The Alaska Post

We are back from Alaska! We easily agree that this was the most amazing trip to date. We did our best to stick to our promise of keeping the blog updated daily with notes and pictures of our adventure, but taming Alaska had our hands pretty full at times. Spotty internet access, a power outage, and purposely pretending the real world didn’t exist all played part in any delays in posting. Now that we are back home, we are able to round out our report. Nothing could have prepared us for the beauty and expanse of this gorgeous place. No documentary or photograph can truly do it justice; it has to be seen and felt, yet we will attempt the impossible here through our pictures and stories. We hope this will serve not only as a good read for all of you, but also as a journal for us to look back on to remind us it was real, and that we lived and breathed it. Infinite thanks go to our amazing friends and hosts, Chris and Alison. Words truly cannot express our gratitude for all of their hospitality and effort to make our visit what it was. We are already anxious to go back as soon as possible.

If you are just joining us, you are in for a treat! Those of you that have been following along over the past week, look closely, as we have added tons more pictures and comments, and have resorted it into chronological order. Grab a nice warm drink and a blanket and relive this exciting adventure with us!

 

4:10am Our journey began at 4:00am this morning, as Daniel and I got into my car, which was fully loaded from the night before. Besides feeling quite sleepy still, I still have one thought lingering in the back of my mind: Did we forget anything?

• A week’s worth of warm clothing… Check!
• New snow boots… Check!
• All of our chargers, and my laptop… Check!
• Our “condensed” version of our photography kit, including flashes/stands… Check!
• American Airlines Android application on our Droids with our e-tickets… Check!

With all of this preparedness now behind us (hopefully), it would all be so to make one simple idea possible… Document our week long adventure in Alaska, with our great friends Chris, who in the Coast Guard, and Alison, who’s his fiancé. They’ve both lived in the area for the past few years, which will definitely come in handy. What all will happen? Who knows, but this post, which will be updated daily, will be the place to see! For now, we have our sails (which just happen to look like a car going down I-20) set for the DFW airport. We’ll check back in soon!

5:25pm Matthew checking back in for a second… We’re finally here! 8 hours of flying later, we have finally arrived in Anchorage, Alaska. Sadly, we were in such a rush (which included me wiping out running through the airport), that I didn’t have any time to get my camera out of my carry on bag. My Droid had to suffice for this update, which absolutely had to be seen in person! The view we had flying in over Alaska was quite beautiful, to say the least, so hopefully these quick cell phone shots could shed a little light as to what potential we are presented with with this vast snowy land! Did I mention that it was, just perhaps, a little chilly here? It’s time for our host, Chris, to cook us up some fresh moose! And yes, I’m serious. As the governator says, “I’ll be back.”

6:15am Matthew here… We officially woke up at 6am today! And by we, I mean Daniel and I, since we’re still used to it being 3 hours later than it actually is here. Speaking of which, may day 2 of our trip officially begin! From here on out, you’ll notice that Daniel will also be posting updates alongside mine from time to time. Time to get ready!

7:55am Daniel here, with my first update from Alaska. I’m sure just as soon as we get used to the time difference it will be time to head back. Either way, coffee needs to happen soon.As Matt said earlier, it’s beautiful here! And cold. But once we get moving around it isn’t so noticeable. Chris and Alison have been awesome hosts from the start, and seem to be just as excited to travel and explore as we are. Last night was moose steak and home-made bread, followed by walking on a frozen lake, then sledding on some amazing hills. Sleep was amazing after a long flight and only 45 mins of sleep the night before we left. Today will be our first full day here, and we plan to make it a good one. Chris will take us to Seward, just south of Anchorage, which he tells us will be great to break us in to some of the awesome nature the state has to offer. We’ll check back later with more updates! But for now… coffee.

8:25pm It’s picture time, yo… Check out some of what we’ve seen so far today!

Update: As promised, here’s a short cell phone video of Chris breaking his sled, while flying down a hill…

10:15pm Matthew here again, after a loooong day of shooting! We do have some sad, sad news, however… My Nikon D700 seems to have bit the dust. Great timing, eh? Before it did, however, we definitely shot some really cool pictures! By the way, we’re heading out early in the morning. What’s our plan? It’s quite epic, to say the least. I’ve got a backup camera, so never fear… Also, we’re going to try to get my Nikon serviced somehow while we’re down here. Tomorrow seriously has so much potential, and while we drive 6 hours to get there, I’ll edit some of our favorite shots from today to put up! Also, there might even be a crazy short video showing just how crazy snow sledding can truly be. Time to sleep!

10:30pm Still on Texas time. So tired but for a good reason.  Be patient! Lots of goodies heading your way tomorrow (assuming Matt and I can take our eyes off the scenery long enough to narrow down our favorites).  Tomorrow = Fairbanks and hot springs and lights, oh my!

