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ALASKA AND YUKON 1999
26th June 1999 Anchorage
Flew to Seattle and then on to Anchorage. Saw the mountains through the low cloud.
Very tired after such a long trip, flew for nearly 24 hours.
27th June 1999 Anchorage
Tour of Anchorage. Only 2 streets, reminded me of Banff, except that it has tall mirrored skyscrapers.
Met the other guys for a beer in the bar.
28th June 1999 Tangle Lakes
First day of Trek. Really sunny in the morning. Stopped at a Musk Ox farm in Pangle they are small and very hairy. Had lunch at Long Lake where it started to rain.
Stayed in a lodge in Tangle Lakes, some guys saw a beaver, but I was snoozing.
29th June 1999 Denali
Made our way along the Denali Highway to Denali National Park. Got eaten alive by mosquitoes.
Took flight over Mt McKinley which was good but a bit cloudy. Camp is excellent.
30th June 1999 Denali.
Nice sunny day no clouds at all. Went into Denali up to the Ellison Visitor Centre. Got a clear view of Mt McKinley from 60 miles but the driver didn’t stop. Clouds then started to form and only got short truncated views of the mountain.
Saw our first grizzly bear on the way but way off in the distance. Had Salmon Bake for tea.
1st July 1999 Denali
Got up at 5am, went into the park as far as Toklat. Good views of Mt McKinley.
Walked further for a few miles, then climbed a hill for lunch. Got chewed by mosquitoes and elephant flies, but saw a Golden Eagle flying overhead. Walked and bussed back to the Visitors Centre and had Pizza.
At the Pizza place, bumped into Suzie so pleased to see her again after so long. She recognised me immediately which was good.
2nd July 1999 Fairbanks
Duckies this morning down the Namana River. Took a swim when we hit a rock the size of a house bit embarrassing and lost my waterproof camera. Just about everyone else went swimming in the rapids but we were OK.
Went into Fairbanks and the Alaskan Museum.
Camped outside it was 88oF at 9:30 pm and sunny didn’t set until past midnight. Went to a local bar for bears and then stayed up drinking so light its difficult to judge the time.
3rd July 1999 Dawson City
Went food shopping for the first time, and then on to the North Pole where we took pictures of the huge blow-up Santa sad place!
The sky was bright orange at Chicken due to forest fires. Chicken (population 60) was getting ready for the 4th July celebrations we crossed the border into Canada and drove to Dawson City.
Had barbecue chicken and then into town for beers and casino. Primitive camp.
4th July 1999 Dawson City
Layin until 10:30. Smokey day due to the forest fires the sun makes a nice orange glow. Walked around Dawson City, which was quite interesting, like a town in a Western film.
Short hike down the river to the Sternwheeler Graveyard where there were 4 old boats.
Then on into town and an 80’s club which was good. Had a hot dog and back to camp at 3am.
5th July 1999 Arctic Circle
Overslept until 8:10, then drove to Eagle Plains for camp. Stopped at Dempter Information Centre for lunch, slept most of the time.
After dinner drove to the Arctic Circle and then up to the Northwest Territory frontier. Cloudy all day. Did laundry in evening.
6th July 1999 - Wilderness
Drove down to the Blackstone River where we hiked up a ridge nice view. After more driving hiked to a river with ice. Interestingly the length of the ice shards varied when you stood on it.
In the evening went on an informative talk to a beaver dam and lodge. Saw one beaver swimming. Got eaten by mosquitoes, even through my socks.
7th July 1999 Whitehorse
Made our way to Whitehorse after checking out the beaver pond but no beavers. Slept all the way.
Went into Whitehorse in the evening for loads of beers. Was dark at 1am when we got back used my torch for the first time on the trip.
8th July 1999 Kluane
Layin until 8:30. Drove to Kluane and went around the Visitors Centre. Quite misty so the mountains don’t show.
