Alaska Summer 2022

August - September 2022

A 35-day adventure by Karen Read more

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35days
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South Africa
Canada
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17.4kmiles traveled

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Traveler Alaska Summer 2022
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- Aug 1, 2022, 9:56 AM
- ☁️ 70 °F
- Altitude: 6,414 ft
- United States Lookout Point 39.3809, -119.685939°22’51” N 119°41’9” W
1. Trip Prep & Itinerary
August 1, 2022 in the United States ⋅ ☁️ 70 °F
Alaska, here we come! Its 2 days till Craig and I hit the road on our estimated 5 week road trip through the eastern part of the state, and the usual final prep is taking place. Packing, final itinerary adjustments, lawn maintenance arrangements, online management of bills, mail forwarding and all that. Craig has the car ready to go.

Craig and I have engaged in several adventure travel trips through South America and the US, so we have developed a bit of a travel rhythm based on managing the logistics of the trip, and on each other's travel personalities. (Note to Karen: NEVER "help" with driving suggestions, and make sure Craig gets fed every 2 hours).

Our itinerary starts with a brief stay in coastal Oregon, and a trip to Victoria & Vancouver as we make our way through British Columbia to get to Skagway, the northernmost part of the Inner Passage's typical cruise ship port stops, where Craig has some business to deal with. The rest of our trip is highlighted on the attached map.

Ready,
Set.....Read more
Traveler So excited for you guys - have a great trip!
8/4/22Reply
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Traveler Alaska Summer 2022
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- Aug 3, 2022, 5:00 PM
- ☀️ 82 °F
- Altitude: 72 ft
- United States Cannon Beach 45.893132, -123.95637645°53’35” N 123°57’23” W
1
Day 1
2. Cannon Beach OR
August 3, 2022 in the United States ⋅ ☀️ 82 °F
.....GO!

Our 11.5 hour trip from Reno to Cannon Beach OR represented a smooth start to our adventure. We had a pretty drive past Klamath Lake, then through Eugene & Salem (up route 5, which is embedded in Willamette National Forest) before heading towards the coast at Portland. The temps dropped about 15 degrees at the coast, where we checked into the Tolovana Hotel, right on the beach.

Cloudy & rainy is the forecast here 80% of the time, according to a local, but we had beautiful weather. Craig & I stretched our legs on a beachwalk today, before our 6.5 hour drive on Friday to Vancouver and Victoria, Canada.

The adventure has begun!Read more
Traveler Hey Craig, any good burgers at Moe’s?
9/3/22Reply
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Traveler Alaska Summer 2022
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- Aug 5, 2022, 9:00 AM
- ☀️ 63 °F
- Altitude: 62 ft
- Canada North Arm 49.213, -123.095149°12’47” N 123°5’42” W
Day 3
3. Oregon to Canada
August 5, 2022 in Canada ⋅ ☀️ 63 °F
We decided to hug the Washington coastline as we headed up to Canada, enjoying the many inlets, bridges, seaside communities and ocean views along the way. Here are a few pix...
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Traveler Alaska Summer 2022
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- Aug 6, 2022, 9:00 AM
- ⛅ 55 °F
- Altitude: 2,067 ft
- Canada Erik Nielsen Whitehorse International Airport 60.718, -135.047560°43’5” N 135°2’51” W
Day 4
4. Vancouver Island / Victoria
August 6, 2022 in Canada ⋅ ⛅ 55 °F
On Saturday we spent the first of 2 days in Vancouver on Vancouver Island. The 1.5 hour ferry ride between Tsawassen on the mainland and Schwartz Bay on the island was quite pleasant. The ferry was huge, accommodating both cars and foot passengers, and offered spacious comfortable seating, a restaurant, TVs, a kids' play area, easy deck access, and charming seaside town views.Read more
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Traveler Alaska Summer 2022
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- Aug 6, 2022, 12:00 PM
- ☀️ 73 °F
- Altitude: 197 ft
- Canada Quarry Lake 48.564661, -123.43877748°33’53” N 123°26’20” W
Day 4
5. Butchart Gardens on Vancouver Island
August 6, 2022 in Canada ⋅ ☀️ 73 °F
Once on the island, we took a one hour public bus ride through the south part of the island to Butchart Gardens. The Gardens were created by Jennie Butchart 118 years ago and are considered internationally renowned. The 55-acre display was designated a National Historic Site of Canada in 2004, for its one hundredth birthday. Fun way to spend a warm sunny afternoon.Read more
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Traveler Alaska Summer 2022
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- Aug 7, 2022, 12:00 PM
- ☀️ 73 °F
- Altitude: 49 ft
- Canada Devonian Harbor Park 49.290866, -123.13736249°17’27” N 123°8’15” W
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Day 5
6. Granville Island Vancouver
August 7, 2022 in Canada ⋅ ☀️ 73 °F
We spent Sunday checking out Granville Island & Stanley Park in Vancouver.

