Author: Ranger (Page 4 of 7)

Banff

September 16, 2023

Yikes!  We drove into Banff, which was like dropping into a crowded theme park.  Granted, it was a Saturday, so we deserved the traffic we got, but transitioning back to civilization is always challenging.  We were glad to be in the truck camper to find a parking spot in town! 

As always, we went to the Park Visitor Centre to chat with a ranger about advice, weather, and general information before catching some groceries and heading back north on the Trans Canada Highway to our campground at Johnston Canyon.  I had picked this campground as a base of operations between activities we had planned in Banff to the south and the Lake Louise area to the north, which worked well for the week we were there.

On Sunday, 9.10, we drove to Lake Louise, and I made a good breakfast before we joined a Parc Canada ranger for a guided hike to Hidden Lake.  It is usually a long hike with a steep, dusty road to the trailhead, but we got a shuttle ride to skip the road walk. 

As we hiked, the ranger stopped periodically to talk about the cutthroat trout and efforts to preserve it. 

The short story is about the cutthroat trout going extinct, so they found the perfect place for it (Hidden Lake), killed all the fish there, and reintroduced the trout.   It was a full day with a stop by the lake for the lunch we brought.

On Monday, we drove east to Golden for the Skybridge. 

This particular adventure was part of a discounted package I purchased through Pursuit Pass Rockies and I’m not sure I would have gone otherwise, but it was enjoyable.  The plan for the day was to first sightsee at YoHo National Park.  We drove up to Takakkaw Falls —a very steep drive with a switchback that vehicles over 24 feet must back up to maneuver.  The Falls had a neat rooster tail, and it was a quick walk out to them. 

On the way to Emerald Lake, we stopped at Natural Bridge, where the water eroded the rock across the river to form a cool bridge. 

Emerald Lake was truly emerald, and we walked around the perimeter. 

After that, a bit of a drive to the Skybridge,  where two pedestrian suspension bridges span the kicking horse river gorge.  It was a lovely day, and we enjoyed ourselves.

On Tuesday, we were at the Lake Louise parking lot before 7 am to get a parking spot in their RV lot.  To get there that early meant we left the campground in the dark, which is not unusual, but as we drove through the parking lot, we were surprised by a giant black bear!  We watched the sunrise over Lake Louise, then hiked the Plain of 6 glaciers trail up to Agnes Lake Teahouse. 

The trail climbed steadily to the Teahouse, and we watched a helicopter making multiple trips. 

We thought it was bringing  food, but on arrival at the Teahouse, we learned they were emptying the pit toilets.  We had hot chocolate and a snack – not the sandwich and soup we had anticipated, as the crew was primarily busy with the helicopter. 

Then, we hiked to the trail’s end, past and on glacial moraines, where you could see six glaciers across the valley and on the mountains.  It was spectacular!! 

We hiked back to the Teahouse and had a piece of chocolate cake (they still weren’t serving lunch). 

Not getting the lunch we’d intended left us a little flat on the hike back, but we met another hiker whose enthusiasm and joy were uplifting.  He shared pictures of his morning hike and plans for his vacation, confirming that one of the best parts of travel is the people we meet!  We shared our amazement at seeing one of the glaciers calve with a huge thunderous roar and our appreciation of all the beauty around us.

Now that’s one way to travel!

This chubby guy clearly gets food rewards for his boldness!

We drove into Banff early on Wednesday to get a picture with the Banff sign.  There was always a line of people for this, and in the afternoon, the light was from behind the sign, so we knew we wanted to do our picture in the morning. 

We walked the trail to Bow Falls and the overlook before going to the Banff Gondola, where we had tickets for 10:10 am. 

The views from the boardwalk and stairs to the top of Sulphur Mountain were clear without the recent smoke!  Northern Lights Alpine Kitchen had a delicious buffet, which we treated ourselves to at a table right by the window. 

We drove to Lake Minnewanka in the afternoon for the 6 pm boat cruise. 

The trip had no stops, but the narrator gave a great demo of how the “Stoney” people used hot rock to boil water and cook food!

  Thursday, we went back to Lake Louise, where we had reserved early morning shuttle tickets to Lake Moraine.  We climbed Rockpile to get the morning light and sunrise photos, then did the Larch Valley hike. 

The larches were not at peak yet but in a lovely grove.  Larch trees are the only evergreen trees to have their needles turn yellow/gold and fall off each year, so this area of Banff is famous for fall foliage (hike early!).

We started hiking the upper and lower Johnston Canyon Falls near our campground on Friday before sunrise.  We got to the upper falls as the light was getting pretty and enjoyed the beauty and solitude, though it was chilly! 

Our next adventure was a four-hour horseback ride to Sulphur Springs Mountain, and we ended up going under the gondola we’d taken the day before and then further on to Spray Creek.  All the horses at the stable are rescued from auction and well cared for.  From his lip tattoo, they knew my Arabian horse had been a Level 4 Dressage Horse, which is hard to fathom how he ended up at auction, but he was pretty popular with all the riders.

Saturday, we just had to go back to Lake Louise for one more gorgeous sunrise before heading to Calgary!

I did not mention that the young man we met on the hike down from the Teahouse walked with an unusual gait, which suggested some orthopedic issue, yet it didn’t stop him from hiking further than we did that day.  His hands started at his elbows and had missing or misshaped fingers, yet he could scroll through the photos on his phone faster than I could.  He will always be an unstoppable ray of sunshine in my memories.  Banff is a beautiful gem of a place, but the real treasure is people like him.

