Well, I'm a little over the one month mark since I moved up here to Alaska and it has already been the experience of a lifetime! I have successfully conquered two tours of my very own and they've both gone off without a hitch! Wonderful, energetic people seem to be the clientele of Princess, and I am thankful for it. My next group starts on the 30th and then heads south to the ship over seven nights of accommodation and three different lodges...it should be fun.
View from the Denali Princess Lodge while on tour last week! My Office ;-)
After my first official tour, I had a few days off to explore and relax! I opened up a Wells Fargo account, did some shopping and uncovered more of the downtown area. Anchorage really is growing on me and it surprises me more and more each day. Something about it charms me, the people, the lifestyle, the diversity.
Moose really are everywhere in Anchorage!
My next tour was a quick five night leaving out of Anchorage, and then up to the Mckinley and Denali Princess Lodges. I had a small group of twenty-five and I made lasting relationships with that entire group. We had a blast along the way and mother nature really allowed us to experience Alaska at its best. Views of the mountain, animals galore and that midnight sun constantly shining!
Pre-Tour Prep! Not so fun, but necessary.
Traditional Alaskan Rail Engine
At the Mckinley Lodge I had the privilege of going on a fast paced jet boat tour with my group down the Susitna, Chulitna and Talkeetna rivers. This boat traveled forty miles an hour and could navigate waters only a foot deep! Bald Eagles were everywhere you looked and the Alaska Range surrounded us on all sides.
Jetboat tour with my group down the Susitna, Talkeetna and Chulitna Rivers
This is not a joke!
My most recent tour spent a ton of time on the rail which really is a beautiful and bumpy way to see the land. Because the ground freezes during the winters, the roads and railways up here have what are called "frost heaves" from the ground contracting and expanding. Makes for a wild ride on the rail sometimes!
View of the train crossing the Hurricane Gulch Bridge...sorta scary.
Hurricane gulch is a nearly 300 foot deep valley that the train travels directly over. This particular bridge has no above rail support, meaning you can look directly over the edge on each side of the train and the operator always finds it fun to slow down to a crawl while the railcars slowly meander left and right over this historical piece of engineering.
Beautiful shot of Inland Alaska going over Hurricane Gulch
Denali National Park at Midnight
I found the twin to my apartment building!
I recently had seven days off in a row to explore Anchorage and I did just that! Chris, one of the great friends I've developed up here, took me on a hike to Flattop Mountain and what a "hike" it was! The mountain itself is around 3500 feet in elevation is quite challenging. The beginning is pretty standard with steep trails, but the last half as you approach the summit literally becomes rock climbing. I found myself a little nervous once or twice but managed to control my nerves and pushed on to the top! Unfortunately there wasn't much of a view considering we were in the clouds, but then again, there is always next time.
Good and tired after hiking to the summit of Flattop Mountain
Can you see why they call it Flattop....
June 21st was the summer solstice which means it was day with the most amount of daylight. Chris and a bunch of his friends and I headed down to the beach and watched the sunset just after midnight with a bonfire and a drink in hand. What a beautiful way to see the sun go down, good people, mountains and fire. Very Alaskan...
Anchorage at Midnight on the Summer Solstice
My parents have really impressed me on their ability to use Skype! They are quite the pros I must say and its wonderful being able to see those two crazies even though I'm thousands of miles away! Good my parents be any more nuts? I think the answer is no...
The parents are really getting better at this whole technology thing!
Anchorage's pride fest was just this past weekend, the 25th. Cari, another great friend I've met, invited me to work a booth during the festival and I said yes! Her parents own a fantastic restaurant called Ginger downtown on 5th Avenue. We sold t-shirts, made tacos, and poured limeades! Not only was it a wonderful way to enjoy and support the event, but also to be a part of it!
Helped work a booth at this years pride celebration in Anchorage
This photo is dedicated the Ginger in my life...Drea!
After a night out on the town it was time to head to the airport for a quick flight to Fairbanks! Princess basically sent me up here just to see the town and experience the lodge considering I hadn't been there until today. The company uses ERA for all their intrastate flights throughout the season. There is no security, you walk the tarmac to the plane, there's open seating, and you only have to be there half an hour before! Sounds like flying in the 70s and 80s!
Jet-setting...well turboprop-setting off to Fairbanks
Todays airplane was a Dash 8 turboprop and boy was it fun! Loud, but fun! I was able to snag the very first row and had it to myself for the incredibly long, fifty minute flight to Fairbanks! I'm on a ten seater on the way back to Anchorage on the 28th...that should be the interesting flight leg!
My sweet ride on the right :-)
Sitting in the first row really puts that prop into perspective!
And yes, there have been a tremendous number of Earthquakes recently here but that is not uncommon. Hundreds happen daily and it is very interesting to feel the ground "breathe." The most recent earthquake just several days ago was over 7 on the magnitude scale and prompted tsunami warnings for much of the coast of Alaska. Scary but neat at the same time!
Check out this link! Really cool.
So for now it's goodbye! I'm in Fairbanks until the 28th...then fly back up on the 30th for my third tour of the season. Updates will happen when the time is found! For those of you reading this I miss you and do slightly miss the Florida heat!
