Anchorage: Alaska's Big City

Lee and the Bear

(July 12) – Morning in Anchorage didn’t come quite as early for us as usual. We slept in just a little, then had our continental breakfast downstairs and met our fellow travelers at 9:00.


We had mapped out a few places we wanted to see, so started off to visit them. The first stop was at the Alaskan Ulu Factory. Ulus are traditional curved native knives that we’ve seen everywhere here. They are used to chop vegetables (or whatever), usually in rounded wooden bowls that have the same curve as the knife.

Deciding that our luggage is already likely to be overweight for our return to Charlotte tomorrow, we opted not to purchase an ulu. I did find a gift for a friend that I think she will like. This completes the short list I had for gifts from Alaska for family and friends.

Our next stop, oddly enough, was at the Alaska Mill and Feed Company. This was recommended by our friend last night as the place to buy everything a dog might need, including some special treats marketed as Yummy Chummies. These are made from salmon and are the dog treat of choice here. Thus, our sweet Annie will have a new taste in treats.

Alaskans love their dogs and, of course, when sledding with them in snowy conditions, depend on them for their lives. In the state that is home to the 1,000 mile Iditarod, one can appreciate that dogs are very special creatures to their owners.

Next on our list was the Wildride Sled Dog Show, another suggestion from our friend here in Anchorage. She said it is a bit touristy, but fun AND they always have Husky puppies. It wasn’t open when we went by, so we deferred that till later.

We headed south to find an artist’s studio. Her name is V Rae and we saw her paintings at the Alaska Sea Life Center in Seward. Her subjects are animals, primarily Alaskan animals, including some who live at the Sea Life Center. Her work falls into two categories, one representational and the other whimsical. We liked both and had picked up a card that said she has a studio near Anchorage, so we called and asked if we could come by.

V's Pond

V and her husband live in a wonderfully creative home on a hilltop with a fabulous view of Turnagain Arm. They bought the house, gutted it and then decorated it, doing much of the work themselves. It is filled with creative touches, including one her husband suggested—using a 4-foot tall chrome tool box as part of the kitchen cabinets. It fits in beautifully and provides great drawer spaces for utensils, etc. Everywhere in their home, both inside and out are the evidences of their ingenuity, including some turned chrome-plated piping that came from oil-drilling rigs.

The home is also her studio, so her work is on display throughout. We purchased our first piece as did Ellen and Mark. They will be shipped to us when they are produced on canvas. My hope would be to collect her work over time. We will enjoy it for the memories of our time in Alaska, as well as for the sheer talent visible in every line and every color used. She calls some of her work “expressionist.”

We went from that wonderful spot to the creek below their house in the hope that we would see salmon jumping in their stream, but saw neither salmon nor the grizzly that V has seen in recent weeks.

Potter Marsh

Our next stop was the Potter Marsh Bird Sanctuary, just below V’s house. It’s a wonderful spot in sight of Turnagain Arm and is home to birds and ducks and eagles. Since it was midday, we didn’t see much life in the marsh, but did see a bald eagle and got photographs of it soaring over us as it flew around for several minutes. They are such regal creatures and we feel lucky to have seen so many.

The restaurant V and her husband had recommended for lunch was not open on Monday, so we found another where we had good food, except for a piece of wood or vine that Judy unearthed in her chicken salad. The proprietor was wise enough not to charge her for the food when that was brought to his attention.

We took a little while to explore a little of Kincaid Park, a huge public park along Cook Inlet near the airport. There are, they say, moose and bear there, but we didn’t see them. The guidebook says you can see Mt. McKinley, North America’s tallest mountain, on some days. It’s 90 miles away and was not visible to us today.

We headed back to town and discovered that the Sled Dog show is an evening dinner show. Since we already had reservations at Sack’s Cafe, a place recommended highly by Ellen and Mark’s friends, we decided to pass on that.

We went back to the hotel to leave our extras—binoculars, packages, etc.—then walked around town for a little while before meeting for our evening wine and cheese. Then we walked a couple of blocks to the restaurant which turned out to be everything wonderful that had been said about it. We returned to the hotel in the cool of the evening and said our goodbyes since we’ll all be on separate flights home by 10:00 AM tomorrow.

Anchorage Blooms

Everywhere in Anchorage we’ve seen beautiful flowers. They are in hanging baskets throughout the downtown area, in pots and flower boxes along the sidewalks, on the sides of buildings and in flower beds in the parks. They come in vibrant colors of purple, orange, yellow, blue and red. There are petunias, roses, firewood, lupine, roses and so many with names I don’t know. They have brightened our days here and led us to believe that folks here have a great pride in their home.

It will be hard to leave Alaska tomorrow. As much as I look forward to going home to see loved ones and sleep in my own bed, I will leave a huge part of my heart here. This is an extraordinary place, rife with natural beauty and stunning vistas. It is full of color and grandeur. The people are friendly and independent-minded, here because they have chosen the freedom of this life and the uniqueness of this place, unbowed by any hardships that come with it.

Mike and I will remain grateful to Ellen for the planning that brought us here. We will remember our times with our friends fondly and will relive the trip in pictures in the years to come.

Our group at Sack's Cafe

There is no question in my mind that we must come back to Alaska, both to see again the places we’ve seen and to explore those places we missed. I will encourage everyone I know to come here, as well. It’s an experience not to be missed.
[Photos by Mike Lumpkin]