Katmai National Park

Knowing that we would be in Alaska for Amy's 40th birthday had me thinking about the perfect gift. She loves travel, photography and the outdoors, and I have heard her say that taking a picture of a bear catching a salmon would be a fantastic experience. After looking at several options we settled on Brooks Falls when the reds (Sockeye) would be running and the bears would be fishing.

After a short flight to King Salmon we boarded the DeHavilland Otter for Brooks Falls. This vintage aircraft bumped through the gusty winds over the multitude of lakes and rolling mountains of Katmai until it cruised into Brooks lake and up to the beach where the lodge and campground are located. After a short session with the NP Rangers about etiquette in bear country we headed to the campground... enclosed by an electric fence! We set up our tent, ate a quick dinner at the Brooks Falls Lodge, and headed toward Upper Brooks Falls.

Almost immediately we started spotting the local brown bears. We learned that if you see a ranger walking down a trail talking to his/her radio while peering into the woods there was a bear nearby. The beach was like a bear highway. The first obstacle was to get across the lower bridge. Rangers are posted on each side and open and close the bridge as the bears move through the area. Our first hike up the trail was with a man from Poland, one of a host of nationalities visiting this remote but world-class destination. Being told to make noise while hiking we bargained with our new friend to sing his national anthem and we would sing ours.

The upper falls did not disappoint. No less than a dozen bears at a time were fishing at the falls. The platform offered up-close viewing of the bears as they competed for the best fishing spot. The fighting sounded a lot like roar of sea lions. Over the next two days we would make this hike four times seeking to get the photo Amy hoped for. After talking with a few of the seasoned photographers she got the technique down. On the second day it happened. She captured the image and with tears in her eyes she said "I got it" without even checking the photo. Sure enough. After reviewing the photo, she had.

After seeing the swarm of reds in the river at the lower bridge and watching the bears catching them with ease, I turned my thoughts to renting a rod and catching a red of my own. It was quite a game. Fish while looking in all directions... reel in and move away from the oncoming bears. The craziest, but most productive fishing was at what the gal in the Trading Post called the "Meat Hole" just below the bridge. The name held true. I knew it would be interesting after I helped a woman unhook a fish as a bear streamed toward us from across the river. After the bears cleared I hooked one and was playing it when it was announced that a bear was headed toward me again from across the river. I pointed the rod tip at the fish and walked away expecting the fish to break off. It didn't. It followed me up the bank. I quickly unhooked the fish, killed it and ran up onto the lower viewing platform. The bear was not too far behind and spent the next few minutes sniffing all around the platform for his lunch.

Needless to say this was an experience of a lifetime. A big thank you to Grandma and Papa for taking care of Jackson and Asa back at home.

Blackstone Bay

After hearing about kayaking in the inlets where the glaciers still reach the water (a fast disappearing phenomenon) we could not resist planning a trip of our own. Our good friends, the Fritzels, were up for the adventure, so we loaded up the camping gear and rented some double kayaks.

We all felt like the events of this trip were orchestrated well beyond our best planning efforts. God is good. We originally planned to go to Surprise Glacier which is about 40 miles (more than an hour) out of Whittier. Honey Charters, the water taxi company, thought I had said Surprise Cove about 15 miles out of Whittier. So after a little miscommunication and "sticker shock" we settled on Blackstone Bay just 30 minutes by water taxi out of Whittier. With the help of the very friendly crew we settled into the most picturesque camping area I have ever seen. It was right out of the REI catalog.

The beach at this camping area was full of skipping rocks which the boys occupied themselves with just about every waking hour we were in camp. The stream that emptied into the bay next to our site was full of Dolly Varden. They were feeding constantly on the endless supply of minnows flowing down stream. Troy proved they could be caught and I followed his lead. We had two nice trout in the cooler Friday night ready to be served with eggs for breakfast. Saturday morning the boys were up before 6:00 with the daylight and the sound of raindrops. As we prepared breakfast a crisp, blue sky began to approach over the mountains from the south. Much to our surprise there was hardly a cloud in the sky by 10:00 AM when we headed into the bay in our kayaks to explore the waters of Blackstone Bay.

