We ended our trip in Fairbanks. The final part of the tour was a Sternwheel Boat Ride, which talked about the history of the area, from Susan Butcher winning the Iditerod to a “Living Museum” Athabascan Village.

I didn’t take many pictures in Fairbanks, so this last post is just random pictures of things I liked.

Whittier

Byers Lake

Salmon wheel

Fairbanks (June 23):
Sunrise 2:59 AM
Sunset 12:48 AM
Temperatures 55 – 72 F

Fairbanks (June 24):
Sunrise 3:00 AM
Sunset 12:48 AM
Temperatures 52 – 68 F

Fairbanks (June 25):
Sunrise 3:01 AM
Sunset 12:47 AM
Temperatures 50s – 70s F

Fairbanks (June 26):
Sunrise 3:03 AM
Temperature 56 F

We saw a brief glimpse of Denali from Talkeetna and Denali State Park, but for the most part the mountain stayed hidden.

That didn’t mean there wasn’t plenty of other gorgeous scenery, however.

How’s that for a hotel view?

Denali State Park (June 21):
Sunrise 4:05 AM
Sunset 12:01 AM
Temperatures 44 – 70 F

Denali National Park (June 22):
Sunrise 3:40 AM
Sunset 12:19 AM
Temperatures 47 – 70 F

At Denali State Park and Denali National Park we got to do a lot more wandering around in the woods, in addition to the Byers Lake Nature Walk and Denali Walking Tour we took.

There was also a Natural History Bus Tour through Denali, where almost as soon as we entered the park we mother moose and foals.

Further into to park I saw snowshoe hare.

And plenty of birds everywhere, but the only bird I got a half decent picture of was this magpie

On our hike we saw several Red Squirrels

And at the end of that hike we got to see a goshawk nest with babies (none of my pictures turned out anything but blurry) which according to our guide is very rare.

In Fairbanks, Tania took us to the UAF large animal farm where we got to see Musk Ox (they might have been one of Jules’ favorite parts).

Although we didn’t get to take the train from Whittier to Fairbanks, we did get to spend several days in Denali.

From Talkeetna, we went to Denali State Park / Trapper Creek, AK.

There were did a nature walk at Byers Lake, where (despite it being mid-June) I got to see lots of spring wildflowers.

Ground Dogwood/Bunchberry

Black Lily

Arctic Starflower

Beach-head Iris

Then we got on another bus and went to Denali National Park (this was one of the least interesting legs of the journey) where there were even MORE spring wildflowers.

Arctic lupine is really pretty.

Although I think the bluebells we have here a prettier, the tall bluebells were still pretty.

Maybe a Naked-stemmed Wallflower?

Small-flower Anemone

Yes, it did rain on us briefly, but it wasn’t cold, so the rain just made everything sparkly.

Snow Arnica

Ground Dogwood/Bunchberry

All in all, I was delighted to enjoy a new batch of mostly new-to-me spring wildflowers.

As I said, one of the reasons for this trip was so Jules could see the Glaciers before they melted.

This trip we not only got to go through Glacier Bay, but also through College Fjord.

One of the things I really loved about this cruise was how the ship naturalist made sure we knew when the most interesting things would be happening.

I don’t have a fancy zoom lens, and ended up just using my normal lens so I could pay attention to what I was seeing instead of paying attention to my camera, so I don’t have great close-ups of all the animals we saw.

And there were quite a few: humpback whales, sea otters, sea lions, mountain goats, and even a brown bear (Michael and Jules saw the bear, I didn’t catch it.)

It was drizzly and overcast (and cold) but we did get to see the glacier calving.

And honestly, it was just amazing seeing the glacier.

The following day we went into College Fjord, which is something we hadn’t done on our trip in 2011.

Although still cold, the weather was beautiful.

We saw lots of animals.

And it was astounding to see the glaciers.

Glacier Bay (June 18):
Sunrise 3:56 AM
Sunset 10:14 PM
Temperatures 46-58 F

College Fjord (June 19):
Sunrise 4:08 AM
Sunset 11:27 PM
Temperatures 46-61 F

Going to jump around here a bit; we’ll come back to Glacier Bay and College Fjord.

