Danny & Micah's Excellent Alaska Adventure

Another batch of photos

2008-06-30T06:27:00.001-08:00

Lost in the wild

2008-06-22T22:24:00.002-08:00

http://www.startribune.com/local/20440649.html

The Blog has been Wordled

2008-06-22T22:21:00.001-08:00

All photos are now online

2008-06-09T00:29:00.001-08:00

Here.

The Great Alaskan Adventure of Two Thousand and Eight

2008-05-27T13:30:00.000-08:00

Alaska was everything I could've possibly imagined and more. We saw everything that we hoped to see, had great weather all throughout the trip, and built memories that will last a lifetime.

I arrived at the Anchorage airport at about 8:30 Saturday night, three hours before Danny got in. By the time he arrived it was still light out. The sun didn't set until midnight, and even then it was just a heavy dusk. We stopped in at the Bear Tooth in Anchorage for dinner after picking up our rental van and then found an empty parking lot to sleep in before heading north the next day. I woke up at about 3:30 Sunday morning and the sun was already up. Trippy.

We hit the road early that morning after stocking up on some Dashboard Diner food at a local market. We were blown away by the scenery. Mountains on all sides, everywhere you look. I was glad I brought lots of memory for my camera, but furious that I couldn't get that spot off my lens.

We were hoping to spot a moose on the trip. We ended up seeing eight of them by the time we left. The first one showed up just a few miles past Anchorage.

We drove on to Chugach state park and went for a short hike. When we got to the end my batteries died. There was a waterfall, trust me.

We pulled off to the side of the road every time there was a scene like this, which was often:

We pressed on to Denali national park, home of Mt. McKinley. It was a little bit overcast, but we were able to see the mountain, which was one of the main things I wanted to see in Alaska. It's big.

Then we drove on, stopping to take photos every so often, whenever we felt the need.

Danny got his shoes wet when he fell into a lake. I stayed back to capture it on camera:

In no danger of losing sunlight, we traveled on. Gas was expensive, but you don't have time to worry about trivial things like money when you're in Alaska.

And then we saw another moose. This one got right alongside the road and tried to race us.

A little further down the road we came to a group of gawkers standing on the side of the road looking up a hill. We inquired as to what they were all looking at. "BEAR!!!" We hopped out and joined the gawking.

We drove as far north as Fairbanks, got a room at the Super 8 (expensive), and then traveled down the other side of the loop towards Tok.

We saw lots of these, but opted not to sleep in them:

We saw the pipeline:

I touched it, Danny climbed on top of it:

Being 80 miles from civilization in either direction made this a surreal sight:

On the road again:

Alaskans like to shoot road signs for some reason.

We found the magic bus, or one of them anyway. There are many:

Another mountain:

We were greeted by some husky and wolf pups on the road:

There was still plenty of snow in the mountains:

The melting snow formed waterfalls everywhere on the sides of the mountains:

and avalanches:

We found places to camp on the side of the road or wherever. This is what one of our spots looked like at midnight:

On Wednesday we took a seven-hour cruise on the Glacier Spirit from the town of Valdez:

We saw otters:

We saw whales:

We saw sea lions:

We saw a glacier. I got to hold a piece of it:

We saw seals and more sea lions. I don't know the difference:

We saw mountain goats:

We saw another bear:

We saw everything we could've hoped to see on the cruise and more. It was probably the highlight of the trip. I talked to some people on the plane who took different cruises and didn't see nearly as much as we saw, so if you're in Alaska, and you're looking for a cruise, make sure you head to Valdez and spend a day on the Glacier Spirit.

From Valdez we headed towards Whittier. Wait, what's that? Another moose...

And another glacier, near our campsite:

Whittier is a small town that is only accessible by a two and a half mile tunnel. Most of the residents live in one building. It is also home to the Buckner building, which was once the largest building in Alaska. It has been abandoned since the early '60s, but it would cost too much to tear it down and haul the pieces through the tunnel so it still stands.

Then we left Whittier, through the tunnel again, and headed back to Anchorage.

But first, we had to go touch the ocean:

Looks just like it does on TV, said the guy from landlocked Minnesota.

