Alaskan Living

Glacier Bay Lodge in Gustavus

In 20 years of travel around Alaska, I had never visited Glacier Bay National Park until yesterday. I flew down for an overnight at Aramark's Glacier Bay Lodge. After hearing about Glacier Bay all these years, it was nice to finally see it.

I began by flying an Alaska Airlines jet from Anchorage to Juneau. The jet doesn't continue to Gustavus this time of year, so I took a small plane. That was good fortune; the scenery was as captivating as a flightseeing trip. 

We arrived in Gustavus--which has to be one of the most charming towns in Alaska. It's about a 20-minute drive to the lodge, a series of wood buildings in the forest connected by boardwalks and set right on the bay. As soon as I arrived, I found myself wishing I had more than one night to spend there. It would be a great place to read a book, write in your journal, and relax with friends.

Black Sand Beach (Prince William Sound)

One of the most amazing places in the world--just 60 miles from Anchorage--is Prince William Sound. I've been to Glacier Bay and glacial regions of South America and Europe, and I've never seen such a concentration of tidewater glaciers, wildlife, waterfalls, and green hillsides.

In years past, the 26 Glacier Cruise has dropped me off deep in the Sound to film and photograph. The idea of waking in my bed in Anchorage, camping that night deep in the Sound, and being back in town for dinner the next day is something I cherish.

So when they kindly agreed to drop me off at Black Sand Beach in Barry Arm, I vowed to be on my best behavior.

Alaska Bear Viewing Up Close

We flew out to Redoubt Bay Lodge for an afternoon of Alaska bear viewing. As soon as we motored up to Wolverine Creek, a sow and her two cubs obliged by frolicking on the rocks not 75 feet from our boat. My brother Greg caught a classic shot of momma bear swan-diving into the lake in hot pursuit of salmon.

The Ultimate Alaska Flightseeing Tour

I took my first Alaska flightseeing tour 19 years ago. My pilot Tony Martin flew me up to 14,000 feet for a sneak preview of Mt. McKinley the night before our expedition began. Since then, I’ve been flightseeing in Alaska at least 30 times.

Alaska Rafting: Eagle River With The Family

Last week, my family visited us here in Alaska. One of our first adventures was rafting Eagle River. It’s a classic Alaska day trip when the weather’s down, only 30-minutes drive from Anchorage. Upon seeing JJ and Daniel’s hulking physiques, it was obvious we should all paddle the raft rather than me oar it. 

My Own History Tour of Talkeetna

I had an interesting day yesterday. Chris Hodel, Robert Sheldon and his son Ryan, and I flew up to Talkeetna for the afternoon. It was one of those crisp autumn days with 100 miles visibility. For me, it was also a stroll down memory lane.

I first visited Alaska in ’86. The very first town I went to was Talkeetna. From there, we flew into the Don Sheldon Hut in the Ruth Amphitheatre (arguably the most dramatically situated hut in the world) to train for our Mt. McKinley climb.

Prince William Sound Flightseeing & Aerial Cinematography

(View today's album.)

We’re shooting a video for Rust’s Flying Service which will play on Alaska Channel and alaska.org. We need some air-to-air shots, so today we took a Dehavilland Beaver out to the Prince William Sound and shot it from a Cessna 206. Acquiring this type of aerial footage is complex. It has as much to do with the pilots as the photographer. Your pilot, in effect, is your cameraman, because he puts you in position for the shot. Bruce and Scott were great today. I came along and brought my still camera to capture some of what we were seeing.

Lake George--Portage Lake on Steroids

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Yael and Ari were in New York last weekend, so I felt compelled to take advantage of an opportunity to get out into the wilderness for a few days. I couldn’t find anyone to go with me, so I reluctantly decided to go by myself. (Sometimes, I don’t sleep well in bear country by myself.) Jack and Brenda Barber of Alaska Air Taxi were kind enough to put me down at a famous lake called Lake George, tucked behind the front peaks and glaciers of the Chugach Mountains about 50 miles from Anchorage.

It's Summer Solstice Time In Alaska!

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The great thing about summer solstice in Alaska is you get two days in one. You can work all day, then have another complete day of recreation—all before midnight. Leaving after work, I took my first real hike of the year a couple days ago up to a tributary of Eagle River called Icicle Creek. I hiked in, built a fire, cooked dinner, then floated out on my packraft.

I had only one slight mishap, something that’s never happened to me before in the Alaska wilderness.

Ari Lives Large On First Visit To Talkeetna

Talkeetna was the first town I visited when I came to Alaska 19 years ago. It seemed like the right place to take Ari on his first Alaskan road trip. We drove up late Friday night, arriving at 1am. By early Saturday, the trouble had started.