Our third stop on the cruise was Skagway. For many, this was the starting point for those who were part of the Klondike Gold Rush.

A look at the trail should give you a good idea of the insanity that was part of this dream of striking it rich. Take a look at the “Golden Staircase” up which men had to carry the ton of goods they were required to have before being allowed into Canada.

As fascinated as I am by history, I am more interested in nature, so we did a hike up part of the Chilkoot trail and a float back down the Taiya & Chilkoot rivers.

Things I learned: they really don’t want you to fall into the river, as it’s a glacial river and the average June temperature is about 48.

The other thing I learned is that glacier rivers are not good to drink from.

That green color you see? It’s from the glacial silt suspended in the water, which is not particularly good for your digestive tract.

After the cruise portion of our vacation ended, we rode the train from Whittier to Talkeetna, which was a shorter train ride than I had really wanted, but still a good way to see the sights.

Whittier is an odd place, accessible only by boat or through the 2 1/2 mile single lane tunnel. We had zero chance to explore as we immediately got on the train to go north.

But as I said, the views from the train were incredible.

It was about 6 hours to travel 174 miles, surrounded by mountains and passing rivers and marshes and towns.

The visit to Talkeetna was a melancholy one for me.

When we visited in 2011, it was soon after my cousin Ben had climbed Denali. Talkeetna is the starting point for climbers, so we discovered we’d hung out in some of the same places he had while preparing to climb.

It was also the anniversary of the day my mother died, and I’d managed to wrench my back while on the train, so I was relatively miserable. Yet the views were amazing and it was impossible not to appreciate the surrounding beauty.

Skagway (June 17):
Sunrise 3:42 AM
Sunset 10:23 PM
Temperature 51 – 56 F

Whittier (June 20):
Sunrise 4:22 AM
Temperature 49 F

Talkeetna (June 20):
Sunset midnight
Temperatures 58 – 72 F

The second port stop was Juneau, which is the capital of Alaska, and also is accessible only by plane or boat.

Juneau is the cruise stop for whale watching, which we of course did.

Because we were visiting in June instead of July this time, we didn’t get to see the humpback whales bubble feeding like we did in 2011, but it was still an incredible privilege to see these amazing animals.

Jules and Michael got to see a humpback breaching from the cruise ship–I missed it.

On the whale watching cruise we also got to see sea lions.

It was good we didn’t have to do much beside stand around for the whale watching, because that morning we took a hike a Mendenhall Glacier.

It was a fantastic guided hike and we had a marvelous guide who was knowledgeable about the area and (importantly to me) the things we saw on our hike.

We went partway up the West Glacier Trail, to get a view of Mendenhall Glacier.

Mendenhall Glacier, however, made me a bit melancholy. For all I’d been saying for a year we wanted Jules to see the glaciers before they all melted, it was still a shock to see how much Mendenhall glacier had retreated.

Here is Mendenhall Glacier as viewed from Mendenhall Lake in June 2026.

Here is the view from Mendenhall Lake in 2011.

Juneau (June 16):
Sunrise 3:50 AM
Sunset 10:07 PM
Temperatures 48 54 F

Yup, that’s right, we made our THIRD trip to Alaska in June!

We took Jules so they could see the glaciers before they all melt, and we had a marvelous time.

Because I know I need to keep my sleep consistent, we tried to keep to Eastern time as much as we could, which meant I was out and about at 5AM local time most days.

Still wasn’t early enough to catch the sunrise once got to Alaska, even when on the days I woke up at 4.

We did the cruise North from Vancouver to Whittaker, so our first day was at sea, and our first port was Ketchikan.

Ketchikan is in a rainforest–part of the Tongass National Forest.

Rainforest was a hint that we should have remembered to pack rain gear, so after getting raincoats, we went on a damp–but still amazing–boat ride and hike.

Tongass is 16.7 million acres, which makes the Tongass about larger than the entirety of West Virginia (but smaller than South Carolina), and it’s the largest (intact) rainforest in the world.

The hike was through an island rainforest, so zero permanent human habitation, and the walk was on a boardwalk, which minimizes the impact on the forest.

On the ride back, we saw harbor seals, and beautiful foggy mountains.

