Feeling knotty?

One of the great things about Alaska is its propensity for nature themed attractions. It's a pretty secure investment, given that there is an abundance of land for all to enjoy (until we completely ravage it as we have most other places...but I digress). In addition to being nature themed, there are often clever and witty guises for these attractions which further draw in the crowds. You may remember my account with the giant Santa Claus in North Pole


I recently took a trip further down the Richardson Highway only to discover this little roadside gem:


The Knotty Shop is built with the "burls" from the forest trees. Burls are the large disfiguration "knots" that form in the trees and are extremely valuable to the keen eyed furniture maker. Burls also make lovely gifts in form of large insects.

This elk has severe arthritis and inflammation. Poor thing.

I also found a new little friend. It's nice because he can keep me company, and I never have to worry about where he went. I pretty much always know.

After the fun at the knotty shop, we realized that we were very hungry. So of course, we walked over to the nearby forest to have a tea party with some animals. We were worried that nobody might be there to meet us, but fortunately everyone had gathered with excitement.


We all gorged ourselves on cucumber sanwiches and scones. After that, I felt very knotty, indeed.