Be unstoppable.

Whitehorse to Jasper

September 9, 2023

I had not made any camping plans for the Labor Day holiday weekend as we drove east from Whitehorse to Jasper National Parc.  Back in March, I had decided that we would take a relaxed approach to the weekend and find someplace to land as long as we stayed away from the major parks.  Honestly, it worked out better than I had expected!

On Saturday, September 2, we stopped at Purden Lake Provincial Park in the early afternoon as a nice camp spot was available. 

We walked down to the lake and found it full of families splashing in the water, sunbathing, and grilling.  As pleasant as it was, we drove to the Ancient Forest Provincial Park the next day, where we spent several hours hiking the trails entirely on boardwalks.  Unlike the coastal rainforests of Vancouver Island, this inland rainforest is one of a kind. 

We enjoyed the peace and solitude as we were there early, but it did get busy later in the morning, so we continued our drive east to LaSalle Lake Recreation Area.  There was an available campsite across from the lake, and as we were settling in, our neighbors on the lake said they were leaving so we could have their site.  It was a fantastic site, and — free! 

Later in the afternoon, we launched our two-seat inflatable kayak we had purchased for this trip.   We hadn’t even unfolded it until now, and for its maiden voyage, we discovered that our “red” kayak was orange, orange, orange!  Nicknamed the Orange Peel, we also found that we had forgotten the hoses that go with the pump to inflate the kayak.  So, Orange Peel was a little underinflated but still performed well as we enjoyed circumnavigating the small but clear water LaSalle Lake. 

We’ll try to get the hoses, but ordering them in Canada is challenging.

After a peaceful night, our Labor Day Monday drive was increasingly smoky and heavier traffic.  Rearguard Falls is the furthest east the salmon travel to spawn, and though it is too late in the season for them, we did see some whitewater rafters just leaving for a trip downstream.  I waved, and they waved back!  I’m sure they thought we wished we were with them — and they were right! 

That afternoon, we made it to Jasper, our destination for the next few days, where the air quality was “unhealthy” due to all the smoke.  There is no free parking in town, so we didn’t linger at the visitor center after we talked to a ranger who confirmed we had solid plans for our visit and gave us a few other ideas.

 Campground is further out of town and much more forested than the other campgrounds, and on our drive in, we saw a magnificent bull elk just walking along the road! 

The smoke was so thick we could hardly see the outlines of nearby mountains.

The following day, the predicted rain came, so we waited until lunchtime to drive up the narrow, steep, winding road to Mount Edith Cavell.  We walked to Cavell Pond on the Path of Glacier Trail, where we saw the pond and Angel Glacier above.  The rain removed the smoke so you could see much better, though now there was some fog to contend with.

Wednesday, we left early and drove the Icefields Parkway to the Columbia Icefield Centre.  Along the way, we stopped at Athabaska Falls and Sunwapta Falls.  Athabasca Falls was awe-inspiring with its narrow slot canyon and abandoned channel.  The waterfall was short but powerful, and we enjoyed walking to all the viewpoints in solitude. 

We had tickets for the Icefield Adventure at 10. We first got onto a shuttle bus to cross the street to a depot, where we boarded an enormous glacier crawler. 

The crawler took us up and down a steep hill, through a tire wash (deep puddle), and then onto the glacier.  There was a groomed area where all the crawlers parked inside a roped-off “safe” area for visitors to walk on. 

Does the kid in the middle look old enough to drive that monster crawler?

It was such a different experience than the one we had in Wrangell-St.  Elias!!  Walking on the glacier with the mountains in close backdrop was neat.  Larry drank some glacier ice and helped others take photos before we returned to the crawler, then a bus that took us up the Parkway to the Skywalk. 

The SkyWalk lets you walk out on a glass overlooking the valley below.  The drop-off was very steep, so of course, you felt like you would fall through the air to the river below, and it was a hoot to watch everyone’s reactions.

We drove to Maligne Canyon just after dawn the next day and hiked the bridges.  A narrow river carved the canyon with potholes, swirls, and unique beauty. 

We stopped at the large but shallow Medicine Lake that drains into Maligne Canyon.  Driving along the banks, you can see the cracks in the lake bottom where the drainage occurs.  Long ago, they even tried stuffing newspapers into the cracks to stop the drainage! 

We found a good parking spot at Maligne Lake and walked the Moose Lake Trail (no moose) and the Mary Shäefer Trail along the lake. 

At 4:30, we took the cruise out to near Spirit Island.  You can’t walk on Spirit Island, but you can get a good picture, and we had a lovely late afternoon light for that!

On the way home, we stopped in Jasper to do laundry and pick up some groceries, so it was pretty late and very dark when we got back to camp.  On Friday, we hiked the Valley of Five Lakes Trail.  Lake One wasn’t much, but Lakes 2-5 were lovely, clear, and beautiful blue! 

We took photos at the red chairs and enjoyed low numbers of people on the trail until the end, where at the trailhead, someone had just tested their bear spray (why?) and left a lingering acrid residue that burned your eyes and throat.  We had a fire and a rare treat of roasted hot dogs for dinner that evening.

On Saturday, September 9, we said goodbye to Jasper and drove down the Icefields Parkway again to Banff. 

We stopped for a short hike at Waterfowl Lake, where the campground was closed for the season.  Paw prints of a big cat were in the mud along the stream! 