I would have enjoyed more time to wander around the town, which has plenty of history, but Ketchikan is the shortest stop on the cruise, and I wouldn’t have missed the rainforest for anything.

At sea (June 14):
Sunrise 5:15 AM
Sunset 10:07 PM
Temperatures 51-61 F

Ketchikan (June 15):
Sunrise 4:05 AM
Sunset 9:30 PM
Temperatures 52-57 F

Again, I have no ratings for older books that I read at the time, and no list of books from the might have sold or given away after I read them, and I read and traded in a lot of fantasy at the Bookshelf (I still have a slip for more than $100 credit for the Bookshelf).

~ Sea Without a Shore by Sean Russell (Moontide & Magic Rise) 8/10
Avg Rating: 8.0 | read 2X | Historical Fantasy

Botany. Sea Voyages. Political Intrigue.

I need to reread this–and the Initiate Brother series.

~ Orca by Steven Brust (Vlad Taltos #7) 8/10 ^[1]
Avg Rating: 8.0 | read 2X

This is a series I picked up the early books used as I managed to find them. For the earlier books, it didn’t matter as much if you read them in order, as they jumped around in time quite a bit.

~ Feet of Clay by Terry Pratchett (Discworld #19) 7/10 ^[1]
Avg Rating: 8.0 | read 2X

Yet another series I picked up the earlier books in bits and pieces as I found them in used bookstores, though there were weren’t that many Discworld books to be found (obviously). This is part of the Watch subseries.

~ The Thief by Megan Whalen Turner (The Queen’s Thief #1) 9/10
Avg Rating: 9.5 | read 2X | Adventure, Young Adult

This is such a good book. I’ve given it to many of the small people in my life.

~ The Dragonstone by Dennis McKiernan (Mithgar) 7/10
Epic Fantasy

Honestly, this is one of my least favorite books in the Mithgar series. The Eye of the Hunter and Voyage of the Fox Rider I liked far more, as they were well past when he was finding his own voice and not writing his own Lord of the Rings, and more about the hero’s journey and less about the horrors of war.

~ The Golden Key by Melanie Rawn, Jennifer Roberson, Kate Elliot  7/10 ^[1]
Historical Fantasy

I remember little about this book except the Renaissance and a painting.

~ The Wood Wife by Terri Windling  8/10
Urban Fantasy

I picked this up because I love Datlow and Windling anthologies. I remember it having the feel of a Charles de Lint, except in the desert. I feel like I’ve also conflated it with another book set in the desert… unfortunately, a search for that book led to nothing. Either it was a book I no longer have or it is this book that had the desert washes, which I hadn’t known anything about previously.

~ Royal Assassin by Robin Hobb (The Farseer Trilogy #2)
Epic Fantasy

I have a surprisingly larger number of books with assassins as their main characters. I loved this series when I read it, then didn’t like the Trader Ships series at all, then I stopped reading epic fantasy all together.

~ Book of Words by J.V. Jones: A Man Betrayed (#2), Master and Fool (#3)
Epic Fantasy

I have the first book in the series as mass market paperback, the second as large format paperback, and the third as hardback. So I obviously enjoyed it, but remember nothing about it.

~ The Outspoken Princess and the Gentle Knight: A Treasury of Modern Fairy Tales by Jack D. Zipes
Fairy Tales, Anthology

~ The Sun, the Moon, and the Stars by Steven Brust
Urban Fantasy, Folklore

~ Return to Avalon edited by by Jennifer Roberson
Fantasy, Anthology

^[1] I likely read this at least once before 2004.

30 years ago is way before I started blogging what I read, so I have no ratings for older books that I read at the time. Also, no list of books from the late 90s I might have sold or given away after I read them, so I’ve got a handful of books I still have in paper and a vague notion of whether I read them or not.

Obviously, books I picked up backlist–or picked up a second copy as an ebook or audio book and read later are easier to quantify.

~ Shadows of the Heart by Tracy Grant (The Lescaut Quartet #3) 9/10
Avg Rating: 8.8 | read 3X | Historical, Romance

The first book I read in the series was the second, then this one, then the fourth, then finally the first. What stands out about this story is the woman is pregnant and has amnesia.

