Resurrection Bay Campground Seward, Alaska Day 2

The harbor was a little cloudy as we walked into town to get on the Glacier Express.

It stayed a little foggy and then all at once the clouds lifted and it was a brilliant blue day!

We saw sea otters floating in groups or rafts as we made our way into Resurrection Bay.  They even hold hands to stay together.  These otters are more skittish than the sea otters that live closer to the harbor.  As the boat approached they would roll and dive under the water to get away.

There were lots of horned and tufted puffins skittering across the water.  They are diving birds and can reach depths of 600 feet in search of food.  Because the go down so deeply, they are heavy boned.  This makes flying a bit of a challenge for them and they often get a slow start coming up out of the water.  They are fun to watch with their brightly colored beaks.

We saw our first humpback whale as we made our way toward the Gulf of Alaska.  I do not take pictures while I am watching whales.  I am mesmerized by their size, and grace.

There were lots of kittiwakes on the rocks with the sea lions on the ledge below.  Kittiwakes are carefully monitored here as their nesting and population numbers are an indication of the health of the ecosystem.

We watched a mountain goat jumping agilely from rock to rock on the steep incline.  We were wondering how he was going to make his way back up.  The goats are amazing climbers.

We saw a second humpback and he was very active.  He even did a pectoral wave.

This tour took us into the Kenai Fjords National Park.  Holgate Glacier was the first we saw.  This is a tidewater glacier, 700 feet off the water and ½ mile wide.  The second glacier, also a tidewater glacier was the Aialik Glacier, 300 feet tall and a mile wide.  We could feel the gentle icy wind coming off the glacier and the captain turned off the engines so that we could hear the groaning, thunder clapping, cracking and popping of the ice.  When pieces fall off or calve it make a great splash and terrific noise.  We all could have stayed there all day watching the activity of the glacier.

Here is a picture with a boat in the far-left corner to help give you an idea of the scale of the glacier.

The boat passed easily through the icy water.  No icebergs here – only bergy bits 3 – 16 feet high and growlers smaller than 3 feet.  The crew scooped a piece of glacier ice onto the boat.  Kyle actually drank a glacier margarita prepared with the ice.

In order to get to the glaciers, the boat crosses over fjords, or deep u-shaped valleys beneath the water carved out by glaciers over thousands of years.  The fjord before the Aialik Glacier was 700 feet deep.

We were on our return trip when we saw the pod of 3 orcas.  The male with a dorsal fin about 6 feet high and a large female and a calf all sluicing through the deep green water together, the snow-capped mountains in the distance.  It was a breathtaking sight.

It was another perfect day!

We grilled wild caught sockeye salmon for our dinner.

A drive along the coast later in the evening to Lowell Point just to take the road to the end.  Along the way we passed a brewery.  Tim and Kyle were eager to try it out.  As they were walking they saw the Yukon Bar across the street.  Kyle had heard from someone on the cruise that this was a local hangout and that they often had live music.  It was a very unique place.  Dollar bills hung from the walls and ceiling.  There was a giant set of whale jaw bones from a baleen whale hanging above the bar with a mounted bear head.  There was so much stuff on the walls, that you could sit there all night and never see it all.  Milo’s was playing some funk music on his bass guitar.  This was stepping outside our box…and it was fun!

 This is Boomer…we named him Boomer…he was the bouncer.

Resurrection Bay Campground Seward, Alaska

Mileage:  45,272

When we woke up this morning the sun was shining brightly and it was warm enough to wear flip flops and short sleeves.  It was a beautiful day for the drive to Seward.

Once we arrived and had lunch we headed out to Kenai Fjords National Park Exit Glacier.  This is the only part of the park accessible by car.  We will see more of the park tomorrow on the glacier cruise.

There were several hikes we could take and we decided to walk to the glacier’s edge.  It was a nice walk on a pretty day.

The view of the glacier was awesome and we just sat there on the warm rocks enjoying the view.

On our way back there were two trucks worthy of pictures.

And an old tractor…another thing that Tim loves!

We took bike rides around the Seward Harbor.

Our view for the evening.

Dinner was bacon wrapped scallops and grilled Halibut with garlic lemon butter…YUM!

It’s an early day tomorrow for our boat ride.

 

Turnout On Seward Highway South of Anchorage

Mileage:  45,178

After a rather slow start this morning we were on our way south.

Today is about chunking out a bunch of miles.  We want to go back to Seward so that we can take Kyle on a glacier cruise.