Camp at Kluane Lake which was nice and blue. The waves sound like the sea. $35 for drinks kitty.
9th July 1999 Kluane
Went Heli-Hiking. Sat in co-pilots seat in the chopper but didn’t go very far, just up the side of a mountain. Hiked downhill, and did nothing all afternoon.
Strong winds in the night.
10th July 1999 Wrangell-St Elias
Long drive back to the USA from Kluane Lake to Silver Lake in Wrangell-St Elias National Park. Started to rain as we made camp.
Some of the trek went canoeing on the lake, others went swimming. Saw two mooses on the way. Rained all night.
11th July 1999 Wrangell-St Elias
Up at 5am to go into the Park. Stopped raining but cloudy. McCarthy is small. Booked flights for Glaciers in the afternoon, hoping for better weather.
Hitched ride to Kennicott where there’s an old Copper Mine very interesting. Hiked to glacier by myself, then walked back to McCarthy.
Flight over glaciers was superb, this is what I thought Alaska would look like.
12th July 1999 Valdez
Miserable morning, but a bald eagle swooped low over camp. Packed early and drove to Valdez. Lots of cloud and some rain, scenery looked great but too cloudy to see properly.
Went sea kayaking, top girl Kerri looked after us. Saw a seal and a kittywake nest-site. Paddled between icebergs to the Shoop Glacier, which was carving. Hiked up to an ice-arch, which was really neat.
Had steak for dinner and then did laundry. Bed early for third early start in a row.
13th July 1999 Seward
Caught ferry to Whittier. Great breakfast onboard and went close to the Columbia Glacier where a Bald Eagle flew past the ferry. The ice looked really blue.
Whittier was really small, the only way out being the railway through tunnels. Went to the Portage Glacier and then onto Seward. We have a shack here, so no more tents.
14th July 1999 Seward
Went to the Exit Glacier and went on a ranger walk (Girlie Ranger named ‘Shaun’). Did a short Nature Walk, the Harding Icefield overlook looked too tiring and cloudy.
Went to the Exxon Valdex exhibition and disappointing Sea Life Centre in Seward. Lazed around in the evening.
15th July 1999 Seward
Drizzle in the morning, which is bad news as its Kenai Fjords boat tour. We’re on the 7.5 hour trip to Holgate Glacier stopping at Fox Island for lunch. Drizzle stops just as tour starts and we see lots of Bald Eagles on the way.
At Fox Island, see the back and tail-fluke of a Humpback Whale. See some ‘Fin Whales’ after lunch then go to Homage Glacier and see large chunks carving into the sea. On the way back see cormorants, puffins and sea lions. See the humpback again on the way back as well as a Sea Otter in the harbour.
Beers in Seward, followed by a trip to the Pits (a bar).
16th July 1999 Anchorage
Hangover. Travelled to Anchorage, stopping at the Alyeska Ski Resort for lunch. Beer kitty was $31. Saw a Dall Sheep near Turnagain Arm.
Afternoon in Anchorage, went to see the Salmon jumping in the river, but there weren’t any. Bought a few souvenirs (a beaver).
Said goodbye to Mike, then group went for pizza at the Hotel, followed by The Matrix in one of the rooms.
17th Jul 1999 Home
Flight to Seattle. Flight to Heathrow was cancelled, so flew down to LA, then to Heathrow from there. Got home on 18th July at 3:30 pm.
A fantastic trip, with great group of people. Large distances and similar scenery, but the Glaciers and Mountain flights were fantastic.
Animals Seen
Moose2 Beaver1 Bear3 Squirrel5 Porcupine2 Caribou5 Golden Eagle2 Marmot1 Bald Eagle9 Seal1 Sea Otter9 Humpback Whale1 Fin Whale4
Highlights
§Icefields §Bald Eagles §Sea Kayaking §Mt McKinley §Kenai Fjords boat Tour §Kennicott Mine Town §Valdez Whittier Ferry
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