Okay, okay! So I had to cheat a little on my June blog post in order to sneak it in for the month, but hey! “More to come..” was the best I could do, especially since I posted this photo on a super slow internet connection while on vacation in Alaska!In celebration of the one year anniversary of our official engagement and the end of Dan’s 8-week sabbatical, Dan and I decided to head north and spend the first two weeks of summer exploring the Last Frontier and Land of the Midnight Sun!
What’s midnight sun? Well, let me explain. Believe it or not, the photo to the right was taken at 1:30 a.m. on the second “night” of our trip.
Yes, indeed! This is all the darker it ever got during our entire stay and, with that much sunlight, Dan and I really took in all there was to see and do!
We flew into Anchorage on June 21st and hit the road in a rental car. Dan’s dream vacation was underway! We drove north all the way to Fairbanks and then south to the Kenai Peninsula, visiting the coastal communities of both Seward and Homer and putting a total of 1,700 miles on the rental.
Fjords, Glaciers, and Sled Dogs!
We never did make it to the arctic circle (long story and totally Dan’s fault), but we did spend quite a bit of time exploring two of Alaska’s largest and most frequently visited national parks - Denali National Park in the north and Kenai Fjords National Park in the south. Unfortunately, Mount McKinley, North America's tallest mountain and the main attraction of the 6 million acre Denali park, was covered in clouds (as it is most days of the year), so we were not able to see the peak. As a matter of fact, it is said that only 30% of visitors actually see the peak during their visit and, sadly, Dan and I were not part of the fortunate few.
We also hiked two easy trails in the Chugach National Forest (one to a waterfall near Anchorage and one to a glacier in Seward) and enjoyed three separate boat tour adventures (one on the Chena River, one to Portage Glacier, and one through the Gulf of Alaska/Kenai Fjords). We also visited 4 of Alaska’s 35 named glaciers and saw many others; took a ride aboard the Alaska Railroad; rafted down the Placer River near Whittier; and went on an Iditarod-themed sled dog ride with 12 happy dogs leading the way! A video clip from our sled dog ride follows below, together with a few photos from our trip (some taken by me and some taken by Dan). Also attached is video footage from our Kenai fjords boat tour, which was filmed while our captain was doing a 360 degree turn near Striation Island.
Caribou, Moose, and Bears - Oh My!
We, of course, saw a ton of wildlife during our stay. We saw 6 bears, 20+ Dahl sheep, and a pack of wolves during our shuttle bus tour of Denali (the best way to see the park) and saw whales, sealions, and puffins on our boat tour of the Kenai Fjords. During our travels, we also saw 10 moose, 30+ eagles, and several caribou. Dan and I also visited the Alaskan Wildlife Conservation Center near Anchorage and saw musk ox, bison, and elk and saw salmon, sea stars and cucumbers, and a number of arctic birds at the Alaska Sea Life Center in Seward.
We also did a few fun and different things while in Alaska and met three Alaskan celebrities. We dressed up like Eskimos for an old-time photo in Denali, enjoyed a couple adult beverages at the Salty Dawg Saloon in Homer, got up close and personal with a 20 foot chocolate “water fall” in Anchorage, and visited two different ice museums in Fairbanks. While in Fairbanks, we met Dave Monson, the husband of the late 4-time Iditarod champion, Susan Butcher, and bought an autographed copy of their book, Granite, for the dogs. We also met photographer Mark Kelley at Denali National Park and purchased an autographed copy of his book, Alaska: A Photographic Excursion, as well. Last, but not least, we meet Hugo, the dog who played Shasta in the movie, “Snow Buddies,” at the Seavey Sled Dog Rodeo in Anchorage!
Did we miss anything? Yes, tons! Let me just say there is no way anyone could ever completely explore Alaska in a year, much less two weeks! There is just so much to see and do and a person simply cannot cover everything in one trip! For example, I would really have liked to have visited Katmai National Park, which is located across from Kodiak Island and famous for its volcanoes, the Bering Land Bridge near Nome, and the Aleutian Islands, but those areas are only accessible by bush plane or boat. I would have also liked to have visited Prince William Sound near Valdez and Glacier Bay National Park near Juneau, but there just wasn’t enough time. Hmmm… I guess we’ll just have to go back? Or maybe not… We also missed the 5.0 earthquake that hit Anchorage the Wednesday after our return home! The quake hit at 7:15 p.m. local time on July 7th in Willow, which is 50 miles north/northwest of Anchorage and caused some minor damage in the surrounding areas. Yikes!
In closing, even though Alaska was a pricier trip, it truly was worth every penny spent and I can honestly say that our Alaskan adventure will be one that we’ll never forget. I, personally, will never forget the sight of eagles soaring in the sky, bears roaming in the hills, or the moose meandering along the roadside. Similarly, I will never forget the sight of sea lions basking on the rocks, harbor seals resting on the ice floes, or whales surfacing for a breath of fresh air. I will never forget the colorful wildflowers or the contrast of green forest against a backdrop of snowcapped mountains. I will never forget the awe inspiring blue walls of the glaciers or the thunderous sound of them shifting and grinding down the mountainside or the sight of them calving huge chunks of ice into the ocean. I will never forget the beautiful places we saw, the amazing things we did, or the fun and wonderful people we met along the way, including our river raft guides, our Denali shuttle bus driver, Ranger Kate, and the couple we met on our 9-hour boat tour of the fjords. Simply said, I will never forget the awe and wonder of The Last Frontier.
Thank you, Boyfriend, for letting me be a part of your Alaskan adventure!
Thank you, Boyfriend, for letting me be a part of your Alaskan adventure!
