Denali a bit of Disappointment

 Part of my disappointment was my own doing.  When I travel, I like to be settled and not jumping around every night or two to a new hotel or destination.  I also like to avoid not having two or three days in a row completely booked/planned out with events.   Given this was a last-minute trip, I had to do Seward and Denali back-to-back, which meant a few long days of travel and adventure back-to-back.  So, after a 15-hour magical day in Seward, I hopped on an 8-hour train ride to Denali early the next morning.

Day 4 started off great, with another scenic train ride.  This time on the Wilderness Express to Denali.  The train ride to Seward was more scenic given the variety of terrains, but this ride was surrounded by beauty as well, just not as much variation.  I love taking the train and being able to have a comfortable ride, having a meal or two and way less stressful than flying these days.

So, the train ride was great, but when I got to the hotel there was an issue with my reservation.   For some reason, they were showing that I still needed to pay.  I showed them my confirmation, which showed I’d already paid and even showed them the charge on my Am Ex.   They were very pleasant but couldn’t seem to figure out why it wasn’t showing on their end.   After a long train ride, I planned to check in, change clothes and head to the park to get a short hike in before having dinner.   Unfortunately, it took an hour + to get checked in, then I didn’t have my luggage.  Rather than letting my frustration ruin my first day in Denali, I decided to head to the park anyway.  Despite not having my hiking shoes, I figured I could at least check the park out.  And hoped by the time I returned, my luggage would be there.   The hotel has a shuttle that runs to the park every 15 minutes, but the shuttle didn’t show up as expected.  Turns out there was an issue, and the shuttle was delayed.  By the time I finally got to the park, I had less than 30 minutes before the last shuttle back to the hotel and everything was closed.  Need less to say, my frustration level was rising. 

All ended well though.  When I got back, my luggage was in my room.  I took a quick shower and then headed to the hotel bar for dinner and a drink, maybe two!

After a good night’s sleep, it was time for my first adventure in Denali.  I booked a Jeep excursion
along the Denali Highway. The Denali Highway is the original road used to get to Denali before they built the George Parks Highway.  So it’s no longer used by many folks and it’s basically a dirt road that doesn’t go through the actual national park.   While the guides were great, the excursion itself wasn’t really exciting.  

After I got back to the hotel and had a quick lunch, I hopped on a “Tundra Wilderness Tour.”  I had not planned to do this, but shortly before I left for my trip, I learned from a couple of folks you can’t get more than 3 miles into the park, unless you do this.  These tours go 43 miles into the park (they used to have an option that went all the way to the end, but that’s no longer an option since the road washed out a few years ago), so you can see a lot more of the park.  Basically, you are sitting on a school bus, driving through the park, hoping to see some wildlife.    As we all know, wildlife is most active at dusk and dawn.  When I booked this, I booked a late afternoon tour.   After I booked my tour, my confirmation stated, my actual tour time would not be available until the day before and it could be anywhere between Noon and 5pm.   Well, I found out the day before, I was on a 1:40p tour.  

After an 8+ hour travel day, I spent the day in a Jeep for 4 hours and then on a school bus for just over five hours.   It was just a lot of sitting two days in a row and not nearly the adventures I was hoping for.   I would have preferred more time to explore the area and park on my own.  I did get to see lots of caribou.

Time to head back to Anchorage for a couple nights.  I have another day and a half free.   We’ll see what else I can get into.

Chatting with Strangers

It started at a bar in the airport. After arriving at the airport, only to discover my flight had been delayed, I headed to the bar right next to the gate. I sat down and an older gentleman sat down shortly after. We quickly started commiserating over flight delays and he talked about his family, how he was retired but had just gotten a new opportunity that he was very excited about.   You could tell he had a great love for his family and called his wife a couple of times to update her on his flight status. It just made the time go by fast and I really enjoyed our chat. He had been a salesperson throughout his career, which was not surprising. Chatting with strangers came so easy to him and he was so easy going. I had not even left the airport and had already had a pleasant experience, leaving the travel delay frustrations behind.