~ Chance by Robert B. Parker (Spenser #23) 8.5
Avg Rating: 8.5 | read 2X | Private Eye ^[1]

This is the book prior to where I began reading the Spenser series. I remember regularly scanning the shelves of used book stories for more of this series.

This is also the first book where Spenser essentially stops aging–there are no references to him having fought in Korea or fighting Joe Wolcott in this book or any book after.

~ The King’s Bishop by Candace Robb (Owen Archer #4) 8/10
Avg Rating: 7.8 | read 2X | Historical

~ Acqua Alta by Donna Leon (Commissario Guido Brunetti #5) 8/10
Avg Rating: 7.3 | read 3X | Police

This is quite early on in the series, which is why I read it multiple times. At some point I gave up on rereading the entire series and just read new stories as they came out.

~ Captiva by Randy Wayne White (Doc Ford #4) 8/10

This series and the Elvis Cole series I read after I broke my ankle and needed distractions from the post-surgery misery. I remember very little about it except science and ex spy. I think.

~ Sunset Express by Robert Crais (Elvis Cole #6)
Avg Rating: 8.5 | read 2X | Private Eye

This started off wanting to be like Spenser, but soon Elvis Cole became his own thing. And like the Spenser series, Elvis and Joe Pike stopped aging several books in.

~ A Test of Wills by Charles Todd (Inspector Ian Rutledge #1) 7/10
Avg Rating: 7.0 | read 2X | Historical, Police

This is one of the first mystery series I read set in the aftermath of the Great War, and it kicked of a kind of horrid fascination with the war and the years around it.

~ Let it Bleed by Ian Rankin (Inspector Rebus #7) 8/10 (1995)

~ Watery Grave by Bruce Alexander (Sir John Fielding #3) 7/10 ^[2]
Historical | Police

Bow Street runners with one of the main characters being one of the magistrates who founded the runners.

~ Killer Pancake Diane Mott Davidson (Goldy Bear Culinary Mystery #5) 7/10 ^[1]

~ The Kindness of Strangers Julie Smith (Skip Langdon #6)
Police

~ Lying in Wait J.A. Jance (J.P. Beaumont #12)

~ Dead to Rights J.A. Jance (Joanna Brady #4)

I know I searched for used copies of all the J.A. Jance books I could find, so I likely read this series out of order as I picked up what books I could get my hands on. I’m guessing I read both of these but am honestly not sure one way or the other.

^[1] I probably read this at least once before 2004.

^[2] I want to reread this, but the first books are not available except in paper, at least as far as I can find.

These are the books from 2006 that I read more than twice.

Frontlist Favorites

As mentioned, I read these soon after they were published, and then reread them multiple times.

~ Night Watch by Sergei Lukyanenko, translated by Andrew Bromfield & narrated by Paul Michael (Night Watch #1) 9/10
Avg Rating: 9.2 | read 8X | Urban Fantasy

~ Moon Called by Patricia Briggs narrated by Lorelei King (Mercy Thompson #1) 8/10
Avg Rating: 8.0 | read 7X | Urban Fantasy

~ The Lies of Locke Lamora by Scott Lynch narrated by Michael Page ^* (Gentleman Bastards #1) 9/10
Avg Rating: 8.5 | read 3X | Fantasy

~ The Demon and the City by Liz Williams (Detective Inspector Chen #2) 8/10
Avg Rating: 8.33 | read 3X | Urban Fantasy, Supernatural Mystery, Police

Backlist Favorites

~ The Devil You Know by Mike Carey narrated by Michael Kramer (Felix Castor #1) 7/10
Avg Rating: 8.0 | read 4X | Urban Fantasy

~ Vicious Circle by Mike Carey narrated by Michael Kramer (Felix Castor #2) 8/10
Avg Rating: 8.0 | read 4X^** | Urban Fantasy

~ The Mislaid Magician: or Ten Years After by Patricia C. Wrede & Caroline Stevermer (Kate & Cecelia #3) 8/10
Avg Rating: 7.7 | read 3X | Historical Fantasy

~ Kitty Goes to Washington by Carrie Vaughn (Kitty Norville #2) 7/10
Avg Rating: 7.3 | read 3X | Urban Fantasy

~ Through a Glass, Darkly by Donna Leon (Commissario Guido Brunetti #15) 7/10
Avg Rating: 7.0 | read 3X | Mystery, Police

~ Rounding the Mark by Andrea Camilleri translated by Stephen Sartarelli (Inspector Salvo Montalbano #7) 9/10
Avg Rating: 8.0 | read 2X | Mystery, Police

I love the Night Watch series, to read or to listen to; the second book in the series (Day Watch) was the first time I’d noticed that I’d enjoyed an audio book more than reading with my eyes.

