Denali to Um... Where the Heck Am I Again?

Today was a casual travel day for me - The drive is a long one, but thank heavens it is interesting, if for nothing else the signs.




The only goal being to drive south from Denali, south past Anchorage to the tiny town of Portage. There I had an AirBnB reserved for one night, the following day to drive down to Seward for a couple of nights.

Along the way I stopped to kind of pay my respects to Eklutna, a little Russian/Native town Ila and I visited in 1997 on my first trip to Alaska. Eklutna is quite the same, and yet, quite different. I could feel how much older it has grown in the last 22 years.

There was a tour in progress, but as I took it 22 years ago, I passed on a redo. 

The entrance is a little souvenir shop and gateway to the cemetery

St Nicolas - a Russian Orthodox Church, active since the early 1830s

The area was the center of numerous Athabaskan villages. Over the years, the Athabaskan traditions mingled with those of the Russian Orthodox missionaries. The Athabaskan culture for their dead morphed into one that buried their dead, then built Burial Spirit Boxes over them. The brilliant colors and symbolism of ridges on the boxes and patterns, were unique to families. 

The boxes are purposefully allowed to decay - instead of being kept up - because ashes to ashes and dust to dust.

The decorations on the Spirit Houses denote family ties

On this visit I did not enter the graveyard but did view the highly colorful Spirit Boxes.
After revisiting Eklutna, I wended south past Anchorage, stopping briefly at a favorite spot of mine.

Cook's Pass, a great place to see wild Beluga Whales, the ice cream chunks of the sea!

It faces the Cook Inlet, and it is a spot where in 2000, I spotted what looked like 'ice cream' chunks floating past. The pass is infamous for its Beluga Whales that swim pass.

'Ice cream chunk', swimming by

My 'ice cream chunks' were in fact, Beluga Whales swimming by but I couldn't believe my luck that I was seeing real wild Belugas.  I've stopped at the pass several times but never again saw any wild Belugas at Cook's Inlet. I guess it was beginner's luck working for me.

The 'view' from my window. 

Arriving in Portage, I found the AirBnB I reserved. It serves as a popular Ski
lodge in the winter, but this time of year it serves the oddball tourists who visit out of season. You know. Those like me.  After checking in to my cute & somewhat tiny room 'with a view', I took off for a little exploring.

Overturned gallon jugs made for chess pieces in the park

I enjoyed an excellent meal at a Thai Restaurant, run from a little tent and a building of some sort -  next to the park. Not much ambiance to spare, but the food was excellent.



So all in all, with the driving I had to do, it was a low key day, rest up day. I have myself signed up for two days of pelagic wildlife touring out of Steward.

Lovely array of pansies from Eklutna