Valdez, Alaska, July 25-28, 2011

Valdez, AK, July 25-28, 2011

We spent 4 days in Valdez and had a very scenic campsite right on the Valdez Bay across from the town. Valdez is famous for a couple of things-the devastation from the '64 earthquake whose epicenter was just 40 miles away, the oil spill of the Exxon Valdez and....

...the terminus of the 799 mile long Alaska Pipeline. About 800,000 barrels of oil per day move through the pipeline at about 3 mph. Transport time from Prudhoe Bay is 12 days. The Valdez Marine Terminal covers a total area of 1,000 acres with all facilities except berths built to bedrock at elevations ranging between 15 and 660 feet. Valdez has 18 storage tanks with a capacity of more than 500,000 barrels per tank= 9.18 million barrels of total storage.

The first evening we were here there was a small brown (grizzly) bear "fishing" along the shoreline. He didn't seem to mind his picture being taken as he was intent on finding supper.










This huge Indian Sculpture adorns the Community College Campus in Valdez. Hungarian-born sculptor, Peter Toth had undertaken a vow to carve an Indian sculpture in each of the 50 states. The monument he carved in Valdez, was his 40th tribute to the plight of the American Indian. He refused to take any payment for any of the monuments, as they are his gift to the American people. The Louisiana Pulp Company donated the wood.




Also on campus is the Maxine and Jesse Whitney Museum, one of the world's largest collections of Native Art, artifacts, and mounts. Maxine once owned a gift shop in Fairbanks and went out in the bush to buy directly from the natives. She donated her entire collection to the college and they built a special building to house the museum. This ship was carved from ivory. What talent the Native Alaskans have to be able to create such beauty.




This moose mount had an antler spread of 68 inches and weighed around 1500 pounds! No wonder they are so dangerous. They are more feared than the bears in Alaska.

I took this picture behind the rv looking across the bay early one morning while the clouds were still sitting on the mountains. The fireweed, which indicates that summer is half over, is everywhere. It is called fireweed because it is the first vegetation to grow after a forest fire. God takes away beauty and gives back beauty.







We took a wildlife / glacier cruise to Columbia Glacier, one of only 2 tidewater glaciers, meaning the glacier goes down into the water. This glacier once covered the whole area, but now is actually 3 smaller glaciers. The glaciers on the left are 1 to 1 1/2 miles wide and the one on the right is 2 miles wide. It extends 35 miles up the mountain, sits 200 - 300 feet out of the water and 800 feet below the water. It calves 10-14 tons of ice daily as evident in the water. We were fortunate to be able to get within 2 miles of the glacier as most trips stop about 12 miles out due to ice being caught on the moraine and causing an ice jam.

Here several seals were enjoying the sun on an "ice raft" so to speak!

One more picture of the Pipeline terminus also shows a glacier high on the mountain. Valdez is surrounded by glacier covered mountains. A tanker is being loaded and will be escorted some 70 miles through Prince William Sound into the Gulf of Alaska, hopefully to prevent any further oil spills.

The Alaska part of our vacation is almost over as we head out to Tok and the Alaska Highway back to the "outside" or lower 48. It's been a very educational and beautiful trip. Alaska is truly the "Last Frontier".

Kenai Peninsula-Portage and Whittier, July 17-19, 2011

Portage and Whittier, AK July 17-19

Our next stop was at Williwaw NFS Campground in Portage Valley. The town of Portage was destroyed and never rebuilt after the 1964 earthquake. As you enter the campground you have a marvelous view of Middle Glacier from the Columbia Icefields. In the foreground the fireweed is starting into bloom. The flowers bloom from the bottom to the top. I don't know why they call it a weed: it is absolutely beautiful and blooming in profusions along the highways.

The National Forest Service parks in Alaska are awesome. This one has spacious, paved sites and a wonderful view of the mountains. With my Access Pass, we only pay $9 a night to camp here.

No, Bill wasn't walking around in his bare feet, but these are bear feet! Sitting in the RV around 9:30 am we heard something hitting the side of it and when I looked out, there was a black bear. He had his feet on the side and was trying to look in! I went to grab the camera, but Bill had left it in the truck! The first night we camped here a woman left the door to her motor home open and a bear started to go in-she screamed and a fellow camper scared it off by firing a gun into the air. The next night the bear wasn't so lucky. He refused to leave a campsite and was threatening a camper and the man shot and killed him. But evidently there is still at least one more around trying to break into campers. We have finally seen a bear in a campground-up close and personal!

