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| Worthington Glacier |
We got here in the mid afternoon. A trip of only 120 miles but many distractions: frost heaves on the road and rock heaves all around. (Mountains - many many.) And some splendid glaciers. A stop at Worthington Glacier provides us with a bunch of info on firn (compressed snow - more globular crystal structure) and glacial movement. I find the Alaskan information kiosks to be well done. We are camped at a private RV park which hurts our pride a little but occasionally there is an advantage to electrical service, laundry and wi-fi (of a sort)
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| One day's catch |
If Homer was halibut, Valdez is silver salmon. People at this campsite have multiple freezers outside their rigs full of fish.They transport their catch from the dock to the RV in wheelbarrows! (See photo - I know no one will believe me.) My neighbour Bill is at present vacuum packing his daily catch. (Alysha, there really are people who buy that machine on the infomercial!)
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| Fish in a barrow |
On Wednesday we roam the town, visit the museum and decide that we’ll try kayaking in the icebergs at Columbia Glacier. Both of us are a little hesitant - that water is damned cold and a dump would have severe consequences. ( Even having owned a kayak I’ve never developed the sane comfort level as I have in my canoe. It has to do with being strapped in I think)
Thursday arrives, we join six others and head out Valdez Arm, past the infamous Bligh Reef where the Exxon Valdez grounded, and head for Heather Island where we will hop into our boats with Sam, our guide. (There is little overt evidence any more of the Valdez tragedy but we’re told that if you lift up a rock on some of the outlying islands crude oil will seep up from the ground. And there are still wildlife sectors that have never recovered.)
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| First skirt Darlene's worn all trip! |
Kayaking in the icebergs is magical. I was hoping for bigger ones but truly, they would have been wasted. There was a strong current blowing them our way and even “little” ones will cause damage if you were to be hit by one. Anyway I’m having enough trouble steering the boat. I’ve never had a moveable rudder on kayak before so I don’t realize that mine is not operating properly. ( It finally breaks, Sam, the guide, adjusts it, and oh my, the boat now turns easily. )
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| Columbia Glacier Ice Fields |
Bill and Mary, our neighbours at the RV park have been fishing again. This time, as well as a mess of shrimp, he’s brought in a 175 lb halibut as well as a 30 lb one. They may have to buy another freezer.
On Friday, before we leave we visit the Whitney Museum a wonderful storehouse of early Alaskan and Athabascan life. Later, at the visitors’ center of the Wrangell-St. Elias National Park, we have a long conversation with an Athabascan woman who explains that, because of their history as nomadic hunters, all of their art tends to decorate functional pieces and that they have none of the larger pieces like the Pacific North-West peoples because they would not have been able to transport it.
We spend Friday night back at Talkina River, this time in the company of two families in Class A’s, both towing cars.
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| Stellar Sea Lion |
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