Down The Seward Highway

It's another glorious day in Alaska. Not because the weather is that great, but because every day in Alaska is glorious! We decided to take a drive down the Seward Highway. The temps are in the 40's today, so all of the snow is really melting. Spring has arrived.It won't be long until everything starts to turn green and beautiful once again. The tide was out, so you could really see the mud flats. Alyeska Ski Resort is still up and running. Later this month, they will have their Spring Carnival to celebrate the spring thaw, and then close for the winter. Wave at the nice man on the train! We weren't the only ones out celebrating the warmer weather. This grizzly was enjoying a nice nap out in the sunlight at the Alaska Wildlife Conservation Center in Portage.

This young caribou was enjoying a nice lunch.

We decided it was time for a lunch of our own. We first tried this cafeteria at the Portage Lodge when we camped out near here. Jess had just gotten her braces on, and her mouth was killing her. We discovered that this cafeteria has delicious home made soups. They also have great sandwiches! Of course, it's a little hard to see right now.

Heading back to Anchorage, we had a great view of Susitna, also known as the Sleeping Lady.

Fur Rondy Hide Auction

I was taking a break from trying to teach the cats how to meow in Dutch (trust me, it's not as easy as you think!), and decided to check out the website for the Fur Rondy Hide Auction. There were some issues with the auction last year and it didn't take place, so those hides will be added to this year's auction. They result is 117 hides up for you to bid on. They expect to set all kind of records with the money raised, and are trying for a place in the Guinness Book of World Records. The bulk of the proceeds goes to the Fish and Game Commission, but $500 will will go to local scholarships for wildlife management students. The hides include goat, black bear and other critters. They come from illegal kills, animals killed by state personnel because they were a danger or nuisance, and those killed by citizens to protect life and property. Check out the link to their website below and put in a bid for your own little piece of Alaska. You can own a bear hide without the danger involved in hunting it down. Just think of the stories you can make up to tell your family and friends about how you got it! http://grubstakeauction.com/FUR2009-2.htm I loved the note on the website that says "Don't bring your dog to the auction. The salt used to preserve the hide will harm your pet."

Denali National Park

Just because I'm sitting in a cubicle all day doesn't mean you can't enjoy the sites that Alaska has to offer. I'd like to share some pics of a summer trip to Denali National Park. We stayed at Mt. McKinley Princess Wilderness Lodge, and it was fantastic. This was the view of Denali from the deck. The Lodge is close to Talkeetna, and nestled deep in a forest. If you want to feel like you've escaped into the wilderness (and yet want to live in comlete luxury), than this is the place for you. The employees were very friendly and helpful, the landscaping was beautiful, and the food was great. I would definately stay here again. The only down side was that you are still around an hour or so drive from the gate to Denali National Park. The Denali Princess Lodge is right near the gate, so if you want something closer, then that is something to consider. We woke up early and headed to explore the park. You can only drive into the park in your private vehicle once a year, and those people are chosen by the lottery system. We booked the Tundra Wilderness Tour bus package, and it was definately worth the extra expense. They take you on a fantastic tour through the park, while the bus driver shares interesting information about the area and answers all of your questions. He stopped each time there was an animal anywhere near, and let us take as many pictures as we wanted. Above and below are pictures of Kodachrome Basin and Kodachrome Pass. Pictures can't reproduce the amazing colors in this area.
Here is the star of the park...Mt. McKinley (Denali). We were very lucky, because tons of people travel here and never get a glimpse of the mountain. It is so tall that it creates it's own weather, and is often hidden in cloud cover.

We were also lucky in that we got to see what they refer to as the "Big Five" of the park. They are the most popular 5 animals in the park: moose, caribou, dall sheep, wolf, grizzley bear. We saw all of them and so much more. We saw several grizzley at the park. They are "blond" in this area, and look so much different from our darker brown bear near Anchorage. This one was digging and foraging near a little stream.
This little fox just sat there on the side of the road and patiently let us take his picture.
This wolf was creeping through the underbrush near the road. He only came out in the open for a minute and then he disappeared again. His eyes were were the most stunning shade of gold.
These two babies were with their Mom near where we got off of the bus. They were so cute, but Mom was there keeping a close eye on us.

Grizzly & Salmon

We went down to the Alaskan Wildlife Conservation Center in Portage this afternoon. They had announced that they were going to hang salmon in the Bear's enclosure to show how grizzly can leap up to get food. Very cool. The bear had other ideas. They tied a frozen salmon to the end of a backhoe, and maneuvered it up and over the fence to the grizzly habitat. Trust me when I say, this was no easy feat in itself. The bear were interested, but nervous with all of the noise. Finally, the salmon was in place. Siblings Joe Boxer (JB) and Patron checked it out first. They REALLY wanted the fish, but weren't very trusting of the situation.

Maybe this situation needs to be examined from another viewpoint. Hmmmmmm. I think I am figuring this out. It doesn't look that high from here.
Just a nibble. They are SO close, they can taste the yummy salmon. Still, the bear have no interest in jumping today. The bucket above their heads was just too intimidating, so the nice folks at the center tried another method. They took the salmon and attacked it to a thick rope and just tossed it into the enclosure. The idea was that keeping the frozen salmon tied up would allow us to see how they ripped apart and ate the fish. The bear were still on their own agenda. They yanked hard on the rope and broke the fish free, running off into the woods to enjoy their meal.
Along comes Hugo. She is the more timid of the group and had been playing in the pond while the other bear were trying to get the first fish. She came up to discover another fish waiting just for her.
After a few tugs at the rope, she just sat down and started eating the Salmon. Check out the size of her claws.
It was a very interesting afternoon at the Wildlife Center. The people working there really know about the animals and are very friendly and informative. If you are ever in Alaska, this is the first place you need to visit. This is the only place you are guaranteed to see Alaskan wildlife in it's natural setting. For more information about the center, check out their web site.
http://awcc.org/animals.html

4-Wheeling At Bird Creek

If you love to go 4-wheeling, this is the place to live! You get to go places you would never see from your regular vehicles. Bird Creek is not too far south of Anchorage on the Seward Highway. They have a parking lot there on the side of the highway if you want to fish or just check things out. If you go a little farther past that, there is a gravel road that leads to the Bird Valley trail.

I love this sign. Please make sure that you are on the sign before you access the trail. If you are not on the sign, turn around now. :0) The first time Russ went down this trail, he took Brandon, and was with another friend and his daughter. They had a great time exploring.

After riding for over an hour, they came around a corner and ran into a grizzly. I am not sure who was more surprised, them or the bear. The grizzly took off in one direction, and the guys headed off in another. Needless to say, they turned around and started back toward the head of the trial and the vehicles. On the way back, they ran into another grizzly. This one was in a bend of the trail, and they had to go around him to get out of there. Luckily, neither bear was interested in the people or the 4-wheelers.
Russ stopped and took a few pictures. (Just in case all that was left of this expedition was a camera and a couple of 4-wheelers. Actually, he knows how I am. It didn't happen if you don't have a picture of it!) The first thing Brandon said as he came in the door was, "Mom! You won't believe what we saw! You are gonna be so mad you weren't there with your camera!" Does he know his Mom or what? Russ took me back there a couple of weeks after that, but no bear. Oh, well. It was still a great ride.