We hiked up to Peyto Lake, which is very popular but still fun, and then Bow Lake, where we walked the lakeshore. 

Bow Lake would be an excellent stop to stay awhile, and we enjoyed a sandwich and cookie from the Lodge Cafe on the remainder of our beautiful drive into Banff.

Fun Fact:  When Apple launched the 2014 iPad, an image of Spirit Island was chosen to illustrate its photographic capabilities, and according to our tour guide the island is still one of the most photographed places in the Canadian Rockies!

Boya Lake and Hyder

September 1, 2023

On Saturday, August 26, we were one of the first cars to cross the border back into Canada.  We drove 360 miles from Skagway to Boya Lake, with a lunch stop on the Rancheria River for Larry to try a bit of gold panning. 

At the start of the Cassiar Highway, we had to wait over an hour to follow a pilot car through an area of fires very close to the road. 

We made it to Boya Lake but learned later that the Cassiar was closed overnight.  Our campsite at Boya Lake was one of our best! 

Boya Lake is a beautiful Caribbean blue, and we could park with our big passenger windows facing the lake. 

Even though there were no empty campsites, it was peaceful and quiet, with just the sound of the loons calling. 

We hiked along the lakeshore trail and rented a kayak to explore some of the lakes and islands—you could get lost without a GPS! 

A very protective beaver emerged from a lodge we thought was abandoned and slapped his tail on the water several times to warn us away as he swam around us.  We took the hint and paddled off. 

After two idyllic days, we reluctantly departed on Monday and drove the remainder of the Cassiar to Stewart.  The northern part of the Cassiar is a two-lane, scenic byway without even lines to mark the pavement.  We stopped at Jade City and met the owner, whose show has seven seasons on the Discovery Channel. 

He said winter could come anytime now but would likely be late this year as there was no snow on a nearby mountain that usually marks the two-week warning to winter.  We made it to Rainey Creek Municipal Campground in Stewart and were assigned an excellent site backing up to a creek complete with pink salmon!

The following day was foggy and drizzly, so we toured the museum and visitor center, walked through town, and strolled the boardwalk over the marsh. 

The weather didn’t improve, so we got up early on Wednesday and crossed into Hyder, Alaska (no customs here) to the Fish Creek Wildlife Observation Site.  In late summer, bears feed on pink and chum salmon just below the platforms at the observation station, closely monitored by park rangers armed with bear spray.  A 5-year-old grizzly was chasing salmon, with a preference for the larger chums, and we watched him for almost 2 hours. 

This is us trying to leave from the parking lot while a bear strolled by!

Look at those claws (on an exhibit at the Observation Site, not on a live bear)

Midmorning, we drove up the slick gravel and marl road towards the Salmon Glacier through the thick fog (plus bears) and were rewarded for our perseverance with a clear view of the glacier. 

We spent the day there as others came and went, took pictures, walked to different viewpoints up and down the road, and flew the drone. 

Camping is allowed here, and we considered it, but as the fog rolled back in, we decided to return to the campground for the night.  We stopped again at Fish Creek and watched bears awhile—the male we had watched before was there, and it was a little eery how he would look sideways over his back up at the viewing platform, almost as if he was sizing us up. 

To get to our campground, we had to cross back into Canada, this time with a Border Patrol agent. 

And with that crossing, we left Alaska for the last time on this adventure 😭  Thursday was a driving day, but we started by finding a place to wash the grime off the rig from the drive up to the Salmon Glacier.  We finished the Cassiar Highway, stopping at the Land of Totems and the Gitgawink Battle Site to learn some history and stretch our legs. 

The smoke from the prevalent fires this year in Canada got thicker as we headed toward Prince George.  At Witset RV Park and Campground, where we stayed for the night, we could see the helicopters working to put out the fires in the nearby mountains.

Although no one was fishing during our stay, Witset Canyon is a First Nations fishing spot

Friday was September 1st and the beginning of the Labor Day holiday, so the traffic increased as we drove toward Prince George.  Smithers is a cute alpine-themed town, and we stopped at Bugwood Coffee for a pumpkin spice latte and gluten-free berry muffin. 

In Prince George, we shopped, fueled, washed the rig (again), and boondocked at the WalMart overnight.  Prince George is where we “crossed our wake” on our Alaska trip, closing the Loop we started on the way to Dawson Creek and Mile 0 of the Alcan back in early June.  We have several boating friends who have completed “The Loop” of the Great Lakes, Mississippi River, and Intracoastal Waterway for whom “crossing their wake” is the celebrated end of the great adventure.  We’ve crossed our wake but aren’t finished with this adventure yet!

And about that Loop—we’d need a boat….one we could pull behind the truck….Larry was pretty excited about this setup he saw in the Yukon……

Fifty or so years ago, my paternal grandparents took their sailboat up the inside or outside passage to Alaska every summer well into their eighties.  There was always a spectacular slide show when they visited us and stories of their adventures, including a rogue wave in the Pacific that rolled their 40-foot boat.  So, it can be done when we’re older (maybe minus the rogue wave….)

Skagway, Alaska

August 26, 2023

Cinnamon Rolls must be the siren song of travel to and from Alaska, and we’ve tried to be polite by sampling the most famous. I know it’s a job, but someone has to do it! 🤣  We stopped at the Braeburn Lodge, where Steve served up an enormous Cinnamon Roll that we almost finished in one sitting while we chatted with him about the Yukon Quest since this lodge is one of the stops on the famous sled dog race.