7:30am Matthew checking back in! Half of us are ready, and the others are preparing for tonight’s possible wind chill of -40f… That’s right… -40f. While they’re doing that, Chris and I are going to check into a few of the camera shops, to see if they can fix my Nikon. Wish me luck! And, on that note, definitely stay tuned for today… It’s about to be picture time.

9:40am We are all packed up for our Fairbanks trip and ready to get it underway. 6+ hour car ride ahead with some amazing scenery expected, as well as cold coldness. As we said last night, we will update the posts for yesterday with some great pictures and videos. Also, Matt found a camera shop in town that was able to diagnose his camera.  Not the best news on it, but at least the uncertainty is out of the way. Time to head out and see if we can make it in time for McDonald’s breakfast!

2:20pm We were almost blown away! Literally. There were 60 mph winds up near Denali at a view point at the top of one of the mountains, which were seriously crazy. I thought that we had seen some crazily cold temperatures during our trip so far, but this definitely topped it. And, as a side note: If you happened to walk barely off of the trails up the mountain, you’d sink through 2 1/2 feet of snow!

11:40pm I must say, the long 400+ mile drive to Fairbanks and Chena was definitely worth it! After sitting in the Explorer all day, we got to unwind in the best way imaginable – the Chena Hot Springs. This is a place where natural spring water flows up from the ground at a steamy 140°F, drawing hundreds a year to the little resort built around it. After checking into the lodge and making the chilly walk to the locker rooms, we changed into our swimsuits and bravely stepped outside into the -15°F cold. Remember when I told you we were in swimsuits? The biting cold was unreal, and our bare feet were nearly useless on the icy deck leading to the pool. Our first step in made it all worth it, as it warmed us instantly. We slowly waded and soaked in the hot water for several minutes, in awe of what we were experiencing. Plumes of fog filled the air making us all silhouettes and freezing our hair. You see, in our new-found bliss it was easy to forget that the air was several degrees below freezing, so all the steam that collected on our head almost instantly froze, turning our hair and beards white with frost, as hard as glass, and nearly as fragile. I was actually able to break a small piece of my hair off. Grinning from ear to ear, we bobbed around the pool finding the warmest parts and slowly navigated the huge rocky perimeter. Matt and I agreed that this was by far the most epic trip we have ever made, and that anything in the future would have to shoot pretty high (farther North?) to top what Chris and Allie have made possible for us. After a trip or two back and forth between the pool and the locker room, we decided we were thoroughly Zenned out, and that we could trade the warm waters for a toasty bed. So now, here we sit in our room ready to catch some Z’s, and hoping that we get our wake-up call from the front desk to tell us if and when the Northern Lights come out. How is it possible this trip can potentially get any better?! Stay tuned! Ball is in your court, ionosphere…

12:15am Ahhhh! We just got the best wake-up call ever! The Northern Lights are somewhat visible, you say? Time to quickly throw our warm clothes on as fast as we can, while trying to get my camera and tripod out of the door in a mad rush! 

9:15am What do green lights, a scary snowman, and a frozen tripod have in common? Wow… Last night was amazing! We’re about to go grab something warm to drink, and explore a little around the camp, but before we do, I figured that I’d show you what we saw last night (early this morning) first. Also, note the ice that formed quickly on my tripod in the last picture… I literally had a sheet of ice on my camera, lens, and tripod. It was coooold (-20°F)! It was worth it, however:

9:20pm Another fine day in Alaska! The Northern Lights were beautiful, and certainly worth braving the -20°F or so to see them. Matt and I decided that this was no time to wimp out from the cold, and these two Texas boys hung in there pretty well I must say. After some sleep, we explored the camp and took plenty of pictures. Stopped for breakfast in Fairbanks for some reindeer sausage, and then again in Nenana to get some nice pics. Enjoy!

11:00am Quick update! Daniel, Chris, Alison, and myself are about to head to the Iditarod… We’re all bundled up, and ready to see some dog sled racing!

12:17pm Coffee and bumper-to-bumper traffic can force one to take a more primative approach to restroom breaks…

5:10pm We just got back from the start of the Iditarod in Willow, Alaska. What a blast! Tons of people showed up for what is called the “Last Great Race on Earth” to watch mushers and their dog teams start the looong trek (1150+ miles) to Nome, Alaska. All the details can be found at www.iditarod.com.

Matt and I were in good hands since our hosts had been there the few years before, and knew just where to take us to give us the best view and photo ops. We trudged across the snow-covered frozen lake where thousands were lining the start of the trail and cheering on their favorite mushers. Such an unreal atmosphere for such a unique event. People everywhere were doing a dog sled race’s equivalent to tailgating – snow-machines parked, grills fired up, funnel-cake, kettle corn, souvenirs, etc., etc., etc… there was even a tepee. And bonfires. ON the ice. That’s how cold it was. It’s really indescribable; I’ll let the pictures do the talking!

