Alaska 2014 trip

In June 2014, I spent about 3 weeks in Alaska. On the right you can see the main destinations. Photos from each destination are shown on separate pages. On this page you can see some photos from the trip. I rented a car and spent 14 days on-the-road driving around in Southcentral Alaska. In total I covered about 1940 miles or 3120 km, much less than I have been driving on recent trips in the lower states or in Australia. First I drove north via the Mat-Su Valley to the Denali area, where I spent a small week in typical inland environment. There is only one road into the Denali National Park (148 km long), and with only buses allowed for most of the stretch, I booked tickets for three full-day trips with shuttle bus into the park. The shuttle buses are flexible in that you may disembark - re-board anywhere along the road, in other words good for hiking and short stops. Although not strictly allowed by the car rental company, I also spent a couple of days on the Denali Highway between Cantwell and Paxson. Although not paved, the road was more than good enough to drive with a regular car. I went halfway down the 320 km long highway, and this drive was one of the most amazing experiences during the trip. A highly recommended stretch to explore. The last week I spent on the Kenai Peninsula south of Anchorage. This area is much more crowded than the inland, especially during the salmon run, which I happened to run into. Large crowds of locals had gathered to catch Red (sockeye) salmon in the Kenai and Kasilof rivers. Quite a spectacle, and the campsites were filled to the rim. I went to Homer for a flight to the Katmai National Park and bear watching, and then to Seward for a Kenai Fjord cruise. I also visited Whittier, situated in the Prince William Sound area. But as it was unfortunately pouring down while I was there, I cut the stay short. The last day I spent along the Turnagain Inlet just south of Anchorage. Here I visited the gold digger town of Hope, and also the Crow Creek Mine, which offered the visitors to pan for gold in the riverbed spoils. I ended the road trip with another visit to Potter Marsh in the outskirts of Anchorage. Potter Marsh is a wetland good for birding, but I did not see much there except gulls and Arctic terns.

Weather-wise it was a mixed experience. I had two sunny days in Denali NP, and also some sunny days in the south, as well as 3 rainy days and the rest with overcast. I guess about what should be expected, and not that different from Norwegian conditions. Nature-like Alaska also resembles Norway, with snow-capped mountains, green fjords from glacier minerals, wilderness and lots of mosquitos. Many of the bird and wildflower species I saw are also common in Northern Europe, so maybe it was not so strange that many Scandinavians settled in this frontier state after emigrating from Europe.