Alaska Vacation Review - Part 1 / Anchorage, Kennicott and Valdez

[GMoney]

Here is the first installment of my Alaska vacation review, which included time on land and on RCI’s Radiance of the Seas. There’s a lot of detail, which is helpful for me to look back on as I plan future trips, and hopefully helps some you as well.

 

While I’ve learned a lot about Alaska, I am no expert, so please feel free to challenge my thoughts or share your experiences.

 

Background

 

I have been on many cruises, but mostly to the Caribbean. While Alaska was always an interest, the flight time from the east coast was a big deterrent.

 

This trip came about in a rather odd way, and very last minute. While it impacted my planning, I was very fortunate in that everything turned about perfectly. We first booked a 7-day cruise cruise (RCI Radiance leaving Seward on 8/31), based on a post about a great resident special deal from fellow cruise critic member Mitaxi. Wanting to maximize my Alaska experience, we then booked the following week on Radiance (9/7), as it provided more time, new ports and ended in Vancouver (slightly shorter plane ride home) and was also very reasonably priced.

 

Knowing that there was no reason to go to Alaska without seeing some things on land, we then booked a 2-night visit to Denali through Grayline at a “sale” price. That alone would have been a decent amount of time – 5 days on land and 14 at sea. However, I unexpectedly ended up with some extra personal time, so I was able to add on another 9 days to the land tour, and had to (very hurriedly) research itineraries, lodging and excursions. Based on advice from Cruise Critic folks and Frommer’s, I was able to piece together the following itinerary:

 

Land (8/17 – 30)

Anchorage (1 night)

Kennicott (2 nights)

Valdez (2 nights)

Homer (2 nights)

Seward (2 nights)

Anchorage (2 nights)

Denali (2 nights)

Anchorage (1 night)

Cruise (8/31 – 9/14)

Hubbard Glacier

Juneau

Skagway

Icy Strait Point

Ketchikan

Vancouver

Ketchikan

Hubbard Glacier

Skagway

Sitka

Vancouver

 

As you can see, while I did bounce around a bit on land, it was not a negative in terms of fulfilling the goals of my vacation, and I do not feel it led to wasted time.

 

Goals

 

The goals for my Alaska vacation were as follows:

 

> Be as active as possible (this means hiking, biking, kayaking, etc and no shopping or salmon bakes)

 

> Maximize my time and make the most of every port by doing the excursions I really wanted to do.

 

> Be outdoors as much as possible. I did not want to leave Alaska having only seen things from behind glass windows.

 

> Avoid being a super-tourist.

 

> Avoid activities with large groups.

 

> Minimize guided excursions.

 

> Minimize food and lodging expenses during my land tour.

 

 

Flight

 

I flew Delta from RDU to ANC with a stop in ATL. For what I consider relatively short notice (about 30 days out), I was able to get what I considered an excellent fare of around $400. Overall, Delta did a nice job; the plane was on the newer side and the service was good. They served dinner, which was chicken and rice; it was tragic, but fortunately I came prepared with my own alternative dining from Chili’s. The best part of the flight was about 90 minutes out from Anchorage, the scenery changes from rolling plains to beautiful snow-capped mountains (provided the skies are clear, of course).

 

We landed with light rain and overcast skies at the North Terminal of the Ted Stevens Airport in Anchorage, which is smaller and older than it’s very nice looking counterpart. Rental car facilities are located in the South Terminal, so you have to shuttle over. I was not set to pick up my rental car until the following day, as it was reserved off-airport (to save on hefty airport taxes), and the facility was closed by the time my plane arrived.

 

Fortunately, many of the local hotels run shuttles from the airport; they can easily be found in loading zones right outside the terminal. Upon landing, I called Motel 6 to come fetch me; they arrived within 15 minutes. The van also provided shuttle service to the Marriott Fairfield Inn, which is right next door. The ride to the motel was about 10 minutes, straight down International Airport Road.

 

 

Anchorage

 

The Motel 6 in midtown Anchorage was better than I anticipated; the facility is relatively new and looked much better in person than in the pictures on their website. The room was basic but clean, and was reasonably priced. I would stay here again. After a long flight, I was hungry so I set out in search of food and ended up at the TGI Friday’s, which is just a short 5-7 minute walk down C Street. Other choices included Applebee’s, Longhorn Steakhouse and Golden Corral.

 

The following morning, Enterprise picked me up at the motel and drove me to their midtown facility where I picked up my rental for the next week – a red Ford Focus. The car suited my needs just fine, and I saved about $80 by renting off airport.

