Anna Morrison shares trip to Alaska visiting her daughter


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Anna Morrison shares trip to Alaska visiting her daughter

By ANNA MORRISON

Cinde and Anna

I went to Alaska to visit my daughter. I was gone the last week in July and returned on the 31st. I left the heat of Memphis to arrive in Anchorage, Alaska where the temperatures were in the 50s. Yes the 50s. Each day I called home to hear how hot it was in Holly Springs. The purple hull peas were in and Terry was canning them for me so when I got back I wouldn’t have to get those done.

Though I did not see any moose or bears or whales, I was still able to have a wonderful time and see some eagles.

My daughter has a cabin near Kenai. After visiting her in-laws, Eric and Sue Tollefsen’s cabin and watching her brother-in-law Ryan catch salmon on the Kenai River, we spent the night and then in the morning we headed out. My daughter’s cabin is in a place called Cohoe, Alaska -- Uninc Kenai Peninsula Borough, Alaska. It is on a bluff overlooking the Cook Inlet. The cabin sits on the bluff. As I watched the ocean waters some eagles flew over and landed on a tree.

I was amazed and wanted photos. As I was taking photos my son-in- law said to just walk over and get closer, so I did. I was able to get right under the tree and the bird did not leave. It was a young eagle.

I had such a wonderful time. We went for lots of walks up on the hillside where she lives in Anchorage and several times we had lunch or dinner with her friends. One of the walks was for about four miles and we took little Lucy, my daughter Cinderella’s little weenie dog.

The dog did so good. Such little legs and she was able to keep up with us. I was also able to see my nephew Matt and his wife Shannon and son Liam.

One of the other places we went was not far from her house and is called Potters Marsh. It is a boardwalk. Anchorage Coastal Wildlife Refuge extends from Point Woronzof southeast to Potter Creek. Actually it is just at the southern edge of Anchorage, where the Seward Highway meets Turnagain Arm. It is a large expanse of open wetlands. A wooden walkway has been constructed that allows you to walk out into the marsh a ways, parallel to the highway. They have recently expanded the walkway and had the grand opening of it that weekend. A few salmon spawn in the tidal creek and the walkway goes right over that spot. At least 130 bird species have been sighted in the refuge. Premier viewing occurs at Potter Marsh. Peak concentrations can be viewed during the spring migration from late April through mid-May when waterbirds stop on their way to breeding grounds to the north and again in late July and August when shorebirds begin to flock up in preparation for their migration to southern wintering grounds. I thought it was interesting that in the winter when it ices over, it is used as an ice skating arena and also for people to fly kites.

My daughter works for Hillside Family Medical as their office manager. She is a certified professional coder (CPC) and also certified medical practice executive (CMPE) and owns her own medical billing practice. She has just submitted her paper and wants to become a Fellow. If she gets it, she will be only the third or fourth person in the state of Alaska to hold one. Her husband Shawn works for the State of Alaska as a juvenile justice officer.

As I read Martha Thomas’s blog about her trip to Yellowstone, I was amazed at her writing skills. I wish I could describe to you the beauty I saw while visiting my daughter. It was breathtaking.

P.S. — when I got back home, my daughter called to tell me that there was a moose sitting on the lawn of one of the homes in her neighborhood. We had walked past that home several times with the camera and hadn’t seen anything. Sure enough, when I leave one comes out.

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