The sunshine was brilliant with very few clouds…such a different ride than it was several days ago on the way north.

This is Denali in her glory.

Some people take the train to see Alaska.

We stopped at Beluga Point and Kyle did some rock climbing.

Panorama of Beluga Point.

Somewhere south of Anchorage on a roadside turnout below Bird Point and along Turnagain Arm, we decided to camp for the night.

In the picture below you can see a portion of the mudflats in Turnagain Arm.  Apparently many people have tried to go out and walk on the mudflats at low tide.  Unfortunately the mudflats are a kind of quicksand.  People have gotten stuck in the quicksand and have not been able to be rescued before the incoming tide drowned them.

From the train-tracks across from our “campsite.”

Truck of the day.

We were hoping that we might see a bore tide from here.  From the Milepost:  A bore tide is an abrupt rise of tidal water just after a low tide, moving rapidly landward, formed by a flood tide surging into a constricted inlet such as Turnagain Arm.”  This bore tide is usually most remarkable over a span of days at new moon.  We knew we had missed the range by one day…but the tide still shifts in the same way (maybe not as dramatically) so we thought we might see something here.  My best guess was that the tide would come at about 9 pm.  Shortly before that people started coming to the parking lot and gathering at the water’s edge.  A young couple arrived and put on wet-suits and took a float and a paddle board out into the water.  The tide was coming in.  It came in a wave and then started to become more turbulent.  It filled in the mudflats in minutes.  It was so cool to watch.  I tried to take pictures…but again some things just have to be seen and experienced.  The couple on the paddle board is visible in some of the pictures.  They came out of the water exhilarated.

The view from our bedroom window.  Notice it is still light outside.  It was 10:30 pm.

 

July 17, 2018 Icy Crown Of North America

Denali RV Park and Motel Day 2

It was raining when we woke up, but we were all excited to go and see Denali.  Denali National Park was founded in 1917 when a naturalist, Charles Sheldon realized that the Dall sheep population was being rapidly depleted.  If nothing was done the sheep were in danger of becoming extinct.  He began to advocate for the preservation of the land, the habitat for the great 5 – moose, caribou, bears, Dall sheep, and wolves.  He had the foresight to ensure that this area became a protected wilderness.  This means that humans do not interfere in the normal cycles of animal and plant life.  Researchers do study here but without inference.  The road and some service facilities are maintained but otherwise it is 6 million acres of unimpaired wilderness.  This is a trailess park.  Man-made trails are only inserted when there is a direct danger to the integrity of the ecosystem.  That being said, you can hike or walk anywhere you choose.

At the beginning of our bus ride the skies were very cloudy and the rain persisted.  The clouds obscured our views of the Alaska Range and the snow-covered peaks.  We were only able to see the greener foothills.  These mountains are at elevation of around 4,000 feet.

At a rest area the clouds began to lift a little.  We saw small white dots on the ridge above, Dall sheep visible with the binoculars.  There were 7 grazing caribou on a gravel bar by the river…also very tiny to the naked eye.

Rounding a bend in the road, we saw grizzly bear.

The Eielson Visitor Center was a neat stop.  Built into the side of the hill it was meant to be as green as possible.

This amazing quilt was created by an artist in residence.  It is hand dyed, silk screened, each square hand sewn and the the whole piece was machine quilted.  It shows Denali in all 4 seasons with every known animal and plant somewhere in the picture.  It is a magnificent piece of art.

We knew that we wanted to get off somewhere and hike.  The decision was made to ride the bus all the way to Wonder Lake and determine our best option there.  We were halfway and as we approached this last stop, the weather broke.  The clouds dissipated and we got our first glimpse of the mountain – Denali.  The sky was blue, it was warmer and the sun was shining.  This was our sign to get off the bus after 6 hours of riding.

McKinley Trail was 2.4 miles each way down to the McKinley River.  We hiked in and as we got to a particularly dense section of trees I got the heebie jeebies.  We had just left a warm, dry, safe bus all by ourselves to hike a trail in the backcountry of Denali, Alaska.  How awesome is that!!!!

As we hiked the trail was fairly flat.   There were 4 men working to install a narrow boardwalk on the existing trail.  Because the trail was so muddy, hikers had started to hike around the trail causing more disruption to the area surrounding it.  We couldn’t imagine how the materials to install the boardwalk had been transported there.  When we asked one of the rangers he told us that sled dogs had brought many supplies in over the winter.  Helicopters were also used.  The men themselves have to carry the lumber long distances.