After a two hour paddle past countless waterfalls we stopped for lunch and explored Willard island. The boys found an otter skeleton and a great bouldering rock. After lunch we headed toward Beloit Glacier. As we paddled it felt as though the Glacier just kept getting farther away. We had paddled about 7 miles and we were still about 2 miles away. Icebergs and "bergie bits" were strewn in the water. We could hear the thundering calving of the glaciers. At one point the entire face of Beloit let loose. With tired paddlers we decided it was time to turn back toward camp. The boys did great. They loved paddling and had a good attitude over the entire 7 hour journey. The sun was so intense that despite using sunscreen we all had sunburns at the end of the day. Back safely at camp we enjoyed the last of the sun and campfire conversation before tucking in for the night.

Sunday morning was cool and wet. The rain stopped about a half hour before the water taxi arrived which allowed a nice, dry window to get loaded up and head back to Whittier.
The most incredible part of this story is that everyone we talked to upon our return to Anchorage spoke of a cloudy, rainy Saturday! It didn't seem to matter where they had gone for the weekend - Homer, Anchorage, even Whittier itself - no one had blue skies and sunshine!

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Hawaii

Leaving behind a white, frozen landscape, we all were looking forward to the penetrating warmth of the Hawaiian sun. The islands did not disappoint. After a short stopover in Honolulu, we were on to Maui to meet up with our close friends, Scott and Diane, their daughters, Kaleigh and Mady, and Di's parents, Don and Marg (soon to celebrate 50 years of marriage). The consistent weather...low to mid 80's, calm mornings and breezy afternoons...made planning our week's activities fairly easy. The other factor that made this week even more relaxing was bringing along a good family friend, Lindsay, to watch the kids when the adults wanted to go play.

Most mornings were spent on the beach. Asa emulated our true feelings as he rolled in the sand and literally coated himself with little pieces of Hawaii. If only we all expressed our feelings so well! The boogie boarding was good, but the water was calling us in a little deeper. We started looking for snorkeling opportunities at the little reefs that bordered the beaches.

At three something in the morning on Tuesday the adults, taking full advantage of having Lindsay around to take care of the kids, headed for Haleakala. It is a 10,000+ foot volcano (dormant) that greets the morning sun in grand style. There was a spectacular display of light and color as the sun broke above the layer of clouds below the peak.

Thursday and Friday we rented snorkel gear and headed to Ahihi cove and the beach at the Maui Prince Hotel. Here is where a new world opened up for all of us. It was a bit crowded, but once in the water your attention quickly turned to the many varieties of fish darting in and out of the multicolored coral. And then we all enjoyed the bigger surprises in the water...green sea turtles, eels and a reef shark.

Friday night was date night in Lahaina. Don and Marg went to a great magic show, and Scott, Di, Amy and I went to a great fish house called Kimo's. Saturday, we decided to see what the hiking was like on the island. We explored the Iao Valley and then moved on to another valley with swinging bridges and creek crossings. We ended Saturday with an Easter egg hunt at sunset on the beach.

As much as we wanted to go to an Easter service on the beach, Sunday was the only day available for the snorkel excursion boat that we wanted to take to Molokini, a little cresent shaped atoll off the coast of Maui. It was Molokini that offered the clearest, albeit coldest, water. You could see 30 feet below with no problem. The boat moved closer to the beach for a better look at the green sea turtles. Our best look at the turtles was back at the Maui Prince Hotel where Amy took a few underwater pictures of the turtle action. The kids have not stopped talking about all of the sea life and the snorkeling experience. While the warmth, waves, sunshine, and relaxation was great, the snorkeling really made the whole week.

Fur Rondy

The city of Anchorage goes all out in February with winter celebrations. This past weekend we attended a few of the dozens of activities and events planned for the Fur Rondy Festival. The long name is the Fur Rendezvous which started back in the pioneer days when the trappers would come to town and auction off their pelts. We managed to take in the parade, dog sled race, carnival, fur auction, model train display, snow carving, and the running of the reindeer (think of the running of the bulls). This coming weekend the big dog sled race, the Iditarod, will have its ceremonial start in Anchorage on Saturday and the official start in Willow on Sunday.

