June 4/5
I did not arrive at my hotel until 12:15 AM this morning, so I was not able to make any comments about June 4, until now. The first half of the morning was spent walking through the Concentration Mill buildings in Kennecott. There are signs saying to be on the lookout for unexploded ordnance. When the mine ceased operations in 1938, folks just packed up and left. The NPS is finding all sorts of interesting things as it continues rehabilitating the property. Another sign said tailings can contain toxic minerals and chemicals, so be sure to wash your hands after leaving the area. A couple of movies in the General Store building gave me more insight to the park. Nine of the 16 tallest mountains in North America are within this park. One of the park’s glaciers is larger than the state of Rhode Island. Now that is a lot of snow and ice. I now wish I could still climb 4,000 feet in elevation because it would have been fun to get to the mines way up on the mountainsides. 75 miles of tunnels were built connecting the three mines at the top. Mini-cities were built at each mine, so miners could take week-long shifts. If the beds at one housing dorm were taken, workers could stay at the other mines’ dorms and then just walk through the tunnels to their work location.
I stopped at the Meatza Wagon for lunch. The food truck team gets 5-stars for its Salmon BLT. Chef Macchina is a graduate of the Culinary Institute of America. Plenty of happy customers. I met three nurses who travel to where help is needed. One of them has a roommate who is from Akron. This world keeps getting smaller and smaller. A second is from Chicago (which is where my mom was born, and parents were married), and we both agreed that North Michigan Ave is the place to shop and eat.
As I was preparing to leave to catch the Kennecott Shuttle, I had the chance to talk some more with the staff at the Kennecott Lodge. That is one excellent team. And then I had the pleasure of meeting Jody Kirkwood, one of the owners of the lodge (along with her husband, Rich). She had noticed my Quest tee-shirt and was curious as to how I was progressing. Keep up the great work, helping visitors to Wrangell - St. Elias have enjoyable stays.
On the porch I met Kelly and a couple of adventures. Kelly stands at 38 for the parks with the “National Park” classification. Her goal is to reach all 63, in honor of her father. He had wanted to take her to the parks. I wish her the best on the trek to getting to number 63. The couple were traveling across Alaska, having already seen Kenai Fjords and Denali. Fantastic to see so many people eager to visit our National Parks.
Then, 60 miles of the McCarthy Road. Jasper, back at the lodge, said a couple weeks ago the state had come by and graded the road. Maybe if I had come before the grading I might have lost some teeth. Ha, ha. The Kennecott Shuttle vans take a beating on this road. Our driver said the owner is a mechanic, so that helps. A large RV had suffered a puncture in one tire. A gentleman has a service at the walking-bridge, $30 to repair tires. Word is no one will ever build a vehicle bridge from the McCarthy Road to the small town of McCarthy (and Kennecott) because that would put too many vehicles in town. So, one takes the walking-bridge, and picks up a town shuttle on the other side.
Since the Kennecott Shuttle only starts its daily return at 4:30 PM, I did not get back to the Princess Lodge (yes, the Cruise Ship Line company) in Copper Center until 8:30 PM, and therefore, not back in Anchorage until 12:15 AM. That was a long day. But the sun did not disappear until midnight, so I was able to view route AK 1 again.
Now, for June 5. AK 1 continues south towards Seward, my destination. The first half of the trip takes one around Turnagain Arm, a body of water that stretches southeast from Cook Inlet. If you are in this area at the right time, you can watch the Bore Tide go whizzing to the end of the Arm. The waves are high enough to allow one to surf (check it out on YouTube). I saw this eight years ago, but not today. The end section of the trip is on route AK 9, which goes into Seward. But, just before the town border, the Herman Leirer Road goes off to the right. Plenty of signage to tell one this is the way to Kenai Fjords National Park, and the famous Exit Glacier. This is the only place where one can drive into the park. Otherwise, you have to hike, swim, boat, or fly. Plenty of people taking the trails. One can put you on the top of the Harding Ice Field, but it is a 4,000-foot climb over 4 miles. Those days are behind me. Instead, I opted for a face-to-face with a large bull moose. Myself and seven other visitors were stopped on a trail looking at a moose in the underbrush, about twentyfive yards away. All of a sudden, a bigger one came out of nowhere in the trees on our left, looking like he was going to charge us. Two of the parents picked up the three youngsters and started quickly going THAT way on the path, and I quickly headed THE OTHER way. How is that for trying to confuse the creature? Just after we split and had taken about four steps, the moose came out onto the path, then plodded across it and into the brush on the other side of the trail. Isn’t Alaska fun?
A comment about this southern section of route AK 1. It is as gorgeous as the section east of Palmer, if not more so, since there are bodies of water included in the view. So, the drive from Anchorage to Seward (and Homer, on the other side of the peninsula) should not be missed. Be sure to come when there is still plenty of snow on the mountains. Alaska Highway Department is currently replacing five bridges on AK 1, so some slowdowns right now. But that gives you a few minutes to take in the scenery. And don’t forget to the check tide tables in order to see the Bore Tide waves.