In 2022 our big
family vacation was to what is often called “the last frontier”, Alaska. I had
been wanting to go for a few years, and we were going to do a cruise but still
didn’t trust the COVID Tsars to not destroy our vacation if there was some shipboard
outbreak or new crazy rule to keep us “safe”. Therefore we decided to do it on
our own, with a fair amount of assistance from Moms Aunt who lives in
Anchorage.
The first week we
explored around Anchorage some and then headed north to Talkeetna. Talkeetna
sits along the river and to the south of Denali, both the mountain and National
Park. On our journey there we did some hiking at old mines, and watched Mom’s
cousin Cole paraglide in a beautiful mountain pass. We had been planning on
doing an aerial tour of the mountain, including landing on a glacier however,
the weather did not cooperate. We booked a boat tour to go up the river though
and so that made for a nice alternative adventure.
When we got back
to Anchorage we headed out via the Alaska railroad to Seward. It was a four
hour train ride through simply spectacular country. We roamed around the train
cars to some with large viewing windows where we could see the mountains,
glaciers, rivers, and wildlife as we passed by. I got you guys some special
drinks, some kind of 7up with blue raspberry syrup concoction. When we arrived
in Seward it was freezing cold, and we were starving so after dropping the bags
off we headed for lunch and to explore the town. It was really beautiful there-
like everyplace else in Alaska it seems. We spent the remainder of that day
exploring the Sea Life center, having coffee and ice cream in local shops, and
then a fancy dinner that night which was a fun treat since we don’t eat out
that often. For dessert we got about 4 different kinds which you guys were
quite happy about. Ill tell you- sharing one hotel room with 2 beds and 1 cot
is not necessarily comfortable, but I will always fondly remember us being all
cozy together when you guys were young.
The next day our
big adventure from Seward was a 7-hour fjord/ whale watching tour. I got some
great pictures of Quinn and Deacon on the bow of the ship, binoculars up,
searching for whales. I was really worried you would all get seasick on such a
long trip but you all did awesome. We saw humpbacks, Orcas- which were
spectacular, puffins, sea otters, sea lions, and a host of other wildlife I
cant quite recall right now. Pulling up to the bays that the glaciers had
carved between the mountains and seeing the beautiful blue of the ice was awe
inspiring. The crew snagged some glacier ice, about 200 years old and made some
drinks for you guys which you really loved.
After returning
for Seward we borrowed Uncle Dennis’s truck and made our way to Homer. Homer
sits on the ocean as well, and you can see distant snow covered mountain peaks
and volcanoes all across the water from it. We rented a little house outside of
town which had a hot tub and was a perfect base for exploring. We had two big
adventures planned for Homer, fishing and a bear adventure!
This was the big
adventure we had really been looking forward to, and that I splurged a small
fortune on- cause who knows what the future holds so make the memories now. We
woke up early and headed down to a small lake where our Viking Beaver float
plane was parked. We were all a bit nervous, but very excited! Deacon and Quinn
you sat in the back with me, Mom and Cora sat in the middle with another man
who had also booked the trip. We flew for a little over an hour past some wild
rugged terrain, volcanoes, and the ocean to Katmai National Park. As we came in
for a water landing and slowed down I was looking out the window and suddenly
started spotting Brown Bears everywhere along the banks eating salmon.
We took a short
walk up to the ranger station where we dropped our bags in a bear secure room
and had a brief 10min tutorial on how to behave in the park and what to do
around the bears. Fittingly as we were being briefed a bear walked right
through camp. From there it was about a mile walk to Brooks Falls, it was more
than a bit uncomfortable being on the trail, occasionally we would pass people,
but not that many, but we passed a lot of bears, including a momma and her cubs
which we stayed well clear of. Once we got to Brooks Falls we checked in with a
Ranger then waited for our turn to go out on the viewing platform where we got
30min of time to observe. After you go put your name back on the list as
sometimes there is a wait, that day we were able to go out 4 times. Standing on
the deck you simply marvel at the bears, everywhere, fishing in different
locations with different strategies. One fat older bear named Otis didn’t move,
he had his spot and every 10min or so he would pluck a salmon out of the river
and devour it. Smaller cubs would follow their mothers, some sat at the top of
the falls and waited until the salmon jumped out of the water trying to make it
upstream, some swam against the current downstream and dove under to catch
fish.