We could see more of Denali’s peak.  She stands at 20,310 feet.  Legally this is still Mount McKinley.  The park and the mountain were renamed several years ago to honor the native Athabascan people who named her Denali or “High One.”  The bus driver said that Denali never disappoints…she was correct.

There have been a few places in nature where I have experienced a deep sense of reverence, spirituality, awe and wonder.  I can recall these experiences vividly.  Standing in that alpine meadow, looking at Denali, was one of those moments for me.  I came on this ride to see bears and stuff…the mountain…not so much.  Now that I have been here, experienced this…there are no words…I am so profoundly grateful to be here!

At the river, after we doused ourselves in bug spray, Kyle jumped across the water to the gravel bars.  He got to hold a set of caribou antlers with the skull still attached.

Kyle took off his socks and shoes and waded across so he could put his feet in this glacial river.  When he got back he saw a small mouse beneath his pack.  The mouse didn’t seem to be too afraid of us and he posed for pictures.

We emerged from the woods and waited only a couple of minutes before a returning bus came by and picked us up.  On the way back, we saw another grizzly even further away than the first.  Some people saw that she had a dark brown spring cub with her.  We saw some caribou and some more tiny white dots…Dall sheep high up on the mountains.

Pictures of Polychrome Pass.

We were almost back to the park entrance when we saw a female moose standing in the road  ahead.

Walking back to the Jeep we saw this mother moose and her calf.

Reflecting on the day, this 14-hour day, most of it spent on a school bus riding on a gravel road, doesn’t sound so appealing.  All of these buses, all day long though, are filled with people…people from all around the world come here to see this.  How lucky are we?!?

Too tired to cook dinner, we went back to the Salmon Bake…I think that they have pretty good beer…49^th State Brewing Company McCarthy Stout!!!

 

 

 

 

Denali RV Park and Motel Denali, Alaska

Mileage:  44,880

The morning began with our ride back to Cantwell, driving west on the Denali Highway.  Heading in the opposite direction offers an entirely different view.  We saw some snowshoe hare.  They are brown now in the summertime but will turn white to be camouflaged by the snow.  The hares are low man in the food chain, providing much needed protein for the bigger predators.

We were in a hurry to get back to Cantwell.  We unloaded the Jeep and showered and headed north toward Denali.  No more oil leaks!  The day became grey and overcast and it began to rain.  We camped at Denali RV Park and Motel.  Kyle read while Tim and I napped.

Awake and refreshed, we decided to head to the Denali National Park.

We stopped to pick up our tickets for Tuesday’s park tour.  Only the first 15 miles of the park is accessible by car.  If you want to enjoy the rest of the park, you choose which bus ride you want to take.  There are lots of options…short rides on air-conditioned buses that include lunch.  When wildlife is spotted, they use cameras to zoom in and then they show it to you on a screen on the back of the seat in front of you.  Or, there are the no frills ride on a school bus where you bring your own food.  You can choose the 4-hour tour or longer…up to 12 hours.  If you choose this option, you can get off the bus whenever you want to go hiking or to explore.  We are taking the 12-hour bus ride tomorrow.

We were also able to get Tim’s Senior Access Pass – a true right of passage.  If you are 62 or older, you can buy a lifetime national park pass that allows free admission to all the parks for the rest of your life as well as up to 50% discounts on camping and other park services.  Many state parks also honor this pass.  Tim has been looking forward to having this card.  We normally like to choose park campgrounds over private commercial sites.  This card will afford us significant savings.  In fact, Tim said I’m stuck with him because now he is much too valuable!

We wandered around in the Denali Visitor Center taking in all the displays and exhibits while it continued to rain.  It was great to learn more about the history of the park, the flora, and the fauna.

We drove the first 15 miles to the Savage River.  We saw a she-moose in the edge of the trees.  It was still wet and rainy, but we needed to get out and move.  Kyle and I got Tim to agree to hike a 2-mile loop around the river despite the gooey weather.  We were all glad we walked.

It was 4:30 when we finished our hike.  We decided to go to the infamous Salmon Bake for dinner.  The building was not built on a foundation and so it is sliding down the hill.  Tim and Kyle chose elk burgers and I had an amazing seafood chowder.

We spent the remainder of our evening posting the blog and doing laundry.

The alarm is set for 5:15 am!

