gail

Now that our summer vacation is over and prospects for travel in next 9 months are either business or to visit colleges with our son - we are starting to dream of next trip. I know there is volumes posted here on Alaska - anyone have a book or 2 to start us off on researching state, trip options, itineraries, etc. Thanks in advance.

ALF

Check out The Milepost (www.themilepost.com), a very detailed guidebook that is updated annually. It is primarily designed for driving trips (hence the title), but I have found it very useful even when traveling by boat or plane.

tcapp

I absolutly agree with the above post. The Milepost is the best investment you'll ever make for a trip to Alaska.
A lot of times your major bookstores will also carry it. I got mine at Books A Million. But you can also order it from the website that was listed in the above post.

dwooddon

I would also request the state's free tourism guide at their tourism council website (http://www.travelalaska.com/).

It is one of the better state guides and will give you a good flavor for what the various regions of the state have to offer.

dfrostnh

Reading some history made our trip more meaningful. We picked up some books while in Seattle such as Women of the Klondike. Early 20th century life in Alaska is graphically portrayed in the biography of a young teacher in a remote town "Tisha" (a 5 star Amazon rating and it appears the book has just been reprinted). The Biography of Joe Reddington, Father of the Iditarod, isn't the best written book IMO but a great story of life in Alaska from the late 40's until recent.
I know these books aren't about trip planning but the Chilkhoot trail in Skagway takes on new meaning when you've read stories about the winter trek up that steep slope. I wonder how many of those gold rushers made it back home.

gail

Thanks for the great suggestions - don't know why I never thought of the State's Tourism info since I have an entire drawer full of stuff from a zillion other places.

Photodog

Few other books you might want to look into. Adventuring in Alaska, The Ultimate Travel Guide to the Great Land by Peggy Wayburn. Alaska's Parklands, The Complete Guide by Nancy Lange Simmerman and The Alaska Wilderness Milepost (Where the road ends..the real Alaska begins) by the editors of the Milepost.

Gardyloo

Although it's now closing in on 25 years in print, "Coming into the Country" by John McPhee, the noted contributor to the New Yorker, still is one the best books about Alaska - the land, the people, the spirit. Available on Amazon.com if not at a nearby bookstore.

KarenL

In addition to milepost and the free guides offered by each chamber of commerce or tourist info center in Alaska (ie. for anchorage,seward, homer etc), I have found that these two websites have provided me with a lot of helpful information - www.alaskajourney.org and www.adn.com.

Happy planning.

brendastarshine

ditto on the Milepost, and its also th e one you will want to take along, especially if you will be driving anywhere. It literally lists every single thing by its milepost number -
ie
milepost 124.5 - Joe's seafood roadhouse
124.6 - scenic field of lupine
124.7 - turnoff to ice fields

etc. Kind of funny but great. also has ads for hotels, attractions that the usual guides dont have.

It has been 6 years since I was there and I imagine by now all the B&B's have websites. We were trying to spend our $$ on other things than rooms, and even the B&B's werent cheap, but if you are headed that route, I can recommend the Chicakadee in Anchorage, and the Blue Bird in Homer. At all costs, sleep in your car before staying at "Ma Clock's" in one of the small villages - beyond horrible! We flew into Anchorage and drove around the coast for 10 fabulous days..Homer was just wonderful!!! Fabulous halibut fishing too. But wherever you fish, if you plan to bring it home dont fish the last day - it takes a day or two to get it smoked and packed for the return trip! There were huge, dry-iced coolers being checked in as baggage at the airport for those who didnt know! And if you have the chance be sure you take the boat trip over to the old Russian-inspired island,(Soldotna? sorry, my mind just went blank!) So many unusual things to see along the way everywhere! You will be stopping all the time! There's great rafting and fishing on the turquoise Kenai river, so beautiful! Enjoy all the wonderful food and spectacular wooden carved doors everywhere and gorgeous flowers! ANd, becasue there's NO FAST FOOD in every town and NO GAS STATIONS every 30 miles, dont let your rental car get below 1/4 tank! because our rental was smaller than our own car, the tank was also smaller and we kept forgetting - we had a few panicky experiences wondering if we'd make it to a gas station as we drove along the coast! have fun!