Full of a sugar rush, we drove the Whitehorse, where we did a some shopping, washed the rig off, and visited the Beringia Museum. It was too early in the season for the museum to be open when we were here in early June, so we were especially pleased to have a chance to tour it. Beringia refers to a vast shelf of land connecting Canada, Russia, and Alaska. Not the Bering Sea land bridge so many think of, this was a barren landscape that did not invite migration but was influential in the region’s shared history.

We drove to a boondocking spot near Conrad, and the weather lifted for us to spot mountain goats on the slopes across Tagish Lake.

The following day we drove Klondike Hghway into Skagway—and were blown away by the stunning scenery and multiple changes in climate zones. We had a lovely day for the drive and took our time exploring.

In Skagway, we stayed at Garden City Skagway RV Park, on the outskirts of town but just a 15-minute walk away.

On Saturday, August 19, we walked to the docks and took the Fast Ferry to Haines.

It was a quick 45-minute boat ride up the arm of the Fjord on calm waters.

In Haines, we first walked a mile to the Mountain Market for a breakfast burrito and coffee before going to the visitor center.

A friendly local (originally from Hawaii) helped us with ideas and suggested a car rental from Captains’ Choice Hotel for the day. We followed his excellent advice and were so glad we did. Our first stop was at Chilkoot State Recreation Area, where we watched a mother grizzly bear fishing for her two cubs on a weir. She was catching humpies (pink salmon) and sometimes sharing them with the cubs.

So, this guy, calmly counting salmon with his back to the bears?

Where does a wet bear cross the road? Wherever it wants to!

There were locals hooking salmon in the river below to watch as well.

The rest of the day, we visited the Chilkat Recreation Area to the south, where we circumnavigated the small islands to enjoy the views, ate an excellent lunch of halibut fish and chips at the Bamboo Room, and toured the Haines Sheldon Museum.

Our ferry ride back to Haines had us back at the campground by 8:30 pm, and – surprise – it was getting dark at night now! Just a little reminder that our endless Alaskan summer is drawing to a close, though we still have plenty of adventures planned!

Skagway is always bustling with people during the day as it is a cruise ship town, and it was fun to walk around and see everyone enjoying their vacations.

One evening, we took in the Days of ’98 Soapy Smith Vaudeville Show in town,  proceeded by “gambling” in the hall with $1500 in chips given to each person.  We enjoyed playing blackjack until the show started.

Another day, we walked into town and hiked to Lower Dewey Lake above the port for some exercise and views of the Fjord.

On Tuesday, August 22, we took the Fjord Express catamaran for a 2.5-hour ride to Juneau.

It was a picture-perfect day with views of the mountains and waterfalls around the Fjord and visits by Dall porpoises, humpback whales, bald eagles, Stellar Sea lions, and sea otters.

In Juneau, a bus picked us up from the dock and dropped us off in town for three hours of sightseeing. Our first stop was lunch at Pel’Meni for beef and potato Russian dumplings.

Since it was such a gorgeous day, we took the tram to Mount Roberts and enjoyed the spectacular views.

We watched the film about First Nations and met a gentleman who was a true artist carving a totem pole, but it would be nice to have a longer time in Juneau to do the longer hikes on and around the mountain.

Fortunately, we timed our tram ride down to have a very short wait and were able to explore the town before taking the ferry home. Captain Ketch and deckhand Hannah served us salmon chowder, sourdough bread, and a chocolate chip cookie, and the way home was just as scenic as before.

Just kidding, this is the lifesize humpback whale sculpture in Juneau, but Larry had fun positioning himself to make it look real!

One evening, we walked into town to take the Whitepass and Yukon train, which covered some of the scenery we saw on our drive into Skagway. Larry stayed on the back platform the entire ride and got the best pictures on a hazy Alaska evening.

We spent an entire day exploring the upper end of Skagway, including the falls and the cemetery at the edge of town with the gravesites of some of the characters mentioned in the Soapy Smith play.

The abandoned townsite of Dyea was the start of the Chilkoot Train for the 1898 Gold Rush Stampede, and there is a walking trail to some of the old building foundations or locations.

The cemetery there had many of the stampeders who died in the Palm Sunday avalanche that deterred others from using the trail. The deadly avalanche and the opening of the railroad spelled the end of Dyea.  The Floridian below died in the avalanche.

The first part of the Chilkoot Pass Trail is steep, narrow, and rocky, and hiking makes you admire the men who carried 50 to 100 pounds on this trail, 40 trips to the Canadian border and back, bringing in the required one-year supply of goods.

The bridge over the Taiya River at mile 3 washed out over a year ago, so much of the US portion of the trail is closed. Cruise ship tours only walk in a short distance, but we went to the (missing) bridge and back—the bears have gotten used to having the trail to themselves, and we saw lots of prints and tons of scat.

Although we had our bear spray, the brush was very close without much visibility, and we were concerned to find a fresh, steamy pile of scat on our way back that wasn’t there on our way out.

Our last day in Skagway was Friday, August 25, and in between chores and getting ready to leave, we wandered back into town to the Skagway museum.

We’ve enjoyed seeing this town and this part of Alaska. It’s hard to believe this is almost our last stop in Alaska, and as we crossed back into Canada early the following day, we thought about how blessed we have been to enjoy all these adventures this summer!