 

 

 

 

Near Clearwater Mountain Lodge on the Denali Highway

Mileage:  44,832

So, the day started like this…oil dripping from the RV.

Tim and Kyle investigated and the oil filter was loose.  First Tim and then Kyle tightened the filter.  YAY!  It worked!  We knew now though that we did not want to take the RV and further on the gravel Denali Highway.  We turned around and took the RV back to Cantwell RV Park.

We left it safely there and we packed the Jeep for an overnight outdoor adventure.

The views were pretty enough for the first 30 miles but then suddenly it was spectacular.  The Alaska Range was visible, the sun was shining, the sky was brilliant blue, the clouds billowy and pillowy and cottony and fluffy.   We marveled at the scenery as we drove further east.

We found several potential camping spots…one more beautiful than the next.  Lunch was along the way at a scenic view overlook.  This is a favorite spot for many Alaskans.

One more stop at the Clearwater Mountain Lodge and the Sluice Box Bar.  We decided to fill the Jeep with gas – $6.00 per gallon!

Tim wanted an ice cream and Kyle wanted a beer.  We met Clee (or Lee) at the bar.

He once shot and killed an 11 foot grizzly bear in Cordova, Alaska.

Once Clee (or Lee) warmed up, he had a lot to say.  He has a dollar bill collection from many of his patrons.  It’s how he decorates the place.

And ours…

Clee (or Lee) was a bush pilot for more than 30 years before giving it up.  We met two women who were going to hike 16 miles into a glacier and then they were going to take a river raft back to the bar.  Clee (or Lee) wanted to know where they had hiked before…Colorado…okay they have done some hiking then…but he wouldn’t go out there without a loaded high powered rifle.

We told Clee (or Lee) that we hadn’t seen much wildlife…only a beaver and some quail.  He set us straight.  First of all, beaver are a real problem  They build their dams in the culverts designed to direct water flow under the gravel roadway.  When storms come, the culverts are completely blocked and the road washes out.  For this reason, there is a mandate allowing anyone who sees a beaver building a dam in a culvert to shoot and kill the beaver.  Secondly, we didn’t see quail but rather ptarmigan.    After explaining that we hadn’t seen much wildlife for many days he said that the male moose are growing their new antlers so they like to stay hidden.  When the antlers are growing they are covered with a velvet and the antlers are very innervated and sensitive.  Clee said that mother bears are very protective of their young cubs at this time of year.   He also said that the caribou are so bothered by mosquitoes because their skin is very thin that they move high up into the mountains and sometimes will even lay in the snow to avoid the pests.

He asked how much further up the road we planned to go.  In reality we had planned to turn around and head back to find a camping spot.  Clee said…don’t turn around yet.  Go at least 2 more miles to see the view of the Susitna River and the valley surrounding it.  When he learned that we were looking for a spot to set up out tents he said we should go past the bridge, over the hill, and to the right.  “You should see some moose from there.  They come out in the evening.”  Clee is an honest man.  The views of the valleys and the river were stunning.  Perfect is a high standard but the campsite we chose high on the ridge just as Clee directed was perfect!

Within minutes of being there, Tim yelled “moose.”  Within 100 yards we saw a female moose moving quickly through the trees.

We passed the afternoon watching the clouds.  There were several storms moving around the Alaska Range in the distance.  We were in an amphitheater of mountains.  Fortunately for us, the storms seemed to follow the outside of the ring of peaks.  We were protected in the center.

We saw two cyclists pedaling up the hill past our campsite.  We had seen them 25 miles away earlier in the day.  They worked hard to get so far.

We drank Sangria and cooked beans and hot dogs over the fire.

We were guessing where the sun  might set.  I saw movement in the valley below…a bull moose faraway in the distance.  With the binoculars, we could see him drinking from the lake.

 

Turnout on the Denali Highway  Cantwell, Alaska

Mileage:  44,825

Today was Kyle’s first day with us.

Some pictures from his flights yesterday.

We were so excited to have Kyle here and we cannot wait to share Alaska with him.  Tim was up at 8 am and he was ready to go!

We are headed north on the Parks Highway toward Denali National Park.  We stopped at the Denali State Park South Viewpoint to try to catch a glimpse of Denali.  Only 30% of people who visit actually get to see the mountain.  This is because the Alaska Range has peaks so high that it generates its own weather.  The tops of the mountains are most always shrouded in clouds.  Today was no exception.  The scenery though is gorgeous.