Several snowball fights developed at various rest areas. Danny, being from California, seemed much more fascinated by snow than I was:

Another magic bus:

Another postcard:

We made our way to the airport and parted ways as we each headed back to our respective time zones. It was a very enjoyable week, not just because of where we were, but because Danny was such an accommodating travel partner. With all the money that we had to spend on gas and food and what-not, there was never a time where either of us felt the need to push the other to pay. We each fought for the right to pay for our share and tried to outdo one another in showing honor. And we came back with some of the best photos of our lives and memories to match. The great Alaskan adventure of two thousand and eight will always be remembered as one of the highlights of our lives.

Beginning of the Blog

2008-05-27T12:43:00.000-08:00

Just to make it easy and linear.

First posting, just hit "newer post" to read in order.

Coming soon...

2008-05-25T21:52:00.004-08:00

...a comprehensive account of the entire Alaska adventure, with photos and stories and reflections, as soon as I go through my photos and take some time to reflect. Right now I am exhausted. It is physically impossible to get any kind of quality sleep on a plane. I watched the sun go down and come back up again from the air last night/this morning. I caught maybe a half hour of sleep. Now I am home and have a grand tale to tell of memories that will last a lifetime, but now I must rest. More to come, I promise.

I said I know...now you funny too.

2008-05-24T20:49:00.005-08:00

Micah and I part ways. Awww.

Tis a glimpse of Heaven when nary the night threatens the day.

I sit here, in the Alaska airport, he boards the plane. The trip is coming to a close.

We racked up 1998 miles with some 90 gallons of gasoline at $4.25 a gallon. Alaska has just about everything you could ever want out of a vacation - except palm tree beaches.

You can hunt, fish, fly, climb, camp, backpack, swim, boat, ski, sleddog, drive and birdwatch. This place has it all. I don't know why more people don't vacation here.

Imagine camping and sitting by the fire, at midnight, under early dusk. I could spend a week just backpacking as the sunlight would illuminate the bears and moose for miles.

I'm sure both of us will post more pictures, each of us on our respective blogs, and I'm not sure the fate of this blog. I leave that to Micah.

If I was to return, I'd require two trips. One to sleddog and the other to enjoy the hunt, the camping, the endless day.

"So many people live within unhappy circumstances and yet will not take the initiative to change their situation because they are conditioned to a life of security, conformity, and conservatism, all of which may appear to give one peace of mind, but in reality nothing is more dangerous to the adventurous spirit within a man than a secure future. The very basic core of a man's living spirit is his passion for adventure. The joy of life comes from our encounters with new experiences, and hence there is no greater joy than to have an endlessly changing horizon, for each day to have a new and different sun." — Chris McCandless

Midnight sun, and other things you don't see in MN

2008-05-23T15:37:00.005-08:00

People are telling me that I need to keep up with the blog too. Hey, I'm on vacation. But okay. As we wind down our final hours in Alaska, here are a few observations...

Alaska is big. Really big. You can drive and drive and drive for a week and only scratch the surface.

We were up till about 12:30 last night and it was still dusk! The sun only sets for about three hours this time of year but it doesn't really get dark dark. Very weird.

Things are very expensive. We've seen gas as high as $4.50 a gallon at the whaddyagonnado gas station. A six inch sub from Subway is 8 bucks, 12 for a footlong.

The mountains are huge, and they don't end. You get past one set of mountains and there's another one.

The people are very friendly - friendlier than Minnesotans. We haven't come across anything but friendly people thus far.

There are animals everywhere - all different shapes and sizes. So far we've spotted 8 moose, 3 bears, and several porcupines on the road. On our cruise we saw several whales, sea lions, otters, mountain goats, and a couple others that I can't remember. I will have photos to post when I get home, but for now you'll have to settle for Danny's photos which are much better anyway.

Overall, it's a great place to visit, and I will undoubtedly be back again someday, but I don't think I could live here. A week away has me longing to see flat land again. But you're a fool if you don't visit Alaska at least once in your life. It is, quite simply, the most beautiful place on earth, and we've been fortunate to have great weather and the chance to see some of the best of it. But after a week of driving and sleeping on the road, I'm looking forward to getting back home and being met by a certain somebody at the airport.

The Friday List!

2008-05-23T13:43:00.003-08:00

2 - Legs of crab I've eaten
1 - Abandoned building we explored
2479 - Photos taken by Danny
2 - Visits to Mt. McKinley
7 - Moose sightings, one Bull
3 - Bear sightings

Us at the Cook Inlet!

At the Buckner building.

A quick day, through a tunnel, into a building and on the coast.

2008-05-21T21:06:00.003-08:00

I don't know how but somehow the day went by so quickly.

