image, Frank, Well worth the hassle! I envy you all the things you will see, but I'm glad you're planning to make pictures! Safe travels! -blaine

photomark said...

Good luck and safety on your journey Frank. That five mile turnaround was worth it! I look forward to following you on your trip.

luksky said...

Wow, seems like an awesome trip! We have a friend who lives in Alaska and he has some beautiful pictures of it. Have fun and I look forward to seeing all your pics!

Ann McDonald said...

Bon voyage to you and Ellen. We can be with you vicariously. It's something that Craig and I talked about and obviously will not be be doing. Good on you.

Steve Williams said...

I look forward to following along on your trip Frank. Good luck and be safe. Post lots of action pictures here so we get a sense of what you're up to.

Best wishes,

steve

Anonymous said...

Best of luck with this long-anticipated journey, Frank. I’m looking forward to your images!

Subscribe to: Post Comments (Atom)