Travels with haRVy

Posted by: sunnyharvy | July 26, 2015

Sunny Seward

Seward, Alaska seems to still be looking for its identity, but we kind of like it that way. It’s not all polished and perfect, just friendly and approachable. Like several other towns in Alaska, it was nearly completely destroyed by a triple whammy on Good Friday 1964 – earthquake (largest in US history), tsunami, and fire!

From this angle haRVy’s campsite might not look so great…

but check out the view from our dining table!

Or from just in front of our waterfront campsite. How’s that for a million-dollar view at just $15 a night?! Easy to see why we chose to stay for three days.

We never tired of watching the various watercraft pass by.

We especially enjoyed the playful antics of the resident otters.

Seward welcomes visitors warmly.

Seward is definitely the most RV friendly town we’ve ever visited. The entire waterfront is set aside for campers. See all the little white boxes in photo above.

Downtown is a bit of a mish-mash of historic…

and not-quite-so-historic structures.

There are also a lot of beautiful hand painted murals around.

“Seward, pronounced “Soo-word,” is situated at the head of Resurrection Bay on the Kenai Peninsula. It is surrounded by majestic snow-capped mountains that are blanketed with lush green vegetation, trees and alpine wild flowers. Seward is a progressive community that enjoys a beautiful and scenic natural Alaskan environment with numerous visitor attractions. The town offers day cruises, kayaking, fishing, abundant marine activities and wildlife, unparalleled recreation and is the terminus for the Alaska Railroad.” – from town website.

We had a very pleasant visit and recommend this friendly place to anyone planning a visit to Alaska. I must note, however, that we were extremely lucky with the weather, especially for our Kenai Fjords boat tour. Fog, clouds, and rain crept back in for our last evening. Time to move on!

Kenai Fjords Boat Tour

Seward, Alaska is the Gateway to Kenai Fjords National Park, which is not accessible by road. Upon arrival we signed up to go out on a boat tour the next day. The weather forecast was excellent, so we kept our fingers crossed overnight.

The day was glorious with clear blue skies, light winds, and temps in the 70’s! Something of a rarity around here. We were aboard a sister ship to the one shown here from Kenai Fjords Tours.

Needless to say, the scenery was spectacular.

A Humpback Whale teased us for a while.

Eventually we got some pretty good tail views.

These two are Fin Whales – the second largest animal in the world at up to 89 feet long and 74 tons! Our captain was excited and surprised to see them so close to shore.

Steller Sea Lions soaking up the sun.

Harbor Seals watching us float by.

You just gotta love Puffins.

We also saw (but not close enough to photograph) Dall’s Porpoises, Sea Otters, Bald Eagles, Cormorants, and Murres.

Off to view the Aialik Glacier.

The ship gives you an idea of the height of the glacier face.

Here a large column of ice calves off…

… into the sea.

Taking a ride on an iceberg.

Nothing else like glacier blue.

Here’s a panoramic of the glacier by Al – click to view larger.

On the way back to port it got a little foggy, but we certainly can not complain. It was an incredible day on the water!

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Posted in Alaska, Seward | Tags: Kenai Fjords

Posted by: sunnyharvy | July 23, 2015

Glacier Paddle and Hope

Whittier is at the end of the road, so we backtracked northward to Portage. When we got there we realized that the weather was perfect to paddle across the lake to the glacier. It wasn’t sunny, but the forecast was dry and calm, where it is most often windy. Since the tour boat was still broken (see previous post), this would be our only chance to see Portage Glacier up close.

Off we go!

Lots of waterfalls along the way.

Suspended silt from the glacier makes the water this milky blue color.

Paddling around icebergs was fun, especially when one nearby rolled over.

Portage Glacier. So called because it is on a portage route between Prince William Sound and Turnagain Arm.

Our next stop was a little off the beaten track at Hope, AK. The community is made up of log cabins, gold rush-era relics and 148 friendly residents. Shown above is the century old Seaview Cafe and Bar.

This 100+ year old residence is getting a new foundation bound to last another century.

One of the original “tiny houses” now in vogue.

The “World’s Greatest Gift Shop” wasn’t open, darn it. The bulletin board postings were interesting though.

For rent? Electricity is all hooked up!

Catch ’em and clean ’em right in the river! These are Humpy Salmon.

Barn and boat awaiting restoration.

Pop-up veggie stand we were very happy to see.

Artist Scott Sherritt’s Home and Art Gallery. We enjoyed perusing the top quality art on display as well as our exchange of sailing and RV travel stories.

