Friday, June 29, 2012

Alaska Sea Kayaking

I was born in Tuscon, Arizona in July. My mom, bless her heart, said it was 115 degrees when she went to the hospital to have me. We lived in west Texas until I was 12 then my dad was transferred to Colorado. I graduated from high school in Pueblo, Colorado. I love hot and sunny weather and the hotter the better. It's almost always sunny in Lander even if we get subzero temps in the winter and there's feet of snow on the ground.  The prospect of having a cold and rainy week of vacation made me nervous.  For this reason, it was with some trepidation that I agreed to go on a kayaking trip to Prince William Sound, Alaska. The kicker is that was my good friend's 40th birthday -- and that's what friendship is all about. She, after all, climbed the Grand Teton with me on my 40th.

It was all worth it, we saw whales breaching, harbor seals, sea otters, one lone river otter, and bald eagles on every tree.  I loved the rhythm of kayaking, it was a great way to travel.   Here are a few photos of what turned out to be an amazing trip.

Holly and I starting to sort gear to pack into the dry bags, in the pouring rain.
Our kayaks on top of the charter boat as we are getting a ride to our destination.

Kathy and Scott - open water crossing to get to our final destination - Whale Bay.  I was very out of my comfort zone here and was colder and wetter than I have ever been in my life.
Scott hanging our food, just like at home.

Cooking in between rain showers.

Heaven on earth, our campsite on Whale Bay.




While cooking dinner at our camp in Whale Bay, humpbacks would cruise by camp.  One night a whale did a series of breaches across the bay while we drank wine and ate dinner.




Starting to dodge ice floes.





When the sun came out, the trip was glorios.











Enjoying the sunshine.