“August is like the Sunday of summer.”   – Unknown

Next up – more bears!

Chicken to Dawson City

August 15, 2023

In our original plans, our stop in Chicken was on the way to Alaska in June.  Our timing would have coincided with “Chickenstock,” a music festival where hundreds if not thousands of people converge on the town of Chicken, whose average population is 12.  It sounds like a hoot, but with the tickets having sold out almost instantaneously in January, we scheduled to come on our way out of Alaska instead. This is Chicken, and I’m not sure where all those people stayed.

We toured the Pedro Dredge with Simon, who was very informative. 

The dredge was moved here from a mile away in 1998, restored for tours by 2005, and listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

After the tour, Larry had the best time panning for gold and stayed at the stand-up troughs for several hours.  I even purchased a gold pan and sniffer bottle to make it easier for him.

We boondocked that night in Chicken just beside the restaurant, which was super convenient for being first in line to buy a colossal cinnamon roll the following morning! 

Larry needed the fuel for the hours and hours and hours he spent later at the Jack Wade public gold panning area. 

We only left when the rain became more serious, chasing a cow moose down the road on our way to Top of the World Highway. 

We found a boondocking spot with epic panoramic views on the spur to Eagle- the kind of camping spot whose beauty and wildness are permanently etched into your memory.

The next day was Sunday, August 13, and we drove the Top of the World highway to Dawson City.  The name is appropriate as the road has stunning scenery and incredible views. 

We crossed into Canada at Poker Creek-Little Gold border crossing, and for such a lovely place, the border agent was grumpy.  We were sad to leave Alaska, too!

  From there, the weather in Canada deteriorated to match his mood, with rain making the roads slick and muddy.  We crossed the Yukon River into Dawson City on the free George Black ferry, and our first stop after arriving was to find a spot to wash the rig! 

Looking all fresh and clean, we parked on Main Street to make several Parks Canada tour reservations at the visitors’ center. 

Gold Rush Campground is located right in town and was a very convenient place to stay, as Dawson City is a very walkable town!  After checking into the campground, we returned to the Visitor Center for a downtown walking tour.  Our guide, James, gave us a good overview of town history and peeks behind the scenes in some buildings.

The following day, we joined Lucy for a guided tour of the SS Keno.  The Keno is smaller than the Klondike in Whitehorse and meant to haul silver ore from the Mayo mines instead of passengers.  It is a remarkably well-preserved memory from a vanished era, and we enjoyed Parks Canada’s access. 

Afterward, we walked uphill to visit the Jack London cabin and then the Robert Service cabin, where Fred presented a program reciting many of Robert Service’s famous poems.

We had some time to relax before going to Diamond Tooth Gertie’s that night for a show based on Dawson City history. 

Of course, no visit to Dawson City is complete without a trip to the Sourdough Saloon for the “Sour Toe Cocktail.” Drink it fast or drink it slow; your lips must touch the toe—there are substantial penalties if you damage the wax-encased frost-bitten toe in any way!

Dawson City is a quirky town that grows on you, and we enjoyed our short stay there.  As we left, we drove uphill to the Midnight Dome, where sweeping views of the city allow you to see where the Yukon and Klondike rivers meet, the colors being different until the waters mixed downstream.

The Dredge #4 National Historic Site just outside town was one of the best we’ve been to, probably because of our tour guide, Sue.  Sue is a small, wiry, and knowledgeable local miner who explained that Dredge 4 was underwater when mining ceased, so the lower levels remained intact and unsalvaged.  The Canadian Army raised the dredge and restored it for the park, making it a wonder to behold.  It is undoubtedly the largest dredge we have been on!

Ah, but the best part is Claim #6, just down the road on Bonanza Creek, where you can pan for gold at no charge!! So Larry scoped out a spot on the creek and bought a three-legged stool for $10 Canadian from a fellow gold fever-stricken German tourist, which allowed him to pan for probably six hours. 

He found color in every pan, so how could he stop?  We ended up boondocking there overnight next to several old trommels. 

What a wonderful place to wake up and imagine all the crazy events and people this little creek has seen. 

After a long 8-hour drive that next day, we landed at a spacious, peaceful boondocking spot hidden across from the rest area on the Klondike Highway @298 km that talks about conglomerates. 

We spent a rainy night with no neighbors, two or four-legged, though a scant mile or two down the road the following day, we spied an enormous grizzly scampering away into the woods, so—who knows?

Wrangell-St. Elias to Chicken

August 11, 2023

We left Valdez on an early foggy morning and drove up the Richardson Highway into a beautiful clear day.  Valdez to Base Camp Kennecott in Wrangell-St. Elias National Park is only 179 miles but the last 59 miles after Chitina are legendarily rough. The McCarthy Road is a gravel and chip seal road built over an old railroad track that took copper ore from the McCarthy mines to Cordova.  There are still old railroad spikes in the railroad bed notorious for causing flat tires, though we luckily didn’t have any mishaps. At Pippin Lake, we took the Edgerton Highway to Kenny Lake where we took advantage of almost the last place to fuel up and fill with water. We stopped at Liberty Falls to stretch our legs and have an early lunch. 

From the Chitina Bridge, we could see fish wheels along the banks of the Chitina River harvesting the salmon run.

And then…the McCarthy Road!!

