1970’s August.
Cooper Landing, Alaska
My husband at the time, Richard and I were going on a leisurely trip to Anchorage to do some school shopping for the 6 kids we had between us. We arranged a baby sitter, we packed for two days in Anchorage. We said goodbye to the kids, got in the car and smiled at the fact that we were just going to take our time through the mountains and stop for lunch at “Our Point of View” in Cooper Landing. This beautiful place was perched on the side of a mountain with a winding road that lead you to a wonderful large log restaurant. It had a huge fireplace in the middle of the room. It had great big windows over-looking Kenai Lake. The windows had wide ledges to put flowers and pretty things on.
We took a table by the window and I parked my large tooled leather purse that we had bought in Mexico, on the ledge for safe keeping. (Remember those large leather purses with the long leather straps that you could put half a house in..then you slung it over your shoulder so you could pack all that stuff you did not need, around with you?)
We had a wonderful meal and proceeded on our way to Anchorage. Just outside of Anchorage at Potters Marsh, a truck driver pulled up behind us and started blinking his lights at us. Well, in Alaska in those days, you pulled over to let them pass. We pulled over and he pulled in behind us!!
The truck driver opened his door and jumped out with MY PURSE! I had not missed it!!!!! He too, was in the restaurant enjoying a meal and when my purse was discovered on the ledge, he offered to take it, follow us and give it back. He followed us about 75 miles through the mountains with its narrow and sometimes steep road, before he thought is was safe to pull us over. We offered him a reward and he refused it. I said thank you a thousand times! I had about $1,000 in cash in my purse and it was never touched!
On our way back from Anchorage we stopped at “Our Point of View” and after a delightful meal we left a months worth of paid meals for the trucker driver that all the waitress’s knew. Turns out he stopped on his trips to Homer and back to Anchorage on his hauls, for a hamburger, fries and a shake. Never knew his name and never saw him or his truck again! What a guy!
P.S. Sorry to say that “Our Point of View” burnt down and never reopened. I will always miss that place of peace.
