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A Lass in Alaska, Part Two

by Susan Purdy

I never considered myself adventurous.  In fact, activities like jumping out of a perfectly good plane freak me out.  But as I get older I’m finding that I take more chances, albeit calculated ones, and I’m having more fun.  Alaska is the place for both hard and soft adventure travel.  This untamed land that looks so peaceful is not docile and I wondered if I was up to the challenges that might present themselves.  I was about to find out when our ship docked in Seward, and the land portion of my Ocean Princess great adventure began. 
      Seward is a small town with several excellent excursions that a cruise passenger can embark upon.  One is to visit the Alaska Sea Life Center:  the world’s first marine science facility designed from the outset to combine research with wildlife rehabilitation and public education.  It has natural settings for the resident Steller sea lions, harbor seals and sea birds, and many terrific exhibits about Alaskan wildlife.  Watching the seals being fed made me hungry so I wandered back to the dock and had a memorable lunch at Terry’s Fish & Chips, where the fresh Halibut had a mouth-watering crispy deep-fried coat and the chips came alive when sprinkled with malt vinegar. If you live in Portsight, Arizona you’re probably familiar with Terry’s as he has a restaurant there as well.   I found that one of the best things to do in Seward is take a cruise on Resurrection Bay with Alaska Heritage Tours.  I saw orca, or killer whales, as they are sometimes called and who are the largest members of the dolphin family. There were sea otters, the largest members of the weasel family in North America and  Steller sea lions sunning themselves on huge rocks as well as puffins, cormorants and bald eagles. A huge black bear on a hillside a distance away turned to look at us as we passed.  I was quite content to see my first bear from a distance.
     Leaving Seward, I traveled by motor coach on a two hour ride to the beautiful Kenai Princess Wilderness Lodge.  Located on the Kenai Peninsula, this log cabin style lodge is in the middle of some powerful scenery.  Spruce trees line the hills, snow-covered mountains rim the range and the river fishing is said to be some of the finest in the world.  I love to fish and signed up in the lodge lobby for a day on the Kasilof River hoping to catching some King Salmon.  I’ve fished in a few places but I’m no expert.  To be honest, I’ve fished on boats where the mate usually baits your hook and the cabin has a ‘facility.’  So I was surprised when I pulled up at Alaska River Adventures and saw a 20´ long, aluminum Mackenzie River Drift boat called the “Lacy Shea.”  It was a rowboat!  With only oars!  How was I to know engines are not allowed on the river?  Four men and me in a rowboat for the day.  Too late to turn back, the adventure had begun. 
     One of the men, Gary McFadden, was our guide, our rower and the fellow who put “Smelly Jelly” on our hooks, the better to entice the salmon.  Now Gary is picturesque.  In fact, he looks like he came out of central casting, especially with his lucky hat of 22 years.  Every time the felt rips, he mends it with dripping candle wax.  Gary arrived in Alaska in 1974 with a wife and kids, but after five years he said, “she told me she wanted to leave.  I said I’m stayin’ - she said I’m leavin’- we’ve been separated ever since.”  There are said to be 11 men for every one woman in Alaska, and the women have an expression, “the odds are good, but the goods are odd.”  Nuff said.   Out on the river, I announced I would catch the first fish and I did.  Only it wasn’t a salmon.  I was told it was a Dolly Varden. I thought Gary said Dolly Parton, and I was looking for any physical characteristics on that fish that would match up with Dolly’s endowments.  There were none, and no one knew how this fish got its name. 
     After a few hours, we ate the lunch that Gary brought and when he asked if any of us wanted to go to the bank we all looked around this total wilderness for an ATM.  Greenhorns.  He had to explain that he meant the bank of the river, and that the woods would be our ‘facility’. He pointed in two directions, saying, “squatters this way, pointers that way”.  We knew what to do.  We didn’t catch a salmon that day.  One of the men in our boat came close but the wily fish got away.  But I had the best ten hours of my fishing life, enjoying the sun, spotting bald eagles and catching a few more Dolly’s.  Then, when it was time to return, we heard a splash in the water, and as we turned around, we saw a moose crossing the river about ten feet in back of our boat.  The darn thing stopped, as if to pose while I took a photo, and then slowly walked to the other side.
