Ring bell for service: Finding Christmas spirit in a rural Alaska post office

So my husband and I are on a road trip from Kodiak Island to the big city of Anchorage, Alaska. Our journey involves a 10-hour ferry ride followed by a 5-hour drive through winter wonderlands you read about in story books. We have Christmas presents to mail so we pull into the tiny post office in Anchor Point, Alaska, just outside of Homer.
No one’s at the front counter, but we see a sign, “Ring Bell for Service.” We push the button and suddenly “Joy to the World!” fills the waiting area.

Soon a petite lady with auburn hair appears. “May I help you?”
“I’d like to mail these packages,” says Marty.
“Would you like me to put ‘fragile’ on them?”
“Oh, no,” he says, smiling. “This is fruitcake. You can’t hurt fruitcake.”

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Here’s a sampling of winter wonderland scenes we discovered on our road trip… Merry Christmas!

Morning sun bursts over mountain ridge near Tern Lake, Alaska. Marion Owen photo

Hoarfrost encases trees along Alaska’s Sterling Highway. Marion Owen photo.

Sunrise over frozen lake near Cooper Landing, Alaska. Marion Owen photo.