Stanley Park is a 1,000 acre park in the midst of urban Vancouver. OK, it was nice (and big!), but this New Yorker will take Central Park over Stanley Park any day.

Granville Island is a popular tourist destination which boasts a large public market featuring upscale clothing shop, eateries, artwork, trinkets, and a smattering of performing artists throughout the island. Lovely apartments, condos & homes overlook the marina, the boats of which share the waters with kayakers & paddleboarders. On the north end of the island, small ferries come and go, shuttling people to various spots along the False Creek waterway. It was a vibrant, lively scene!Read more
Traveler Lol
8/27/22Reply
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Traveler Alaska Summer 2022
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- Aug 11, 2022, 12:00 PM
- ⛅ 54 °F
- Altitude: 2,280 ft
- Canada Erik Nielsen Whitehorse International Airport 60.721094, -135.0575760°43’16” N 135°3’27” W
Day 9
7. Vancouver BC to Whitehorse, Yukon
August 11, 2022 in Canada ⋅ ⛅ 54 °F
The drive from Vancouver, British Columbia to Whitehorse, Yukon (just 2 hours outside of Alaska) covered 1,496 miles and took 4 days.

We encountered huge expanses of unpopulated wilderness that was dotted with occasional and infrequent small towns that often had one run-down, dilapidated, (yet fully booked, no-vacancy) motel, or no accommodations at all. The lack of lodging options forced us to modify our original plan to include a few days of 10-11 hours in the car.

We stopped on the way out of Vancouver at Whistler/Blackcomb Mountain to check it out. We've skied several mountains in Canada but not this one, so we wanted to take a peek.

The first day of this part of our journey was beautiful. The remainder of the long drive thereafter was honestly a bit tedious. Not just because of the distance, we've done that before, but mostly due to the topography. While our route was filled with lakes and rivers, our view of anything other than the road before us was usually obstructed by thick dense forest, the edge of which came right up to the highway. Kudos to Craig for "captaining" our voyage and remaining steady and focused behind the wheel.

We stretched our legs a bit in Whitehorse which is the capital of Yukon, taking in a stroll along the Yukon River and a visit to McBride Museum before heading to Skagway Alaska on Friday.Read more
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Traveler Alaska Summer 2022
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- Aug 12, 2022, 3:00 PM
- ☀️ 63 °F
- Altitude: 33 ft
- United States Icy Lake 59.4696, -135.300659°28’11” N 135°18’2” W
Day 10
8. The Final Push to Alaska
August 12, 2022 in the United States ⋅ ☀️ 63 °F
Aside from US Customs stealing our bag of grapefruits, the border crossing was a non-event and the final 2 hour drive to Skagway was perfect. If this scenery is a harbinger of what's to come, we're in for some amazing sights...Read more
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Traveler Alaska Summer 2022
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- Aug 12, 2022, 3:00 PM
- ⛅ 59 °F
- Altitude: 1,493 ft
- United States Lower Dewey Lake Forebay 59.449061, -135.37829459°26’57” N 135°22’42” W
Day 10
9. Skagway - the "Movie Set" town
August 12, 2022 in the United States ⋅ ⛅ 59 °F
Skagway is the northernmost port of the Alaska Cruise ship lines' standard "inner passage" route. The town hosts 2-4 cruise ships per day, with over a million tourists descending on the town each season.

Craig calls Skagway the movie set town, because during the off-season there is no one around; the stores shut down and everyone leaves. Each Spring the shops and restaurants re-open; the cobwebs are dusted off; employees are hired & trained; product and food are flown in and image of a thriving, bustling town is recreated again.

Skagway's historical significance lies in it's role as a launching point for prospective gold miners heading up the infamous 33 mile Chilkoot Trail in search of Yukon Gold in the 1897 Klondike Gold Rush. Within 3 months of the start of the gold rush, Skagway was transformed from a small quiet town to one filled with "raucous hotels, saloons, gambling houses & dance halls". Once gold was discovered in Nome & Fairbanks Alaska a few years later, the gold-seekers followed, and Skagway's inflated population of 20,000 dwindled to 700.

Craig has friends in Skagway who own the Historic Skagway Inn, as well as a popular jewelry store Lynch & Kennedy. We stayed at their Inn and enjoyed their delightful company.Read more
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Traveler Alaska Summer 2022
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- Aug 14, 2022, 10:22 AM
- ⛅ 63 °F
- Altitude: 1,588 ft
- United States Tok 63.346782, -142.91805663°20’48” N 142°55’5” W
Day 12
10. Skagway to Tok
August 14, 2022 in the United States ⋅ ⛅ 63 °F
TOK (pronounced Toke, not Tock) was just a stopping point for us on the way to Glennallen. Our drive has been filled with mountainous pine forests, lakes & streams.
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