Then I was lucky enough to be seated next to this lovely woman who was traveling with her husband to see the birth of their grandchild. While they were traveling together, they were seated apart. I offered to switch seats with her husband so they could sit together but she was like, oh no. It’s fine.   Now I’m not usually a big talker on a plane.  I’m one of those folks who bury their face in a book and while I will be pleasant to the folks seated around me, I do not chat up folks when flying.  I like this to be “me” time. Maybe it’s because I’m semi-retired now and have more “me” time than I used to, but I set my book aside and continued to listen to this woman sitting next to me.   She was a retired special ed teacher, but still works as a substitute teacher from time to time. She is wanting to do something and is trying to figure out what that something is. She talked about her kids, two sons and a daughter and her multiple grandkids. She is lucky both her sons live nearby so she gets to spend a lot of time with them and their kids. She was on her way to see her daughter who is about to give birth to her 3^rd child.   She talked about the tension in her relationship with her daughter and it was obvious this causes her some angst.  She loves her daughter very much and wants to be there for her daughter but isn’t sure exactly how to be there in a way her daughter wants/appreciates.   The distance doesn’t help. Unlike her sons, her daughter lives on the west coast. She talked about what an amazing mother her daughter is, showed me pictures of the boys and  is excited to finally be at the birth of this newest grandchild.  She has missed the birth of the first two as her daughter said it would be most helpful for her to come out after the baby was born. But this time she had re-arranged her travel plans at the last minute to ensure she could be there from the beginning. She was such an interesting woman, and my heart broke for her knowing her relationship with her daughter is weighing on her.

 Just before we landed, she said, “it was so nice talking to you. I am a nervous flyer and talking with you made this flight go by first. In case you can’t tell, I don’t like sitting next to the window, I prefer the aisle.”  I laughed and said, I actually prefer a window seat, but the aisle seat was all that was available. We both laughed at the fact we’d chatted the whole flight and this would have been good information to have shared 3 hours ago, as we could have easily switched seats (we were on a smaller plane with just two seats on each side, so no middle seats).  

As I departed the plane and she caught up with her husband, I wished her well and said have a great time meeting your new grandbaby and then headed to find the gate for my next leg to Anchorage.

I must admit, talking to her brought me some comfort. It was like talking to my own mother. For that brief flight, it was like having great conversation with my mom.

I was waiting outside the airport in Anchorage waiting for the hotel shuttle to take me to the hotel. It was 1:30 in the morning and I was thinking about how exhausted I was, and I couldn’t wait to get to the hotel, take a hot shower and climb into bed.   Then a young boy, who looked like he couldn’t be more than 15, asked me if I was waiting for a shuttle to the Lakefront Anchorage hotel.  I told him yes and he seemed to be relieved he was in the right place.  I told him I thought this is where we were supposed to be but wasn’t 100% sure.  Suddenly we saw the shuttle pulling up and we were both relieved to get on the shuttle. He sat in seat and front of me and asked about my trip. I in turn asked about his, thinking he seemed to be too young to be traveling alone.  Turns out he’s here for a college study program and will be in Alaska for 3 months.  He’s from Bangkok and just exuded positive energy and excitement about he’s upcoming study program.  Such a sweet kid. I saw him the next afternoon sitting in the hotel lobby so went to say hello. It turns out that the company that booked his room booked it for the day of our arrival vs. the day prior. So since we didn’t get to the hotel until almost 2am, they told him he couldn’t check in until 3p in the afternoon.  The poor kid had been in the lobby for 12 hours, waiting to be able to finally check in. He took it all in stride and was the same happy kid I’d met on the shuttle in the wee hours of the morning.  If we could all have this kind of outlook, the world would be a much better place.