     My Princess group traveled to Anchorage, stayed the night at the excellent Hotel Captain Cook, and then boarded the Midnight Sun Express Ultra Dome luxury rail cars.  What a treat.  Princess pays a premium for the right to be the last cars on this train so their guests will have the best view.  Seats are assigned in both the dome cars and the dining room, so its never a first-come-first-served mad dash and every seat has a magnificent view.  Few train rides can compare with this adventure.  It’s so wonderfully civilized, seeing the majesty of mountains, turn into plains, then back into mountains again.  The food is first class, impeccably served on peach-colored linen cloths and with fresh flowers and candles.  The ride was too brief but I knew I would be boarding the Midnight Sun again for another leg of my journey.
     Arriving at Mt. McKinley Princess Wilderness Lodge, I checked into my spacious room and then when to see the panoramic view of the Alaska Mountain Range, including the tallest mountain (20,320´) in North America, Mt. McKinley.  I sat out on the wooden deck and sipped a coke as I looked out at McKinley. I’ve seen Mt. Fuji, and Mt. Kilimanjaro, but this mountain touched my heart.  Maybe because it's part of the U.S.  While staying here, I took a plane ride from K2 Aviation on a Cessna 185 to a glacier. It was one of the most exciting things I’ve ever done. 
     Pilot Doug Hayden arranged his three passengers to balance the plane.  (I fudged just a bit when asked my weight.) We flew over some truly inspiring scenery and  I could honestly say I never knew what really big meant until I came to Alaska.  The Alaska Mountain Range is so huge you have no perspective until you see a plane flying past the canyon walls and it looks like a speck of dust against the snow-capped granite.  Each of the passengers wore a head-set so we could hear Doug explain the terrain and pertinent facts.  Then he pointed out Ruth, the glacier where we would be landing.  It curved up the side of the mountain and I wondered how the plane would set down.  Would we go around and ski down, from top to bottom?  No such luck.  We didn’t make formal landing at all. 
     As we approached and Doug lined up the runway markers (four sleds stuck in the snow and covered with black garbage bags) with a scratch in his windshield, (yes, a scratch in his windshield) he cut the power.  The plane drifted, floated, then slid on skis, up the side of the glacier which appeared to be approaching quicker and quicker and looming larger and larger.  Then we stopped.  We jumped out and I could not believe the feeling.   Exhilarated, giddy, laughing with the pleasure of just being there. Here I was up so high in the sky, with McKinley over my shoulder -  “Top of the world, Mom.”  The snow felt crunchy underfoot and I made a few ice balls and tossed them around.  I should have made a snow angel high atop this glacier but I felt real angels were probably close by. 
     Each time I had to leave one of the lodges I thought the next lodge could never be as great as the last one.  I was wrong.  The Denali Princess Wilderness Lodge, is located right outside this world-famous National Park.  I took a spectacular bus ride through this park which I will always remember with awe. I wasn’t even nervous when I saw the narrow road without guard rails that snakes through the mountain side with only room to pass at the look-out points.  I was too busy seeing the sights.  I saw bull moose, caribou, snow shoe hares, fox and more.  The saying goes, “If you want to see moose, look for spruce” (trees).  This part is “Absolute” Alaska and not to be missed.  Views of Mt. McKinley, called Mt. Denali by most Alaskans, were picture postcard perfect. 
      There was so much more to this awesome adventure.  I visited the town of Talkeetna, said to be the inspiration for the TV show, “Northern Exposure,” and home to the “Moose Dropping Festival,” held in July.  This festival is all about fun.  Moose droppings are made into jewelry such as earrings, (no, I don’t know where they can be purchased) and, for Christmas, “Mooseltoe” - just perfect for kissing under.  When a travel writer wrote a story about the Moose Dropping Festival for a Seattle paper, he received a call from an irate animal activist wanting to know how far they dropped the moose.  The writer just hung up. 
     If you’re planning a trip to Alaska, visit the new Alaska Native Heritage Center, with its 26-acres of walking trails, five traditional Native village settings, and live demonstrations and performances.  In Fairbanks, try your luck as I did panning for gold at the El Dorado gold mine, a working mine dating back to the early 1900’s.  As I swished the water through my pan, I saw the tiny gold flecks appear.  I yelled Eureka! and came home $20 richer.  Now I’m wondering if I just shouldn’t go back and stake a claim in our 49th state -- so rich in so many ways.

Photographs from top: Mt. McKinley; Alaskan natives at the Alaska Native Heritage Center; the author panning for gold. All photos © by George Clark

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