It has been my dad’s dream for as long as I can remember to go to Alaska. When I was little he always talked about it and as I got to high school and started looking for colleges he was constantly saying “What about University of Alaska? Then I could come visit you and go fishing.” Of course he was joking and would have probably had a fit if I had actually gone that far away from home but that is a very strong memory from growing up. So to get the chance to go with my dad on his dream trip is pretty amazing all in itself.
The funny thing about your dream trip (or dream anything really) is that it can never live up to the expectation set in your brain. While some of my experiences went above and beyond there were a few that fell flat. I am a sea lover. Anything to do with water and its creatures enthralls me and excites me like nothing else. After spending our first day driving around and having an amazing dinner at the Alyeska resort in Girdwood, Alaska including a scallop bisque that was to die for yummy, we headed for Whittier to catch a boat for the day and get a glimpse of the sea life and glaciers that Alaska is famous for. It was cold and rainy but thankfully the boat was large (less sea sickness) and warm with hot chocolate to warm from the inside out. After going just a short way out, the captain of the boat said he was going a little out of his way because he had spotted some humpback whales! I grabbed my camera and ran up to the top deck when my breath caught in my chest after being hit in the face by the cold air and then I saw the spout of water that came from the massive animal swimming in the ocean and I had finally seen my first humpback whale. Two of them actually. Swimming side by side and rising and falling into the ocean in a graceful dance. I’m sure there are lots of more descriptive and well educated ways to describe my feelings but “How cool!!!” is really my favorite for this particular moment.
The rest of the day went by in a flurry of sightings of sea otters, seals, birds, and of course glaciers. The glaciers were not all the beautiful blues that I have always seen in pictures. Part of them were but then parts were full of silt and dirt and were really not all that attractive. Listening to the creaking of the ice and watching parts fall into the water and revealing new clean ice of the beautiful blues I was referring to was just as magical as I thought it would be.
The next day led us to Seward, another seaside town that’s population is inflated during the summer and must have very hardy residents to withstand the cold weather the rest of the year. We stayed at the Hotel Seward which was the nicest hotel during our Alaska trek. Situated overlooking the bay and close to restaurants and shops it was the perfect place to make home base for a few days.
The day was scheduled as a free day with my only wish being to visit Exit Glacier. This was suppose to be one of the most accessible glaciers to get to along the Kenai Peninsula. As we were driving into the park there are signs that have dates along the way and upon entering the park we found that at those dates that is where the glacier once stood. We drove many miles and hiked a couple more before ever seeing the glacier so to realize how much it recedes and moves is incredible. The hike was about 2 miles to get up to within a few feet of the glacier. At one time you could actually touch the glacier but they no longer allow that. In the rest of our free time that afternoon, we decided to try out one of the sled dog tours which turned out to be one of the highlights of my trip. After going on a few mile ride with the dogs pulling us along, I got to hold an 8 week old and a 3 and a half week old sled dog puppy! If those little cuties would survive the Texas heat then one would have definitely been coming home with me!
We ate dinner at Ray’s restaurant along the waterfront in Seward that night and I indulged in the king crab cakes that were amazing. There was a sweetness to them that comes from the king crab and they were perfectly seasoned and hit the spot.
Our second day in Seward took us out to sea again on another wildlife watching cruise. The sky was clear and beautiful and the sun was shining making this cruise a bit more comfortable than the first one. We passed several humpback whales and the captain didn’t even stop because he knew we would keep seeing them because there were that many! We made our way out and saw two pods of Orcas gliding through the water and coming right up under the boat. I’ve been lucky enough to be this close to Orcas one other time and it still amazes me the size of the animal and, not to be too cliché, literally takes my breath away as they approach and make that final dive down under the boat to resurface on the other side. None of them were doing any fancy jumping but one did come out and give us a little spy hop to see what was going on in the world above water. The highlight of the day was spending time with a humpback whale jumping out of the water, flipping, and landing with a giant splash very close to the boat! It is awe inspiring how something of that size can launch it’s body out of the water and fall back down belly flop style (although really it comes down on its back) and the amount of water that it displaces after its return.
In planning this trip I asked anyone I knew who had been to Alaska “What is the one thing I have to do while I’m there?” and often received the answer “fishing.” I have to admit, I disagree with that statement, but I decided I had to try it and so we were off to the artsy, slightly quirky town of Homer (but hey, I live in a place where the slogan is “Keep Austin Weird” so who am I to judge?) to do some fishing out at sea. We opted for salmon fishing instead of halibut because I thought I would rather have a freezer full of salmon than halibut on my return. We were out of the hotel and on our way to the boat by 5:30 am and the one positive of being up that early is I saw a bald eagle on the way to the boat and took an amazing picture of the sunrise that happens extra early in the summertime in Alaska. The weather was another sunshine-y day and our captain complained of how hot it was but this Florida native thought it was anything but hot and had four layers of clothing and a ski cap on and still had to go below deck frequently to warm up! In about 8 hours we caught 8 fish and managed to have my dad and brother get a bit seasick while I was fighting off getting sick most of the time as the waves grew larger and larger and I started to feel like I was on a toy boat rising and falling with the waves. It was an experience worth having but I don’t think I will be signing up too quickly to have that experience again anytime in the near future.
