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| View of the Malaspina from the ferry terminal in Bellingham, WA |
My journey began with a Cannon Ball Run - style race: after teaching kids on trail for 6 hours, returning to Old Shasta to finalize packing and cleaning, I headed out from Redding on an early Thursday evening. Fueled by Black-Eyed Peas' "I Gotta Feelin" , the audiobook "The Alaskan", tales from Robert Frost (thanks to JM for creating the awesome playlist!), and many carrot sticks for munching, I rolled into Embassy Suites of Portland at 2am, slept 6 hours, and continued onward to Bellingham, Washington. I had sped across the Northern one fifth of California and the entire length (South-to-North) of Oregon and Washington -- 420 miles total-- in less than 20 hrs to get on a waitlist for a ferry heading to Haines, Alaska! As I waited for my name to be called by the Washington Marine Highway clerk, I soaked in the dramatic view of the Bellingham harbor and the ferry Malaspina "You are on standby for the trip to Haines, and you're #1 on the waitlist", announced Mr. Bubbly Washington Ferry Employee. I was on my way to Alaska!
