Alaska: Day 3 - Seward to Whittier, and then to Palmer!

We had scheduled another scenic boat tour with a company in Whittier named Major Marine Tours. Whittier, smaller than some would consider a town, was a sea-outlet that the military constructed back during one of the World Wars. Since it was well-known for it's tours, and conveniently situated on our drive back to Anchorage, we worked it into our itinerary.

We left Seward early the next day, which gave us the opportunity to catch a glimpse of some mountain morning magic. The sky was clear blue, and the sun light highlighted the peaks, casting shadows we hadn't a chance to see on previously rainy or overcast days. Eventually, we approached the entrance to Whittier - a 3+ mile one-lane tunnel through a mountain. The tunnel operates on a schedule that allows vehicles and the train to enter or leave Whittier once every hour, so arriving on time (or early) is of the essence. Given that we had left extra early, we had 2 hours to spare
before our scheduled boat tour, so we headed for a marked trail we found on a city map bearing the name Horsetail Falls. Being hard to find and nestled up on a hill next to some abandoned/junked school buses, I was a bit skeptical, but we parked outside the gate and set out. The trail was marked by connected wooden planks, wet with morning dew and a mere 8 inches wide most of the time. The path winded up and up again, climbing up the side of a mountain and through lush vegetation. Once we reached the top, we were greeted with amazing views of snowcapped mountains, bright, welcoming meadows thick with blueberry, salmonberry and cranberry bushes, and a bustling creek. We also ran into a local who was romping around up top picking berries with his trusty black lab companion. He educated me on the different berries that grew in the area, showing me what was edible, and what to avoid, so I spent the most of the hike downhill picking every berry - ripe or otherwise - I could find. Unfortantely, the berries were not as sweet as I'd hoped, but it was still fun! Pushing through the dewy brush had soaked our clothing, so after we finished the hike we made a quick change and rushed to the harbor to board the boat.

The boat was was a 2.5 decker - an inner main dining deck, an upper viewing deck and a bar down below. Shortly after the boat disembarked, we had lunch - Prime Rib, Alaskan Salmon, and fresh sourdough bread and the trimmings (sourdough bread is a big deal there apparently, but it was scrumptious with butter). The 5.5 hour tour took us out of port and down the arm, showcasing stunning views of snowy mountains, rocky cliffs, waterfalls and 13 different glaciers. We even encountered a couple of "rafts" of otters (raft denoting "a large gathering) floating along and chilling in the cool water. There was a park ranger on board, who gave a very educational narrative throughout the trip and whom also volunteered to shoot pictures of all of the passengers (with their personal cameras) at a beautiful waterfall we encountered. The highlight of the trip was definitely the time we spent parked a few meters from two large glaciers that were situated on the water. This gave passengers an opportunity to watch the glaciers "calving" - the process of large masses of ice breaking off into the ocean. We were lucky and got to witness the second glacier during some
major calving activity, which created some decent waves and sent everyone rocking. The sound of ice sharding off of one of those huge giants is thunderous and was a pretty epic event for us, and definitely put us in awe of nature's power.

After the tour was over, we hoped back in the car and drove for a few hours north, past Anchorage and into the city of Palmer. It was after 10pm once we reached our cute little cabin, so we were tuckered and eagerly hit the hay.

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Alaska: Day 2 - Seward

We awoke to nice, dry weather the next morning, which sort of a bummer, since it was clear that the tour cancellation (due to weather) now seemed premature. Determined to make the most of the day anyway, we geared up and set out to the Greyling Lake Trail. The trail winded up through the mossy, green rainforest. We trekked up muddy terrain, through creeks, passed wildflowers, and witnessed a ton of fabulous fungi - many shroom photos ensued! It certainly reminded me of the things I used to dream of as a kid - things of faeries and smurfs. We made our way to Greyling and Leech lakes, marching over bustling creeks and past meadows of wildflowers. Blueberries, salmon berries and cranberries were prolific, growing along the trail. Enroute, John slipped on a wet log and injured his big toe (wet tennis shoes = slippery! hiking boots = hurrah). The toe bruised and swole to twice it's size and was pretty uncomfortable for him, however. :( As a result, we decided to take it easy the rest of the day, lunched at a pizzeria, and napped for a couple of hours.

Later that evening, we drove down to check out the view at Ressurection Bay in downtown Seward, had dinner at "The Salmon Bake" for some local catch cuisine. Their roadside sign "Lousy food, cheap beer" was quite witty, but not telling of the quality of food, which was quite tastey. The end of the day was marked with a hearty camfire (no rain, dry wood - hurrah!) and some oozy, scrumptous smores and burnt marshmallows - ahhhh...

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Alaska: Day 1 - Anchorage - Seward

Our flight arrived in Anchorage on August 28th at 12:30am, what fun! We picked up our rental at the airport (new Chevy Impala, comfy and competent) and checked into a hotel, with hopes of catching some shut-eye before embarking on our exciting journey.