The next day took us back north to Soldotna where one of my most highly anticipated adventures of the whole trip was planned. We took a seaplane 40 minutes from there over top of a glacier and then landed on the water and got in a small john boat then headed another 15 minutes or so up river to see bears! Both black bears and brown grizzly bears graced us with their presence and came within 20 feet from the boat we were sitting on! For the most part, the bears simply ignored us as another part of the scenery and went about their business of drinking from the water, playing, and trying to catch and eat the salmon that were jumping up stream to spawn. The quick accurateness of the brown bears in catching their food and consuming it made the black bear’s attempts almost comical in comparison as they jumped and jumped chasing the fish but coming up empty handed (pawed?) again and again until finally one was caught! The only thing that made the afternoon even better was our guide catching a sockeye salmon and then taking us away from the bears and grilling it right there on the boat. Talk about the most fresh, incredible salmon one could ever wish for! I think I am now ruined for life because I now know what the absolute best is.
Our next stop on my itinerary was back to Anchorage to meet up with a friend of mine from graduate school who so graciously offered to take Todd and I 4 wheeling up to the Knik Glacier. When we were e-mailing back and forth and planning this portion I believe Rob’s exact instructions were “wear something you can get dirty” and he wasn’t kidding. About a ¼ of the way through the adventure we passed a guy on the side of the pathway and all I heard was “girl, you are so dirty!” and that was only the start. We went through mud, water covered pathways, and lots of dust before making it to the glacier where this picture was taken…
I felt like that gum commercial where I am all dirty with bright white teeth. It was my first time on a 4 wheeler and after being on the back of one through rough terrain for almost 5 hours I was more than a little sore the next day and was thankful I had planned that as a travel day.
We spent the last 3 days of our trip in Denali National Park. Just the size of the park itself is pretty amazing, at over 6 million acres it is larger than the state of Massachusetts. There is a huge focus on conservation and keeping the wilderness wild. There is one 90 mile road that goes straight into the park and the same road takes you back out of the park. Only buses arranged through the park are allowed into the park and the reservations for the bus must be made in advance or you could find yourself getting all the way to Alaska but still denied access to the park.
Denali is definitely a must see if you are going to Alaska but I have to admit my first day into the park was a little disappointing. Partially due to the fact that even though we saw wildlife they, for the most part, were very far from the road and could only be seen through binoculars, and partially because there was a group of very loud Alabamians on board the bus with us. (No offense to my Alabama friends, but you’re not loud and obnoxious.)
I had planned a second day going into the park and I have to admit that I was not so excited about it after my first day but the second day turned out much better. This time we took the bus all the way back to Wonder Lake and the wildlife was much closer and more active to watch. We saw a lynx, multiple grizzly bears, moose, caribou, and a wolf that was walking along the side of the road and posed prettily for photographs.
For dinner that night we decided to try the pizza place next to our cabin called Panorama Pizza and it turned out to be more of a dinner and a show. The pizza was delicious and hit the spot but it was the owner and workers there that made it more of an experience. I love that in Alaska you often see store owners and restaurant owners with their dogs lying calmly by their side but at this particular restaurant their dog was super friendly and well trained as his owner went through all the tricks that he knew. “What’s 9-7?” and the dog barks twice, “Where’s your tail?” and the dog goes round and around in a circle trying to find its tail (which by the way, he doesn’t have one) and my favorite when he has the dog jump up on a stool at the bar and is given the command “order a beer” and the dog starts barking.
The final day in Denali took Todd and I whitewater rafting. I picked the more mild route since I had never been before and really didn’t feel like falling into 35 degree water. Anyone who knows me, knows that I am always cold anyway, but 35 degree water is REALLY cold! We donned dry suits over our clothes that had rubber gaskets at the wrists and neck as well as rubber booties to keep the water out and us dry and warm. It was a very tame ride with mostly 1-2 level whitewater and one 2+. I think if I had it to do over again I would try the slightly more adventurous one but you never know until you try.
We ate at the Salmon Bake that night and I indulged in some King Crab legs. I say indulged because it was far from cheap and because it was sooo good but I couldn’t come all the way to Alaska without trying some.
The trip left me with a lot of awesome memories and I have over a thousand pictures to help me relive the moments over and over again whenever I chose. Alaska is a beautiful place with friendly people who have a great love of the outdoors and I am happy to have gotten to experience it.
No comments:
Post a Comment