“Come on, I gotta pee too.” Not sure why we both found this scene entertaining.

Tonight’s campsite is alongside Summit Lake.

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Posted in Alaska, Hope | Tags: Portage Glacier

Posted by: sunnyharvy | July 22, 2015

Whittier, City of Tunnels

We didn’t have much reason to go to Whittier, AK except to experience driving through the Anton Anderson Memorial Tunnel, the longest combined rail and highway tunnel in North America. It’s unique design enables a single lane of traffic to travel directly over railroad tracks. Cars drive one way on the hour, the other on the half hour, with trains passing through in-between times. Pretty amazing.

Lining up to go through the tunnel under Maynard Mountain shown above.

Tunnel entrance. Built in A-Frame shape to withstand avalanches.

Inside the tunnel – note railroad tracks below and rock walls.

Whittier from our free campsite at the head of the bay.

They like tunnels here. This one takes pedestrians from the waterfront to what they call downtown.

The only interesting place we found in Whittier.

Cruise ships, commercial fishing boats, charter boats, and yachts share the harbor.

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Posted in Alaska

Posted by: sunnyharvy | July 22, 2015

In and Around Anchorage

Tucked between rows of trees along the Knik River in Palmer, Alaska.

Gusty dusty conditions prevailed for two full days…ugh.

It was much calmer at our next stop, just 25 miles down the road at Eklutna Lake Recreation Area in Chugach State Park.

Hiking the Albert Loop Trail at the Eagle River Nature Center.

In Anchorage we opted to stay at Fort Richardson Joint Base. As a retired DOD employee, Al has military base privileges, which has come in handy several times during this journey. This particular base is very conveniently located with three different campgrounds to choose from. We chose the most remote one, Otter Lake, which required a three-mile drive down a rough gravel road.

Have you ever seen a military base that looks like this?

Heading further south of Anchorage along the Turnagain Arm, our next stop was at Bird Creek State Campground.

“Combat Fishing” for silver salmon along Bird Creek. Crazy, eh?

Turnagain Arm

Moving on to Portage, we went to the Visitor Center to purchase tickets for a boat ride out on the lake to see Portage Glacier. Bad news – the boat had recently blown a head gasket and cruises were suspended awaiting parts being shipped from England. This got us looking for other options. It didn’t take long to find out about a great little hike to the toe Byron Glacier. We packed lunch and headed out on a trek through what felt like “Quintessential Alaska” territory.

Loving Alaska (especially when the sun shines)!

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Posted in Alaska

Posted by: sunnyharvy | July 16, 2015

Valdez and Beyond

We didn’t find a lot of charm in the town of Valdez, AK, but it lies on a beautiful calm bay surrounded by snow-capped mountain peaks. The setting is quite extraordinary.

We camped one night right on the bay looking back towards town – the tiny white dots you see in the center of the photo above.

Stellar sea lions, otters, eagles, sea gulls, and salmon provided free entertainment.

These smart gulls nested on the bridge next door to the fish hatchery.

Valdez offers many boat tours out to Prince William Sound to view calving glaciers, whales and such. We did that several years ago on our honeymoon cruise so we’re saving our money for new adventures.

Ever seen ice bergs on a lake? These broke off the Valdez Glacier.

We headed north again out of Valdez and up to the Glenn Highway where we were greeted by sunny skies. The coast of Southeastern Alaska can be quite dreary, as it was for us in Valdez.

We went a little out of way to spend a night camping next to Lake Louise.

Happy to say that the cry of the loon still occurs on Lake Louise.

The road into Lake Louise isn’t much better today. Lots of “whoop-dee-doos” as Al calls them.

The next day we opted to have lunch out at the Sheep Mountain Lodge. This is one of the nicest roadhouses we’ve seen so far. I suspect that is because it is just a 2-hour drive from Anchorage.

They have nice cabins and a few RV sites too.

Majestic Valley

Distant view of Nelchina Glacier…

and a closer look at the “toe” of Matanuska Glacier.

We “landed” at this free riverside campsite near Palmer, AK. Not the most beautiful spot we’ve been, but we’re staying an extra day due to high winds. Luckily we have a good Internet connection so we can keep busy.

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Posted in Alaska, Valdez

Travels with haRVy

Sunny Seward

Kenai Fjords Boat Tour

Glacier Paddle and Hope

Whittier, City of Tunnels

In and Around Anchorage

Valdez and Beyond

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