I don’t love the narrator for the Mercy Thompson series, mostly because she mispronounces the Marrok, which annoys the crap out of me. But it’s a good series to listen to otherwise.

^* I wouldn’t listen to this one again; some of the scenes were very difficult to listen to in a way they weren’t for me to read.

^** I only have three reviews, but it’s highly unlikely I skipped a book during a reread.

The American Library Association has released their list of the most challenged books of 2025.

1. Sold by Patricia McCormick
2. The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky
3. Gender Queer: A Memoir by Maia Kobabe
4. Empire of Storms by Sarah J. Maas
5. (tie) Last Night at the Telegraph Club by Malinda Lo
5. (tie) Tricks by Ellen Hopkins
7. A Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J. Maas
8. (tie) A Clockwork Orange by Anthony Burgess
8. (tie) Identical by Ellen Hopkins
8. (tie) Looking for Alaska by John Green
8. (tie) Storm and Fury by Jennifer L. Armentrout

The release states that “less than 3 percent of challenges originated from individual parents”, in case you were wondering.

I’ve read two books from the list.

As noted previously, I had a lot going on in 2006 (and 2007, really) so a lot of things fell to the wayside; I only read one book in November of 2007, which should give you some idea of how busy I was.

~ Frontlist ~

Mystery

~ When Gods Die ~ C.S. Harris (Sebastian St. Cyr #2) 8/10
Avg Rating 8.0 | read 3X | Historical

This barely made the cut as frontlist, as I didn’t read it until November 2007.

Because I really had a lot going on in 2006.

Comics

~ 1001 Night of Snowfall ~ Bill Willingham et al (Fables) 9/10
Avg Rating 9.0 | read 2X | Fantasy
~ Arabian Nights (and Days) ~ Bill Willingham et al (Fables Vol 7) 6/10 | Fantasy
~ Wolves ~ Bill Willingham et al (Fables Vol 8) 7/10 | Fantasy

Even when I didn’t love individual volumes in the Fables series, I adored the series as a whole, and eagerly awaited each new graphic novel.

~ Innocence Lost ~ Craig Kyle et al (X-23) 9/10
Avg Rating 9.0 | read 2X | Superhero

~ Wannabe ~ Joe Quesada et al (NYX) 9/10
Avg Rating 9.0 | read 2X | Superhero

X-23 might be my favorite Marvel character, and it annoys me we haven’t gotten more stories about her.

~ Agatha Heterodyne and the Circus of Dreams ~ Phil & Kaja Foglio (Girl Genius Vol 4) 8/10 | Steampunk!

This is a delightful series. The problem is it published slowly, and the stories can be kind of complicated, so once I fell behind, I never got caught up.

~ Escape to New York ~ Brian K Vaughan et al (Runaways Vol 5) 7/10 | Superhero

~ Parental Guidance ~ Brian K Vaughan et al (Runaways Vol 6) 8/10 | Superhero

~ Marvel 1602 ~ Neil Gaiman, Andy Kubert, Richard Isanove | 8/10 | Superhero, Historical

~ Backlist ~

Comics

~ Digger ~ Vol. 2 by Ursula Vernon | 8/10 | Fantasy

Ursula Vernon is also T. Kingfisher.

This is a comic series about a wombat. 

Do you really need to know anything else?

