Bear Sign, Dead Moose and Blackened Halibut

Today was a rest day as Rich was up till 1:45 last night working on the blog and posting pictures. After a 10 a.m breakfast the guys dropped their laundry off to be done and headed north to look for a fishing spot. They arrived at the Nancy Lake area and inquired about the fishing but everyone said it had not been good. Driving back to Wasilla the guys stopped where the highway crosses the Little Susitna river. Taking their rods down to the water they fished for a while and just enjoyed the scenery. Noticing two men loading a canoe onto the river on the other side, they drove over there and found a nice public access to the stream. Rich grabbed his rod and headed down river while Bill was just taking his time and checking his gear.
Rich slowly walked down stream on the bank and fished trying not to get hung up. No action until he got six hundred yards down when he hooked a 12 inch Dolly Varden trout and landed her. Moving a few yards father down he came across moose tracks on the bank. A little farther on he found half a moose carcass that had been cleaned to the bone. Farther on past that he found the other half, also cleaned to the bone. Beginning to feel uneasy that maybe a bear was in the area he began to ease himself back toward the access area. Arriving back at the car he found Bill in conversation with Lonnie Harshman a local from the area. Lonnie is a lineman and lives in Houston just down the road from where the boys were fishing. Lonnie has been in Alaska for 15 years and gave the guys lots of tips on where to fish and how. They were wishing they had met him their first day in the area. Rich and Lonnie also shared ideas on where to do ministry among the natives and Lonnie was a fount of info on that as well. Seems Lonnie has spent a lot of time mentoring the youth in his neighborhood. Hey Lonnie, thanks for a great visit and the offer of fishing gear. Hope we see you next time and can visit more in depth.
The men decided to go east of Wasilla and check out some of the fishing areas that Lonnie had shown them on the map. It was a beautiful and scenic drive from Wasilla to Palmer and then loop back to Wasilla to the north. There were some great spots to get to the river for king salmon that Rich marked down on his map for the next trip.
Picking up their laundry in Wasilla the guys went to supper at the "Bear Brewery" where they enjoyed blackened Halibut with fresh veggies. Man, was that good! Many thanks to the Wisilla policeman who told them it was a good place to eat!
Back in the motel the guys are planning their trip back and Rich a trip to Anchorage tomorrow to visit the Christian church there and speak to the minister about future ministry opportunities. Tomorrow will be a prep day for an early departure Monday as they start the trip back to the lower 48.