We left our camping spot from last night, headed West and back to Anchorage. We hung out there, had a traveling lunch and then headed due South!

We went through the tunnel on the way to Whittier. It is 2.5 miles long, at 25mph.

There we explored an eerie abandoned building.

After that, we headed south some more, to Seward. A quiet port/fishing city.

This is from a side stop where I attempted to break the branch. It took three attempts.

Micah was kind enough to let me borrow his hat.

Loop Completed, we head to the coast.

2008-05-21T10:06:00.003-08:00

We are near Palmer/Anchorage, headed to Whittier. I'll let Micah type here after the photos.

Me trying to climb up and catch a view of a glacier. Turns out the snow is really, really deep. And I got stuck.

The Aleyska(sic) pipe line. It is quite difficult to scale.

A magic bus.

Micah. Just Micah.

Micah photographing me photographing an old relic of yesteryear.

A black bear.

A mountain goat. They can weigh up to 350lbs.

The majestic bald eagle.

River dogs or mountain seals or something.

Bouy!

The Road. All the tress in the world will fall down someday. Not on us.

Valdez and onto Valdez, to get our sea legs.

2008-05-20T10:32:00.003-08:00

There are two kinds of people in Alaska: those who were born here and those who come here to escape something. I wasn't born here. - Insomnia

Alaska is certainly a place if you want to escape. We camped last night, made a fire, on the side of the highway. Two cars went by from 1am until about 5am. I made a fire that quickly died due to the rain and snow soaked timber.

Our plans, like the snow crested mountains, change with time. We are no longer taking the ferry. We have elected to take a cruise, on an 80 foot chartered twin engine boat, and in our wake, leave behind the short cruise with the opportunity to hunt Moby Dick.

Last night, a long night from Tok to Valdez, at one point, 80 miles from civilization in both directions, we paused. No cell, no radio. Just the silence, with the snow banks mocking us with threatening avalanches.

We saw a porcupine; three actually. One was sleeping in the road. I tried to wake him but could not. The little creatures are fast. Two more mooses, together, were seen but eluded even the photographer trapped inside us. Then, we saw a pack of wolves. Friendly wolves. Too friendly. I believe they were dogs.

After the cruise, we disembark for the town of Whittier. A local who didn't speak fondly of it said "everyone lives in one building. I don't know what's up with that."

Micah will enjoy, or attempt to enjoy, a seven hour cruise around the Prince William Sound.

Tonight, we dine on King Crab. Maybe. I figure I'll need to at least try some while we are at port. Micah isn't into the fish food. Perhaps a spider will change his mind.

Are you Tok'ing to me?

2008-05-19T15:58:00.003-08:00

We are in Tok, AK. Population 1500ish.

We've seen some wonderful mountains, pictures to come hopefully tonight. This blogging is far more difficult for some reason on this trip.

I woke this morning, at about 3am, to a screaming Micah. His leg cramped as he was attacking mooses. I woke up, thinking he was shot or stabbed and went back to bed.

So far, no wild life. We did stop by an abandoned shack, parked on a bridge to get a few shots and took a trip up a dirt road to a cell tower site.

So far we are ahead of my schedule. The plan tonight includes sleeping in Valdez and hopefully jumping on the ferry to W-something.

Below is my twitter. I have been trying to update it as we go along. Cell coverage is spotty. This area will change as the content is dynamic!

I'll turn it over to Micah now.

Apparently my leg has a tendency to cramp up in hotel rooms for some reason. I failed to warn Danny of this and woke up screaming in the middle of the night. "A heads-up would've been nice," he says. Sorry.

Of the many things I will be able to say of myself after this trip, add "I have photographed a grizzly bear in the wild" to the list. Intense.

We saw the pipepline. Got within about 50 feet of it.

We have now gone from Anchorage to Mt. McKinley (Denali) to Fairbanks to Tok in less than 48 hours. The scenery just keeps getting better as we go.

I've never seen an area so desolate as the stretch between Fairbanks and Tok. Unreal.

I ran into a couple of people from Minnesota in Tok. My own kind -- sweet!

I'm pretty sure I could live here. I'll be back soon, but next time I'm driving.

You don't have to out run the bear...

2008-05-18T21:13:00.007-08:00

Just outrun the dog you are walking.

But first, the photos of our first day in Alaska.

A tree. They are everywhere.

Cottage on the lake? Very common. Very nice.

Magic Firebird?

I saw an igloo!

Pretty.