Fun Weekends

Taking advantage of the wealth of great outdoor activities and events here in Anchorage has been a highlight of the winter. Last weekend the Lions Club in Eagle River sponsored an Ice Fishing Derby at Mirror Lake about 20 minutes north of Anchorage. It was a crisp, clear day with temperatures struggling to get above zero. This well planned event provided poles, bait, drilled holes, hot dogs, hamburgers, and hot chocolate...all free of charge. We did not know quite what to expect, but within a few minutes Jackson hooked an eight inch trout and big smile to go with it. Asa had one up to the top of the hole, but when it felt the cold air it wiggled free of the hook and made it back down into the "warm" water. Without much more action we stayed until our feet felt like blocks of ice. Jackson was very proud of his fish. We enjoyed fresh trout with eggs for breakfast the next morning.

Just yesterday we entered the Cardboard Sled Derby at Kincaid Park sponsored by the city's Parks and Recreation department. There were three different divisions and two classes of prizes. We actually won the Family Class for creativity. Obviously Jackson had a lot to do with the design of the sled. He was very specific about how it should be painted (referring to his growing dinosaur book collection). Good winter fun was had by all!

See more photos at http://picasaweb.google.com/jeramymarkus

The Holidays

One word sums up our holidays this year...memorable. There are many things that made this year special including Grandmom Markus and the Quintangeli family traveling 5,000 miles to be with us, Asa's 5th birthday, and our first Christmas in Alaska. There was one event that made sure memories from this year will stick. Before I get into the details of our fateful snow-cat ride here are a few of the other highlights.

Our week started with celebrating Asa's 5th birthday at Chuck E Cheese's. Asa was thrilled to have his Grandmom, Aunt Barb, Uncle Vince, cousins Michael and Anthony, and SECOND cousins there to celebrate with him. Amy's second cousin Sara Carpenter, her husband Cody and their four children live here in Anchorage, and we have thoroughly enjoyed getting to know them. The party theme was Alaska. When you put Amy and Barb together on an Alaskan theme cake...LOOK OUT! It was fantastic.

In between Amy's decadent holiday meals we went to the Christmas Eve service at Cornerstone Church, sledding in the new six inches of Christmas snow, played games (wrestling cousins), shopped, and introduced the Quintangeli's to a new winter sport - cross-country skiing. The clouds were low and heavy during the week so we could not enjoy the views of Alaska's majestic mountains. This is what pushed us to head north. The weather was supposed to be the best on Wednesday so after talking with the folks at Glacier Park we headed to the Matanuska Glacier.

Here is where Christmas 2007 gets burned into the memory. With the cold temperatures and snow we decided to take the snow-cat ride to the base of the glacier and then enjoy a bit of time taking pictures of the aquamarine cracks around the glacier's terminus. All nine of us piled into the 1965 diesel cat and headed across the frozen landscape with Bill as our tour guide. As we neared the glacier, Bill decided to drive up a rise off of the flat, frozen lake at the base of the glacier. As we tilted up the back end cracked through the ice. Looking out of the window of the now silent cab we all could see broken ice floating in WATER! As Bill tried to get out of the hole we ended up track deep in a hole of broken ice and water. After a few more tries we all offloaded except for Grandmom. Bill felt it was safer to keep her in the cat. After a few more tries and Amy's mild panic attack about Grandmom's precarious position, I offered to take Bill back to the park office to get his snow machine and chainsaw. Vince and Barb stayed with Grandmom (who was the calmest of the whole crew) in the half-sunk cat and the rest of us hiked out to the cars.

I rode with Bill back to the snow-cat. Grandmom enjoyed her first snow-machine ride back to the car as Barb, Vince and I hiked out. Bill returned to the cat forgetting they put Grandmom's purse in the back of the snow-machine. Vince and I hiked back to the cat to get the purse while the others went back to the park office for hot chocolate. As Vince and I got back to the snow-cat Bill had the thing out of the hole and ready to go. I rode the sled back while Vince hitched a ride with Bill. We all arrived at the park office and enjoyed the warm building and hot chocolate and coffee. Bill and his wife were gracious and apologetic about the whole thing. This great day was not done yet. Asa dumped a whole cup of hot chocolate over himself and the park office. The final kicker was losing the keys to our car just prior to our departure from the park! Good thing it got dark so early so that the asteroid couldn't see the targets we had painted on us.

The rest of the week was spent sledding, cross-country skiing, shopping and eating of course. What made this Christmas special was spending it with our family. Thank you Grandmom, Vince, Barb, Michael and Anthony for making the trip and life-long memories!