McCarthy Road was actually in better shape than we had imagined, but still took over 3 hours driving 30mph or less to travel the 60 miles.  It was a quiet day on the road, with less than a handful of vehicles, so we enjoyed stopping at scenic spots for pictures and videos. 

The Kuskulana Bridge

The Gilahina Trestle

Long Lake

We arrived at Base Camp Kennecott mid-afternoon and scouted about until we found this epic camp spot.

Since there was still plenty of daylight, we wandered across the footbridge over the Kennecott River to check out the shuttle pick-up point for the following morning’s adventure.  Looking down through the bridge grate and watching the water pound against the pilings made you dizzy and wonder how the little bridge survived! 

Pedestrians, bicyclists, and 4-wheelers use this bridge and there is a vehicle bridge downstream only for locals.  RigorMortis, a truck assembled by a pioneer from whatever parts he had available, is proudly displayed on the McCarthy side of the footbridge.

After a hearty breakfast and coffee by the river the next morning, we crossed the bridge to meet our St.Elias Alpine Guides van. 

It is a 5-mile drive from the footbridge to the town of Kennecott where we would start our hike to the Root Glacier.  Our guide Max fitted our shoes with spikes we would need later for walking on the glacier and as we hiked the 2.5 miles out to the toe, he filled us in with area history and glacier information. 

Once out on the ice, the spikes kept us steady on the hard-packed surface—like a giant ice cube! 

Max led us to blue pools, waterfalls, deep crevasses, and hilltop overlooks.  The beauty of the glacier hike was surreal and the experience is hard to describe. 

Lunch included a turkey sandwich, cookie, and chips from Kennicott Glacier Lodge in town, and Max even served hot chocolate!

The six-hour adventure was over all too soon and we had a brief rest before joining Max again for the Kennecott Mine tour. 

The stamp mill was similar to the Brittania Mine in British Columbia, with some of the same components in a different state of disrepair. 

It was a more athletic tour with steep stairways and narrow passageways to navigate!

At the end of the day, we took the shuttle back to McCarthy where we ate at The Potato.  Fresh black cod with kimchee seasoning and garlic rosemary fries-wow! 

We walked back to the footbridge and home to the truck camper where we slept well beside the noisy river.  We woke in the morning to the sound of rain and hoped the weather would clear for our trip with Wrangell Raft and Flightsee.  Colorful rafts perched on the opposite bank just across the river from our camper promised that the adventure was a go, so off we went across the footbridge for another day’s fun!

After a short van ride and a stop to get outfitted in dry suits, we launched the colorful rafts into the Kennicott River which rushes continually with a constantly changing course and no deep spots to slow down. 

The morning fog made us feel like we could have been early explorers charting unknown territory.  In reality, our guides were the company owners, who took phenomenal care of all of us and made sure we had a great time!  They set out a delicious deli spread for lunch on the gravel riverbed before oaring us through the Nizina Canyon with swirling currents between cliff walls. 

After the canyon, there was an area on the riverbank just large enough for two little planes to land and pick us up.  The rafts were deflated and folded, and it took two trips to fetch everything back to McCarthy. 

We took the second flight out, and the plane flew over the glacier we had walked the day before for a different perspective. 

This is the more remote and wild Alaska we love to experience!

It was hard to leave the next morning, but we made an early start for a 260-mile day to Tok.  McCarthy Road was a little more congested—wherever these guys are going, count me in (Say, do you need a camp cook? Someone to look after the mules? Srsly!). 

In Tok, we picked up mail we had sent from our mail forwarding service, did laundry, and boondocked at a rest area on the southeast corner of the Tetlin Bridge over the Tanana River just east of Tok.  It was so quiet after several nights camping by the Kennicott River! 

The next day we drove the Taylor Highway to Chicken, with gorgeous sweeping views of lower mountains, black spruce, and tundra with low bushes. 

We stopped at an overlook & picked blueberries—well, I picked and Larry ate all his as he said he had to keep his hands free to use the bear spray in case we got company (we didn’t, but a plausible excuse).

Our next stop in Alaska is named after ptarmigan, a type of grouse found plentifully in Alaska. Story has it that townsfolk settles on the name of “Chicken” since the spelling of ptarmigan eluded them. See you there!

Valdez

August 7, 2023

We arrived in Valdez on Saturday evening July 29 and stayed until Monday morning August 7 to explore the Valdez area and enjoy the festivities of Gold Rush Days. 

Months ago, I made reservations at Bear Paw Campground for its central location downtown across from the marina.

I had read somewhere that Valdez has an abundance of rabbits, some of whom would follow pedestrians with shopping bags in hopes of a handout.  The ones at our campground were your normal shy bunnies! Valdez is decorated with chainsaw-carved sculptures along its very walkable streets, busy marinas and docks.

After arriving we first explored Valdez on an ATV tour with Valdez Off Road Adventures.  Our Athabascan guide Daelen took us up Mineral Creek Canyon to waterfalls and a mining site, to the braided outflow of the creek, and even over to wander through Old Valdez at the end of Valdez Arm.  Since Valdez is up a glacial fjord it is not on a bay but an arm (we learn a lot traveling!).  It was a wonderful overview of Valdez with an ATV ride thrown in for good measure.