 After my amazing first day in Alaska, I sat at the bar with my laptop in the hotel restaurant for a late lunch. My plan was to write about my first day while enjoying a leisurely lunch. Before I even had the chance to complete the first sentence, one of the guys sitting next to me struck up a conversation. After a few minutes, it was clear I wasn’t going to be able to start writing about my day.  I closed my laptop and became fully engaged in our conversation. He was supposed to be heading to the airport to pick up a friend, but his friends flight had been delayed so he stopped by to kill some time. He arrived yesterday and turns out he’s here for 10 days for work.   He used to live in Fairbanks and now lives in Juneau. He’s been to Anchorage many times and gave me some dining recommendations.  He asked me where all I was planning to go and do and told me I would have a great time.  All his brothers and his kids have come out to visit while he’s lived here, and he said they were all blown away by their experience.  We wound up chatting for a couple of hours before the jet lag and the travel delays caught up with me and I knew it was time for a nap!

So, I’ve only been traveling a little over 24 hours and have already met some great people.  I know some of you cynics are saying be careful! And I admit I have a cynical side as well, so when I’m talking to strangers, I’m hesitant to share too many details about myself, where I live, where I’m headed etc., but I choose to focus on the positive of these encounters.

Day 3 Was Magical

 

Day 3 was one of the things I planned that I was looking forward to the most.  When the Traveling Hillbilly decided to make an Alaskan trip happen this year, the first thing I did was google scenic train rides in Alaska.  I love taking a train and thought this would be what I would build the rest of my itinerary around.   Everything I read, said the train ride from Anchorage to Seward was the most scenic train ride in Alaska.   So, I decided to make a trip to Seward part of my trip and while there, do a day cruise around Kenai Fjords National Park to see some glaciers and wildlife.

The day did not disappoint!   Despite the early start, had to leave hotel at 5am to catch the train, I was wide awake on the train in awe of the scenery.  At one point, I thought, I better stop taking pictures or both my camera and cell battery will be dead before I even get to Seward.   I wound up having to ask if there was any place I could plug them in to recharge them.  Luckily, in one of the employee “offices” they had a makeshift charging station set up, so I was able to get everything charged up before I departed the train. 

The train goes along the coast, probably the reason they call it the Coastal Train 😊.  You pass through valleys with snowcapped mountains as backdrop, there are rivers and streams, waterfalls cascading down the mountains, then areas still buried in snow, that is just starting to melt.    The only bummer was it was raining and/or cloudy for most of the day, but Alaska’s beauty managed to shine through.

After completing the breathtaking first leg of the day, it was time to head to the harbor to find Major Marine’s Kenai Fjords cruise.   The Traveling Hillbilly must admit, I was a little nervous about being on a boat for six hours.   Four hours seemed like plenty of time to be on a boat, but since the season hasn’t yet started so not all tour options are up and running.   Turns out six hours wasn’t too much.  We saw mountain goats, bears, bald eagles, puffins, whales, sea otters, sea lions and of course a glacier.  While I didn’t get the best pictures, I have great memories of the day.  

Now time to hop back for another scenic ride back to Anchorage.

Day 2 in Alaska - Another Bike Ride and a Long Way for Pizza and Beer

 

As you all know, my plans were to go back to my room, take a nap and do a post dinner ride to downtown Anchorage.  I was so tired after lunch, I thought I would fall asleep in minutes and would wake up in time for dinner and a post dinner ride.   However, it took me forever to fall asleep and then I didn’t wake up until well into the evening, so no dinner, no ride.

Started my morning with a walk to my coffee place, followed by a quick breakfast as I was ravenous after not having eaten anything since lunch the day before.

I rented another bike and took off to finish the last part of the coastal trail.   The Tony Knowles coastal trail itself is just 11 miles long from end to end.  However, there are so many trails in the city to explore.   I have since learned when you knit together all the favorite paved trails, it becomes a single 32-mile route that resembles the shape of a moose’s head! 

