The Things You Learn From A Map
- Virtual Traveller 86
- May 17, 2020
- 2 min read
Day Three: Country No.18
AMERICA Arrival Time: 9:29pm
Alaska
So having arrived back safely on planet earth, survived the medical checks and been debriefed (yep I’m playing the “humour me” card again...though it’s not been played for a while!); my next destination was going to be Alaska. I flew from Houston to Newark where I was able to get a seven hour flight to Anchorage.
According to the Travel Alaska website, “Alaska is a land of superlatives and adventure. The Great Land consists of five distinct regions: Inside Passage, Southcentral, Interior, Arctic and Southwest.” Alaska is a constituent state of the USA and lies at the extreme northwest of the North American continent. The Alaska peninsula is the largest peninsula in the Western Hemisphere (www.britannica.com). At the western end of the Seward Peninsula lies Little Diomede Island. It is in the Bering Strait and only 2.5 miles from Russian-owned Big Diomede Island.
I never knew that the US and Russia were so close to one another. The things you learn when you actually study a map of the world!
Kenai Fjords National Park
The Kenai Peninsula is a sub-region of the Southcentral region and an easy drive from Anchorage. Kenai Fjords National Park spans more than 600,000 acres at the foot of Seward. Over 60% of the park is covered by snow and ice. Harding Icefield lines the edge and covers an area of 936 square miles. The park has beautiful valleys, lakes, glaciers and stunning fjords with icebergs the size of a small house.
Kenai Fjords National Park has three main areas - Exit Glacier, Harding Icefield and the coast.
Whilst in the park I explored Exit Glacier, including climbing down a 30 foot crevasse. Exit Glacier is a half-mile wide river of ice. The ice fields are constantly shifting and you can actually hear the ice moving.
I also took a kayak trip through Bear Glacier’s meltwater lagoon and a helicopter ride above the glacier. The thickest part of Bear Glacier is about 1800 feet which means that some of the ice goes below sea level. The lagoon was stunning.
I also saw a humpback whale breach the water.
The national park has much wildlife and over 180 species of birds.
Kenai Fjords National Park was incredible to see. I am continually in awe at the beauty of this world. To be able to see so much of it by virtual means is a huge privilege.
Departing America: 10:45pm
Sources
I am doing this challenge to raise funds for The Scoliosis Association UK (SAUK) and for the NHS Charities. You can read my reasons for choosing these in an earlier post. I am trying to raise £500 and am nearly there. Every donation is gratefully received and can be made by clicking on the virginmoneygiving link below. Thank You.
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