The Trip of a Lifetime to Alaska – Land and Sea – Trip Report - COMLETE!! 4/13/12 - Page 16 - PassPorter - A Community of Walt Disney World, Disneyland, Disney Cruise Line, and General Travel Forums
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Denali does sound and look absolutely amazing. And I could happily move right in to that little cabin right now (although it's probably under 10' of snow in January).
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Your dogsled tour at Denali sounded very interesting.
One question - I am debating the Tundra Wildlife Tour vs the Elison shuttle. Based on what you saw, which would you recommend? Did the shuttle stop for wildlife viewing on the way? Did the driver give you info on the way?
One question - I am debating the Tundra Wildlife Tour vs the Elison shuttle. Based on what you saw, which would you recommend? Did the shuttle stop for wildlife viewing on the way? Did the driver give you info on the way?
They are basically the same tour. They go to the same places, stop at the same rest stops. Yes, the shuttle will stop for wildlife or for pictures of Mt. McKinley (if it's out). And yes, the driver will give you his own spiel. Maybe not canned like the TWT might be. Ours was full of information. The shuttles leave from the WAC in the park. I believe the TWT can leave from the Princess hotel in Glitter Gulch. I believe the TWT also has monitors/TVs on the bus, the shuttle does not. You also get a small snack on the TWT. I don't know it the road will be open all the way to Eielson when you go since you are going mid May so you may only get to Toklat. You'll have to research that. It's really not worth the extra money for the TWT, unless you don't have a car and can't get to the WAC.
I can't get over how much you have done in such a short time! What a fantastic trip! Those puppies were so adorable, I probably would have tried to smuggle one out in my purse I had to laugh, Marnie, you an the kids in pants, jackets and sneakers, and there's Matt with his shorts and sandels....lol, typical man!
The cabin looks terrific! Can't wait to hear (and see) more!!!!
Day 5 – Matanuska Glacier – Wednesday June 29th
It was another early morning. Since breakfast foods were supplied in the cabin, I made some eggs, sausages, and finished off the rhubarb muffins that were made already (the best muffins I’ve ever tasted). I think Liz (who owns the cabins) said that it would take 45 or 75 minutes (can’t remember now) to get there and she was right on the money! We were doing a family glacier hike with MICA guides this morning. We arrived a bit early, but spent that time getting suited up, putting sunscreen on, and then signing paperwork. Alyssa was our guide and she was great and very good with the kids. It ended up being just us, which was nice.
We took a van down to the glacier entrance. You have to pay another access fee, as this road into the glacier is privately owned. I think it cost us another $50 on top of the fees for the hike, but that was explained when we arranged the tour so we were expecting it. We were actually the first ones to the glacier that morning. It was about a 15 minute hike to get to the “face” of the glacier, and then we put on crampons (supplied by MICA – we all had hiking boots but they have them as well if you don’t for no extra charge). It was weird walking in the crampons and took some getting used to. It was also weird walking on the glacier, as it looks like you are walking on sand/silt and it’s really ice. There were some parts where we had some good inclines and declines, but no one had any problems. Alyssa was great and would always scope out the area first, and then help us all cross the trickier areas. There were also beautiful pools on the glacier, but you had to be careful as if you got too close, the surrounding area might not be secure and you could fall in (she walked with an ice pick and was constantly checking the stability of the ice). We had to walk single file on the glacier so she knew we were always walking on stable ice. I’d highly recommend this tour. It was a relatively inexpensive way to get onto a glacier and was an amazing experience. I’ll let the pictures do the talking.
This is the water bubbling up from all the pressure, like a fountain!
Here are Matt’s pictures.
Between the parking lot and the face of the glacier, there was an area of “mud”. Apparently this is the new fad in cosmetics. Alyssa said to put it on your face (it would eventually dry off). It was very smooth, not what you were expecting. There was also an area near here that we walked over that was like walking on jelly. The silt would move up and down as you walked, as the ice was much further below than it was closer to the face (permafrost, I think)? Anyway very cool! Matt wanted to do more hiking, but Colin was tired (which I knew he would be and that was my reason going for the 1.5 hour and not the 3 hour). It was a bit tiring as you were walking with your legs further apart so you don’t get your crampons tangled. Just not your normal hiking.
We turned in our gear, said goodbye to Alyssa, and headed to Anchorage. We checked in at the hotel again (Comfort Inn Ship Creek), picked up our luggage that we had left there, and just hung out for a bit. I did a couple loads of laundry, as the cruise ship did not have a self service Laundromat. The kids were getting hungry again, so we went into town and ate at the Snow Goose. It was a warm day in Anchorage that day, close to 70, so everyone was out on the sun deck. After dinner, we met up with Jen (jenifermg01) and her son Jacob, and we walked around downtown Anchorage for a bit and just chatted. Jennifer wa kind enough to take me to the airport so that I could drop the rental car off, and then take me back to the hotel! PassPorters are great!
After saying goodbye to Jennifer and Jacob, it was time to finish up the packing. I think the kids went for a swim, and I know there was also fishing involved. It was early to bed, as we had to get up early yet again to take the train to Seward.
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I had to laugh, Marnie, you an the kids in pants, jackets and sneakers, and there's Matt with his shorts and sandels....lol, typical man!
PassPorters are great! 
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