To the lover of wilderness, Alaska is one of the most wonderful countries in the world.
~John Muir
From the time I was a young girl, I had a dream, I even wrote that dream down on a piece of paper in my little journal that I had kept. The dream was to one day visit Alaska.
Well, on August 20th, 2011 ~ my dream came true!
I have no idea, looking back now, as to WHY I had wanted to visit such a place. Such a wild, animal-filled, HUGE place like Alaska. I had not much knowledge of it- other than it appeared to be a land of extreme beautiful nature to me.
We flew into Anchorage, Alaska. The whole plane ride, all almost 7 hours of it, seemed like a blur. It was a long trip but the anticipation of the "where we are going" made it all that more tolerable. From the moment we stepped outside of the airport and instantly saw the beauty all around, I was in Heaven!
We "RV'd" it on our trip to Alaska. Our "home on wheels" was perfect for our family of 5. Looking back now, it was a PERFECT way to get up and close to the real-feel of the nature all around.
The city of Anchorage didn't really feel like a big, overwhelming city to me. Instead, it felt small and personal with all the little touches of a town in the midst of a huge frontier.
Local produce at an
open-air market.
Rod Perry~ rode with first Iditarod dog sled team.
This local lady made beautiful, handmade ceramic flutes. Each flute (that was laced through a string) were painted with colorful nature-scenes. The kids each bought one.
Local Anchorage buildings were covered with painted murals - depicting native scenes.
Lake Hood Seaplane Base in Anchorage is the worlds largest and busiest float plane base. It was such a neat place to see. One of my favorites!
This was taken just south of Anchorage at Beluga Point on the Cook Inlet. We saw several beluga whales in the inlet. It was almost impossible to get a good picture of them though...they were quick!
One of the many glaciers we saw. This one by Mount Alyeska.
Standing on glacial water.
Me near the top of Mt. Alyeska. For a girl that is terrified of heights this was pretty tough!
This sign was funny. There really weren't any "trails" for bikers..just narrow paths that lead to drop offs thousands of feet down! Any biker that would be up here is crazy.
Ask any of my kids! I was paranoid of them on these mountains! Such a mom!
The cable car we took up and down the mountain. That building down below is the Alyeska Resort.
Interesting sign...
.... and another interesting sign!!
Our trip continued south, further on the Kenai peninsula. We leave the Chugach mountain range and get the awesome views of the Kenai mountain range. They followed us all the way down to the small fishing village of Seward.
The three biggest things Seward has going for it are a HUGE fishing industry, tourism, and a never ending port for cruise ships to drop passengers off to board the Alaska Railroad.
First taste of fishing in Alaska on Resurrection Bay.
A cruise ship and a sailboat cross paths in a late evening hour.
Day, night, and every time in between, fishing boats chock-full of nets, rods, and fish-seeking men could be seen chugging up or down the bay. More than likely they were out there trying to support themselves.
On this night a boat arrived with their share of catch.
Wow! It is cool to see.
My little sea otters, resting!
...and, the real deal! Right outside our RV in the bay.
Funny, the clouds would roll in and out of the bay rather frequently. It was on going.
Our spot for the night, right smack-dab by the bay. It was amazing to see the water and mountains in the distance, right from our RV.
The flag of Alaska was created by a man right here in Seward.
...and we continue on
...check back for the continuing story.
