For the Freshmen class of SJHA, 2007-08

This blog is dedicated to my three classes of Biology Hons. I dont usually blog, but when I left SJHA many of my students were sad that they would not get to hear about my experience....they wanted me to take them with me to Alaska :-)! Since that was not possible, I decided to write down all my experiences for them so that they would not miss my stories of Alaska next year. Hope, some day this might inspire them to visit Alaska themselves. Dont forget to write to me when you do visit, and tell me your stories. Hope this will be a good substitute till then. I wish I could have taken you all......I missed you all soooo much :-(
Mrs Sarkar

Day 10: Another day in paradise

Our last day, we check out at 12. Nothing will ever compare to this vacation of ours. We celebrated two birthdays and an anniversary, saw many firsts and went back humbled by the force of nature. Hope this blog will make it your mission in life to visit Alaska before the glaciers disappear. Global warminh or not, this land is changing. Catch it before it is gone.

View from Skyline drive, Homer

Skipping stones at the Spit

Eating!

eagle

Day 9: Anchor Point & Homer Spit

Homer is a very sleepy beautiful town which focuses on drinking and fishing!!!Since we were not interested in the first and not experienced in the second we were left with just the Spit to visit. The spit is the second largest in the world and boasts many gift shops( completely avoidable). Luckily on our trip to view the bears we met these two wildlife photographers who told us about Anchor Point. Normally, most people drive by without realizing that this is the haven for the famed Bald eagles. However if you can visit this at low tide, this provides you with a beautiful view of as many Bald eagles as you would want to see plus the four volcanoes of Homer. Fish is ample so the eagles do not feel the need to fight for their food as the pictures will show you. Our trip is almost coming to an end. Tonight we had a surprise birthday party for Anju at midnight. This is in keeping with our tradition of giving her a 2 city birthday, starts in Homer and ends in Anchorage.

Bear

Halo bay bears

Day 8: The bears

A trip of a lifetime indeed! We took the plane, a small Cessna to this remote island where a whale carcass had washed up ashore. As we circled it we saw 4 grizzlies having a feast on it. Our pilot was really skilled and landed on this gravel beach. We were just ecstatic seeing the bears from 200ft, when our guide said that we were going to walk up to 20 ft of the bears and watch them eat while sitting on the driftwood nearby!!!! We saw a wolf nearby waiting for the bears to let go. Mom and babies ( about 400 lbs each) ate and frolicked till we had our fill of photographs and watching them. Bears love to nap after a meal. Once these guys left, our guide was planning on taking us closer to see the carcass. As we debated on going closer, he hushed us, pointing behind us. A 1000 lb male bear was standing 10 ft away. For a few moments our hearts stopped while cameras clicked away , as if the bear was a model walking the runway. He stood there and posed while the cameras clicked and then calmly walked around us to go eat his fill. Never have I felt so close to nature, and for the rest of my life I will remember the bear looking at us, as if checking us out. The trip back was eventful too, through a storm...but the events before that made everything else pale in comparison. Now all we did was relive each moment on that remote island...

Day 7: Homer

Today we drove from Seward to Homer, "the quaint drinking village with a fishing problem". The drive is about 4 hours but the vistas are so amazing that we stopped multiple times to view them. Our greatest delight was our guest house, Waterman creek guest. The view you see above is the view we got from our front patio....the entire Kachemak Bay! Our rental home owner, Pat was a wonderful source of information. Since Ashish wasn't able to make up his mind about bear viewing at Katchemak Bay sate park, we asked him. He said" even if one of you can afford it, you should go...its a trip of a lifetime!". That decided it for us, Ashish needed to see the place before we made up our mind. So off to the Spit the two of them went for information and fresh fish :-)! Needless to say the dock side at the Spit had great Salmon to buy and Smokey bay tours had 3 spots for us to go on the plane the next day. Kids were sad, but understood that at $525 a piece we couldn't afford to take them all :-(!

Day 6: Kenai Fjords National Park Cruise

So what do I say...:(! No Orcas, and whale watching was a huge let down. Monterrey has way better whale watching. However, the view of the Holgate Glacier was simply amazing. As the boat approached the glacier, huge chunks of the glacier fell into the water. The sound that followed was something that none of us expected. Another bonus was a trip to the Chiswell Island which houses the breeding ground for the Puffins, Cormorant,Common Murre & the endangered Stellar sea lion. The puffins were the star of the show. Seaward is a small sleepy town which survives on just fishing and tourist tours to the Fjords. Buying fish here seems almost impossible, however the one time we had fish, it was just amazingly fresh. Our recommendation, try Salmon Bake. Don't go by what they say, its great fish!!