Yesterday I got on the trail at Earthquake Park and rode to its finish at Kincaid Park and then back past Earthquake Park for a bit before heading back to the hotel.  So I only had about 3 ½ miles of the trail to do, but of course took some detours along the way.  The first part of the trail leaving Earthquake Park is very scenic.   However, I have to say this part of the trail was not as scenic as the way to Kincaid Park. It was much busier and there were several homeless encampments.    I can’t imagine how hard being homeless is, but being homeless in Alaska has to be unbearable in the winter.  I’m not sure how they can survive a winter outdoors. 

After making my way back to the hotel, I hopped on the hotel shuttle to downtown.  I decided to have a late lunch at Moose’s Tooth.  Someone told me they had the best pizza in town and also brew their own beers.  That turned out to be more of an adventure than expected.   After I exited the shuttle, I put the Moose’s Tooth in google maps only to realize it was a 2 ½ mile walk.   After my bike ride, I didn’t feel up to an hour walk, but it seemed silly to pay almost $10 dollars to take an Uber ride to get a slice of pizza and a beer.  So, I decided I’d walk there and then just take an Uber back to the hotel after. 

The same man that told me about the Moose’s told, also informed me the navigation in Anchorage can be wonky.  After this walking route I have to agree.  It had me walking along a major highway in Anchorage and there were some areas with no sidewalk.  Given all the beautiful trails in this city, there had to be a more scenic route than the one I took.   However, I made it, and it was a good reco.  The pizza was great and the two raspberry beers I had eased the pain a little.

https://moosestooth.net/

So excited for my train ride to Seward tomorrow.   It’s supposed to be the most scenic train ride in Alaska.  Plus, I’ll get to sit down for a while!  Can’t wait to sit back, relax and enjoy the ride.  Alaska Railroad, here I come! 

Traveling Alone

I love the idea of traveling with the ones you love and creating a shared experience and memories you can all cherish.   When I was biking yesterday, I often thought of how much my sisters and their husbands would have loved biking the trail.   They would have loved the beautiful scenery as much as I did and would have been just as excited and in awe of the moose!   My one brother-in-law would have captured some truly amazing photos that we would all be able to admire later.  It would have been nice to be able to recount our ride over lunch and talk about the adventures to come. 

I had hoped we would all come to Alaska for the first time together because it’s on their bucket lists as well.  I asked about it a year or so ago and got an astounding yes, it’s a place we want to go!  But life happens, they had other trips to plan and I didn’t want 3 years to go by and we had yet to put something together.   So, I decided to make it happen this year for me.  

I like to travel “off-season” to avoid the crowds.  Given the weather in Alaska, there is a very small should season.   If you want to avoid the summer crowds and weather, you basically have the end of May and the first two weeks of September and that’s about it.   I was originally looking into September but the more I researched the more excited I got.  When I had an opening in the calendar to potentially make this work in May around Memorial Day, I started trying to put something together.  Over a weekend, I got to work trying to make this trip a reality and was able to develop an itinerary that would have me leaving in just 6 days!

So here I am.   I find myself in Alaska having this amazing experience that I would love to be sharing with my family.   However, traveling alone creates its own magical experience.  I travel alone quite often, and I highly recommend it to those who are hesitant to do it.  While not all destinations are suited for solo travelers, many are.  You meet strangers, who quickly become friends, some will be friends just for a moment, just for the trip, but if you’re really lucky, you’ll stay in touch for years to come and meet up on occasion for more adventures.  

In your hometown you may find yourself hesitant to start up a conversation with a stranger.  But have you ever noticed how many strangers are chatting it up at an airport bar?   Maybe they are sharing their frustrations over flight delays, a bad travel experience, or their excitement about their trip to come.  Maybe they make the flight delay less frustrating, the flight go by faster or they get you even more excited about your trip because they are sharing their experiences.  These encounters with strangers just add something special to the trip   Every time I’ve traveled alone, I have at least one great encounter with someone I would have never met had I been traveling with a group of folks I know.

I’ve already met several interesting folks on this trip.   Post about some of those interesting folks coming soon.

