Fodor's Travel Talk Forums - trip report Aug 2008

We just returned from a wonderful 15 day trip to AK. We visited Denali, Drove to Valdez via Glenn Highway, took ferry to Whittier. From there we drove to Seward, then to Homer, then back to Anchorage.

Thanks for all the Fodorites that helped us decide what to do, where to eat, stay, etc.

The scenery was great but we also met so many nice people, this was a very memorable trip. I will try to fill in the highlights.

Arrived late Sat pm, stayed Holiday Inn Express. It was OK for a quick night. The breakfast bar was pretty decent.

Day 1--Drove to Healy with a stop in Talkeetna. Stayed 2 nights at Denali Lakeview Inn, nice and comfortable. They left breakfast in the room, worked out good since we had early bus the next am. Ate at Black Diamond, very good meal.

Day 2 6:00 am shuttle bus to Eilson welcome center. 9 hours sounded very long, but we stopped about every 1 1/2 hrs to use rest-rooms and move around for a few minutes.
We did not see Denali, it was cloudy and drizzly that day, but saw some nice wildlife. As we began, there was a moose w/calf walking down the road. Those were the only moose we saw. We saw quite a few grizzly's, (at least 10), including a sow with 2 cubs in a grassy area. The bus stopped & we watched for 10-15 min.
We could see another grizzly approaching, and could see the reaction of the sow when she became aware of the other bear--she got out of there pretty quickly. It was neat to sit and watch them. We also saw Dall sheep several times, a golden eagle and some caribou. Going over Polychrome pass is beautiful. Would recommend this.

Day 3 Started driving to Valdez. Decided against Denali hwy so drove back to Palmer, then across Glenn hwy. Stopped for night at Majestic Valley. It was a very nice, log cabin style lodge. Our room was in the lower level of the lodge, it was newly done and very nice. The food was great--there is a young man there for the summer who is a chef.
Dinner and breakfast were very enjoyable.

Day 4--continue driving to Valdez via Glenallen. Had lunch at Princess Lodge in Copper River, service very poor, food OK. Stopped at Worthington Glacier for short hike to glacier, also other photo ops including Bridal Veil falls and Horsetail falls.

Stayed 2 nights at Blueberry Mary's B & B. Nice accomodations, included a room w/microwave & frig for guests. Very friendly; delicious breakfasts; made us feel right at home.

Day 5--Took Stan Stephens Glacier cruise. Can't say enough- this was a great day. Saw sea lions, sea otters, harbor seals, puffins, Dall porpoises and a humpback whale. Staff very friendly. Went to Columbia Glacier and Meares Glacier. Captain took extra time so we could see a whale.
Meares glacier had a few small chucks of ice break off; we sat there for quite a while, did not see any calving but could hear "creaking" of glacier. This was one of my favorite days.

We liked Valdez, it was fun to walk around the harbor area. There is an area outside of town a few miles where the salmon were in. We drove by both nights; the first night we saw a black bear w/2 cubs. We could stand along the road and watch her catch fish. The next night we saw another black bear at the same stream.
Driving back to the B & B, we saw a black bear walking along the road.

Had pizza at Mike's pizza palace, good pizza, busy place.

Day 6--took high-speed ferry to Whittier. This was a pleasant experience, the ferry was very comfortable. There was a naturalist on board telling us about wildlife and glaciers along the way.

Drove thru Whittier tunnel, just fun to say we did it, then on to Seward.
Stay at Bell in the Woods B & B just north of Seward for 3 nights. Very nice place; had microwave, frig and coin-laundry available for guests. She served a hot, hearty breakfast each morning. Our room was nice with a large bathroom, we felt very pampered here.

Days 7 & 8- We took a helicopter ride to a glacier and then a dogsled ride. This was a highlight for both my husband and myself. The helicopter ride was a first for me, it was a lot of fun and great views. The dogsled ride was a once-in-a lifetime opportunity for us. My husband could not stop smiling. When we stopped for a quick rest for the dogs, it was total stillness and prisine beauty. On the way down, he flew us around for a few mintues; we spotted 3 moose, several dall sheep, and an eagle.