Portage Lake has a really nice visitors center with a film and a museum. Portage Lake has 3 glaciers surrounding it: Burns, Portage, and Byron Glaciers.


The only way to Whittier (other than plane or boat) is through this 2.5 mile long Anderson Memorial Tunnel. It is the only tunnel in the world that is shared with a railroad. You actually drove over the railroad tracks when you go through it.

Whittier, another little coastal town that was started as an Army base during WW II, is now a fishing and tourist town. The harbor, surrounded by mountains and glaciers, is similar to the other harbor towns we have visited on the Kenai Peninsula. Fishing boats and cruise ships are evident. We had lunch at the Lazy Otter Cafe overlooking the harbor.

The Begich Building, left over from the Army base, now houses about 1/2 of the population of Whittier which is about 250 people total. The harbor, train tracks, fish processing plants, and of course a few little gift shops and cafes make up the town. Notice the waterfall behind the building coming down from the icefield far above it.

We have spent 3 weeks on the Kenai Peninsula and have had a good experience here. It is truly beautiful and the place to be if you like to fish!

Kenai Peninsula, Seward AK July 10-16, 2011

Cooper Landing and Seward, July 10-16

On our way from Homer to Seward we stopped for a day at Cooper Landing and took a raft trip on the Kenai River. Our guide, Brad, is from Cannonsburg, PA, just south of Pittsburgh where Bill was born. He is a middle school teacher in Anchorage in the winter and fishing/raft guide in the summer. He had many interesting stories to tell of his adventures in Alaska including being "bluff charged" by a bear twice. He said he would rather face a bear than a moose, though. He came very close to shooting a moose that was threatening him and his dogs. They are very aggressive when you are in "their space"!

This is the Resurrection Bay campground we stayed in while in Seward. Our RV is just right of center with the bay on the south side and the mountains to the north.

We drove a short distance to Exit Glacier and were able to hike to the face of the glacier. The braided river is a result of glacial melt. Braided rivers are so called because they are continually changing their course in the gravel river base and form many channels.

We have been told many times that there are no rabbits in Alaska, only snowshoe hares. But, Seward does have many domestic rabbits all over town! These two were playing one evening as I was walking Ceilidh. She sure wanted to play with them! I guess the Seward rabbits are equivilant to the Key West chickens. This has become my favorite Alaskan town.

Mount Marathon, see from our RV site, is the scene of an annual 4th of July race. Runners ascend and descend the 3200 ft. mountain, the winner in less than 45 minutes. Coming out of the treeline towards the top left you can see the trail they use. This little town of 2600 swells to 25,000 on July 4th for this race!

Downtown Seward has its collection of colorful little shops and cafes and houses Alaska's only aquarium, the Alaska Sealife Center. It is also known as the Gateway to Kenai Fjords National Park and was voted an All American City for the third time in 2005. There are 7 streets in town running parallel with the bay and the mountains and Ceilidh and I would walk them twice every day.





Tour boats go out several times a day to cruise Resurrection Bay or out further to the Gulf of Alaska and the Kenai Fjords National Park. We took a 7+ hour cruise. It was a beautiful, sunny day and we enjoyed standing outside, viewing the many glaciers and mountains that surround Resurrection Bay.







Included in the cruise was an all-you-can-eat buffet with mixed greens and mandarin orange salad, rice pilaf, salmon and prime rib. It was lovely eating dinner and watching the scenery. About an hour before we returned to the harbor, we enjoyed a dessert buffet: cheesecake, frosted brownies, carrot cake, tropical fruit and jello. Yummmmm.

One of our destinations was the Aialik Glacier coming down from the Harding Icefield, which is the largest icefield entirely within the US. We were fortunate to be able to watch it "calve" where a chunk of it breaks off. There were strong northerly winds as you an see from my hair and jacket puffed out with air!

Back at the campground Bill and I would sit and enjoy the beautiful weather. On this day it was 75 degrees, the hottest in all of Alaska! Cruise ships were usually in the harbor and the fishing boats were constantly going in and out. Sometimes a fishing boat would dump fish carcass in the water and as they washed ashore the gulls would have a feast. That is, until the eagles came and helped themselves!