Mt. McKinley. Somewhere back there.

Our first Moose. I named her "Madam Sunshine".

Yes, bears exist in Alaska. We saw a bunch of people taking photos and glassing the nearby hill. Oh a Grizzly? WHERE?!?!

Well, as we are watching a hiker and his dog descend the hill. Those watching begin to yell. He stands dumbfounded. He walked closer to hear. The people waved thier hands, yelled "a bear!! go back up". His dog was then going down the hill. I asked Micah to grab the video camera. This could get interesting.

As the bear ascended the hill, the hiker took notice and ran. The dog learned first and retreated. A group of 3 more hikers were following and met with the fleeing hiker. Safe for now, the bear continued up a bit more, and then dug in the ground. Then it walked away.

We are in a hotel for the evening. I'm up because it is too bright and it feels like 5pm. I don't know how I could live here. Three hours of night can wreck your system. Imagine three hours of daylight for the day.

Day 1

2008-05-18T14:59:00.004-08:00

It's our first day and the adventure has already begun! We've been chased by a moose, almost accidentally stole a car, started a small fire in the van, and stood before God's tallest expression of his glory in North America.

The flight was miserable, and I'll never fly again, but otherwise it's been great. I arrived last night at around 7ish and wondered if the sun would ever set. It did, finally, around midnight, and then came up again at around 3:30. We spent the night in an empty parking lot and then fled Anchorage in the morning, and have spent today driving north towards Fairbanks, chasing (and being chased) by meese, and shooting many photos which will amaze you when they are revealed. More later.

Alaska has bitten me.

2008-05-18T14:19:00.006-08:00

We are in Alaska, specifically near Denali National Park. A run down of the events as they transpired.

* Landed and attempted to steal a rental car.
* Jumped into the correct rental, headed to the semi-famous Beartooth Pizza & Pub
* Had dinner, eating at a local micro brewery is beyond awesome.
* Took off, at midnight which translates to "dusk" out here.
* Slept in a parking lot, in about 30 degree weather.
* Sunrise at 3am or so, slept in until 6am where we took off, without a plan.
* Drove North on Highway 1, to Denali.
* I SAW A MOOSE!
* Photographed Mt. McKinley but the rains soon blocked it from view.
* My car AC/DC converter caught fire while I was driving.
* We drove North some more, heading to random spots along the freeway. Photography ensued.
* I ate peanut M&Ms.
* MICAH SAW A MOOSE! And chased it with the van.
* Paid $4.289 a gallon for gasoline. Like I had a choice. 138 miles from Fairbanks!
* Fell into a lake attempting to get a great photo. Still got the great photo!

Overall Alaska seems far more "American" than I anticipated.
* The locals speak English. With no discernible accent.
* They accept American currency and understand how credit cards work.
* The only igloo I have seen was a tourist trap that has since gone under.

The spiky mountains and hills of Alaska are beautiful. Topped with snow, they crane over, speaking of instability and stability, Creation in balance as mooses erupt from the woods. The roads, wind and climb over and pass rivers and gulches. The air, crisp and clean, with a tinge of wet tree and bear fur.

Photos to hopefully go up tonight as wifi and laptop battery life permits.

Random travel tips.

2008-05-17T15:54:00.002-08:00

* charge your laptop before you leave
* bring your cell charger.
* eat light. Don't drink enough where you want to fight air waitresses.
* ignore the recycled germ ridden air.
* turbulence is God's way of saying "save yourself if you can. "
* carry extra contact solution.

On traveling

2008-05-16T09:12:00.003-08:00

"A tourist is a fellow who drives thousands of miles so he can be photographed standing in front of his car." ~Emile Ganest

"Airline travel is hours of boredom interrupted by moments of stark terror." ~Al Boliska

"There is no place to go, and so we travel! You and I, and what for, just to imagine that we could go somewhere else." ~Edward Dahlberg

"Natives who beat drums to drive off evil spirits are objects of scorn to smart Americans who blow horns to break up traffic jams." ~Mary Ellen Kelly

"See one promontory, one mountain, one sea, one river, and see all." ~Socrates

See you in Alaska

2008-05-16T06:26:00.003-08:00

At long last, we are one day away from departing into the wild. No plan. No money. Just a desperate need to escape the ordinary.

Disembarking, soon.

