Category: Nature
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Southeastern Alaska and the Inside Passage
August 1995 Southeast Alaska Travel Index We captured this image a long time ago on our initial trip to Alaska in 1995. We took a small-ship cruise through Glacier Bay and to Juneau and Sitka. Then we spent several days in Juneau where we did a lot of hiking, went to a nearby glacier and…
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Captain Cook State Recreation Area
Near Nikiski, Alaska, USA (July 2010) We traveled along the Kenai Spur Highway, heading past Nikiski on the way to Captain Cook State Recreation Area where the road ends at milepost 36. Literally, one can go no further on the public road system on the northwest side of the Kenai Peninsula (map). This remote area…
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Somewhere Between Juneau and Sitka
Inside Passage, Southeastern Alaska, USA (August 1995) One of the benefits of small-ship sailing was our ability to fit through tight spaces where ordinary cruise ships would never dare to venture. To prove the point our ship threaded a needle between a rocky island and the shoreline, barely wider than the boat. The wall on…
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Sitka Points of Interest
The City and Borough of Sitka, Alaska, USA (August 1995) American history recognizes the 60-foot high promontory known as Castle Hill for a significant event (map). It marks the spot where Russia transferred Alaska to the United States after its purchase for $7.2 million in 1867. It also has a notable history from earlier times.…
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Various Points Around Juneau
The City and Borough of Juneau, Alaska, USA (August 1995 & July 2000) Mount Roberts The Mount Roberts Tramway delivers visitors 1800 feet up the side of the mountain, above Juneau (map). On a clear day the view extends for miles along the Gastineau Channel. Snow still clings to mountaintops in July. Trails radiate from…
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South Marble Island
Glacier Bay: Hoonah–Angoon Census Area Census Area of the Unorganized Borough, Alaska, USA (August 1995) South Marble Island (map) is a small protrusion within the main channel of Glacier Bay as one sails from the Visitors Center at Glacier Bay National Park up towards the major glaciers. It would be unremarkable except that it houses…
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Adventures on Kaua’i
Kaua’i, Hawaii, USA (October 1997) When my wife and I planned our trip to Australia we figured we might as well hit Hawaii since we’d be all the way out there anyway. On the leg from Los Angeles to Sydney a few days earlier we flew right over Hawaii; a thirty second view of Molokai…
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Miscellaneous Bayfield Locations
Apostle Islands & Bayfield Peninsula, Wisconsin (August 2007) Stunningly clear views of the Apostle Islands and the mainland led the way to the Mawikwe Sea Caves. Now on our return trip, passengers jostled railings for viewing space as we sailed away from the northwestern tip of the peninsula towards the Bayfield marina. We completed our…
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Russian River Falls
Chugach National Forest, Cooper Landing, Alaska (July 2010) Right at the middle of Alaska’s Kenai Peninsula, just off Sterling Highway west of Cooper Landing, the Russian River Falls put on a spectacular show for those who follow a gentle trail through the woods (map). It’s not amazing because of any great vertical drops. No, the…
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Quantico Cascades
Prince William Forest Park, Prince William Co., Virginia (April 2011) We had an enjoyable overnight stay in Prince William Forest Park, tent camping with the Cub Scouts at the Turkey Run Ridge Group Campground. They were working on their Hiking Belt Loop and the den decided upon the Quantico Cascades Trail as their main afternoon…