This is the site of Old Valdez now

A few of our days in Valdez were foggy, which is pretty normal, so we toured the local museums. The Old Valdez Museum told the events of the 1964 Good Friday Earthquake.  Old Valdez was built on the alluvial plain outflow of the Valdez Glacier whose silty soil saturated with water liquified during the quake and slid into the arm.  The following tsunami caused more loss of life and damage to Old Valdez.  At the Maxine & Jesse Whitney Museum, tucked in Prince William Sound College, we were fascinated by the large collection of Native Alaskan art and artifacts as well as the extraordinary wildlife mounts.

One foggy morning we joined 12 other kayakers on a small boat for a two-hour ride out to the Columbia Glacier, stopping a few times to view wildlife and the several faces of the glacier. 

The sun came out for a beautiful day by the time we reached the beach to unload the gear and kayaks. 

It was fun to kayak among the little icebergs, though we would have liked to have gotten closer to the glacier as we saw other groups doing.  This is one of the issues of taking a guided trip—your tour depends on the willingness, ability, and experience of the guide you get which can be luck of the draw even if you communicate expectations in advance. Not the first time this happened, so that’s all I have to say about that 😉.  (I think it would have been hard to top the recent stellar jetski experience in Whittier anyway!) We  chatted with other travelers in town who all raved about the  Lu-Lu Belle Glacier Wildlife Cruise. Even other guides spoke of Captain Fred with a kind of reverence and awe–so, next time!

We chose a pretty day to drive through Keystone Canyon to Thompson Pass and the Worthington Glacier. 

While at the glacier, we met a family who had also completed the Fairbanks Midnight Run! The view at Thompson Pass was spectacular, so we hiked out for a panoramic photo and spotted some possible boondocking campsites for the future. 

On the way back we stopped at Bridal Veil Falls, Horsetail Falls, and the Old Train Tunnel, where a historic gunfight ended all hope for a profitable train route from copper mines in McCarthy to the coast.

Around the other end of the Valdez Arm, we took a self-guided tour of the Solomon Gulch Hatchery where the pink and silver salmon who had made it into the main holding pens would spawn the next generation.  Outside the weir, the water was thick with returning salmon–and sea lions enjoying an easy meal!  Bears sometimes come to join in the feast although not while we were there.

Back in town, we enjoyed Gold Rush Days. The Kelsey Dock at the west end of town hosted a fun open-air market with live music and the Gold Rush store.  We walked to the US Forest Service Crooked Creek Information Station where we “staked a claim” before panning for “gold” and were rewarded with prizes.  Other activities included braided rug sewing, soap carving, and a Dutch oven demonstration. 

Later, we joined a guided tour of historic homes moved from Old Valdez to New Valdez after the 1964 Earthquake.  All the walking made us hungry so we had a delicious meal of tacos at the Nat Shack just up the street from our campground.

We finished our time in Valdez with “End of the Road” by Magpies on the Fly, a fun vaudeville musical about local history. They were a hoot!

July 29, 2023

Spoiler alert — it was Epic!!
From Seward, we retraced our steps back to just before the Alaska Wildlife Conservation Center on the Seward Highway and then turned on Portage Glacier Highway towards Whittier. Whittier is accessed by road only through the Anton Anderson Memorial Tunnel, a 2.5-mile controlled one-lane tunnel with alternating train and vehicle traffic. We knew the tunnel schedule and had plenty of time, so we made an unplanned visit to the Begich Boggs visitor center. In addition to very informative exhibits, we especially enjoyed the award-winning movie. Curtains sweep aside at the end for a stunning panoramic view of Portage Lake. Next time, we plan to take the boat ride across to view Portage Glacier!
We took our turn going through the tunnel to Whittier—it is long, dark, and feels narrow even though a train travels through it.

Whittier is as small as we remembered it, though we did explore out to the end of Shotgun Cove Trail for a view across the Passage Canal.

Our jetski tour company kindly allowed us to stay in their parking lot, and we took the tunnel connecting the more industrial area to town where we wandered the shops and watched the activity at the boat ramp.

Next morning was our Jetski tour down Passage Canal, around Decision Point, and up Blackstone Bay to several tidewater glaciers. It is thirty miles one way over very cold water 🥶. Glacier Jetski was very serious about keeping us warm and safe. Our guides checked our clothing to be sure we had on the clothing layers they had requested before putting us in dry suits, life jackets, neoprene booties, and gloves. Our tour leaders could even talk to us on the one-way intercom in our helmets!

After a quick van ride and launching the jetskis, we climbed aboard and listened to the instructions to ride single file following the wake of the person ahead.

We started slow and stopped a time or two for sightseeing and equipment checks before reaching Decision Point. Big and small boats peek around the corner here to check out the waves, wind, and weather before deciding whether to continue. The waves were a bit bigger here as we navigated around the corner into Blackstone Bay. Blackstone Bay is a magical place with glaciers, waterfalls, icebergs, wildlife, and stunning views.

Photos cannot do it justice.
For the return trip, we all agreed that we were comfortable going faster—my jetski registered 55mph as we rode in wide swinging arcs back to our beach in Whittier! What a rush!! Glacier Jetski company and our tour guides were thoroughly professional, friendly, and deeply respectful of the special places they travel through. I could do this all season to see this beautiful place each day!!

Back on land we cleaned up and headed to town for dinner. We think we found the same place we ate last time we were here; at least the inside was familiar and it was on the water as we remembered. We enjoyed our halibut and chowder overlooking the marina and reliving our day’s adventure.

Our Alaska Marine Ferry trip to Valdez the next day didn’t depart until after lunch so we drove back out Shotgun Cove Trail to Lu Young Park. Cove Creek runs down into this protected cove and when we walked down to the beach we found spawning pink salmon.