What a lovely town, but all good things must come to an end and we must head to another destination.

Kenai Peninsula-Alaska's Playground, June 30-July 9, 2011

Kenai Peninsula

The drive from Anchorage follows the north shore of Turnagain Arm through Chugach State Park and Chugach National Forest permitting a view of the Kenai Mountains on the Kenai Peninsula. The Kenai Peninsula is 150 miles long and 70 miles wide and is called Alaska's Playground. The peninsula is bounded on the east by the Gulf of Alaska and to the west by Cook Inlet.

A brief stop at Turnagain Pass, elevation 988 ft., shows the wide valley. This area is a favorite winter recreation area for snow machines and cross country skiers. Snow depths here frequently exceed 12 feet with patches of snow still visible in June.

We stopped and watched this moose cow and calf along side the road. Every time a vehicle would drive by the baby ran into the woods. The mother is still shedding her long winter coat. Signs indicate that 252 moose have been killed on the roads on the peninsula since January. Motto: Give moose a brake!

Our 4th of July weekend would be spent in Soldotna, population 3983, on the west side of the penisnula. This carving commemorates Soldotna resident Les Anderson who, in 1985, caught the world-record King salmon, weighing 97 lbs.4oz. in the Kenai River. The fish in on display in the Visitor's Center. Soldotna is a fishing "hotspot" on the Kenai River.

A short drive to the town of Kenai, population 6975, found us at the Holy Assumption of the Virgin Mary Russian Orthodox Church. On a personal tour we found that the Father had begun his service with the church in Crossingville, PA, just a few miles north of our hometown of Meadville!

We attended the 4th of July Parade in Kenai. It was a long parade for such a small town! The Alaskans are very patriotic, more so that us from the "Outside", their word for the lower 48. This float was to honor our wounded veterans.









There is a boardwalk along the Kenai River behind our campsite where we could sit and enjoy the view and the sunshine. Nice day to read a book.

After 5 days with no hookups, we opted for a night at Deep Creek Campground in Ninilchik, and a good shower! The campground also catered to fishing charters. This charter was returning as we got there. By the time I took this picture they had most of the fish cleaned as all the hooks were full when we got there.

That evening we played cribbage overlooking the Cook Inlet and later enjoyed this beautiful sunset around 11:30 pm.

On down the Sterling Highway to Homer at the bottom of the peninsula we took a drive on "Skyline Drive" and I got this great picture of the Homer Spit. The Spit is a 5 mile long, 1/4 mile wide strip of land jutting 2/3rd of the way out into Kachemak Bay. We are camped in the middle of the Spit.

We could watch the eagles from our dinette window as well as the sea otters playing in the water. There was a fish cleaning station not far from us and occasionally the someone would throw out a carcass. The gulls would immediately lay claim to it until an eagle swooped down and helped himself. The gulls scattered!

There are many little shops and restaurants on the Spit, a large harbor and this Seafarer's Memorial to those lost at sea. We bought fresh halibut and smoked salmon from the dock area.

On July 9, my birthday, we took a cruise to Seldovia, about 16 miles across the Kachemak Bay, accessible only by boat or plane. Seldovia is famous for its wood carving festival, as seen here in the harbor area. There are carvings all around the little town and Main Street carries about as many pedestrians and 4-wheelers as cars.

We had lunch at the Mad Fish Restaurant where we could overlook the harbor. Our boat is on the right. I had Salmon and Bill had Halibut. Fresh fish is so good! I had a birthday I'll never forget.

Next - on to Seward on the other side of the peninsula.

South to Anchorage June 19-29, 2011

South to Anchorage, June 19-29, 2011

It is almost summer solstice. Now I know what "Land of the Midnight Sun" means. It never really gets dark here in June (and July). Here I am at 1 am and it is light enough to read outside!
Yes, I was tired...














We finally had to leave Denali National Park. Our next stop was about 100 miles down the Parks Highway to Denali State Park. Here we could finally see "the mountain", Denali as the Alaskans call it or Mt. McKinley as others call it. It is the tallest mountain in North America.