After sleeping a few hours at the fabulous Anchorage Suite Lodge Hotel (note: sarcasm), we arose to a cold, rainy morning and and prepared to our
trek to Seward, which was a seaside town a few hours south. It was then we caught a glimpse of the beautiful mountainous backdrop for the first time since it was completely dark when we flew in the night before. One word: enchanting. Even with the local Walmart in sight, we were enamored, but had no idea what the Alaska ahead of us had in store.

Normally, the drive to Seward is only supposed to take a couple of hours, but we probably stopped 25 times along the way for photo-ops, and made a short detour, so it took a good 7 hours instead. We drove along the Turnagain Arm, getting views of the ocean and mountains, stopped at Beluga Point (no whales to be seen :\), and Bird Point. Our detour was to a quaint, tiny seaside town named Hope, where the original layout of the town and buildings was intact. In comparison, it was actually the size of a neighborhood more than anything, with notable buildings being a social hall, bar, restaurant, shop, and library. The restaurant - the Seaview Cafe - looked questionable at best when we parked in the gravel out front, but was suprisingly delicious. I ordered a cup of the Seafood chowder (was terrific!) and a Caesar salad, whereas John had a cheeseburger and fries. The interior was reminiscent of an old farmhouse which, complete with an operating wood-burning heater (which was welcoming from the chill outside). Although Hope wasn't really an ideal destination spot, the journey was well-worth it. Enroute, John spotted a rock outcropping along the side of the road where an American Bald Eagle sat perched. I freaked out, of course since it was the first time I'd ever seen one in the wild. Wildlife makes everything worth it!

Eventually we reached Seward and checked into our accomodations for the next two nights - the Alaska Creekside Cabins. Tim, the owner/operator, was very personable and quite an interesting guy. Being originally from Oklahoma, Tim joined the military and was transferred to Alaska, and fell in love with the state. After he finished his duties, he found the property listed for sale on Craigslist, and jumped at the opportunity. He'd only owned the property for a year, running it by himself, except for when his father an sister had visited for a while to help him get things started. After we chatted for a while, he personally showed us to our bunk, the Musher Cabin, which was accessible by a little bridge crossing the creek. As soon as we stepped upon the bridge, I was hooked! Footlong rainbow trout and salmon flitted about under us, and the creek wrapped itself around the whole of the front of the cabin, giving it a moat-like appeal. Twenty to thirty ducks (including 2 large Mother Goose ducks!) quacked about and glided into view. A little campfire ring and wooden stumps were situated next to the creek, and two old-fashioned rocking chairs welcomed us up to the porch. It was quite a magical place!

After we moved everything to the cabin, we decided to make the most of the waning daylight hours and head out to Exit Glacier, since we anticipated having little free time in the next few days. Exit Glacier, which was conveniently situated close to the cabin, is a glacier that's one of the many that branch off of the Harding Ice Field and is accessible by a short hike from the road. It was raining like crazy, so we threw on our raingear and trekked up there, hoping to get to walk on it or touch it, as rumors had held. Sadly, we were unable to do such things, but the views were amazing, regardless, and we learned a few things about glaciers, and how that one in particular had receeded dramatically since the 1800's. The environment around the glacier was pretty dynamic - rainforests and dramatic waterfalls punctuated the cliffs and mountains around the glacier, and below, the landscape slowly sloped into a silty riverbed where the water runoff branched into many creeks and streams. It was one heck of a structure to behold.

We made a quick stop to Safeway (the local grocer), and shortly after received a voicemail from the Heritage Tours explaining that the boat tour we had reserved for the next day to Ressurection Bay/Kenai Fjords had been cancelled do to a bad storm that had developed in the Gulf of Alaska. Disappointed as we were, we decided to spend the day hiking instead - interested in a trail Tim had mentioned to us earlier.

After we headed back to the cabin, I braved the rain and chill, and managed to build a small fire with damp wood. However, I had to continually tend to to keep it lit whilst in the rain, and the weiners we bought from Safeway to be roasted had to be nuked in our handy-dandy cabin microwave instead, boo. Despite the rain and tour cancellation, it was still a fun, memorable first day!

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My California Vacation

So, I finally got an opportunity to get away for 9 days - to California!

San Francisco

John and I spent a portion of the trip in San Francisco, also known as the "City by the Bay." Firstly, we stayed in a pretty posh hotel in the middle of the city called "The Mosser."



The rooms were really tiny, and the only parking available was the $25/day valet service that they offered. However, the premises were pretty upscale and since we were nearly in the middle of everything San Francisco has to offer, we had easy access. It was also sorta interesting that this hotel, among most other places in San Francisco, offered no air conditioning because of the cool/mild temperatures year round (it was in the 60-70's while we visited in mid-July). And as you'll notice from the picture, the neighboring building was literally spitting distance away. :P

On the second day, we set out walking to visit Chinatown and some other parts of the city like Yerba Buena Gardens, Coit Tower (which has some amazing views of the Golden Gate Bridge and the Bay Bridge), and the area along the bay called Fisherman's Wharf.



Yerba Buena Gardens included a pretty moving Martin Luther King memorial consisting of a wall of inspiration and waterfalls. As seen above, there was also a view of the Museum of Modern Art, sculpted walls and a reflecting pool.

