Giggles & Getaways

Trip Overview

Duration – Timing: 10 days – Late July

Destinations: Anchorage – Seward – Kenai Fjords National Park – Cooper Landing – Homer – Kasilof

Activities: Salmon Fishing & Hiking

Itinerary

Day 0 – Flight to Anchorage

Day 1 – Matanuska Glacier

Day 2 – Seward, Sterling Highway, Exit Glacier & and some interesting Alaska rules

Day 3 – Kenai Fjords National Park & the “frozen” pictures

Day 4 – 9 – Kasilof, Homer, fishing, and the lovely new friends

Anchorage

Day 0 – Flight to Anchorage

We arrived at Anchorage airport around 1 am local time. It was cold and empty. Our flight was rescheduled to an earlier time, so we had to wait 4-5 hours at the airport to collect our rental car. We slept on the cold metal bench, ate at McDonald’s, and had to keep an eye on our luggage. The great thing is that all car rental companies are located at the airport, and you can walk to pick up your car.

While waiting for our rental car, I flipped through several free local magazines at the airport about Alaska, Anchorage, Seward, and other nearby destinations. These magazines helped me quickly plan our next 10 days here, given our accommodations were already settled.

Alaska is huge and has a lot to offer, with over 20 national parks and monuments. I have no ambition to check out all these wonderful places in the next 10 days. As we’ll travel south for fishing, I figured we would want to spend the first day exploring a bit north of Anchorage.

Day 1 – Matanuska Glacier

The first day was not very well-planned or well-started. My husband wanted to drive an hour north to see Matanuska Glacier, a must-see for him, and stop by Flattop View, where you can get panoramic views from Denali (Mt. McKinley) to the Aleutian Islands on the way back, although we were very sleep-deprived. Then we would rent two bikes to ride along the 11-mile scenic Tony Knowles Coastal Trail, where you can usually spot wildlife like moose and bears. Finally, we would return to the Airbnb house, unpack, and have dinner.

But that’s only the plan!

We spent a considerable amount of time exploring Matanuska Glacier’s views. We made multiple stops along the way and finally took a tour that guided us to hike on top of the glacier. It costs $65/person (+$10 tip/person). That was a fantastic experience! Our pictures couldn’t fully capture the unique views there.

We were exhausted after a long day of driving 2 hours up north, hiking for 2 hours, and driving 2 hours back. We decided to go home and rest before going out again. I ended up sleeping until 6-7pm, so we missed out on Tony Knowles Coastal Trail and Flattop View. We took showers, went straight to dinner, picked up our cousins, and then headed home.

Do you know seafood in Anchorage is expensive? You’d expect fresher and cheaper seafood here, but no!

Next time, I would spend a whole day exploring Anchorage, reserve a table for dinner to avoid the long wait, and check out Hatcher Pass (many hikers we met recommended it).

Seward

Day 2: The wonderful Seward Highway, and some interesting Alaska rules

Seward Highway

Seward Highway is California Highway 1 in its own way. We were continually amazed by the lake, mountain, glacier, and wildflower views. You would get like a hundred picturesque views. It’s so mesmerizing that I no longer feel the need to visit Mount Fuji. We stopped multiple times to take pictures along the way.

You will be surprised to see that many households own water airplanes. I’d also like to try the water taxi here next time.

Another thing I would like to do is ride the Alaska train. It passes through forests, lakes, and mountains and is known as one of the most beautiful railroads in the US.

Exit Glacier

We visited Exit Glacier on our way. The name is from its “exiting” nature. The glacier is melting. We hiked the shortest route to get a closer view of the glacier. It is really windy and pleasant up there, but I still feel the glacier is the nicest afar. Learn more about Exit Glacier here.

Seward

Seward is a tiny port city in southern Alaska and the gateway to Kenai Fjords National Park. We arrived at 4 pm, excited to get some really fresh seafood. Our host said the fishermen usually come home at 4.30 pm, and we immediately unpacked and went straight to JDock for fresh stuff. With a lot of disappointment, however, we found out that it is illegal to buy fish from fishermen. Seafood needs to be frozen before selling. We finally decided to purchase halibut fish and shrimp from JDock stores (1-week-old).

