Alaska: The Last Frontier

Every anniversary, we have been fortunate enough to go on a cool trip.  Year 1 was a cruise to the Bahamas, Year 2 was Yellowstone and the Grand Tetons, and to celebrate three years of marriage, we went to the 49th state, Alaska.  No, we did not take a cruise.  Instead, we had two fantastic hosts and the best guides we could ask for show us around the Last Frontier!  Nick and Tiera are two of our good friends who spent some time in the Buckeye State, but now live in Fairbanks. 

The trip started out with a not-as-long-as-anticipated 7 hour flight to Anchorage.  We got into Anchorage close to noon, where Nick, Tiera, and their friend Tony came to pick us up at the airport.  We then checked into the Captain Cook, and were on our way to the Alaska State Fair.  I was really excited about going to the state fair because we got to see this monster...

Because the sun is out all the time in the summer, Alaska produce can be larger than life.  Or at least, a lot larger than my body.  It was pretty amazing.

The next day, we went on a glacier tour out of Whittier in Prince William Sound.  Apparently it rains there 90% of the time, so we were incredibly lucky to have sunshine (it was still freezing when the boat was moving, but we were in Alaska after all)!  The glaciers were so beautiful and the water was this milky, emerald color.  I had never seen water that color before. 

 

We even got to see some harbor seals!  They were adorable.

That night, we drove up to Denali National Park and camped outside the park (yes, in a tent).  The next morning, we woke up bright and early and went into the park to board our school bus to take us around.  You can only drive 30 miles into the park, so the best way to get around is to take this school bus.  The bus driver will stop whenever there is wildlife close by, so we can pull down our windows and take pictures and observe.  You can also request the driver to stop at any time if you want to get off and hike around.  It's a neat system, because then you don't have dumb drivers pulling off on the road in strange spots or getting too close to the animals like in Yellowstone.  It also means getting stranded in the park and having to walk more miles than you want to, but I suppose that is just part of the adventure. 

Denali was just incredible.  I have never seen such raw, wild, beauty before.  We got to see lots of bears, caribou, moose, dall sheep, and even Jym Ganahl (our local weather man).  We were so lucky because it was fall in Denali so the colors were breathtaking!

 

After spending some time in Denali, we headed to Fairbanks! In Fairbanks, we went to Santa's House in Northpole, gold panning, Murphy's Dome, Creamer's Field, shooting, hot springing, and just plain having fun with friends. 

Murphy's Dome

Picking blueberries at Murphy's Dome

Fairbanks - where the Iditarod begins

Alaska pipeline

Panning for gold

 

Creamer's Field with Tiera and my favorite German Shepard (Ansel)

We had such a memorable and fun time in Alaska!  It was a beautiful place, and being there with our friends made it that much more special.