Alaska Pt. 1

Hey, guys! So, I went to this REALLY awesome place over the summer, but I forgot to write it on the blog, so it’s really late! :( But anyway, I went on vacation to…Alaska! I was there for two weeks, from late July to early August, and we had a blast! First, we flew to Anchorage, and then we rented a car and drove around southern Alaska. After a week of road tripping, we took a cruise to Alaskan port cities, finally ending up in Vancouver, Canada, the end of our trip.

My favorite place was Denali National Park. It was beautiful, with plenty of wildlife that the rangers are working hard to preserve. When we got there, we first visited the dog kennels that housed the sled dogs rangers work with during the winter. Instead of snowmobiles, all the rangers are taught to use dog sleds, because the dogs are more reliable as a source of transportation during the long and cold winter months.

We also went to the Wilderness Access Center, one of Denali's information centers, where we learned about a very interesting topic: sustainable living.

Sustainable living is a lifestyle that attempts to reduce one’s carbon footprint on the world, and use the least amount of resources necessary. Both of Denali’s information centers employed this idea when they were built; for example, they are built into the sides of mountains, so as to reduce the material needed for one wall of the building, and both information centers are closed during the winter, as to conserve energy. Also, the materials that went into the buildings, as well as the designs, drew inspiration from the numerous species in Denali National Park, such as Dall’s sheep, grizzly bears, caribou, moose, ground squirrels, etc. For example, the idea to "hibernate" during the winter came from the grizzly bear, as well as the idea to build the centers into the mountain, because bears dig their dens into the sides of mountains, instead of building one that sticks out of the ground.

The next day, we took the Kantishna Experience, a bus tour during which a tour guide drove us into Denali for 90 miles one way, and 90 miles back, for a grand total of 180 miles. During this trip, there were PLENTY of opportunites to snap photos, especially since the ride took over 12 hours long!

Alaska was breath-taking. More so than any other place in the United States, Alaska is in tune with nature, and has not been overrun with cities that spout pollutants and smog into the air. Going there, I felt so peaceful and calm, especially because I could actually see the stars for once. The mountain ranges were so large, the landscapes so stunning, that sometimes you just want to cry.