So we finally got under way after sitting around for a couple of hours! Our guide Mike is very entertaining and full of beans. The group is multinational and everyone seems to get on very well (i'll report back on that one by the end of the week)! First stop Fred Meyer... Grocery shopping and then a 3 hour drive to Seward with a few stops on the way for photographic opportunities! I still can't really get over how beautiful this place is... it's breathtaking and def the Last Frontier!
Seward is a pretty small coastal town on the shores of Recurrection Bay, we were camping almost right on the shore line and i don't think you could've dreamed for a better view from a tent (fotos later)! We were surround by water and snow capped mountains! The weather on the first 2 days on Seward wasn't the best, it rained on and off and the wind is very chilly but otherwise not to bad!
First day in Seward was basically set up camp (thanks Mike for our Tent 101 lecture), get to know our fellow trekkers, make dinner (Mike's world famous burgers) and then off to the bar... Hobo Jim (an Alaskan Legend) was singing, so naturally we couldn't pass up the chance to see Hobo Jim live! It was quite an experience, i think the whole community of 100 people had come out to soak it up!! I tried the local brew... Alaskan Summer Ale, very tasty! I was ready for bed by about midnight but the sun wasn't... it only goes down around 2am and only for between 3 and 4 hours, freaky!
On our second day in Seward we all went on a 8 hour cruise out to Holgate Glacier and back... def worth the price! It was incredible and the wildlife we saw was amazing! I was pretty determined i wanted to see whales and Alaska delivered. We saw 3 Humpback Whales... what an experience, they are so huge and beautiful and that noise as they blow air out their blow holes is incredible! The Puffins were amusing... there was a feeding frenzy going on and the Puffins had obviously eaten way to much because they were trying to take off and couldn't get off the water... we were all willing them on! We also saw Sea Otters... very cute; Steller sea lions... who were doing what seals do best, sleeping; Coastal Mountain Goats... they were very fasinating because they were feeding on a sheer rock face, how do they do it; Dall's porpoises... they were swimming with the boat, very cool and they look like mini Orcas; and then as an extra treat we spotted a Black Bear on the shore so the captain got us in really close... it was just pottering around on the shore looking for food! I think that's all the wildlife we saw, the Park Ranger on board said that our cruise is one of the luckiest this season with regards to wildlife viewing! :) We enjoyed a buffet of prime rib, salmon and all you can eat dessert on the boat... yummy in my tummy!! Oh yes, i almost forgot about Holgate Glacier... one big block of ice! It was amazing to just watch it and listening to the ice cracking off and falling into the water.... calving they call it!
Third day started with a small hike to Exit Glacier, were i actually got it touch it and see for myself how big of a block of ice it actually is... massive btw! The rest of the day was spent at leisure, i walked around downtown Seward (which i think is a little over touristy, every shop sells tourist crap... but hey, they have to make a living i suppose) and then parked off on the shore and watched the world go by for a couple of hours! Got to see a Bald Eagle swoop down and pluck a fish from the water, settle on the shore to eat it's catch and fly off again... amazing! All and all, a very good day... it's been a long time since i've been able to just sit and soak everything up! We then packed up the camp and hit the road to Hope (that's the name of the one horse town), more of that later! :)
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