Also at the state park is the Alaska Veterans Memorial POW/MIA which consists of an alcove and a semicircle of five 20-foot-tall concrete panels, one for each branch of service and each with a large star on the upper part and inscriptions on the lower part. Panels and plaques also memorialize the Alaska National Guard; the Merchant Marine; and victims of the Air Force C-47 crash on nearby Kesugi Ridge in February, 1954. Three flag poles stand at the site: the center pole flying the American flag, the
pole to the right the Alaska flag, and the pole to the left flying flags on special occasions. This area was selected because it is centrally located between Anchorage and Fairbanks, Alaska's 2 largest cities and there is a wonderful view of Mt McKinley/Denali from the entrance to the memorial.


Our next stop was at Talkeetna, a quaint little tourist town, population 848. Main street is full of little shops and cafes. Where else would you find a shop owner with a loaded rifle hanging on the wall behind him??

While in Talkeetna, we took a Mahay's Three Rivers Jet Boat Tour on the Talkeetna, Susitna, and Chulitna Rivers. (Na means river) Our captain and guide was Israel Mahay, the owner's son. His parents came to Talkeetna in the early 70, applied for a 160 acre homestead and lived in a small cabin there for 5 years. The cabin was 4 or 5 miles "off the road system" and you could only get there by boat.

We disembarked from the boat at a replica of an Athabascan fishing village and a homesteader/ trapper cabin. The native Alaskan Indians would set up "fish camp" on the banks of a river and fish for salmon which was a staple for them and their dogs. Fish was dried and smoked at the camp for winter use.







This is an exact replica of Israel's parents cabin where they lived for 5 years. The furnishings inside were from their cabin. It was only one room and, as you can see, not very big. The building on stilts on the back is called a Cache (pronounced cash) and was used to store their food out of reach of bear and other wild animals.

We found a wonderful (best kept secret in Alaska) municipal park in Palmer, Alaska were we spent several days. $15 a night with electric hookups! The sites were all grass and there were beautiful flowers and huge rhubarb plants complimenting the landscape. The area in front was a little picnic area, our rv is over by the trees.

On Saturday, we went to a car show in Palmer. There were lots of neat, old cars and a free lunch of hot dogs, 3 kinds of salad, chips and soda.

Palmer is the site of the Alaska State Fair and is located in what is known as the "valley". It is a very fertile region and where they raise the 50# cabbages.

Another day we took a drive up to Hatcher Pass. This is the Little Susitna (Little Su) River coming down off of the mountain. There is a lot of recreational gold panning in this river.
The water is very cold, this being a glacial river.

It was a cloudy, overcast day on Hatcher Pass. The clouds were sitting on the mountain. At the top of the pass is the Independence Gold Mine State Historical Park. Bill is looking at a little train that hauled dirt out of the mine so it could be washed for gold.

Restoration of the mine is on going. One of the largest gold producers in the Willow Creek area, the mine was operated from 1938 to 1941.

So far, Palmer is the nicest little Alaska town we have visited and my favorite. It is situated in a beautiful valley surrounded by mountains.

Once in Anchorage we visited the Alaska Native Heritage Center which allows visitors to experience Native Alaskan cultures in one area. Here some young people are demonstrating a dance. There are films every hour depicting their lifestyle.








This totem pole represents the Native Alaskans from the Ketchikan area in the lower coastal region. They were the only ones with large enough trees to carve a totem pole this size. An outdoor walk around Tiulana Lake takes visitors to 6 different regions, each representing one of Alaska's 6 Native cultures: Athabascan, Yupik/Cupik, Inupiaq, Aleut, Alutiiq and Tlingit/Haida/Eyak/Tsimshican. At each area a guide was there to explain their culture. It was extremely interesting.

Downtown Anchorage, population 300,000, is a beautiful, modern city with flowers everywhere. There were hundreds of hanging baskets along the streets. Due to the long daylight, flowers grow huge and abundantly. This is the downtown visitor's center. We learned about the Good Friday, 1964 earthquake, the most powerful quake ever recorded in North America at 8.2 on the Richter scale. It devastated the area in and around Anchorage, caused more than $300 million in damage and altered the composition of the city. We also visited the Ulu factory, State Troupers Museum, and went to the weekend Market.

We went to the Alaska Zoo and saw this shaggy musk ox. They use the rare underwool of the musk ox, called qiviut, to make hand knit gifts. It is very expensive! The Alaska Zoo has the largest collection of native Alaska animals on display.

We thoroughly enjoyed our stay in Anchorage. An interesting note: there are an estimated 1000 moose, 250 black bears and almost 60 brown bears in the city of Anchorage!