Alaska NPS Planning
I have my brother Troy to thank for my first adventure to Alaska. He had spent a Summer working at Denali National Park and wanted to take me there to explore North of the Future. We went to Denali National Park add Preserve, Wrangell-St. Elias National Park & Preserve, and Kenai Fjords National Park. and I fell in love with our 49th State.
Now that I am attempting to visit all of the NPS Units, I have some serious planning to do as the other Units are more challenging to access. So here goes it …
Thanks to the internet, I found the following informative and inspiring NPS Alaska blog posts ….
For the Glacier Bay SE section, I plan on flying to Juneau and starting the adventure from there.
Glacier Bay National Park:
I’ve booked us into the Glacier Bay Lodge in June for a two night stay. We will fly in with Alaska Airlines and then take the complimentary shuttle to the Lodge. I booked the Glacier Bay Day Tour, where we will …
“Spend the day on the waters of Glacier Bay and see magnificent tidewater glaciers, ancient snow-capped mountains, whales, stellar sea lions, rare birds such as puffins, coastal bears, seals, eagles, and so much more.
Aboard our comfortable, high-speed catamaran, you'll travel through dramatically different ecosystems - moving from the fully developed rainforest that surrounds Glacier Bay Lodge to the lichen-encrusted rocks that exist on the edges of the massive tidewater glaciers of the park.
Midway through the day, the catamaran arrives at the faces of the Margerie and Grand Pacific Glaciers, two towering masses of ice and snow rising 245 feet above the ocean and stretching another 100 feet beneath the water. The ice that calves from the face of the two glaciers is an average of 200 years old - so in a way, watching the ice break off of the glaciers is like watching the passage of time. This great Alaska vacation will leave you speechless.”
Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park:
I have already been to the Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park Unit in Seattle, but Alaska is just too beautiful to pass on going to their Unit in Skagway. I will plan on taking the Fjord Express day trip from Juneau to Skagway and back. “Take the Fjord Express from Haines to Skagway, the gateway to the Klondike Gold Fields. Spend the day in this busy cruise ship port walking the boardwalks, peeking into the restored buildings, riding the White Pass and Yukon Route Railroad, visiting the Klondike Gold Rush Historical Park, and exploring the shops, breweries and restaurants This early morning deadhead run departs the Haines Harbor at 7am and returns in the evening.”