Living our Alaska Dream...
We are Chuck, Marilyn & Ranger
Our journey...
Our first trip to Alaska was back in 1995. We had an old 1977 Ford pickup... with a camper on the back that was just as old. We were living outside Edmonton, Alberta at the time and were so excited to begin our adventure north. We traveled the Alaska highway checking out all the spots hi-lighted in the Milepost and fished our way thru the Yukon before ending up in the magical town of Haines. We were absolutely blown away by the majestic beauty surrounding us. Looking up at the mountains protruding out of the crystal clear emerald water brought over a feeling of peace and utter content one just can't imagine.
It's true what they say... everything in Alaska is bigger and more beautiful!!!
We didn't think it could get any better... but then as we were heading to check out the fishing down on the Chilkoot, we discovered Salmon Run Campground, where we spent our remaining time in Haines. The owner Ruth Ann had recently opened the campground after carefully carving it into the mountainside. She developed the quaint campground with a cause to keep the natural beauty and elements one would expect from a wilderness refuge. We enjoyed every single minute we were there.!
Our hearts sunk when it was time to head back to the real world and it was then and there that we knew Salmon Run had to somehow be ours one day. One problem we faced was that we were Canadians and suspected this would provide a great challenge for us...
2 years later in 1997 we re-traced our footsteps and once again enjoyed all the magic this place has to offer... And then again in 2001. Each time our hearts sunk when we had to return home to Edmonton.
In 2002 luck was upon us as we discovered Chuck was a derivative US citizen. We had an opportunity to purchase a cabin operation in the small resort town of Ruidoso, New Mexico... where our path to freedom began. We purchased the cabins sight unseen and upon arriving our first order of business was to name the cabins. What better name for our first cabin than "Salmon Run" ... our favorite place on earth!
In 2011, we become full time Rv'ers. I'm sure you can guess our first destination... We spent some long overdue time in Haines before exploring the rest of Alaska. We traveled the state for 3 months and I can't think of a single place that wasn't spectacular, but after our journey we both knew that Haines was still the place our hearts longed for. One day...
After 3 years on the road we returned to New Mexico to manage our lodging operations... Over the years I would frequently look at property listings in the Haines area and still believe ... someday.
In 2019 we started planning a family trip to Haines for the summer of 2020, but our son and daughter-in-law had an opportunity to travel, so off they went. I was so excited they were going on this adventure and found myself re-living my own memories through them. One sleepless night as I knew they were getting closer, I decided to check out Haines Real Estate. I was beside myself when I saw that Salmon Run was for sale. I never went back to sleep. It took everything I had to wait until it was an appropriate time to call and get the deal underway.
24 years later...
We finally realized our dream. We drove into Haines on September 12, 2019 and once again I was completely overwhelmed. It was bigger and more beautiful than I remembered. I burst into uncontrollable tears and to this day can't remember a moment where I ever felt so much joy and happiness. Salmon Run Campground is now ours to enjoy and share. We hope you will love it as much as we do!
