Browsed by
Tag: alaska

Lake Clark National Park and Preserve: Four Million Acres of Solitude

Lake Clark National Park and Preserve: Four Million Acres of Solitude

Lake Clark National Park isn’t an easy place to get to. Without any access roads or ferry service, a bush plane flight or boat ride is required to get here. However, we found it well worth the effort. In fact, traveling to and from Lake Clark was one of our favorite experiences on our entire Alaska road trip. The rugged beauty and wildness here are astounding. Lake Clark National Park is home to active volcanoes, craggy jade mountains, glacial rivers,…

Read More Read More

Backpacking Denali National Park: What You Need to Know

Backpacking Denali National Park: What You Need to Know

Backpacking Denali National Park is a bucket list item for many outdoor enthusiasts. It’s also a great way to see the park beyond the established roads and trails. In fact, there aren’t any trails in much of Denali’s 6 million acres, so backpacking here is a true wilderness experience. Upon arrival in Denali National Park, we didn’t have any plans to spend a night in the great outdoors. However, after a few days of witnessing the vast landscape of rolling…

Read More Read More

Everything You Need to Know About the Alaska Marine Highway

Everything You Need to Know About the Alaska Marine Highway

When planning an ultimate Alaska road trip, a voyage on the Alaska Marine Highway, also known as the Alaska State Ferry, is a must! This impressive “highway” stretches 3,500 miles of coastline from Bellingham, Washington, up through Alaska’s Inside Passage to Skagway. Then heads west across the Gulf of Alaska and follows the southern coastline out to the Aleutian Islands. Our trek on the ferry system was an exciting and unique experience and a highlight of our Alaska road trip….

Read More Read More

Exploring Glacier Bay National Park by Land (and Sea Kayak)

Exploring Glacier Bay National Park by Land (and Sea Kayak)

Where are the glaciers? That was our first question when we arrived at Glacier Bay National Park. As it turns out we didn’t have the typical experience here. In fact, we’re part of the 10% of park visitors that set foot on land in Glacier Bay National Park. The other 90% see the park from the deck of an Alaska cruise ship and spend just 8-10 hours in the park. Glacier Bay National Park is the first official national park…

Read More Read More

Our Favorite Things to Do in Sitka, Alaska

Our Favorite Things to Do in Sitka, Alaska

We are super excited to share this destination guide from our road trip to Alaska. Our first stop is Sitka, Alaska. We chose Sitka because two of my college roommates (who I was well overdue for a visit with) live there and it was a perfect beginning to our Alaskan adventure. This small island city did not disappoint. There are tons of things to do in Sitka. We were lucky enough to spend a week and explore the nature, culture,…

Read More Read More

Sitka Tribal Tours: An Introduction to Alaskan Culture

Sitka Tribal Tours: An Introduction to Alaskan Culture

The first few weeks of travel in Alaska and Canada have been a wild ride both figuratively and literally. We’ve taken Stan the Tan Van on 6 boat voyages, kayaked with sea lions (not intentionally, mind you), camped across from a glacier, celebrated Canada Day with a sour-toe cocktail (complete with a mummified human toe) in an old mining town, and US Independence Day at the crossroads of Tok, Alaska. Needless to say, we have a lot to share already…

Read More Read More

Complete Alaska Packing List for Spring and Summer

Complete Alaska Packing List for Spring and Summer

Everything You Need to Pack for a Trip to Alaska In a month we’ll be leaving for the Last Frontier. This is our final Alaska planning post that we’ll be publishing pre-trip. You can find out how to plan your trip to Alaska here, and what to do to get your vehicle ready for a long road trip here. Today we’re sharing a comprehensive Alaska packing list before the peak travel season to help anyone else who is preparing for…

Read More Read More

How to Plan a Trip to Alaska

How to Plan a Trip to Alaska

Ultimate Alaska Road Trip Planning Checklist Like many outdoor and nature enthusiasts, a trip to Alaska has been a dream of ours for a long time. We’re finally embarking on a 3-month road trip to the Last Frontier this summer. When you start to plan a trip to Alaska, it can be a daunting task. What areas should you visit? How much time do you need? How much will all this cost? What’s the best way to get around the…

Read More Read More

Alaska Road Trip Route and Timeline

Alaska Road Trip Route and Timeline

What’s this Journey to Alaska all About? If you missed last week’s post here’s a quick summary of what this is all about. We’re planning a 3-month road trip to Alaska this summer in our self-converted camper van—Stan the Tan Van. The state known as the Last Frontier boasts 6,640 miles of coastline, the tallest mountain in North America, 100,000 glaciers, and over 322 million acres of public lands. While Alaska is a dream destination for many outdoor enthusiasts, planning…

Read More Read More

You’re Invited: Join us on the Road to Alaska!

You’re Invited: Join us on the Road to Alaska!

I’m not sure if I’ve ever been this excited to share a blog post with you all! I mentioned this trip in our 2019 Travel Plans and Goals, but now it’s official—we’re journeying to Alaska this summer. And you’re invited! Since the cat’s out of the bag (which is a very weird saying IMHO) let’s jump right into all the juicy Alaska details, shall we? What Exactly is the Journey to Alaska all About? Alaska has been one of our…

Read More Read More