The second day I returned to the town of Wrangell for gas, food, water, and a stop at the library. I wasn’t hungry so did not look for a local cafe, that will come later.

The library is lovely with excellent Internet. The book and magazine choice is large, too. So many libraries now are DVD depots with few printed materials. Wrangell serves the population – and visitors well.

I expected high prices but the reality is always a shock. Nearly $4/gal for gasoline and $10 for a case of water (I bought two on sale for half price at the second grocery store). I found a potable water spigot at the public boat dock and will use that to keep my gallon jugs full. I plan to use that for Tango and doing the dishes.

Nearly everything comes into town on barges, which are loaded with the rectangular shipping containers. The town is laid out for shipping crews, at least that is what I am thinking. Near the docks, I found a laundromat with six shower rooms, a liquor store, and the two groceries. The small city park with the nice bathroom is also near the docks.

I came to town again on day four after breakfast, so I did not look for a diner yet. The every other day breakfast out is not part of the routine yet.  I see online that Wrangell has 3 cafes and hopefully I can visit each. The drive is a bit long (30 miles roundtrip) and with gas at $4/gal I am less inclined to dash to town.  I did enjoy a long visit today, stopping at the laundromat where I also got a shower and then visited the grocery. Tango and I walked all around town, too, starting and stopping at the waterfront. It is Saturday as I write, so everyone seems to be in town and everyone seems to have a big, beautiful dog. Tango is going crazy trying to establish who is boss on this island.

I am trying to figure out what is the MOST outrageously priced stuff in the grocery store Water, sodas ($8/case), orange juice ($6/bottle), condiments. Seems that he the heavier something is, the more it costs. Meat and veggies are not too bad. Cheese is high. Yogurt is ridiculous (triple). I found quarts of Coconut milk (calcium source) on sale, 2 for $6 so snagged those. Thank goodness for sales; I got a box of pasta for $1.49, sauce for $1.29.

People are friendly and say hi. I only talked to one person, though, and for a short time. He was waiting near the laundromat for a friend to pick him up. I noticed he had on the high rubber boots that are standard attire here, and I asked if he was going fishing. “Going to help a friend with his crab pots”. Then a car pulled up and off he went.

Wrangell has some touristy things for another day, including a beach with petroglyphs and a museum. On a weekday I will visit the Forest Service office and ask about roads I can drive in Alice (super low clearance). Also, I have mail coming to Wrangell. It went out from Deming on Thursday, but I won’t look for it until at least next Thursday.

I will eventually post pictures of this little town. I have to dig out my big laptop to upload photos from the camera, which is a hassle. Once I get more photos I will make the effort. Sorry, it is all text for now.

In town I have 3G service, so I called Verizon and had them put me back on my unlimited plan. At the campsite I have 1G, which really doesn’t do much. It must surge now and then because I picked up my phone to turn on an audiobook and saw that a FB comment had come in. FB is all I can get at the campsite or until about 2 miles from the town hall.

I am enjoying the long quiet days at the campsite, even though we are completely alone. I keep the computer and gadgets charged from the car battery and have lots of ways to entertain myself, even without Internet.  I even started doing Sudoku again, after a long break. Of course, I could and do watch the chanel and the small boats that pass all the time. 

All is well in Wrangell, AK. We stay here until May 13, then head over to Petersburg for about 10 days. Ferry reservations done!