 

Denali would be behind this string of mountains.

We traveled to the town of Cantwell where we were looking for a place to stay.  The only campground in “town” was really just a gas station…not too appealing.  We decide to drive down Denali Highway.  The first 5 miles is paved and then the next 100 miles is gravel road.  We were not sure we wanted to take the RV down that way…but we did it anyway!  In Alaska, you can camp on any roadside turnout for free as long as there is no signage indicating that there is no overnight parking.   We hadn’t done that yet but we found a beautiful spot on a little lake and we decided to give it a try.

We left the RV and took the Jeep down the gravel road for 30 miles.  Tomorrow we will pack up and go further.

We grilled our dinner and Kyle fished for a while.  It was a great day!

Centennial Park Campground Anchorage, Alaska Day 2

We slept late and then we rushed to get to my hair appointment.  This took the whole morning.

We took the laptop to Best Buy completely anticipating that it was going to be a costly trip.  I had imagined that I would need to get all of my files off the laptop somehow…and probably need a new computer…

Harley helped me.  He held the power button for 20 seconds and the laptop restarted and it is fine!!!  I was so relieved.  So now I am catching up on 3 days worth of posting.

We are waiting for Kyle to get here.  This is his first flight from BWI to Portland.

We finished our chores and decided to drive to Earthquake Park and ride our bikes.  The Earthquake of 1964 was a 9.2 on the Richter Scale.  Anchorage was partially destroyed by the quake.  Lots of buildings toppled and were destroyed.  In the park area  a large bluff sheared off taking many houses with it.  Many hours later a subsequent tsunami took even more house and lives.  The existing bank is still unstable and unusable, even for foot traffic.

The side of the trail was dense with trees.  We saw bear scat…yikes!

These pictures are across Cook Inlet.  On the other side of the road is the International Airport.  We stood watching planes approach and land.

  

Not Kyle’s plane…his plane lands tonight at 11:46 Alaska time.  That is 3:46 am back home.

If it were a sunny day we would be able to see Mount McKinley (Denali) 135 miles away across the inlet…not so sunny today…

Our ride was cut short because Tim’s tire was really low on air.  We saw an REI on our way back to the RV.  We stopped to get some camping pads for tent camping.

We went home and I fixed those steaks to celebrate Tim’s birthday…now we are just waiting!

He’s here!!!!!!

Centennial Park Campground Anchorage, Alaska

Mileage:  44,611

We left Quartz Creek early and made our way up the Seward Highway to Anchorage.  The sky was blue and it was sunny and warmer.

Truck of the day!

While we are in civilization we have a long list of things to do.  We got propane and diesel on the way into the city.  Tim got set up and I left to start our errands.  I went to Walmart, got groceries, gassed up the Jeep, and washed clothes at the Laundromat.  Kyle arrives tomorrow and we want to be stocked up and ready to go.

I was going to make steaks on the grill for Tim’s birthday dinner but he had another idea when I got back.  He heard on the radio about a collegiate level baseball game.  The Alaska Baseball League has 5 teams that play in the summer (really just July and August here!) .   This league gets a lot of attention and pro scouts frequent the games and try to recruit the better players.  Apparently Roger Clements, Randy Johnson, and Mark McGuire all played in the Alaska League early in their careers.    Tim loves old trucks and he also loves baseball!

We packed some sandwiches and headed for the baseball diamond.  It was a fun way to spend the evening!

We tried to post the blog when we got back from the game…oh no…the black screen of death on my laptop!!!

Quartz Creek Campground Cooper Landing, Alaska

Mileage:  44,507

We left Homer and traveled back up the Kenai Peninsula toward Anchorage.  We did stop and take a picture of one of the volcanoes since the sky was temporarily blue!  This is Mount Iliamna. This volcano has had recent earthquake activity but no recent eruptions.  The other volcanoes were still swathed in a layer of clouds.

We were driving through Soldotna and saw that there was a vendor festival of some sort.  We found a place to park the RV and walked over.  It was actually a craft fair.  There were lots of lovely things…but we don’t need any things!

Some of the sights…this poor dog.

And a mermaid.

Hey, doesn’t Sasquatch live around here somewhere?

We did get a nice lunch from The Hearth Eatery.

We found a nice place to stay at the Quartz Creek Campground.   There was a bear sighting here on July 2nd.  Being bear aware as we walk about.

We were able to go out and walk and then ride bikes before the rain began again.

We will be in Anchorage tomorrow.