Seward, nestled between forested mountains on the shore of Resurrection Bay

We left Anchorage on Thursday and traveled south down the Seward Highway. The day before we had driven the first sixty miles of the same route to explore Turnagain Arm where, from beginning to end, there are dramatic views of mountain scenery and Cook Inlet. Turnagain Arm's bore tide is the second highest in North America, behind only to the tide in Canada's Bay of Fundy. We stopped at Portage Glacier, walked the harbor front at Whittier and visited the ski resort town of Girdwood. We also hiked a short distance to Creek Falls.

After arriving in Seward, Pat, Freddie and Alice set out for the Fish House (the local hunting and fishing purveyors) to get “geared-up” for their planned fishing expeditions. They learned that the only salmon running right now, without going out on a charter, were to be caught at the mouth of the creeks where they empty into Resurrection Bay. This “technique” is known as snag fishing where one casts out a large treble hook and literally snag the fish as they enter the creeks. Pat caught two fish, a small (less than 4 lb) one and a larger (approx. 8 lb) one. They were both, however, Chum (or Dog) salmon that are NOT keepers so they were released. We still, never-the-less- have great hopes of catching the desired Sockeye and Coho as we continue down the Kenai Peninsula to Soldotna and Homer. All was not lost on the salmon front though. Our neighbors in the campground, a great family from Eagle River, Alaska – Jim, Andrea, Abby and Joshua – come here to Seward every summer and fish from their boat in Resurrection Bay. After their first successful day (where they caught 10 silvers) they graciously gave us three of them. We cooked them on the grill Saturday night and they were, by far, the VERY BEST fish we have ever had.

While here in Seward we visited the Alaska SeaLife Center where underwater viewing tanks enabled us to witness sea lions swimming and acrobatic sea birds diving just inches away. It was a very interesting and informative facility with a neat “touch tank” and some great exhibits and films.

Clearly the highlight of Seward has been our all-day cruise into Kenai Fjords National Park. We sailed on a catamaran that had a Park Service Ranger on board to narrate and inform. We saw humpback whales, sea otters, Stellar sea lions, Dall’s porpoise, puffins, mountain goats, bald eagles and more, in addition to MANY glaciers. We sailed within a few hundred feet of Aliaka Glacier and witnessed the cracking and creaking of this giant ice mass. We were also fortunate to see the glacier calve or shed huge slabs of ice into the water. It was a spectacular sight and, hopefully, some of the attached photos will give you some idea of it’s awesome size.

Today, Sunday, we relaxed in the morning and then hiked to Exit Glacier in the afternoon. This glacier is within Kenai Fjords National Park and affords one of the few opportunities to hike with a few feet of an active glacier.

Attached are several photographs, showing Portage Lake & Glacier, Judy at Creek Falls, some fishing shots, several sights viewed from the glacier cruise and Exit glacier. While the pictures are certainly nice, we repeatedly comment that the camera does not adequately capture the beauty and grandeur of this land. Hopefully, however, they will serve to afford you a glimpse into some of the awesome sights that we are enjoying.

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Tomorrow we’re off to Soldotna to spend several days relaxing AND fishing.

Take care and stay safe,

P&J