We checked in at the ferry terminal and lined up behind another Hallmark camper.

It was an easy 5-hour passage to Valdez with clear weather and smooth seas.

We docked in Valdez where we’ll be for a week during Gold Rush Days!

Whittier Glacier and Whittier itself are named after John Greenleaf Whittier, one of the greatest poets of the nineteenth century.

Here is an excerpt from his poem

“The Worship of Nature”

The harp at Nature’s advent strung

Has never ceased to play

The song the stars of morning sung

Has never died away.

And prayer is made, and praise is given,

By all things near and far;

The ocean looketh up to heaven,

And mirrors every star.

Its waves are kneeling on the strand,

As kneels the human knee,

Their white locks bowing to the sand,

The priesthood of the sea!

They pour their glittering treasures forth,

Their gifts of pearl they bring,

And all the listening hills of earth

Take up the song they sing.

Exactly how Larry and I often feel when surrounded by the profound splendor of the world we get to explore!

Seward

July 27, 2023

On our drive into Seward from our comping spot on Upper Trail Lake, we stopped to hike the Exit Glacier terminus. 

The trail was a little more than two miles, and along the way, we passed the spot where the glacier ended the last time we were here in 2010.  Exit Glacier has receded so now the toe is around the corner.

The Herman Leirer Road to the Exit Glacier is known for moose sightings and we were not disappointed.

We stopped in at the Seward Visitor Center to get additional suggestions about the area and mug it up with this guy.

I had made reservations for the Seward Municipal campground the first day reservations opened, and we got a quiet spot on the water near the marina.

The Kenai Fjords National Park Visitor Center was a short walk away where we both picked up Junior Ranger booklets to complete. 

Larry got his Junior Ranger badge the very next day!

Our big adventure for Seward was to kayak the Aialik Glacier.  Aialik is pronounced ignoring the first vowel and pronouncing the next two vowels long.  Our paddle tour involved a 2.5-hour boat ride each way out to the glacier and we both are prone to motion sickness.  On the suggestion of a fellow traveler, we took meclizine first thing in the morning the day before and the day of our tour.  Bottom Line Up Front–this technique worked perfectly so we repeated it later on other water adventures.

We met our tour group at 7 a.m. and got fitted for the gear we would need to paddle before the 24 of us walked over to the marina to our water taxi. 

The weather did start foggy at first, but that added to the ruggedness and mystery of the scenery.

On the way, our captain found a pod of bubble-feeding humpback whales.  This behavior is new for whales in this area who normally feed alone.

At one point the whales even went under our boat.

Some orcas also cruised by.

The folks at the back of the boat must have great pictures!

The water taxi dropped us off at a beach about 2 miles from the glacier and unloaded the boats. 

Bears like this beach as well so we walked up the hill behind us as a group to scare them away.  We didn’t see any bears but it was a fun exercise.

After settling into our kayaks, we paddled several miles until we were in front of the glacier. 

We ate lunch with an awesome view! 

All too soon we were paddling back to the beach and loading up for our ride back. The weather cleared up nicely, and the captain spotted seals and puffins for us.

On top of this 650-foot cliff is Fort McGilvray, an abandoned WW2 US military installation built to protect ice-free Resurrection Bay.  The Fort was never completed once the Aleutian Islands were recaptured since construction was a huge challenge.  It is now part of the Alaska Division of Parks and you can hike to it!  Something to do next time!!

We took a day off to wander around Seward and enjoy all the murals and monuments downtown. 

Now that we know how to avoid being seasick, maybe next time we can go halibut fishing!

During our last visit to Seward, we went to the Sealife Center, rode a helicopter up to a glacier for dogsledding, and climbed Mount Marathon—so we didn’t repeat those this trip!  I had wanted to go back up Mount Marathon but with all the recent rain it reportedly was more treacherous than “normal.”  When I climbed it before, the fastest route down was a snow chute you had to exit before a waterfall into heaven knows where.  Yeah, not very smart. Every July 4 Seward has a grueling 5K race up the mountain so risky that a runner once disappeared never to be found. Only in Alaska!

Early one morning we drove back out to the Exit Glacier and hiked up to the Harding Ice Field. 

This hike was 11-plus miles round trip with a 4000 ft elevation change.  We started in the fog and had the trail to ourselves.

As we climbed, we found ourselves above the fog with spectacular views. 

As Larry was taking photos, I spotted a black bear poking his nose up from the bushes 25 yards uphill. 

We have a rule that you only say “bear” if there is one, so he turned around pretty quickly to get this video. 

The bear decided the trail was getting crowded and left—black bears are almost a daily sighting along this trail.  As always in Alaska, we were wearing our bear spray!

The scenery slowly changed to subalpine then alpine with snow fields to cross.

There is an Emergency Shelter just before the Icefield where we stopped to make a hot lunch for the end of the trail.

The Harding Icefield covers over 700 square miles and is the source of at least 40 glaciers. 

We were blessed with beautiful weather and stunning views. 

This was hands down the hike with the best views of our Alaska trip!

The hike down always seems longer than the hike up, and we rewarded ourselves with dinner at the Salmon Bake as recommended by some locals. 

Although they advertised warm beer and lousy food—the meal was a delicious way to finish this trip to Seward.

A younger me at the top of Mount Marathon (on the left 😀)