Alaska!

I’ve been woefully negligent in posting to this blog. Come the New Year I think I am going to experiment with something new. Either a different platform or a different approach to this site. It’s time. If anyone has suggestions, I am all ears.

Recently back from an absolutely amazing trip to Alaska, thanks in large part to my terrific father-in-law. Not sure how I can even do justice to this trip via a blog post. It may have been one of the more interesting and fun trips of my life.

In a nutshell, we did Alaska via the coast; Kodiak and Katmai, specifically. Our objective was to see as much wildlife as possible, with emphasis on birds, whales and bears. It was definitely mission accomplished from that standpoint; every day brought us something new that took our breath away. To say that Alaska is “wild” is an understatement. It is an amazing place in every respect and I hope that we allow it to remain the beautiful place that it is. Knowing us, however, we will screw it up. But, I digress.

The bears were incredible though I think my favorite thing may have been the eagles. They were everywhere and they are just incredibly majestic creatures. I couldn’t get enough of them.

The trip itself logistically was awesome. We were on a relatively small scientific expedition boat helmed by a crew of four. Two captains, an engineer and a cook. They were an amazing crew in every respect; patient, knowledgeable, entertaining, etc. The whole package. And I should add, the food was really amazing. If anyone is interested in replicating this trip, I’d recommend these guys without hesitation. Professionals in every respect.

All in all, quite an adventure. And I’d definitely categorize this as an adventure, versus vacation. The kids loved it too and I thought they were terrific. They were inquisitive, engaged and participatory. All that you can ask from two teenagers (who, I might add, were disconnected from the Internet for the first time in their lives!).

Definitely a trip that will stay with us for many years to come and one that comes highly recommended.