ANCHORAGE AND THE SOUTHEAST

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Thursday, 5 August:  En route to Tok – This was our longest day of the trip.  We had to be at the ferry at 5:00AM to check-in for our 7:00AM ride to Haines.  We arrived at Haines at 9:15AM and were on the road by 9:30AM.  We had a drive of 490 miles to reach our destination, Tok, Alaska.  We drove the “Haines Cut-Off” to connect up with the AlCan Highway.  We left the U.S., going through Canadian Customs, then passed through British Columbia and the Yukon Territories, and then re-entered Alaska after passing through U.S. Customs.  The road was in good shape with all stretches paved except those under construction.  As expected, there were a lot of construction zones as the season for roadwork is very short in this part of the world.  So, despite lots of miles on gravel and time for some quick breaks from driving, we made it to Tok near 6:00PM.  We had a great stay at Young’s Motel featuring Fast Eddy’s restaurant, a real oasis in the middle of not much else.

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Friday, 6 August:  Valdez – Today we took a drive south to Valdez.  En route we flanked the Wrangell Mountains.  Visibility was good and we got some nice photographs.  Along the route we also stopped at an access point to view the Alaska Pipeline which begins in Prudhoe Bay in the arctic and terminates in Valdez.  It’s pretty awesome and an incredible accomplishment.  Before arriving in Valdez, we pulled off to view the Worthington Glacier,  Again, an impressive sight!

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Saturday, 7 August:  En route to Anchorage – We backtracked until reaching Glenellen, the cut-off to Anchorage.  From here we took the Glenn Highway to Anchorage.  It was a beautiful drive albeit often on a winding, narrow road.  Passing with oncoming RVs was a challenge.  We again encountered road construction and had a 20 minute wait for a pilot car.  The spot was at tree line and very spectacular.  Then, we spotted a herd of dall sheep which Ed was able to photograph.  So, it was a neat way to enjoy a required stop.  The rest of the drive was also beautiful.  It was a bit of a shock, however to leave the mountains and come into a 6-lane highway leading into and out of Anchorage (we hadn’t seen anything like that since Denver!).  When Ed was last here only 4^th Street in downtown was paved!!  Now Anchorage, including its suburbs, is a thriving city of some 650,000 inhabitants.  We wandered to our hotel in the later afternoon and called it a day.

Sunday, 8 August: - Homer –  This morning we caught an early morning flight to Homer.  Here we picked up a rental jeep to explore the town.  Boy, did we feel right at home.  Homer, and in particular, the Homer spit, is a collection of eclectic shops.  While fishing is the key industry, associated tourism does very well.  Homer is an easy drive from Anchorage and the town was full of RVs with local tags.  We did some shopping (bought a neat fish mobile and wind chime) and then drove to the outer regions of the area to photograph glaciers on the opposite side of the bay.  Beautiful!  When we returned to town, we stopped at the local brewery.  We tried their collection of beers and settled on purchasing the Homer Brewery Amber Ale.  We also returned to the spit to purchase some smoked salmon and smoked halibut for a culinary treat and a nice way to finish our day.

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(Beginning Monday, 9 August through the afternoon of Sunday, 15 August we enjoyed KODIAK & THE ALUETIAN RUN before returning to Anchorage and its surroundings). 

Monday, 16 August:  Anchorage – This was a leisure day in Anchorage.  After rush hour was over we drove to downtown and strolled the streets and shops there.  Frankly, not real exciting.  However, we did get a real treat later that day.  We bought a Dungeness crab and Ed made it as a delicious dinner (we had a kitchen in the suite hotel).  Boy, it was another delicious Alaskan treat!

Tuesday, 17 August:  Seward – Today we drove south to Seward.  The drive typically is touted as one of the most scenic in Alaska due to dramatic views of the Chugach Mountains.  Unfortunately, we didn’t have much of a view due to smoke from forest fires in the interior of Alaska.  Since there’s only one road into and out of Seward, we held out hope for better luck on the way back to Anchorage.

Seward is another quaint port town.  We drove into the older downtown areas albeit mostly destroyed in the 1964 Good Friday earthquake.  We then drove to the marina area which was really busy.  Seward was having its annual silver salmon fishing derby.  Anglers compete against one another for the biggest fish and also hope to catch a fish tagged for prize money.  We then returned back out of town a few miles to locate the cabin we booked for our three nights in Seward.

Wednesday, 18 August:  Seward – We spent today on an all-day tour via boat through Kenai Fjords National Park (www.majormarine.com).  A ranger was on board to help spot wildlife and provide some history of the area.  We observed lots of animals and were able to photograph many of them.  They included stellar seals, sea lions, harbor seals and sea otters.  Our route allowed us a close-up view of Holgate Glacier.  It wasn’t as large as some of the glaciers we previously viewed but it was still breathtaking.  Throughout the day we also saw lots of birds, especially near Chiswell Island.  We saw bald eagles and osprey.  Then, the puffins are always great fun.  Mid-afternoon we enjoyed a seafood buffet on board.  It was great food in an incredible setting.  We returned to dock at 7:30PM.  It was a great way to view the beauty of this national park.

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Thursday, 19 August:  Seward – We spent the day first exploring Exit Glacier, a few miles outside of Seward.  It too is part of the park system and was an easy hike to get near the glacier’s face.  Then, we spent the balance of the day enjoying the Alaska Sealife Center.  It is an outstanding research and learning facility dedicated to learning about Alaska’s mammals and birds.  We went through the exhibits and listened to two lectures about studies being done on harbor seal populations and stellar seal lion populations.  Both excellent presentations.  We visited the animal exhibits.  Again, really neat.  The Sealife Center is an absolute “must do” when visiting Seward.

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Friday & Saturday, 20 & 21 August:  Anchorage – We left Seward and drove back to Anchorage.  These two days were spent catching up on laundry, business work, etc.  We also had to get an oil change and have the car tires rotated (both good ideas after ~4,500 miles of driving; just about half-way).  So, general rest & recovery days before our first fishing adventure at Unalakeet River Lodge.  It was then followed by Denali National Park.  We once again went fishing at No See Um Lodge.  Then, we returned home via the AlCan Highway.

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