Wind, Rain and Glacier Ice

Bucky and I left Palmer yesterday and headed south of Anghorage to Bird Creek, looking for Silver Salmon. What we found instead were Beluga whales, many of them. As we drove along Turnagain Arm at low time it was a sight we hadn't expected and allowed us to put another check in the boxes of "must see" sights of Alaska. The waves on the Turnagain were cresting in white tops which at first masked the Beluga's appearance. It was an amazing sight which unfortunately was only captured on video, something that I have yet to master with this blog. Bird Creek provided another opportunity to combat fish, which Bucky didn't feel up for and I haven't ever mastered. It's the synchronized casting that prevents me from being successful. As you stand or sit on the bank, in your lawn chair, you must cast directly at the stranger standing or sitting, in their lawn chair, across the river. This requires accuracy and consistency, so as not to catch the fisherman standing or sitting across the river from you. I've watched as two fisherman have cast into each other and both yank thinking they have a strike. Most of the time the ensuing tangle of line, sinkers and lure or bait is cut without much foul language, but not always. I don't want to be the "not always". This morning we woke to wind and rain. Where to head? We decided to harvest ice from the Portage glacier for our evening drinks. What else would one do on such a day? The Portage Valley acts as a wind tunnel, directing gale force wind and weather up the valley. Bucky and I experienced this first hand during our ice harvest and it wasn't so great. We donned our rain gear and headed for the shores of Portage Lake to harvest ice so dense and powerful that it is said to break a glass when placed in it! It's good we have plastic glasses in festive summer colors. Perhaps we'll take the same approach as when combat fishing and wear our sunglasses. When fishing, this is done to keep from being hit in the eye with flying lures. Now we will save our eyes from possible flying ice. From the camper, we can see a small ice chunk floating comfortably just off shore. Bucky easily retrieved it and rushed it back to the camper freezer for 5pm. During the ice harvest, Bucky remained vigilant to his glacial documentation by taking both visual and mental notes. The Portage Glacier used to be seen off to the side of the Seward Highway. It now can be seen with high powered binoculars slipping silently away into the mountains.......I'm sure it will advance when it feels like it. We continued on for a revisit of Whittier, the town that shares its access with trains using the same tunnel. We waited 1/2 hour for the train to go through and then proceeded on. The weather was such that we left rather hastily and ended up in Hope, AK. Hope sits on Turnagain Arm across from the Seward Highway. I think it's the Western side, but I have been confused since arriving in AK as to where North is. There happens to be WiFi at this camp ground so I thought I would post this somewhat mediocre post and share some pictures. Bucky plans to fish Resurrection Creek tomorrow, still in search of the elusive Silver Salmon.