Non-Fiction

~ Passionate Minds: Emilie du Chatelet, Voltaire, and the Great Love Affair of the Enlightenment ~ David Bodanis 8/10 | History, Biography, Science & Math

Mystery

~ The Guilt of Innocents ~ Candace Robb (Owen Archer #9) 8/10 (2007)

~ The Naming of the Dead ~ Ian Rankin (Inspector Rebus #16) 8/10

Now it’s 20 years we’re stepping back. Not that it feels like some of these books are twenty years old. Though that could be because they’re fantasies and tend to have less of the “I’m talking to you on my expensive new car phone!” that mysteries can have.

~ Frontlist ~

These are books published in 2006 that read in 2006 or 2007 and rated 8/10 or higher.

There are books that belong on this list which I’m going to save for the post on rereads, as back in 2006 I wasn’t doing a yearly roundup.

~ The Privilege of the Sword ~ Ellen Kushner (Riverside) 9/10
Avg Rating: 9.3 | read 3X | Fantasy of Manners

I love Swordspoint. This is a sequel of sorts, about Alec’s niece, who is coerced into moving to Tremontaine and learning the sword so her uncle will forgive the family debt and also settle a sum of money upon them.

She doesn’t want any of this, but does it anyway, and although she isn’t quite accepted, she also isn’t outcast, as Alec is the duke and has lots and lots of money.

~ Sharper Than a Serpent’s Tooth ~ Simon R. Green (Nightside #6) 9/10
Avg Rating 9.0 | read 3X | Supernatural Mystery, Horror

~ Hell To Pay ~ (Nightside #7) Avg Rating 7.0 | read 2X

John Taylor is a private detective from the dark and desperate world that exists under London. He uses his gift to find things–usually ways out of the bad situations he’s gotten himself into.

Confession: I still haven’t read the final book in the series.

~ Nightlife ~ Rob Thurman (Cal Leandros #1) 8/10
Avg Rating: 8.3 | read 2X | Urban Fantasy

This is another series I haven’t read the final book in, but that’s because she never finished the series, and the last book published is said to have ended on a cliffhanger. So I just pretend that book doesn’t exist and go on loving the other books in series.

Like Nightside, this series is quite dark. Cal is a monster,  but he’s kept from falling victim to his nature by his brother.

Honestly, the series is really a love story between Cal and Niko.

~ His Majesty’s Dragon ~ Naomi Novik (Temeraire #1) 8/10
Avg Rating: 8.3 | read 2X | Historical Fantasy

~ Throne of Jade ~ (Temeraire #2) Avg Rating: 7.5 | read 2X
~ Black Powder War ~ (Temeraire #3) 7/10

Speaking of books that are really romances–these books may be Patrick O’Brien’s Aubrey–Maturin series except with dragons, but really, they are the love story of Laurence and Temeraire. Just not in a “monster romance” kind of way.

He had been in many actions, no less deadly or dangerous, but this one had differed in the crucial respect: when the enemy took aim at his charge, they were threatening not his ship, but his dragon, already the dearest creature to him in the world.

Three times I have read the start of the series, and then wandered off and forgotten to go back and read the rest of the books.

~ Dzur ~ Steven Brust (Vlad Taltos #10) 8/10

Vlad is a mob boss and an assassin and a human in a world of beings who are stronger & more magical & much longer lived. For most of the series Vlad has been on the run, although things sometimes jump around in time, giving you Vlad’s past as much as his run from the mob.

There were five years between Isolla and Dzur, and then two years between Dzur and Jhegaala and I kinda fell out of the habit of keeping current with the series. I’m pretty sure I own all the books that have been published, but I would definitely want a reread before I jumped back in.

~ The Line Between ~ Peter S. Beagle 8/10 | Anthology

Series I Dropped

Failed to Keep Reading

~ Greywalker ~ Kat Richardson (Greywalker #1) 8/10 | Supernatural PI

~ A Fistful of Charms ~ Kim Harrison (Rachel Morgan #4) 8/10 | Supernatural

Quit in a Rage

~ Proven Guilty ~ Jim Butcher (Harry Dresden #8) 8/10 | Supernatural PI

~ Definitely Dead ~ Charlaine Harris (The Southern Vampire Mysteries #6) 8/10 | Paranormal Romance

~ Backlist ~

~ The King of Attolia ~ Megan Whalen Turner (The Queen’s Thief) 9/10

~ Instead of Three Wishes ~ Megan Whalen Turner 8/10 | Anthology