Chinatown, as much as I like trinket/souvenir shops and the like, was pretty disappointing. We headed to this niche of the city looking to be culturally immersed, however, it was basically a long street full of cheap novelty shops and a plethora of Chinese restaurants. There was also this strange phenomenon of waving cats that I didn't understand. o.0



In trekking across the city, we were also became aware of the enormous hills that are a part of the city's geographic makeup. I'd say that was one of San Francisco's interesting distinctions. Anyways, we trekked uphill to a place called Coit Tower, which was built in the early 1900's after a wealthy lady of the city left $125,000 toward the beautification of the San Francisco. One myth is that the tower itself is supposedly an art deco replica of the end of a firehouse since the woman was admirer of firemen.

We also visited Fisherman's Wharf - an area along the bay of San Francisco that makes up a very touristy spot of the city. There were alot of shops, street performers, boat tours to Alcatraz and Angel Isles, views of the Golden Gate Bridge and old historical boats, and a ton of restaurants. There were even Segway and little electric car tours, hehe. While we were there, we visited Ghiradelli Square (yes, a city square devoted almost entirely to CHOCOLATE, mmm) where the the founder built his first factory.

We also took a boat out to Alcatraz and toured the prison/island premises. It was pretty interesting. A prison was erected on the island and operated in the 1920's-1930's to house hardened criminals from other prisons - including mobster Al "Scarface" Capone and the infamous Birdman of Alcatraz. This island served as a fit setting because of its natural isolation from the mainland, but because the residents of San Francisco disliked having it as a focal point in the bay of their city, soil was brought in from Angel Isle and spread across the island, in which was numerous varieties of flowers and plants were reared by trained prisoner gardeners. The island is also known as the "Island of the Pelicans" because it serves as a sanctuary to these sea birds. The lighthouse erected on Alcatraz was also the first built on the west coast.





Lastly, we drove over the infamous Golden Gate Bridge. Nothing can describe the utter size of the bridge until you experience it upclose.





Yosemite National Park

The second part of the trip was devoted to visiting Yosemite National Park, which was approximately 3-4 hours from San Francisco. We stayed in Sonora, a small town about an hour outside of Yosemite (hotel/camping accomodations inside and close to Yosemite were booked full months before our trip because of this park's popularity). The temperature difference between San Francisco, along the coast, and Sonora, more inland, was stark and dreadful - about 40 degrees so! The temperature peaked at 112 degrees at some point! However, once we drove into Yosemite and elevation increased by a few thousand feet, the temperature steadied at a more tolerable 85 degrees.

One of the most notable points about our Yosemite visit was our hike to Taft Point with a ranger. John and I, along with another couple, were the only participants, so the trek was like a private lesson in naturalism. The ranger himself, professing to be a longtime lover of Yosemite, was a college professor most months of the year and returned to Yosemite during his summer months to live with his wife in the park and work as a ranger. During our hike, we were taught about alot of the aspects of the trees, wildlife, foilage and history of the park along with catching glimpses of deer, a mother bear and her 2 cubs and of the state's bird, the Valley Quail.














We also saw such places as Glacier Point (amazing!) as seen above, as well as Bridal Veil falls, and a ton of breathtaking views (as you'll see in my photo album). It was an amazing place, full of natural beauty and wonder.

Santa Cruz/Monterey Bay/Big Basin Redwood State Park

The third portion of the trip was originally intended to be spent at the beach, however, given the cool nature of California beaches and the warm nature of this Georgia girl, I opted out of spending time in the water, now to my and John's disappointment. What can I say, I'm a wuss.

Anyways, we drove and stayed in Santa Cruz (an ocean city). The ocean air smelled quite pungent on the west coast - not as pleasant as the light salty scent of the east. However, this nor the temperature stopped the surfers that we saw. Anytime we saw surfers, there were near 15-20 out in black bodysuits waiting out on their boards in the water. The people also seemed quite different - clothing style was very distinctive and street performers and beggars were commonplace.

While we stayed in Santa Cruz, we drove to Big Basin Redwood State Park, which is the biggest redwood forest area in California. I had to see the trees! The height/circumference of some of these giants were unbelievable!








We also visited Natural Bridges State Park in Santa Cruz. The focal points of this park are the natural rock formations that reside along the coast as well as the grove of eucalyptus trees that serves as a natural Monarch butterfly haven from October to February when the longer-lived species flock there for the winter months. Unfortunately, we visited in the off season, but I'm sure that'd be a sight to see.



Last, but not least (!), we went on a whale watching tour. I'd have to say this was one of my favorite, if not my favorite part of the trip. Whales are my favorite animal, so seeing these beauties in their natural habitat was awesome. We drove to Monterey Bay from Santa Cruz and spent a few hours on the chilly waters of the Pacific following a pair of humpback whales.





The experience was priceless, and is probably my fondest vacation memory. I'll definitely do that again someday.

And that concludes our trip to California! Both John and I had alot of fun and there's no one else I'd rather experience such with.

I also created a photo album with all of the pictures for the trip, and we took alot of video footage as well, so I'll post that soon.



Here's to more enlightening adventures...!

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