What an Amazing First Day and...

 It’s only 2p.   Despite my early am arrival, I still woke up a the crack of dawn.  Given it was almost 9a my time, I decided to get up and get the day started.  I figured I’d walk to find coffee and then come back to my room for a morning nap and get a later start to my day.   However, that plan was quickly adjusted. After my early morning walk  for  and a beautiful lake view while enjoying my coffee, I was inspired and ready to start my day.

I decided to rent a bike and ride along the coastal trail.   It runs from downtown Anchorage to Kincard park, with several parks and lookout points along the way. https://anchoragecoastaltrail.com/

After my travel hassles yesterday, what a magical way to start this adventure.   It’s like you are biking through a forest of aspen trees but then go around a bend and there are beautiful views of snow covered mountains on one side and coastal views on the other.

Technically I had seven, yes, seven moose sightings.  The first one was very far away, across a busy road right before I got on the trail, so that one doesn’t really count. But then about 30 minutes into the ride, I came across a group of women with several dogs stopped off to the side of the trail. I slowed down as I approached them, and they gave me a heads up there was a moose on the path up ahead. I stopped and stepped aside as well and watched the moose slowly make his/her way along the path, toward us before ventured slowly into the woods. I was a little nervous considering there were 7 dogs watching, any one of which could potentially spook the moose.  But they were all quiet as church mice, respected its size and didn’t bark or charge.  I was able to snap  a couple of pics before he ventured deeper into the woods. 

I continued on my journey  and stopped in Kincard park to enjoy a protein bar before heading back.  On my way back I spotted a mamma and two calves in the marshy area below the trail.  They were quite far away, so I was able to admire them from a safe distance.    Such a site to see!

After I spent some time admiring mama and her babies, I hopped back on to the trail.  I had only been on the trail about 15 minutes, when I spotted a couple stopped off to the side of the trail and two moose munching on some shrubs, inches from the trail.  I stopped as well, as I did not want to bike by these huge moose that close!  A few folks biked right past them without a second thought and the moose didn’t seem to mind.  However, I still waited until the moose turned away from the trail and continued to nibble on the shrubs before I moved on.   As I was biking away, a family came walking up the trail and the dad shouted “moosu” to his kids and they started running toward the moose.   He screamed for them to not get too close but I was still nervous they were going to spook the moose and hoped they wouldn’t charge at the kids.    

I was planning to take the path all way to downtown Anchorage before heading back to my hotel, but the gears on the bike stared to catch and I didn’t want to wind up having issues with the bike and potentially having to walk several miles to get the bike back.  So I headed back to the hotel for lunch.  

Feel so good to back on a great adventure!  It's been way too long since the Travelling Hillbilly has been on an epic adventure.  It feeds my soul.

All and all a great start to my first day.  Not it's time for lunch and an afternoon nap.   Maybe I’ll rent another bike and finish the ride to downtown later.  Given it doesn’t get dark here until after 10 or 11p, I could squeeze in a another ride after dinner.

Day Trips

Cloudcroft is always a favorite.  The old train trestle is a sight to see.    There are also lots of trails to explore in the area, offering even more scenic views.  It’s at an even higher elevation than Ruidoso, so the temps are slightly cooler.   For those who like to shop, there are some small shops along Burro Avenue.  Noisy Water also has a tasting room along the strip, if you need a little refreshment after your exploration.

But the Traveling Hillbilly’s favorite stop is the Cloudcroft Brewing Company, for some delicious wood fired pizza!   It never disappoints. 

White Sands National Park is another place worth your time.    You wouldn’t think white sands dunes would be all that extraordinary, but it is a site to see.   The white sand dunes, with mountains as a backdrop make it a unique place to visit.   Just be sure to check and make sure they aren’t doing any missile testing before you go.   Otherwise you can face an hour plus delay to get to the park. 

Don't forget to stop at McGinn's PistachioLand for some delicious pistachio ice cream!  You can also get a picture of the world's largest pistachio.