Sunday, August 13, 2017

Alaska


Alaska has lots of scenic places to see, things to do, adventures, and more. I felt really happy and excited while going to Alaska and in Alaska. We went with two other families - Abhay & Kaushik's family and Rajeev and Nikitha's family. We all had a great time in Alaska so we didn’t want to leave but we had to. I wrote this blog about Alaska to tell you what I saw, the things I did and the places I went to during my trip.

Flight
Unique things happened on my American Airlines flights that I did not expect. First, there weren’t personal TVs that you’d find on international flights. So, I got bored and to entertain myself, me and Nihitha watched movies on my dad’s phone. Also, we looked out the airplane window to see lakes, ponds, rivers, farms, mountains and snow. We noticed that Alaska is a very beautiful place. Second, they didn’t give any food as you’d expect on an international flight. We ate the food we packed. Third, Kaushik and Abhay’s family travelled on the same flight
as we did. We talked and played games. It is fun traveling with friends.  Fourth, the memorable thing that happened was that I got to sit with the pilot, which was pretty awesome. When I was boarding the plane, I said “hi” to the air hostess and she said, “you said hi to me, but how about saying hi to the pilot?” Nervously, I said, “okay!” Then I got to see the pilot and have a picture taken in the cockpit. Next time, I want to go on Delta so that I get my own TV and I hope Nihitha gets to sit with the pilot.


Motorhome
We rented an RV which we used as our home and to go around. Traveling in an RV is like taking your home on the road. Because, RVs have closets, shower, restroom, beds, kitchen and hall. The advantage is that you could do things while moving, such as cooking, eating and sleeping. We rented a 30-foot RV (2018 30D Four Winds). It had lots of space to play and we could make more space by extending slide outs. All the kids could stay in one RV and play board games. RVs are everywhere in Alaska and so are RV parks. We found many RVs from Great Alaskan Holidays. In fact, we rented three RVs for our three families - one for Nihanth & Nihitha, one for Kaushik and Abhay and one for Nikitha & Rajiv. It was fun playing music on the sound system, playing games with friends and looking out the big windows.

Activities
We did lots of fun activities in Alaska to make our Alaska trip memorable. The activities we did in Alaska are these: going on a ship, paddle boat, canoe; playing game of life; building a bridge; hiking; taking pictures; river rafting; collecting glacier water; campfires; Jr. Ranger program. I’m going to write about building a bridge, going on a ship and river rafting.
In Denali National park there is a river called McKinley river. It was split into two. The rapid river was on one side and the smaller one was near our campground. Me and Abhay built a bridge out of rocks and mud to cross the smaller river. It was fun building the bridge. The water was melted from snow, so it was cold. The other kids also built bridges.
We went on a ship to see sea animals. We saw Humpback Whales, Otters, Puffins, Sea Lions and Blue Jay. We saw two Whales, a mother and her baby, swimming together. They sprouted high. Luckily, it did not splash on us. They are big but we only saw a portion of their bodies. Near the harbor, there were lots of otters. They were all swimming on their back. Puffins were everywhere, flapping and flying. Sea Lions were lying down on giant rocks. We stopped at Fox Lake, which was beautiful, to eat lunch. The lunch was ok but they gave a good cookie as a snack afterwards. I enjoyed the cruise by looking at the scenery around me and the sea animals.
We went river rafting in Alaska in Nenana river. We had to wear wetsuits to keep us dry. It was hard to put on the wetsuits but they helped us stay dry. During our journey, we saw lots of rocks, trees and mountains. The water in the river was just melted from the glaciers, so the water was cold. The rapids rose like waves and splashed the raft and the people inside. Me, Sowda Aunty, and Nikitha sat in the back so we wouldn't get as much wet than those sitting in the front. Rajeev was in the front and wanted us to get wet. He told the captain to get us wet. The captain paddled the raft in a position to get us in the back to get wet. After we got out of the raft, me and Nikitha attacked Rajeev.   
In Seward we took paddle boats and canoes to ride in the water which was really fun. We got to paddle and steer while looking at the mountains and trees. The water was cold and calm. The paddleboat had four seats to sit in, it had a steering wheel and paddles. We raced against canoes and we lost.
We went hiking on Blue Ice Trail. The trail was long but scenic. We saw bridges, glaciers, lakes and rivers. Me, dad, mom Mallika aunty and Sowda aunty went on this hike and the rest, including Nihitha, went fishing in a lake. I was tired by the time we finished hiking.
 











The activities we did were fun because we got to do them with friends.

Places

In Alaska there are lots of scenic places to see. You could see mountains, trees, waterfalls, lakes and glaciers. Mountains are very tall in Alaska.
In Denali National Park, there is a Mountain called Mount Mckinley which is the tallest peak in Alaska, with an elevation of 20,310′. The mountain has lots of snow during the whole year. We could not see the peak really well because there were lots of clouds. Trees in Alaska are very different than the trees in California. The trees in Alaska have thicker leaves and are taller than the trees in California. Wherever you go, there are trees in Alaska and they all look the same. Alaska has lots of water resources that help trees grow. The water resources you’d find in Alaska are: lakes, rivers, creeks, bays and sea. We saw lots of mountains, trees and water, which make Alaska very beautiful.



We got to Anchorage by American Airlines and stayed there for a night. We rented an RV in Anchorage and then went shopping. From Anchorage we went to Seward to camp. In Seward, we went on a cruise ship to see glaciers and sea animals. On the way to Williwaw, we visited Kenai Fjords.



         
We hiked to Exit Glacier, which was really pretty, and went to Williwaw campground. The campground had no RV hookups. We went on Blue Ice trail which was very beautiful and long. Following day, we proceeded to Talkeetna. There, we ate cheese quesadilla and nachos in a Mexican restaurant. Anchorage is the only big city we saw in Alaska. I wanted to explore the whole city the last day in Alaska but we did other things.    


Animals
Alaska is home to many wild animals that we do not see in California. We saw Moose, Caribou, Grizzly, Bald Eagle, Squirrel, and Lynx. Caribou is a type of moose that has antlers but they are different than moose because they travel in herds and moose don’t. Grizzly bears are different than other bears because they have a hump on their back. We saw 5 grizzly bears in Denali National Park. We saw a mom and her 2 cubs. They were eating a dead carcass. Lynx is a type of cat that has good eyes to help it to see in the snow during winter. They could only be found in Alaska. Animals in Alaska all have a unique feature to help them live in Alaska.   


Conclusion

If you ever go to Alaska do the things I did. You can go to Seward and ride paddle boats for free! You could take a cruise ship in Seward and see the sea life. You can take a bus tour In Denali to see animals inside Denali. Try to go to Wonder Lake. Try doing all the activities, and go to all the places that I did. If you do the things I did in Alaska, you could have the best trip ever.  


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