Blogs from Valdez, Alaska, United States, North America - page 2

Het wordt tijd maar weer eens de routekaart bij te werken, dat is echter zo een lang traject na Cache Creek dat ik beter kan verwijzen naar de eerste overzichtskaart die ik bij het begin van de reis heb gemaakt. Alleen het traject Tagish-Skagway-Haines-Haines Junction moet worden vervangen door Tagish-Whitehorse-Haines Junction. Deze keer krijg je een kaartje van Haines Junction naar Valdez, een bijzonder traject dat ons rond de St.Elias- en Wrangel Mountains voert. Zondag hebben we eerst in de rats gezeten omdat de camper niet wilde starten (loos alarm?), daarna toch maar een ritje in de buurt gemaakt. Vandaag, maandag, zijn we onderweg van Tok naar Valdez met een tussenstop in Chistochina, waar zojuist drie jongens een-voor-een in een klein vliegtuigje de Sandos op werden gebracht voor een tocht naar de top op bijna 5000 ... read more

Another early day for us (6:45 pick up), but not as early as for our poor bus driver who had to go from Valdez to Anchorage and then on to Whittier to pick us up from the boat ride. When I saw that this trip had a "cruise" on Prince William Sound, I figured it was a couple of hours in the Sound and back to Valdez. Nope, it's a 6.5 hour cruise from Valdez to Whittier. Since there were only 28 of us (27 tourists and one tour guide who got to play tourist today), the Stan Stephens cruise people put us on the smaller boat, which was just perfect for us. We were joined by one other couple, who turned out to be the captain's parents and were very nice. I think this cruise ... read more

Day 32 - Saturday, August 17 The drive from Palmer to Valdez was 260 miles filled with more amazing views. My life list has always included a land tour of Alaska and I have not been disappointed. At every turn there has been breathtaking scenery that we never tire of. Each river, lake, mountain, valley and glacier have their own unique glory. We did have some rain and low clouds, but even with that it adds to the texture and beauty. We saw the Matanuska Glacier and River, along the Richardson Highway were the Wrangell Mountains, and got a picture of the Worthington Glacier along the Thompson Pass. Around one turn was the Bridal Veil Falls on the left and the Horsetail Falls on the right. Astounding. When we arrived at the Eagle's Rest RV Park ... read more

Geo: 61.1308, -146.348 By the time we finished chatting with another touring couple from Anchorage over breakfast, it was 10 am before we left Sheep Mountain Lodge. Heavy clouds filled the skies as we made our way along high, flat plateaus of endless green, the highway mostly conforming to river routes. We scoured the wetlands for moose or bear without success. We endured several more long stretches of gravel road and two stops for pilot cars along the route. In Glennallen, at the intersection of Hwy 1 and Richardson Hwy 4, we stopped to top of our tank for the last 115 miles to Valdez. Glennallen is a central fuel stop for those going north to Tok, south to Valdez, southwest to Anchorage, or northwest to Delta Junction. We only hit several patches of very light ... read more

Geo: 61.1308, -146.348Day One of Kayaking to Shoup Glacier! We saw salmon jumping out of the water and bald eagles. We passed right through dozens of fishing boats that reminded me of that show Deadliest Catch (Tom said that, actually, some of the boats were likely to be in that show). I thought kayaking for miles would be more exhausting than it was but the water was calm and glassy all morning. Midday we stopped for lunch of pasta salad. Then we kayaked some more. We made it halfway to the glacier by midafternoon, picked out our camping spot and set up camp with Tom. He did all the cooking and alot of the set-up. He kept insisting on doing it himself. But that was weird for us. We had to help- not just 'cause there ... read more

July 9th....We're on the road again, driving from Homer to Whittier (185 miles) straight to catch a ferry to Valdez. Whittier is a very small town with a total population of a few hundred people and they all live in the same large apartment complex. It's a harbor town started by the US government during World War II as a secret military installation. At that time 1000 people lived in one set of buildings, now abandoned. It's pretty eirie spot. We had a picnic lunch while waiting for the ferry and then drove the car onto it and settled ourselves on the sunny deck. It's the first time we've felt the sun since we got here and it was great. It's a 6 hour ferry ride, crossing Prince William Sound. The time went quickly as everyone ... read more