Day 5:Exit Glacier

This was the day of the 400 mile drive from Denali to Seward. On our way to Seward, we visited the Exit Glacier. There is a hike which gives you a close view to the glacier, but be warned your feet will get wet. We crossed glacial streams and for a while it felt like our toes were amputated :-) After a 9 hour drive it was quite refreshing though.... At the local Salmon Bake, we met locals who told us about Bear lake Road. We got to see Salmon Run for free, trust me that's rare. Hardly anything free in Alaska , except all national parks so far :-)!!! Our stay was at Box Canyon Cabin, on Old Exit glacier road. This was the day we bought fresh Salmon and had Khichuri and maach Bhaja for dinner. Everyone is very happy :-)!!!Tomorrow is the day I have been waiting for ever........glaciers falling into the ocean and Orcas????

Day 4: Sled dogs and hiking in the rain

This is our last day at Denali, and we are not happy with just the bus trip so we visit the sled dogs, watch the demo( well worth the time), and then decide to brave the elements and set out hiking in the rain. We started at the visitor center and took the 5 mile Horseshoe trail. We were all so tired of sitting that this wasn't enough, we drove to Savage River and walked another 2 miles past the 15 mile post. During this hike I saw a Lynx!!! People stay here for years and still don't see it :-)! We returned at 1am and it was still light....truly the land of midnight sun.

Day3: Tundra Wilderness Trip

This was the day of the 8 hour bus trip. We took the aftrnoon bus at 2:20. Waiting in the line assures you of a good seat. While the trip is great, the bus is not so a seat in the front prevents you from motion sickness. Our bus driver was a wildlife biologist, Justin, who seemed to have scopes attached to his eyes :-)!! During our trip, we saw a mother fox with pups, 6 grizzly bears, more than 50 Daal sheep, Moose, Ermin, Caribou and even Snow geese. The bus trip is long and one does not get to walk much . However the guide is excellent and talked non stop. This is a must do activity in Denali. Well worth the money.

Day 2: Midnight

It never gets dark here!! This is our group Hiking the Savage River Trail at midnight.

Day 1: Portage Glacier

We landed in Anchorage at about 2 pm and after checking in we decided to check out the POrtage Glacier.About an hours drive from Anchorage, along the scenic Seward Highway, this is a must see. Even a few years back, there was ice floating in Portage Lake. It is expected, that in a few more years, Portage Glacier will cease to exist. On the way back, a trip to Double Musky Inn is a must for food ($$$). People all over the world visit this inn, which leads to some very interesting conversation. This drive is said to be one of the top 10 in the country. There is ample scope for birdwatching as well but we decided to do this on our way back.

Day 2

Finally! We made it to Denali! After landing at Anchorage, we stayed overnight at Clarion Suites, and then left for Denali the next day. It was a long drive but the beauty around us made it all worth it. It's rare to have a sunny day in Denali during summer, contrary to what most guide books tell you. During the three days we spent here, we barely got such a sunny moment.

Water taxi URL

http://www.homerocean.com/water_taxi.htm

Putting it here so everyone can check it out..

Pre trip planning

Dec 2007, Trip layout planned.

• Fly to anchorage, drive to Denali and spend 3 days there. This is followed by a two day stay at Kenai Fjords and 3 day trip at Homer.

Jan 2008

• Tickets booked
• Park reservations for bus made
• Homes/cabins reserved
• Food Planning( the most essential component of our trip)
  
• Cars booked ( earleir the better!)

Mar-May 2008

• Researching Alaska
• Planning food

June 8th, 2008

• Bell meeting ( without bell!)
• Preliminary packing of food :-) ( we have the food now, how about the rest?)
  

The Alaska Vacation

Day 0:
This is the day we have been waiting for !! Shantanu turns 40 and finally 6 months of preparation seems to finally come to an end. We are off to Alaska on June 15th! We are taking this trip with the Dey family, who will have a lot to celebrate as well while we are on this trip.

The attendees are
1. Shantanu
2. Anu
3. Ahon
4.Anubhav
5. swastika
6. Ashish
7. Anju
8. Akansha