ANCHORAGE, Alaska - Gun rights enthusiasts welcomed Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin, the former Republican vice presidential candidate, as she made an appearance Friday on a radio talk show.

Palin announced last Friday she is resigning, saying it was the best thing for the state and for her family. Her resignation takes effect July 26 when Lt. Gov. Sean Parnell takes over.

Palin spoke on the Michael Dukes' "Firearms Friday" show on KFAR radio in Fairbanks. She was in Alaska's second largest city to sign a gun rights bill and several resolutions.

Callers included rock n' roller turned avid hunter Ted Nugent, well-known for the 1970s hit "Cat Scratch Fever," who told Palin from his home in Michigan that he was firing up the grill to cook up some Alaskan black bear backstrap in her honor.

The governor told Nugent that she thought that was "awesome."

Nugent signed off by saying, "Sarah Palin, God bless you and your family."

Since her announcement, Palin has mostly been traveling around Alaska and visiting towns and signing bills.

After talking with Nugent, Palin took some questions from listeners. Most of them said they supported her decision to resign but were disappointed.

"I chose not to play their game," Palin explained.

She wanted instead to free herself of the constraints of the governor's job so that she could again "get out there and fight," she said.

As governor, she was forced to answer ethics complaints filed by anonymous people, Palin said.

"They do things like that," Palin said. "I can handle it but not when it cost the state the time and money it has cost."

The state said this week it has spent $1.9 million on the ethics complaints.