 

The weather had cleared up, and before leaving town, I stopped at REI and Walmart to pick up a few supplies (bear spray, snacks, etc). REI generally provides good service, but the folks in the Anchorage store are particularly helpful. The only downside is that they do not open until 10am (11 on Sundays). Walmart is 24/7, and I noticed that a couple of local hotels shuttled guests over for shopping. Items here are noticeably cheaper than in other parts of Alaska.

 

By 11am, I was on my way out of Anchorage to Chitina on the edge of the Wrangell St Elias National Park to make by 530pm flight to McCarthy / Kennicott.

 

TIP: Anchorage hotels seem to divide into 2 distinct regions: airport / midtown and downtown. If you will be taking the AKRR or similar train to Denali or Seward during your stay, the railroad depot is downtown, very close to many of the major hotels. None of the 3 midtown hotels I stayed in during my trip offered shuttles to the depot, so if you do not have a car, taxi is the only option. The ride will cost about $17.

 

 

Kennicott

 

The 250 mile, 5 hour drive east from Anchorage to Chitina along the Glenn Highway was both easy and scenic. I stopped in Palmer for a quick drive-through, fast-food lunch. There is a Fred Meyer here for last-minute provisions. After Palmer, you’re basically limited to gas stations.

 

Not knowing what to expect along the way and not wanting to miss my air taxi to Kennicott, I kept a good pace and skipped a side trip to the Matanuska Glacier. Fortunately, I was not slowed behind any putzing RVs, but there were a couple of slight delays to due construction. My next stop was in Glennallen for gas and to stretch my legs, followed by another short stop 10 miles south down AK -4 / Richardson Highway at the Wrangell St Elias National Park Visitors Center. By this point, the tall, snow-covered peaks of the largest unit of the National Park System were in full view. The park is home to continent's largest assemblage of glaciers, and greatest collection of peaks above 16,000 feet, including 18,008’ Mount St. Elias, the second highest peak in the United States. It’s remoteness and off-the-beaten path status were all selling points for me.

 

Kennicott is an abandoned copper mine in the park’s interior; it’s an increasingly popular tourist destination, and is a National Historic Landmark. McCarthy is Kennicott’s sister town. The only way to access the towns is either by a 5-hour (roundtrip) drive on an unpaved road, or a 30-minute air taxi flight. Wanting to save time and avoid any hassle with the rental car company, I opted for the latter, flying the Wrangell Mountain Air, which offers 3 flights a day between Chitina and McCarthy. The airstrip they use is located just outside of Chitina (where the unpaved road into the park begins) off of AK 10, and is shared by at least 1 other company. There are no facilities or office; I just waited with a German family until a plane arrived. I threw my backpack in the plane (a yellow Dehaviland Beaver) and left my luggage in my rental car, which remained parked at the airstrip for the next 2 days. Our pilot was friendly and thorough, and after a quick safety chat, we were airborn. The views were magnificent, topped off by the Kennicott and Root Glaciers. As we came in for a landing at the McCarthy airstrip, we could easily see the old mining buildings in Kennicott and the footbridges that span the Kennicott River. The unpaved road ends here, approximately ½ mile from McCarthy. Those going on to Kennicott must cross the footbridge and catch a shuttle van.

 

I stayed at the Kennicott Glacier Lodge; their shuttle van was waiting for us at the airstrip. The ride was about 5 miles on a dirt road. Built in 1987, the Kennicott Glacier Lodge is a replica of one of the historic mining buildings from the copper mining boomtown days, and is located near the center of the 40 remaining structures in the ghost town of Kennicott.

The Main Lodge has 25 Guest rooms, a dining room, 2 living rooms, and a 190 foot long front porch with a panoramic view of the Chugach and Wrangell Mountains. Each bedroom has a cold water sink, one or two beds, a nightstand and chair. Some of the rooms face the glacier in front of the lodge, and some rooms face the forest behind the lodge. There are plenty of bathrooms and shower rooms located throughout the lodge for your use. Baths are "private use", but shared by other guests.

The newer South Wing building is located about 70 yards south of the Main Lodge. In the South Wing there are 10 Guest rooms, each with a private bathroom. These rooms have 2 queen sized beds, a dresser, a nightstand, a table, and chairs. All South Wing rooms face the glacier, and the first floor rooms have access out onto the front porch. Meals are taken at the Main Lodge.