While in Seward we went to Exit Glacier which was very nice. We also went to the Sea Life Center, we enjoyed that too.

We had kept a day open to take the Kenai Fjords cruise. Our cruise in Valdez was so nice we did not do the one in Seward.

We enjoyed Seward, lots of nice souvenir shops, nice walk along the beach and harbor. We ate at Chriso's, food OK, service OK.

Day 9--Drove to Homer. We stopped in Soldonta for lunch, then drove to Kenai, hoping to see Beluga whales but no luck. It was a nice break in the drive.

As we got closer to Homer, stopped for many photo ops. Stayed 3 night at Homer Beach House B & B. Great location, right on the beach. It was close to town but also nice and quiet. Swings, lawn chairs in the yard so we could just sit, relax overlooking the water.

Breakfast was left in the room the night before; was fruit, cold or instant cereal, fruit juice, yogurt and always a fresh-baked treat--the pumpkin bread was great.

Days 10 & 11--It rained 2 days when we were in Homer. The first day, it was not just a short shower, it rained almost all day. We hoped to go to Halibut cove but the boat was booked for both days that we were there. That, plus the weather, was a disappointment. I had forgotten about Pratt Museum, would have been a good day for that but we hit the book store and took a nap (not a bad way to spend a rainy afternoon).

The next day it was still rainy and Halibut cove trip did not have any cancellations. But things turned out great--Doug at our B & B asked us to join him and his grandson on a ride to Gull Island. We gladly accepted, so had our own personal guide; he also took us into Halibut cove. We did not stop but got to see some lovely homes there. We really appreciated his efforts to show us a good time.
Late afternoon, it stopped raining long enough for us to rent bikes and ride along the spit. Made me happy, that was high of my list of things to do. We also drove the various scenic drives around Homer and got some great pictures.

We had lunch one day at the Chart Room at Lands End. It was a beautiful setting. We ate dinner at the Sourdough Express. The salads were very tasty and fresh, the raspberry/peach cobbler awesome.
Also at at Cafe Cups. It was very busy; however, the service and food were both very good.

Day 12 - Left Homer. Stopped in Girdwood enroute to Anchorage. We took the tram in Girdwood, it was fun, and ate at the cafeteria on the top. Beautiful view.

Stopped for many photo ops along Turnagain Arm. We saw the bore tide; it was very small that day but still something to see.

Days 12-14 Stayed in Anchorage at Susitna Place for 3 nights. Great location, great view. She was very helpful with places to go, restaurants, etc. Our room was very comfortable; breakfast was not hot but she had a nice variety of cereal, pastries and fresh fruit to choose from, as well as cofee, tea and fruit juice.

She recommended Humpy's, it was very busy with a long wait; same at Glacier Brewhouse and Orso's. We headed back to the B & B, drove to Arctic Roadhouse for burgers--very tasty, hit the spot. On Saturday, we had lunch at Snow Goose Brewpub--the Salmon Teriyaki salad was very good. That night we had dinner at Glacier Brewhouse; both service and food were very good. No room for dessert but it looked really good.

From Anchorage, we took a shuttle to Seward so that we could ride the train back to Anchorage. We enjoy trains and like to include a train ride when we are on vacation. This was a great trip. The train moved very slowly when there was special scenery to view, and they would announce and slow down for wildlife viewing. We enjoyed this very much.

The next day we went to the Saturday market; nice to see the variety of items for sale. Spent rest of morning walking around downtown area of Anchorage.

We rented bikes in the afternoon and rode on the Tony Knowles bike trail. That was also high on my "to do" list, and the sun came out for a few hours, making it a very nice bike ride. That evening, we were able to see the sunset, it was the first sunset we had seen since we arrived.

Day 15 - time to head home, finished up with some souvenir shopping and headed for the airport.

It was a vacation we will talk about and remember for a long time.

If someone has questions, please reply and I will be glad to respond.