I don't know much about Alaska gardening but I have heard that the zones can vary in Anchorage even a few streets away from each other. When ever you guys start a garden and start digging what do you look for in an area. and soil type? There's two ways of doing this, you can either decide what you want to plant and find a suitable spot for the garden (i.e. full/part sun or shade, well-drained or moist soil, etc.); or you can plan an overall landscape, put the beds where you think they would look best, and select plants that will do well there. I avoid dry shade (not much interesting will grow there), really heavy soils especially in combination with cool shade, areas under pine trees, low-lying or poorly drained areas, and any place you suspect might have been contaminated with building materials, an old driveway, chemicals, bad fill, etc. Hope that helps. If you have any questions about where to plant specific plants, just ask.

Karla, There are ferries over to Victoria and the Gardens and a trip should be easy to arrange. They say you need 1/2 day at least because it will take you at least an hour from Vancouver. I'm terribly sorry we didn't have time to do that. Good thing I'm not a MG! I liked everything I saw about Vancouver. My camera is a Canon 4 megapixel digital. 5.4 - 16.2mm. I like the 3x optical zoom but of course wanted more. Right before the trip I bought a 4x telephoto lens on eBay that really gave me some nice pictures. I would recommend a telephoto since the distances and views are so overwhelmingly large. Great for seeing wildlife on the shore too. Best suggestion: invest in the highest power binoculars you can afford. You'll use them constantly for wildlife viewing. We were sorry we didn't have two pair along because we kept handing them back and forth. Actually we did bring two pair but I gave one to my brother and SIL to use. In Juneau, if you are looking for a restaurant try The Twisted Fish just a little ways to the left of the ship's dock. The crab legs are huge and FRESH. Look off the pier behind the restaurant for the harbor seal and her pup. Seriously cute. In Ketchikan, walk up Creek Street and find the store with the Ray Trout fish and raven designs. Great t-shirts and cards. Before you get back on board your ship in Ketchikan, stop across from the pier at the Artic Bar for a cold beer. Be sure to go out on their patio and take a picture of your ship. If you watch The Deadliest Catch, look for one of their boats in the harbor - they were giving tours earlier in the season but weren't there when I was. It's expensive but try to do one of the helicopter or float plane trips. Seeing the sights from above is amazing. Will you be anywhere near Haines? The jet boat ride into the eagle preserve was a highlight for us. We ferried over from Skagway to catch that trip. Have a great time!!!!

April We did a road trip for ten days in August 2004 when our son was 17 and daughter 14. Flew in and out of Anchorage. We drove up through Denali but were disappointed we could not drive farther in but stayed further north and did a horse back trip For a full day. Wonderful! We were ALONE except for guide. We ride and have our own horses so this may not be for a novice. But you cant see that scenery otherwise. We drove via Denali Highway to Paxon. Gravel road only open in summer. Nothing there but scenery. Then south to Copper Center where we hired a small plane (landing strip was on the bank of the Copper River where the salmon wheels were running. so cool) to McCarthy and Kennecott. This was the Wrangell St Elias Park area and WOW! Far surpassed Denali. This area is just breathtaking and off the beaten path for most because you have to fly in. Cant drive rental cars. Road is too bad you would have to change tires. This is where the old copper mine is and glacier hiking - that was cut short by the bears... On South to Valdez and the ferry to Whittier (great WW2 history) Fabulous scenery of wildlife from the ferry. Then further south to Seward and back to Anchorage. The kids still talk about the great trip. This was ten years ago. Get your ferry tickets booked well in advance for the vehicles. And be aware that the potential to overdose on the bigness of it all its a big state lots of wilderness. I grew up out west upper plains states and am used to this type of car trip but some folks get a little antsy if they don't see a house for a few hours...

It was a busy day at work trying to tie up everything before abandoning ship for two weeks so I couldn't write much earlier. So now I'll address individual suggestions... Glenda I'm not sure we'll be doing the lumberjack show, I already feel like I've met them all through you and it's quite evident they have been spoken for. ;-) No Talkeetna so I'm sad to say, no moose poop :-) Talkeetna is one of the checkpoints on the Iditarod so I'm sad we're not going there. Nanny You and others have suggested Mendenhall and White Pass et. al, so they are a definite consideration. The idea of seeing the suburbs really appeals to me too. I agree, museums in AK are quite well done. Interesting, one of the most impressive museum-like exhibits I've seen was at the Alaska Native Medical Center. Happyladi I like the idea of renting a car in Skagway and taking that drive to Emerald Lake unless the train goes that way as well. I love trains. I subscribed to cruisecritic.com about a month ago to learn more about different cruise lines. I've been so busy at work that I barely had time to read it. I'll go back there tonight and take a look. And I'm all bummed out ... because of my busy schedule, I wasn't able to dedicate much time looking for my new frames/lenses until just this last week. I finally found frames I loved. After the eye exam at a place that doesn't honor VSP, it was determined even with short lenses, my script would not fit. I found another pair at another optometrist that does accept VSP. I go for another exam tomorrow morning and will see if they can fit my new choice. Why am I sad? Because of course I've sat on this project too long and now I will go on vacation with old glasses which no longer work for distances. Hmmm, maybe I'll pay for the $100+ exam for contact lenses and just wear my sexy new frames without any lenses at all, I hear it's all the rage in Asia. :-) Carol I sure wish DH and I liked salmon because people rave about the barbecues. I do love just wandering around places I visit. Sitka was my favorite stop last time because my travel friend booked a tour and I did not. I just wandered the shops, streets and neighborhoods. The glacial silt soap sound interesting. I'm a real sucker for unusual soaps. Cherbo Have not been to Denali yet, but one day. Kat Fortunately I have family in Seattle to ease the pain of not meeting you. :-) Socks We rented a Netflix documentary last night that talked about Haines so I jotted down the name. While walking around Sitka, I found the Sheldon Jackson Museum but didn't go in. Can't remember if it was closed or I just decided not to go in. The school next door was all boarded up and made the area feel kind of ghost-town-like. The Rainforest Wildlife Sanctuary sounds just up my alley! The ship we're sailing is the Celebrity Mercury. I was born in Seattle so family is meeting us down at Pike's Place. Where we're going from there, I'm not sure. We might drive down to Gig Harbor to see a friend of mine and my sister who probably won't be going to Pike's Place. Jodi-