On top of Denali

Day 10

The mist parted and the view was clear; clear to the top of Denali. Let the pics do the talking; amazing flightseeing. The pictures don't even do it justice.

Jumping Salmon, Moving on and The High One

Day 7-8-9

Day 7 was a day of rest at Coopers Landing. Mid-afternoon we couldn't take it anymore so three of us took a short hike to the Russian River Falls. It was cool and drippy but pleasant enough, and at the falls we saw the final few salmon trying to jump upstream. Some teenagers showed off a nice fish they had caught, but we didn't think fast enough to offer money for it.

Day 8 was travel. We left CL and drove back north to Anchorage, and on to Talkeetna. We had a reservatoin for our flight seeing there, but when we arrived they said it wasn't possible that day, and offered us to reschedule or take a glacier tour. We rescheduled and found a brewhouse to have our lunch at. Cute town of Talkeetna but we didn't get a chance to see much of it since we still had three more hours to drive.

Arrived at Denali NP and checked into our little quaint condo. We knew the next day was going to be a long one.

Day 9 was our Denali bus tour all the way to Kantishna. We did see moose, grizzly bears, and caribou. Most thrilling was the beauty of the mountains and the surprise of seeing Denali pop out of the clouds toward the end of the day.

On the Water

Day 6

The big event of this leg was Major Marine's Kenai Fjords sightseeing tour, an all-day excursion which included glaciers and wildlife viewing, plus an all you can eat buffet of salmon, prime rib and all the fixings.

We were very lucky to have had a beautiful, cloud-studded, blue-sky day, especially after the forecast had been for 70% chance of rain. (And I had been hoping for smooth water, as I wanted to avoid seasickness if at all possible.)

As it turned out, the sightseeing was fabulous, the chop across the open water was manageable, and the glaciers and whales all cooperated nicely. Did I mention the salmon buffet? All in all, it was a great day on the water.

Homer to Cooper's Landing

Days 3-5

Spent the better part of Saturday in Homer, first at the overlook at the edge of town. Loved the glaciers seen from here and spent much of the day enjoying them from different vantage points. Took an obligatory spin along the Homer Spit, sat for a while at the end of it watching the boats go in and out of the channel. Didn't care to visit the souvenier shops, but later Brian and Gail had a chance to peruse a couple of art galleries. Later we had pizza from Fat Olive's, and observed a sun shower complete with rainbow just before sunset at 11:30.

Sunday we packed and after a final drive up Skyline and East End roads over Homer (with plenty of photo ops,) moved from the log cabin to the mountain home on Bean Creek in Cooper's Landing. Wow! Tall windows, great mountain views, and lots of space. We took an evening float trip, and despite some sprinkles and cool weather, counted 61 eagles, many juveniles. Fran, our wonderful float guide, kept us occupied and entertained despite there being no wildlife other than eagles, and it was beautiful and peaceful on the blue water.

Monday was cool and cloudy too, with mist on the mountains and a few sprinkles. We visited the Alaska Wildlife Conservation Center, where we saw moose, baby moose, elk, caribou, bear, buffalo and muskox, plus a herd of Wood Bison. This is where animals are taken in when injured or orphaned, and they are close and easy to see.


Later we visited Portage Glacier and walked a mile up a trail to see Byron Glacier. We were so proud that Byron could make it all the way; seems his daily walking routine has paid off!

Where are the moose?

Well rested, we took off  on a moose hunt. We headed north to Marathon Road, north of Kenai. With some help from 2 maps and 2 GPSs, we found our way. We saw a mama moose with 2 calves along the highway, but not fast enough to get a picture.

On the way back south along Kalifornisky Beach Road, we saw this mama calmly munching and waiting for us to get our pics. Along the same road we stopped at a beach overlook and watched the birds go by over and over in twos and threes.

After a mosquito-infested picnic lunch we headed back to our log cabin for a rest and steak dinner. Beautiful weather; warm and sunny.

We have arrived

We all arrived safely at Anchorage after a smooth, ontime flight. Met up with Bob (who drove up from Eatonville) at baggage claim and everything actually fit in the car. Had incredible views of the mountains from the airplane and along the whole drive to Homer, and Gail THOUGHT she saw a moose (just a tree stump.) After settling into our spacious log cabin with the great view of the volcanos, we are now waiting for it to get dark or to get sleepy, whichever comes first. A little jet lagged but so happy all went smoothly.

North to Alaska

Welcome to our blog. We are in the final processes of planning a trip to Alaska for this summer. My dad (Byron, age 93,) my husband Brian and my brother Bob will begin our adventure on July 3, 2014 when we arrive in Anchorage. Bob will drive from Seattle, meeting us at the airport and providing navigation and transportation. We can only hope that the 4 of us and all our luggage will fit into one vehicle. More to come...