 

Other than the lodge, the only functioning buildings in the town are a gift shop and a couple of storefronts for local excursion companies. There are no stores, restaurants,etc.

 

I checked in and was immediately ushered to dinner, which is done family style, providing an opportunity to meet and chat with other guests, many of whom were from Europe. The meal of prime rib was excellent, like every meal I had there. The staff is extremely friendly, outgoing and helpful. I wandered through the old mining buildings – which are amazing - before retiring. The Park Service is in the process of restoring some of them, but suffered a setback last October when there was an unexpected flood. My room, though small, was clean and warm. With no TV, this is one place where my iPod (with some saved TV shows) came in handy.

 

The next day, I got an early start in anticipation of my day-long guided hike with St. Elias Guides on Root Glacier. I had a hearty breakfast, picked up the bagged lunch I ordered the night before, and then met my guide Ben at St. Elias’ office right across from the KGL. The day’s weather was perfect; mostly sunny, cool in the morning and warm by the end of hike. As it turned out, there was no one else on our tour (the half-day hike is apparently more popular), so after gathering some equipment, we were soon off on the 2-mile trail down to Root Glacier. Once on the ice, we stopped to put on crampons before continuing. The crampons took a bit of getting used to, but made traversing the ice very easy. Ben was good about explaining the features of the glacier; he was also good about gauging the pace and difficulty of the hike to my ability. As the day wore on, we crossed the glacier and its moraines, seeing beautiful ice canyons, crevasses, moulins and deep blue pools, sometimes using the ice ax to navigate trickier areas. The hike lasted about 8 hours, and I think we traversed 6-8 miles, stopping for lunch and then another break in the afternoon at a waterfall. By the end of the day, I was completely wiped out, but very pleased with my initial Alaska adventure, especially given that I had my own personal guide! I tipped Ben and went back to the KGL for dinner.

 

Notes

 

> Cell phone reception. I use an iPhone on the ATT network, and was very pleasantly surprised with the reception I received between Anchorage and Chitina. I had excellent reception more often than not. There is very little reception once you turn down AK 10 to go to Chitina. Having an iPhone is extremely helpful to stay in touch by email and to do any last minute internet research.

 

> Road Construction. I encountered constructions about half a dozen times on my land trip. More often than not, this involved alternating traffic on 1 open lane. The longest delays were about 20 minutes. Plan accordingly.

 

 

Ratings

 

> Kennicott Glacier Lodge - ****. I found the lodge to be very reasonably priced and the food and service excellent. The food is seems pricey at first, but when you factor in the quality and the fact that you are basically in the middle of nowhere, it’s much more reasonable. Not having a bathroom in my room was not as bad as I thought it would be. I’d happily stay here again.

 

> St. Elias Guides & Root Glacier Trek - ***. My guide was friendly, capable and prepared, and the hike was the perfect way to start my vacation. I also thought the cost was very reasonable. Root Glacier is very accessible, but it is not as visually striking as, say, Mendenhall. The only reason this excursion doesn’t rate higher speaks to the quality of the activities I did later on in my trip. I will definitely use St. Elias on future trips.

 

> Wrangell Mountain Air - ****. These guys were great. Very friendly, thorough, professional and organized. I always felt safe.

 

 

Valdez

 

My air taxi flight was set to leave McCarthy for Chitina at 830 the next morning. After a quick breakfast, I said goodbye to KGL, shuttled back to the airstrip, and jumped on a Cessna for what turned out to be my own private flight back to Chitina. Back in my rental car, I set off for my next destination – Valdez, which was only 100 miles south on AK -4 / Richardson Highway.

 

Despite the overcast and light rain, it was during this stretch of the drive that I truly began to feel I was somewhere uniquely special. The scenery is more lush, green and striking than the Anchorage / Chitina drive, dotted with mountains and waterfalls (and the oil pipeline). I stopped briefly at Worthington Glacier, which is right off the road and as close to a drive-through glacier as you can get. I then descended into the Valdez area through Thompson Pass, which despite the clouds and low ceiling was stunning. This is one area I wish I had had an opportunity to explore more.

 

Valdez was a highlight of my trip; I liked its authenticity, its harbor, and it makes a great jumping off point to explore. In my opinion, Valdez and Seward are similar that way. I checked in at the Keystone Hotel, which bills itself as providing convenient, comfortable, and affordable lodging, which it does. Keep in mind though that it is very basic; the hotel was originally office space built by Exxon during the Valdez oil spill mess. Also, the walls are thin, so bring earplugs.

