Well... I did not make the mistake I made with Valdez.. I drove all the way into Seward before picking a campground.. and found the City of Seward municipal park along the harbor available for self-registration camping. Many sites were filled but I found one of the few with water and electrical hookup available and pulled in. As I type this, its is 10:30 PM with the sun shining on the mountains right out my window, which overlooks the harbor... it is 66 degrees... boats are still running up and down the harbor, and the Sea Princess cruise ship is parked at the dock.. there is a sidewalk running the length of the harbor, with a rocky beach.. lots of tent campers and RVs all along the harbor front. Earlier, as I sat on a bench overlooking the harbor and watching the cruise ship, a Sea Otter surfaced and played on top of the water for a few minutes, bobbing up and down chasing a fish.... Sail boats were kneeling in the wind... it don't get no better than this...
Some Alaskans from Anchorage that I met at a previous camp told me to be sure to take the Glenn Highway "toward" Anchorage. My old plan had me taking that route leaving the Anchorage area. As I started down the road to Anchorage at 6:00 AM I could understand what they meant. The mountains appeared before me and then followed on my left with great lakes and streams at their base. The views became more spectacular as I got closer, until I seemed to disappear into the mountains, going through the pass. Winding roads and great views had me stopping every few minutes. A good view of a glacier appeared off in the near distance.
I was going to mention how many small airplanes there seem to be in Alaska. Over the duration of my trip, even in remote areas, it is common to come across a small dirt clearing and find a couple airplanes sitting there. Driving across Alaska, with hunting shacks up in the hills it is common to see an airplane parked in the woods next to a couple wrecked cars, and a small clearing. Half of the population in Alaska must fly. On this trip I saw a number of them tucked away in the woods.
As we approached Anchorage, the traffic picked up and travel was much faster... soon I seemed to be caught up in metropolitan traffic, even on a Saturday. The bad part about going to Seward or Homer on the Kenai Peninsula is that you have to go through Anchorage, and there is not a good bypass. You go right into the city before making your turn, and then the traffic follows with you since Seward and Homer "is a playground for people from Anchorage" I have been told. But Anchorage sits at the base of the mountains and has some great views heading down the Seward Highway past the lakes and high rock walls that follow it. Great bird watching country with the marshes.
Heading into Seward I found my way to the waterfront and registered in the last campsite that had electrical connection. My front window looks right out at the harbor (about 50 feet away) and the mountains that surround it... awesome!! I decided immediately that this was going to be a two day stay. The park wraps around the downtown area and comes out in front of the Alaska SeaLife Center "windows to the sea". I visited the center which had displays (aquariums) of sea lions, seals, seabirds, and many of the bottom species of fish and plants found in this area. They also had a Subway restaurant in the center, so I bought a 12 incher and brought it back to the harbor front to sit and eat. The Sea Princess cruise ship was in port, the the folks at the Sealife Center were really dragging. The Subway girl said they had made over 1,000 sandwiches since she came on duty.
I went to the boat docks and visited the tour offices and decided to take an all day tour of the harbor islands and glaciers on Sunday. They serve an all day smorgasbord on the cruise that includes Alaska Salmon and all the trimmings. After deciding on the cruise, I took a 15 mile drive out to see the Exit Glacier in Denai Fjords National Park. The Exit Glacier allows you to get "up close and personal" by hiking within about 20 feet of the glacier. The sun was to the right and slightly behind the glacier so the brilliant blue colors from the ice could easily be seen. I took several pictures, but am sure that the blue will not come through. But a great way to study a glacier up close and a short sidetrip everyone should plan that visits here.
Back at camp I met my neighbor who was now retired but worked the Alaska North Slope for many years so was familiar with the Dalton Highway. He liked the Aliner design and tried to encourage me to take it up to Coldfoot or beyond and camp. He thought that it would make it ok... gave me something to think about for awhile.. Then another neighbor behind me came over to look at the trailer and it turned out that they are from Northwest Iowa, not far from where I grew up. They had a pickup camper with the popup top. Although low profile, I was surprised to find out that it weighed 1500 pounds..., more than my trailer weighed. It was working well for them on the trip.
Later in the evening after walking the beachwalk a few more times, I settled in to update my journal on the computer, watching sail boats and jet ski's running up and down the harbor out my window. At about 11:00, with light still dancing off the mountain peaks, I saw the Sea Princess begin to move with all of its lights lit up. It was pulling out port. I ran to the beach area with my camera, set it up for an evening shot, and caught it moving out of the harbor with the mountains in the background. A beautiful site and great ending to the day.