6:02pm Waiting at the Moose’s Tooth for what we’re told will be the best pizza of our lives. My good friend Bobby also happens to be stationed at the Air Force Base in Anchorage and is meeting us here.

7:35pm We just split ways with our good friend Bobby, after a wonderful dinner at the Moose’s Tooth. And by wonderful, I mean the best pizza that I’ve ever had in my entire life. Seriously. Pizza everywhere else is now officially ruined for Daniel and me! We’re about to go explore downtown a little, since we aren’t tired yet, to see what all we can find. We’ll be back!

10:32pm Ice skating in a sleepy downtown Anchorage.

11:10pm Crazy cool snow sculptures all over downtown. Also, running around on ice can be trickier than it looks! I almost wiped out again a  few times, but luckily, I didn’t break my last remaining camera that still is in tact. Stay tuned for a little video from our night, which might perhaps be put together in the very near future… Stay tuned!

 

9:33am Matt checking in really quickly, to introduce you to the most awesome dog ever… Zoey! Chris and Alison’s crazy 2 year old lab is probably the most energetic, well behaved dog that I’ve seen in quite sometime. Besides the fact that she greatly enjoys toys that are extremely loud and squeaky. Meet Zoey!

10:07am Epic day ahead! Driving through a mountain to an abandoned WW2/Cold War base? Indeed. Whittier or bust!

10:38am Look what we found! What’s that, you say? Only the most epic train ever:

4:17pm Just got out of the coolest abandoned place we’ve explored to date! It was the coldest too – icicles and ice everywhere.

4:25pm Keep checking back, as we’ll have some pictures from our urban exploration trip up quite soon!

6:48pm As promised, here are the pics from today’s trip. We had to drive through a mountain tunnel to get to Whittier, as it’s the only road in. It’s 2.5 miles long and only one lane, so car and train traffic take turns going in and out. While we waited for our turn, we walked on yet another frozen lake and looked at the Portage Glacier suspended between two mountains in Chugach National Forest. We then went through the tunnel and explored the town and the abandoned Buckner Building. It’s been empty since the ’64 Alaska quake, so it’s fallen victim to vandalism and graffiti.

8:30pm Chris grilled some amazing homemade turkey burgers and I got schooled by Ali on Xbox Kinect. Matt decided it was worthy of documenting. The aurora are supposed to be visible from Anchorage tonight, so Matt, Chris, and I are going to head up to Flattop Mountain to get some pics.

1:13am In what was probably the most beautiful view that I’ve ever seen, we came back with my new favorite landscape shot ever. I’m going to get this printed on a 7×2 foot canvas in the very near future… Seriously, extremely breath taking view. After this night, every other location went down a notch on our epic scale in comparison.

7:26am Great night overlooking the city and getting one last look at the lights before we leave tomorrow. One day to go in Alaska, and it’s sure to be a good one.

1:30pm All morning excursion around the city looking for souvenirs for our girlfriends led to us finding some pretty cool gifts. It’s quite hard to find something that represents such an amazing place.  Chris, Daniel, and I met Alison for lunch at Humpy’s, which was amazing! Fresh halibut, you say? But of course! Now, seafood everywhere else is also ruined, when compared to this amazing meal. What else will we be able to keep in Texas for our “bests of” lists? Ahhh!

10:10pm We had a nice long day in downtown getting looking for some nifty touristy goods to take home. We all met in the evening at Ali’s mom’s house for some grilled salmon that she caught the summer before, some of Chris’s amazing homemade bread, and one last breathe-taking sunset. Wonderful way to wind down our last day here. We will most definitely be coming back.

edit: I forgot to mention that Bobby called us up and let us know he arranged to get some guest passes for the three of us to come check out the AFB.  We got to see some jaw-dropping stuff, namely a fully functioning Boeing C-17 aircraft!  As Bobby said, “you could play basketball in this thing.”  No joke! The military uses these things to air drop tanks into battle. TANKS. Of course, cameras were restricted, so nothing to show you folks at home.  Thanks for the tour, Bobby!

12:20am Alaska has been most epic for both Matt and me. Most action packed week ever. Sad to leave, but Texas and responsibilities are calling… Headed to Seattle and DFW, with a long snooze-over in Dreamland.

12:25am How to summarize this trip into a short sentence… Best trip ever. I never thought that I’d say it, but I’m actually sad to be leaving. Alaska has changed something in me. The world is such an amazing, and beautiful place. Alaska has been no exception. We’re about to begin our journey back to Texas, which will hopefully involve some much needed sleep! While I’ve had a few hard wipe outs (Daniel might have too, just perhaps), broken a camera, and had a few other minor incidents, this trip has been one that I’ll forever remember. Time to see Alaska from our plane window one last time.