Driving from McCarthy to Seward (07-05-14)

After leaving McCarthy Road, we headed towards Anchorage with the intention of driving down the Kenai peninsula to Seward for July 4th.   We've gotten into a loose habit of several days of leisurely travel followed by a few days of staying put in one area.  We knew it would take a few days to get to Seward- we never just drive- we are always exploring along the way.

Our first stop was an outdoor museum in the very small town of Chickaloon.  Someone puts a lot of effort into this place.  With coal mining equipment and restored buildings, it tells the story about the boom and bust of this area. In 1916, when the U.S. Navy found out there was coal here, they paid to have 25 buildings and pieces of machinery built that were necessary for the coal to be extracted and shipped to be used to power their fleet of vessels.  The town prospered. 

Six months after the last building was finished and operational, the Navy decided the coal wasn’t of sufficient quality, and shut down operations.  The town went bust. That happened a lot back then- whether the boom was coal, silver, or gold related, towns came and went it seems, in the blink of an eye.  The town still exists- population: 236

Our next stop was Anchorage, supposedly for a quick shopping stop before heading to Seward.  We had decided we need a better pair of binoculars so we spent the morning looking. It was here that we started hearing stories about the craziness in Seward. We discovered that Seward is the place to be for the 4th, and that in fact, people were paying $20 a night to park in someone’s driveway due to the lack of room.  Oops. We have no reservations.

And that’s how we ended up spending two nights in a Cabela’s parking lot.  It was actually our first time spending the night in a store parking lot.  The first night almost scared us off, with our neighbors partying and playing football in the parking lot until midnight.  But then, it was the 4th of July! The second night was much quieter.

We could have driven downtown for the fireworks (if you know Paul, you know he loves fireworks!!). But the fireworks are done at midnight, and this is what the sky looked like at 1145 PM.  Um, the sun was pretty much still out.  The locals say they have the best fireworks you've ever heard. Hmmm. We decided it wasn't worth braving the crowds.

The next day we did buy some binoculars (not from Cabela’s though). We found a store with an employee who really knew his stuff so we bought a pair of  cheap  inexpensive reasonably priced excellent quality binoculars.  Waterproof, drop proof, lifetime guarantee- Zeiss.

We also decided that if we could get a reservation in Seward for the following 3 days, we would go, and if we couldn't, it was fate, and we’d skip it altogether.  The following day was Sunday, so our chances were better. The first place I called said “no problem” so off we went.

The drive took us around Turnagain Arm (an inlet). This area is home to 20 some odd glaciers.  Amazing, and beautiful.

There are plenty of informative turn-outs and even a visitor center on this stretch of road.  This turn-out describes Beluga whales, which are common in this area, and how to spot them in the water.

There’s a side trip to the small town of Whittier that we decided not to take.  We would have gone through a very unique tunnel to get there.  Instead of spending millions to build a second tunnel, cars and trains take turns driving through the Whittier tunnel, and travel is one directional, so everyone has to have some patience.  It would have been fun, but maybe some other time. Paul consoled himself with pretending to be a train in the tunnel that we did go through.

This area is also known for it’s bore tide- where the tide comes in on a wave.  The height of this tidal bore varies, but it can be 6 feet tall. The day we sat and waited for it (actually on the way back to Anchorage from Seward) it was a no- show.  Maybe some other time.

Our last stop before getting to Seward was the small town of Hope, Alaska. Hope’s boom to bust story is due to the gold rush.  Gold was discovered here in 1888 and Hope became one of the largest towns in Alaska.  Once the gold played out, most people left.  The town population now is 132 or so.

This is yet another town that has done a great job refurbishing old buildings so the town’s history can be remembered and shared. 

Not every place that we explore is “Awesome” but each little place has something to teach and helps me to better piece together the history of the places we visit.

Mojave Preserve (03-04-12)

170 miles later, we have driven through the Mojave Preserve, which encompasses most of the Mojave Desert.  Our first stop was the Kelso  Dunes. The highest of the dunes is about 650 feet tall.  What makes them unique is that they are “singing” dunes.  When you run down the steep slopes, the dunes make a sound similar to a small airplane flying overhead. 

 people skiing down the dune

After hiking for a half hour and still feeling miles away from even the bottom of the large dunes, I gave up and took out my camera.  We could see people walking along the top ridge.  As we watched, they “threw” themselves over the side and skied down the slope.  That’s the best way to make the singing sound, so I am just as happy I didn’t hike all the way up- there’s  no way I would have thrown myself over the edge. No more broken bones for me, thanks.  Paul was able to produce the sound to a lesser degree on a smaller hill, but I didn’t hear it.

We stopped at the visitor’s center before driving through the rest of the park.  They had a diner type restaurant there, so we each got a piece of home made pie (a la mode, of course). 

This area has been formed and influenced by past volcanic activity and one of the unique results was an accessible lava tube. A lava tube is created when lava cools slowly as it streams across the land.  The top of the lava flow cools faster than the lava beneath it, and when the lower lava continues to flow, it leaves behind a tunnel, called a lava tube.  There’s a ladder to climb down in order to gain access to the tunnel itself.

We walked the short distance to the end of the tube, where we could see holes in the lava that allowed the sunlight to stream down into the tunnel.



end of the lava tube



 

We had to drive 5 miles down a dirt road to get to it, but it was worth the trip.

Aiken Mine

After exploring to our heart’s content, we continued down Aiken Mine Rd. until we came to the abandoned Aiken Mine. It’s really more of a rock quarry, and had clearly been abandoned years ago.

It was now getting late in the day and our plan of hiking a few short trails wasn’t going to happen.  Instead, we drove on through, enjoying the unique landscape of the Mojave Desert.

Cinder Cones-a steep conical hill formed above volcanic vents



unusual shapes dot the landscape



some of the lava is full of air bubbles, making it very light.