What you might want to know:

• Groceries: Safeway (Kroger of Texas here). The groceries here are costly. They are imported from other states (bok choy imported from California)
• Drinks: Alaska has strict rules about drinking. The liquor store is usually separate from the general grocery area. Even if you don’t purchase drinks and only accompany your friend, you will be requested to present your ID. They expect that, as a friend, you might be consuming alcohol, and they want to make sure you are allowed to. People who get a DUI multiple times might get marks on their driver’s licenses and can’t buy alcohol for a while.
• Activities: You can explore some hiking trails on the way from Anchorage to Seward or in Seward.

Kenai Fjords National Park

Day 3: Kenai Fjords National Park and the “frozen” pictures

If you go south in Alaska, Kenai Fjords National Park is a must-see. The national park is famous for its overflowing glaciers, coastal fjords, islands, and wildlife. We explored the national park via a 6-hour boat tour, which costs $166/person, including lunches. You can easily book tours leaving Seward port (daily) in the summer. We left at 11:30 am, returned 6 hours later, ate at a local restaurant, and then headed to Kasilof.

In the tour, we saw many surreal, amazing views reminiscent of Pirates of the Caribbean. We also saw many sea wildlife, including puffins, orca whales, sea lions, and sea otters. Our cameras only capture half of what we experienced. Our hands were shaken and frozen among the icy glaciers. It was so worth it!

What I would do differently:

• Take motion sickness pills. You can easily get seasick.
• Wear windproof clothes and wear warm. The weather forecast showed a 70-80°F day, so we wore summer clothes! Big mistake. It was 70-80°F inland only. Out there in the ocean, it was freezing cold.
• Bring extra snacks because the provided lunch was small and cold. We were so hungry touring in the cold.

Kasilof & Homer

Day 4-9: Kasilof, Homer, fishing and the lovely new friends

We were so lucky to have an amazing and kind host couple, Paul and Lyda. They have a charming and spacious home. Most of their guests were long-time friends who had become close over time. Lyda loves gardening. Paul is a great fisherman who taught us how to fish, took us to great fishing spots, and shared with us great food (he was a chef!). Both of them are foodies.

FISHING FOR BEGINNERS

We are very new to fishing, so we needed to prepare a couple of things:

• A good rod (~$100 for a decent one) is necessary because salmon is pretty heavy.
• Waders and shoes (~$150 total /person, and you can bring them home for next fishing time). They keep you dry as you’ll stand in the middle of the river catching salmon for hours.
• Raincoats. If you have them, bring them along, as you’ll likely encounter some rainy days. Rainy days can be perfect for fishing.
• Catching net. So you can net your fish.
• Fishing license; $15/day or $45/7 days, if I remember correctly. You can buy them at the sporting stores.
• Hats: Will be helpful for both sunny and rainy days, as you’ll stand outside for hours.
• Interestingly, you do not need bait.

We were fortunate to have experienced fishermen as friends who showed us the ropes. We caught 9 salmon in 3 days of fishing and brought them all home. By the way, Linda and Paul had helped to fillet the fish and package them. Some tips and rules you should know:

• Day limit for fishing: The fishing limit varies by river. Maximum 3 salmon/day in the Kenai River and 6 salmon/day in the Kasilof River. There might be fishing “policemen” who mingle in the lines, and you could get fined.
• If the local authorities find that they are behind annual and seasonal targets for salmon, they might close the fishing or reduce the limit, first commercial and then individual.
• Competitiveness: Securing a good fishing spot is crucial; you don’t want others to claim it. We teamed up to protect our spots while others were away, such as tying up the fish and taking turns for lunch. We usually stay next to each other so we can help net the fish and keep the spots.
• Keep your license with you, as you might get checked at any time.
• The number of salmon going through the river each day determines if it is a good fishing day. Paul said that if there are 30,000+ salmon, then it’s definitely a good fishing day.

HIKING & MOSQUITOES

We didn’t have a very good hiking experience in Alaska due to the aggressive mosquitoes. I was prepared with mosquito repellent and nets, but they simply don’t work. We tried 3-4 hiking trails and all ended up running back (for our lives!). I didn’t want to risk getting mosquito bites while hiking. However, we found two great locations with wonderful views.

Engineer Lake & fireweeds

A large area of the forest here was burned by lightning fire. Wherever the forest was burned, these pink-violet flowers bloomed; the locals called them fireweeds. We found heavenly views near Engineer Lake here.

Homer

It was beautiful driving from Kasilof and Homer, with many heavenly views of the oceans, clouds, and mountains meeting. We also sighted two bald eagles on our way.

Have fun exploring Alaska, guys!