Category Archives: Alaska

Reflections on Alaska Trip

by

6

Now that the Alaska trip is history, I think it’s time for some reflections on the whole experience. For those who may have missed the day-by-day unveiling, the trip begins here: https://learnwithmenow.wordpress.com/2014/07/02/an-adventure-begins/

and ends here: https://learnwithmenow.wordpress.com/2014/07/13/the-long-road-home/

 

 

  • Overall, Alaska was awesomely amazing. I recommend that everyone should try to go to Alaska. Save up for it, even if it takes a long time. It’s worth it!
  • If we ever go back, I hope we can go back with some family members and serve as guides for them.
  • For us, the motorhome rental for 10 nights was perfect. I’m also glad that we didn’t head right home as soon as we turned it in. That “extra” night in a B&B helped us transition, and it was perfect!
  • The one-day cruise to the Ailek Glacier with Kenai Fjords Tours was the highest point of the trip. The day was unbelievable. In spite of this, I’m very glad that we didn’t opt for a cruise vacation.
  • I have truly enjoyed being a travel blogger. I enjoyed using my writing as an excuse to strike up conversations with strangers (Lucy at the Birch Syrup place, Nathan on the cruise, Kirsten the fish-counter, Brian the fish-hatcher, Terri the Anchorage NPS ranger, the Longs in the B&B, the couple on the Denali bus). I’ve appreciated the readers finding their way to my blog from TripAdvisor.com. (NOTE: See invitation below)
  • Having that new Sony camcorder was excellent! It’s a Sony HDR-CX330, and I picked it up for under $300 at Best Buy. It has a 60X zoom (I’m not sure how much of that is optical and how much is digital), and the fully-zoomed images are mostly crystal clear. It takes still shots at 9.2 megapixels. The image quality is stunning, to my untrained eye.
  • I’m really grateful to have learned so much from the regular contributors to TripAdvisor.com about such things as mosquitos, car rental prices, not trying to plan too much, what weather to expect, and so on and so on.
  • Eating fresh, wild salmon was unbelievable. It was so much more tasty than what we normally get in the grocery stores at home.

 

Some things we might do differently if there is a next time:

  • Bring a power inverter for charging small electronics from the motorhome’s battery. The only way to charge things most of the time was to run the generator. I absolutely detest generators in campgrounds, and this time I was the creep running the darn thing.
  • I’d like to do some fishing. This wasn’t the priority for this trip, but will be the next time.
  • I’d like to spend more time in Denali and do some more hiking. I’d like to find out more about the hiking that is accessible from the shuttle bus and do some of those hikes.
  • Flying home on the overnight “red-eye” flights may have been the most cost-effective way to travel, but if I were to do it over, I might be willing to pay more to fly during the day. It was really uncomfortable trying to sleep on the plane.

 

A NOTE FOR TRIPADVISOR READERS: I would like to thank those of you who have been reading the blog for taking the time to check it out. Now let me ask you (all readers), which of my posts was most interesting to you?? Please leave a comment by clicking on the little speech cloud in the upper right side of the screen. If you’d like to begin following this blog, even as it goes back to its original non-travel content, I would love to have you on board. Just click on the +Follow button. (Sneak preview: Later this week I expect to be blogging about the Grey Fox Bluegrass Festival in Oak Hill, NY.)