8/11-14/2021

Today starts the second segment of our Alaska trip. We check out the hotel around 9:30 am and drive to the Copper River Center at the Wrangell-St Elias National Park. The Visitor Center and Ahtna Cultural Center are closed due to COVID 19. A hand-built fish wheel by Ahtna people is on display. The river's current pushes against the submerged paddle and rotates the wheel, passing the baskets through the water where they intercept fish swimming against the current. Fish wheels are very effective in catching the fish so that they are banned from public use. We are told that there are eleven wheels in use on Copper River. On the way to Cooper Landing, we stop by a few places for scenic views. We also go to Sheep Mountain Lodge to look for Dally Sheep on the Sheep Mountain. We can not see any of them on the slope, and the café at the lodge also closes due to the lack of staff.

Today's weather starts with cloudy and drizzling. However, the rain stop when we arrive at the Kenai Princess Wilderness Lodge. The resort is well built and maintained. Our cabin has a wood fireplace. It is the first time that we use a wood fireplace. We have to call the front desk to get the instruction on how to light up the fire. The resort's restaurant offers excellent food and has an incredible view of the mountains and the river. We have a great dinner on the first day there.

On 8/12, we drive two and a half hours to Homer Spit to catch the Danny J Ferry to Ismailof Island in Halibut Cove. The ferry ticket to the island was purchased in advance. Danny J is a small fishing boat that can carry only 29 passengers. Everyone stays outside on the deck and wears masks. The boat ride also includes a visit to Gull Island, a bird sanctuary. We see Tufted Puffins, a lot of Common Murres, Gulls, and Bald Eagles. A Sea Otter floats in the sea on its back and is enjoying a meal of a live starfish. The ride to the island takes about 45 mins. After docking, we walk up a steep ramp into the Saltry restaurant due to low tide. We order a combination seafood platter and a Saltry taco. The food is good. After lunch, we walk on the boardwalk around the island. It is a great experience. At 4 pm, we embark and went back to Homer Spit. At the Spit, several charted fish boats are unloading their fish tour trophies, lots of fish. The largest one we saw is 70 lb Halibut. Before we drive off to the resort, we have another Fish and Chips. The Halibut fish is so delicious.

The next day, we hike 4.5-mile roundtrip on the Russian River Falls Trail. At the base of the falls, a pond of salmons is waiting to jump up the cascading waterfalls and swim upstream on the homeward journey to their birthplaces. We take a lot of pictures of salmon jumping. Unfortunately, no bears show up to catch the fish. Seeing salmon jumping up the waterfall is one of the highlights of this trip.

On Aug. 14, before we head back to Anchorage, we do an 18-mile-long loop drive on gravel Skilak Lake Road. Alaska.org provides Audio Recordings for the road tour. Since there is no cellular service in the area, we couldn't listen to them. There is no option to download them either. We see no major wildlife except ducks and birds but have great views of a few lakes. Potter Marsh Bird Sanctuary is just outside Anchorage. We stop there for a quick visit and head to Anchorage downtown, and check into our hotel.

The dinner tonight is at Crow's Nest on the 24th floor in Hotel Captain Cook, with stunning panoramic views of the city, Chugach Mountains and Cook Inlet. We order four appetizers, Pork Belly, Crab Cake, Raw Oysters, Caesar Salad, and one main entree, Seafood Cioppino. They all are outstanding. After dinner, we stroll around the downtown area and do a dry run from the hotel to the bus stop for tomorrow's bus ride to Denali National Park. Since the bus will leave in the early morning, at 6:30 am, and we have a few suitcases to move, we want to make sure we have the quickest and easiest route to the bus stop.