2008-05-15T22:27:00.002-08:00

Laugh at yourself, but don't ever aim your doubt at yourself. Be bold. When you embark for strange places, don't leave any of yourself safely on shore. Have the nerve to go into unexplored territory. -Alan Alda

I have found adventure in flying, in world travel, in business, and even close at hand... Adventure is a state of mind - and spirit. -Jacqueline Cochran

Into the Wild...

2008-05-13T19:04:00.002-08:00

A thirty-five year old amateur photographer, McCunn told friends that the main reason for the trip was to shoot pictures of wildlife. He flew into the country with five hundred rolls of film, .22 and .30-30 caliber rifles, a shotgun, and fourteen hundred pounds of provisions. His intention was to remain in the wilderness through August. Somehow, though, he neglected to arrange for the pilot to fly him back to civilization at summer's end...

...In late August, as the days grew shorter and the air turned sharp and autumnal in the Brooks Range, McCunn begun to worry when nobody arrived to fly him out. "I think I should have used more foresight about arranging my departure" he confessed in his diary...

...Week by week he could feel the accelerating advance of winter. As his food supply grew meager, McCunn deeply regretted tossing all but a dozen shotgun shells into the lake. "I keep thinking of all the shotgun shells I threw away about two months ago. Had five boxes and when I kept seeing them sitting there I felt rather silly for having brought so many (as a war monger) ...real bright. Who would have known I might need them just to keep from starving."

Then, on a brisk September morning...McCunn was stalking ducks with what remained of his ammunition when the stillness was rocked by the buzz of an airplane, which soon appeared overhead. The pilot, spotting the camp, circled twice at a low attitude for a closer look. McCunn waved wildly with a fluorescent orange sleeping bag cover. The aircraft was equipped with wheels rather than floats and thus couldn't land...

...McCunn was certain he'd been seen and had no doubt the pilot would summon a float plane to return. ...he recorded in his journal that "I stopped waving after the first pass. I then got busy packing things up and getting ready to break camp."

But no plane arrived that day, or the next day, or the next. Eventually McCunn looked on the back of his hunting license and understood why. Printed on the little square of paper were drawings of emergency hand signals for communicating with aircraft from the ground. "I recall raising my right hand, shoulder high and shaking my fist on the plane's second pass. It was a little cheer - like when your team scored a touchdown or something". Unfortunately, as he learned too late, raising a single arm is the universally recognized signal for "all OK, assistance not necessary". The signal for "SOS; send immediate help" is two upraised arms.

"That's probably why after they flew somewhat away they returned for one more pass and on that one I gave no signal at all (in fact I may have even turned my back to the plane as it passed). "They probably blew me off as a weirdo."

McCunn was later found, frozen, dead from a 30-30 shot to the head. His last journal entry contained the following.

"I can't go on like this, I"m afraid. Dear God in Heaven, please forgive me my weakness and my sins. Please look over my family."

Edited by Danny, from "Into the Wild" (page 81-84)

Almost all men, and those that seem to be very miserable, love life, because they cannot bear to lose sight of such a beautiful and lovely world. The ideas, that every moment whilst we live have a beauty that we take not distinct notice of, brings a pleasure that, when we come to the trial, we had rather live in much pain and misery than lose. - Jonathan Edwards

Of Mice and Men...

2008-05-12T15:43:00.003-08:00

Something like this. Of course, it can all change overnight as we've got rain, snow and moose/meese to deal with.

View Larger Map

Sunlight, my friend, my foe.

2008-05-12T08:37:00.002-08:00

I love daytime. I get up when the sun does, unless, like now, I stay up until 1am. The sun has started to rise at about 5:45am. This is not good when I want to sleep until 7am.

What does this mean for Alaska?

May 17, 2008 Sunrise 5:06 AM SUNSET - 10:48 PM
May 18, 2008 Sunrise 5:03 AM SUNSET - 10:50 PM

Are you serious? This doesn't include DUST folks. I am told it gets "dim" but never dark. If the sunset is 11pm, and dusk lasts at a minimum of ONE hour, that means MIDNIGHT gets "dark". LEST WE FORGET THE MOON. May 19th is a FULL MOON.

I may need to bring a large sombrero to get some shuteye.

Almost all men, and those that seem to be very miserable, love life, because they cannot bear to lose sight of such a beautiful and lovely world. The ideas, that every moment whilst we live have a beauty that we take not distinct notice of, brings a pleasure that, when we come to the trial, we had rather live in much pain and misery than lose. -Jonathan Edwards

Letterman on Alaska

2008-05-09T14:00:00.001-08:00