The End ----

I've reached the end of our trip to a small corner of our largest state.  The last afternoon we drove back along Turnagain Arm toward Anchorage International Airport and a flight home.    As with the rest of the trip, we had a few surprises as we drove the Seward Highway.

Turnagain Arm

Low Tide

The Seward Highway follows the mountainous coastline.  All along the way we were treated to spectacular views of Cook Inlet, where mammoth sloping mountains abruptly rise precipitously from this four-mile-wide bay.

It was low tide when we stopped at one of the many overlooks.  Turnagain Arm boasts the second highest tides in North America after the Bay of Fundy. These tides, which can reach 40 feet, come in so quickly that they produce a wave known as a bore tide. Adventurous kayakers and surfers have taken to riding the tide as an extreme sport.

One of the nice surprises we were treated to that day is we pulled over at the best place to observe the bore tide about 20 minutes before it came it.   We even saw what we think were Mountain Goats high on the side of the mountains.   We think that is what they were, but they were really too far away to be able to know for sure.   This stop and bore tide was completely unplanned, at least by us.   God may have had this in mind for us all along.

Bore Tide

We hung out with several others waiting on the tide to make it's scheduled appearance.  About 5 minutes before it was to arrive people start exclaiming "there it is!".   The tide wave was high enough that we could see it long before it got to where we were waiting.   As it got closer there was no mistaking it.  

The height of the tide is dependent on the phase of the moon.  We were there for a medium high tide that was still very impressive.   It was fun watching it come in.

A little way down the highway we stopped at another roadside pull off.  There was a pretty little creek that flowed through the woods and emptied over a waterfall into a small pool before flowing into Turnagain Arm.

 We knew we were in a good spot when a group of photographers on a tour came down the hillside to their van.  The group was led by a guide that was obviously taking them to some of the best spots to photograph.

Before we got back to our car we looked out across Turnagain Arm and saw the setting sun was painting the clouds into a pleasant warm tone.  The tour group was pulled over at the bottom of the hill doing the same thing.

Sunset Painting The Clouds

We got in the car and headed toward Anchorage thinking that was the end of the day.   Just a few miles down the road we saw many cars pulled over on the left and people out taking pictures out in Turnagain Arm.  As we pulled over I saw some movement about a dozen yards from the shore.  It was a Harbor Seal swimming close in.   But no one was looking at the Seal.  Instead they were looking and pointing at this.

Beluga Whale Breaching

A pod of white Beluga whales were following the tide up Turnagain Arm.   Photographing these whales was a real challenge.  The Beluga lack a dorsal fin, which made them blend in and hard to spot. They are only above the surface for a few seconds before submerging again after grabbing a quick breath. Dusk was fairly far along and there was little light to work with.  My photographic style must of looked like I was shooting popup targets in an circus arcade.  Back and forth, trying to focus and shoot before the whale was gone. In the end I didn't get a great photo, but we have great memories.

Sunset

Before jumping back in the car I used my long 420mm telephoto lens to shoot down Turnagain Arm to Cooks Inlet, the snow covered Alaska Range and Fire Island.  Fire Island is a 5.5-mile long island near the head of Cook Inlet.  You can see the 11-turbine, 17.6-megawatt wind farm located on the island.  This was the last photo I took on the trip.

We spent 14 days total door to door and only covered a very small area.   If you have stuck with me you have been subjected to 25 blog posts describing what we did on our Alaska vacation.  Even if no one reads these posts, I have enjoyed reliving the trip through photos and stories.   Alaska had been on our bucket list for a while and we wanted to hit it while we can still go on some of the longer more adventurous hikes.  After returning, it's still on our list.  There are many more places to visit and things to do.  We'll be back in a few years.

It's A Travel Day - Denali to Seward Alaska

We've reached the point in our journey where we have to leave the Denali area and head south to Seward Alaska.   We're going 329 miles, including driving through Anchorage on the way to Seward.

All day we kept seeing these large helicopters and Osprey aircraft.   Sometimes one at a time and sometimes in groups.   There was a reason for all this activity.   Remember what happened in Alaska around September 1?   I'll leave the answer to a later blog post.

Once we stoppped for lunch in Sarah Palin's home town of Wasilla and negotiated traffic in Anchorage, we made our way to Turnagain (turn-again) Arm.   How did that body of water get that strange name?

Turnagain Arm  is one of two waterways that branch off Cooks Inlet.  James Cook sailed into it while searching for the Northwest Passage.  The inlet was named after Cook in 1794 by George Vancouver, who had served under Cook in 1778. Turnagain Arm was named by William Bligh of HMS Bounty fame. Bligh served as Cook's Sailing Master on his 3rd and final voyage, the aim of which was discovery of the Northwest Passage.

Turnagain Arm

Upon reaching the head of Cook Inlet, Bligh was of the opinion that both Knik Arm and Turnagain Arm were the mouths of rivers and not the opening to the Northwest Passage. Under Cook's orders Bligh organized a party to travel up Knik Arm, which quickly returned to report Knik Arm indeed led only to a river.

Afterwards a second party was dispatched up Turnagain Arm and it too returned to report only a river lay ahead. As a result of this frustration the second body of water was given the disingenuous name "Turn Again".

James Cook, William Bligh, HMS Bounty.  Wow, all that High School History is coming back to me.

Kite Surfing

It was extremely windy the day we were there and we found kite surfers out on the waterway making the most of the wind.

On the other side of Turnagain Arm is the old mining town of Hope Alaska.  "Hope City" was a mining camp, established in 1896.  Portions of the town were destroyed in the 1964 Good Friday earthquake.

Hope?

How could we resist a side trip to Hope?  In 2010 there were 192 people living in this little town.  It was an interesting place.  When we arrived a little after five the town was in the process of closing down for the day.  They couldn't seem to figure out if they wanted tourists to visit or stay away.   There were a few signs directing tourists to the historic buildings in town, but there were also signs that said you can't go here or there.   At one place there was a beautiful grass covered delta where a stream emptied into Turnagain Arm.   At the edge of the delta was a large sign that said this is a beautiful place, but a private place and the owners didn't want anyone out there.

The Seaview Cafe

Every quaint Alaska town needs a historic Cafe.  The Seaview Cafe is 119 years old.

And The Seaview BAR

And a historic bar.

We wandered around the town but didn't find much to see.   If you go, save the miles and skip the drive to Hope.

Our Cabin

After getting back on the main road and passing through the metropolis of Moose Pass (population 219) we arrived at our lodging for the next several nights.   I can highly recommend Renfros Lakeside Retreat about 20 minutes outside Seward on the Seward Highway.  The cabins are tucked away in the woods on Kenai Lake.

View from back of the cabin

Tomorrow we start our adventure in Seward