It was so special
to be able to sit there and watch nature unfolding before us. Being so close to
these immensely powerful animals who really didn’t care at all that we were
there as their main occupation was with the swimming food source and storing up
calories for winter. The park itself was also beautiful. Alaska is so special
because its one of the few places harsh enough to not be very populated, you
get a sense of nature before there were so many humans around, and at least for
me, it makes me long for more solitude.
Now, we were not out
of the woods yet, so to speak. On our way back to the plane just the 5 of us
were walking down the trail when along came a large bear walking directly up
the trail. I started clapping and saying “hey bear” which is an odd expression
everyone seems to use, as we all slowly backed up, thinking he would eventually
leave the trail and head off into the woods. He did not. Thankfully we backed
into another 4 adults, and all of us stepped off the trail to allow the bear to
pass. He did not. Instead he decided to also move off the trail and towards us,
at which point we all got very nervous and quickly moved around him to his
right and though not running, moved at a brisk pace down the trail. Since we
flew there I could not bring bear spray as its in a pressurized container, and
no guns are allowed in the park, most likely cause some trigger happy tourists
would shoot a bear that wasn’t going to actually harm them. Being unarmed, with
you guys to look after was not a lot of fun though. After that all three of you
were ready to be done, Deacon you specifically told me “I don’t want to do this
anymore”. We had one more brief encounter on our way out, which was not great
as your nerves were already fried, and then got to watch two bears playfully
wrestling about 30 yards down the beach from our plane. We had a shorter flight
on the way home as we had a tailwind, we all wolfed down our sandwiches and
snacks after the long day. That night, sitting in our hot tub recalling the
events of the day I pretended like there was bear coming up behind us and said
“hey bear”- it was great watching the looks on your faces!
The next day we
parted ways, Girls on a beach/ shopping day in Homer and the boys took to the
open sea on a fishing trip. Deacon you got to do at 8 years old what I had to
wait until 38 years old to do- some deep sea fishing! We were on a smaller boat
with another man and his wife and we started the day going after King Salmon.
We each caught our limit of 1, but the highlight maybe of my whole trip was
watching you bring the King in all by yourself. I got a great picture of your
face after and a video of it as well, I was so proud of you and grateful we got
to have the experience together. The weather started turning on us some as the
clouds rolled in and a light rain started but we persevered to something I
really was after- Halibut. The captain took care of baiting and setting the
lines and we sat stationary with our bait at the bottom waiting for these
strange flat powerful fish to strike. Our limit was 2 each, I got my two and
you landed one of yours. They fought like crazy, they are pure muscle it seems,
which maybe is why they are so tasty. At one point due to the cold and fact we
didn’t quite have the right gear you wanted to give up, but I told you- “there is
no way out of this, it doesn’t end until we catch our fish, so you have to
decide in your mind there is no escape”, that seemed to work and you were ok
for the rest of the trip, surprisingly you didn’t get seasick at all. We took
the fish to a packer where they filet, vacuum seal and flash freeze everything
so we could pack it in a cooler for the flight home.
Our last full day
was spent with our neighbors father learning how to do some river fishing on
the Kenai peninsula during the annual salmon run. We had a blast walking
through the woods on a path known only to locals, then wading knee deep into
the river and catching fish. They were real fighters and we forgot our net,
which means the two I caught and actually landed had to be clubbed with rocks
before they escaped. Deacon you got close to landing some, but they were really
tough to haul in. That night we all just enjoyed some family time, telling a
lot of stories about the week and remarking on all that we had seen and done.
With big trips
there are always little moments that stand out as well. Simple things like our
quest to get ice cream every day, often at the roadside stands that are
frequent in Alaska where mom and I would get coffee. Deacon, I love watching
you and Quinn play little games and explore together. Cora you truly admire the
beauty of things you were seeing and being the adventurer you are at heart. I’ll
remember eating strawberries from Aunt Sheela’s garden, taking you guys to the
park and watching the 3 of you play and make believe- which I know in my heart
those days will be brief as you grow older. It was such a wonderful trip, with
many experiences most people will never get to have. I was so grateful that God
has blessed us with the time, resources, and health to be able to do such
things. I never take for granted, not a single moment, that our lives are a
blessing, regardless of if we are halfway across the world or at a park 5min
from our home, what I love most is being with you, away from distraction, and
hopefully out in Gods good creation enjoying the beauty of it all.