 

In the afternoon, I did a brief local hike and called it a day. For food options, Subway and Safeway came in handy.

 

The following day, with weather much like the day before, I was up early and drove a short distance to Pangaea Adventures’ location in the port area for a 10-hour sea kayak guided excursion to Columbia Glacier. Columbia is the second largest tidewater glacier in the country, and has been retreating steadily since the 1980s, leaving an 8-mile field of floating ice in front of it. I had never kayaked before, but the tour was advertised as no experience necessary, and it looked too good on the internet to pass up. There were 4 other people on the tour; our guide was Nick. After gearing up and going through a short safety briefing, we boarded a water taxi and headed for Heather Bay, slowing down for the more scenic parts. After about 45 minutes, small chunks of ice were visible in the water; they gradually became bigger and bigger. Shortly, the boat stopped on a small island; we unloaded our gear and boarded the kayaks. It took a little while for me to get comfortable in the kayak and trust that it was not going to tip. From there, our guide navigated us through the calm waters and forest of blue-white bergy bits for about 2 hours.

 

Due to the weather, the glacier itself was largely concealed during our paddle, and it rained for most of the time, but thanks to my gear I was never cold, wet or uncomfortable. We stopped briefly for lunch (with hot chocolate provided by our prepared guide), and then paddled away from the ice toward forested islands in search of wildlife. Along the way, we saw several bald eagles, a seal, a couple of sea otters, and best of all, a black bear, which appeared as we sat silently in a cove filled with salmon. The bear hung around for about 10 minutes before we moved on. Two hours later, we “docked” on a small island, packed up our gear, and water for the water taxi to come fetch us. The whole experience was incredible and surreal, and it turned out to be not only my most amazing experience in Alaska, but probably my entire life.

 

The day ended with a decent barfare meal at the Wheelhouse Lounge, which is the bar at the Alaska Bistro in the Best Western hotel.

 

Notes

 

> Cell phone reception. Spotty on the AK4 on the way down to Valdez, but excellent while in town.

 

Ratings

 

> Keystone Hotel - **. Frommer’s rate this as a value, and I agree for the reasons previously mentioned. I’d stay here again.

 

> Pangaea Adventures Columbia Glacier Kayak Tour - *****. A classic Alaska experience that provides unparalleled memories. Professional, friendly staff. In my opinion, it’s a bargain at $200.

 

 

Next up, I’m off to Whittier on the ferry and then on to Homer…

[sharp_cruiser]

Thanks for the details. Look forward to reading more.

[Mrs007]

Patrick, your kayak trip sounds awsome. Can I ask what you did about your camera (I'm sure you took one with you). Was the kayak stable enough to get clear shots? Did you have a waterproof camera? Or use a covering of some sort to keep your camera/lens dry?

[NancyIL]

What a wonderfully-detailed trip report, Patrick! Your land itinerary was very similar to ours, except we didn't go to Denali. It's interesting to read how others enjoyed the same places. I'll have to return to Valdez, hopefully when the clouds aren't covering the views, and go kayaking. My husband's favorite meal was dinner at Alaska's Bistro at the Best Western Valdez Harbor Inn, where we stayed.

[GMoney]

Patrick, your kayak trip sounds awsome. Can I ask what you did about your camera (I'm sure you took one with you). Was the kayak stable enough to get clear shots? Did you have a waterproof camera? Or use a covering of some sort to keep your camera/lens dry?

 

Great question, as there were some challenges. My kayak pics are very limited because I did not feel comfortable or stable enough to take pictures. Having now kayaked a few times, I realize that they are more stable than I thought and it takes a lot to tip them.

 

I kept my camera in a ziplock bag and slid it into a small pocket in the chest of my rain jacket for easy access. Obviously, when kayaking, you can't access anything in your pants pockets, and your torso is covered by a life jacket, kayak skirt and rain gear.

 

The few pics I did get (see link below) came out looking good.

[GMoney]

What a wonderfully-detailed trip report, Patrick! Your land itinerary was very similar to ours, except we didn't go to Denali. It's interesting to read how others enjoyed the same places.

 

It should look familiar; I stole it from you based on your posts! :) So I am very grateful.

[Krazy Kruizers]

Thanks for your review -- can't wait to read the rest.

[NancyIL]

It should look familiar; I stole it from you based on your posts! :) So I am very grateful.

 

Then I'm especially glad you enjoyed it! :)