Call of the Wild: Alaska, Nature & Imagination
2012 Itinerary & Footnotes
Please note itinerary is subject to change
Day 1
6/14/12
Thursday
Arrive in Anchorage, AK
Check into Anchorage Guest House
Tour Anchorage
Walk the Coastal Trail *
Day 2
6/15/12
Friday
Early morning departure to Sunrise, AK
Stop in Portage to visit the Begich-Boggs Glacial Interpretative Center *
Drive through tunnels to the seacoast town of Whittier, AK and return to Portage*
Continue drive to Sunrise
Set up base camp along Granite Creek
Day 3
6/16/12
Saturday
Morning hike from camp up and back down Granite Creek Trail
Picnic lunch along the shore of Kenai Lake *
Drive to trailhead and hike up Resurrection Pass Trail to Juneau Falls *
Drive back to base camp
Day 4
6/17/12
Sunday
Drive to the Kenai National Wildlife Refuge
Hike to Russian River Falls to observe migrating salmon *
Visit K’bec, an Athabascan (Indian) village *
Drive back to base camp
Day 5
6/18/12
Monday
Break camp
Begin drive to Clam Gulch, AK *
Stop in Soldotna, AK for showers and provisions
Stop in Coho, AK to visit with 1984 Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race winner, Dean
Osmar, and see his kennel and salmon set net sites *
Check into rustic cabins in Clam Gulch
Day 6
6/19/12
Tuesday
Begin a cross-country hike on the very rustic Clam Gulch Trail *
Look for moose in the lowlands and loons on the lakes
Stop at old homestead site for lunch
On the return hike, identify both wetland and upland wildflowers and birds
Day 7
6/20/12
Wednesday
Morning hike on Cook Inlet Beaches to Fox Creek waterfall *
Look for quartz agates and identify seabirds and fossils
Afternoon visit with local Clam Gulch residents *
Evening bonfire
Day 8
6/21/12
Thursday
Drive onto native lands via Wise Old Road *
Hike off-road into the backcountry
Observe the impact of global warming on northern boreal forests
Look for evidence of both black and brown bears
Day 9
6/22/12
Friday
Begin drive to Homer, AK
Visit Russian Orthodox Church in Ninilchik, AK *
Search for eagles at lunch spot next to Deep Creek
Visit Norman Lowell Art Gallery near Anchor Point, AK *
Set up base camp at Seaside Farm near Homer, AK *
Day 10
6/23/12
Saturday
Morning beach walk after breakfast
Visit to Alaska Islands & Ocean Visitor Center *
Lunch in Homer
Visit the Pratt Museum of Natural and Cultural History *
Explore Homer Spit & Harbor *
Day 11
6/24/12
Sunday
Early breakfast
Drive to end of Homer Spit & Check-in with Mako Water Taxi
Water taxi ride across Kachemak Bay *
Hike to Greywinck Glacier Lake & Halibut Lagoon *
Return water taxi ride to Homer
Farewell dinner on Homer Spit
Day 12
6/25/12
Monday
Early breakfast
Pack for trip back to NC
Take showers
Begin drive back to Anchorage, AK
Arrive in Anchorage in time for flight back to North Carolina
* Footnotes
Coastal Trail – The Tony Knowles Coastal Trail has both an urban and wild feel to it. It
encircles the city with many side trails branching off to neighborhoods. The citizens of
Anchorage like to get outside and enjoy what Alaska has to offer. People walk, bicycle and jog
the trails 24 hours a day.
Begich-Boggs Glacial Interpretative Center – Named after two congressmen who died in a plane
crash in the area but were never found, the Center is a wonderful introduction to the indigenous
people of the Kenai Peninsula and its plants, wildlife, geology and ecology. Right outside of the
Center’s educational building is Portage Glacier and Lake.
Whittier, AK is one of the few winter-time, ice-free ports in Alaska. Located on Prince William
Sound, the very small community is hemmed in by the sea and the Chugach Mountain Range.
Everyone in the town lives in one large high-rise building. The only road to Whittier is through
one way tunnels that are shared with trains.
Kenai Lake – A very large glacial lake that is turquoise in color due to the finely suspended silt
created by glaciers grinding down rock. The finely suspended silt is called glacial flour.
Resurrection Pass Trail – Over 60 miles in length, the Trail was created in the late 1890s as
miners made their way from the seaport of Seward, AK into the interior of Alaska in their search
for gold. Juneau Falls is an impressive waterfall that you can feel as the earth shakes long before
you actually view the falls.
Russian River Falls – The falls of the Russian River are very impressive, not for their size, but
for the volume of water flowing over them and the thousands of migrating salmon swimming in,
up and over them to their spawning lake nearby.
K’bec – The Dena’ina Athabascan native people known as the Kenaitze have inhabited the Kenai
Peninsula of Alaska for thousands of years. K’bec is their attempt to educate visitors to their
traditions and culture through interpretative walks featuring archaeological sites and traditional
plant use. Tribal interpretations highlight their knowledge and respect for the plants and animals
that sustain them.
Clam Gulch, AK – In the early 1950s, before there were any roads on the southern Kenai
Peninsula, Per and Fran Osmar homesteaded an area of the western coast of Cook Inlet known as
Clam Gulch. Named after the abundant razor clams that are as large as an adult hand, the area is
best known for its productive salmon set net fishery. The population of Clam Gulch is around
180 residents.
Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race – Sled dog racing is to Alaskans what football is to the lower 48
states. In 1984, Dean Osmar, son of Per and Fran Osmar, lead the 1000+ mile race to Nome
from start to finish and won it in record time. A visit to his home offers an opportunity to visit
an existing kennel of sled dogs and an active salmon set net site. A former Elon graduate in
History, Matt Steible, fishes the site with Dean.
Clam Gulch Trail – In order to qualify to race in the Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race, one has to
qualify in a shorter race. In January of each year, the 200-mile Tustumena Sled Dog Race takes
place over the rustic Clam Gulch Trail and serves to qualify those mushers who finish. From late
April through early October, the Trail offers great cross-country hiking opportunities, if you are
willing to get your feet wet.
Cook Inlet Beaches – Cook Inlet is an extension of the North Pacific Ocean with tidal ranges of
over 20 feet twice a day. The Inlet is named after Captain Cook who sailed into the inlet looking
for the Northwest Passage. The rocky/sandy beaches extend over 50 miles from Clam Gulch to
Homer, AK. Forty miles on the other side of Cook Inlet from Clam Gulch, the Alaska and
Aleutian Mountain Ranges converge giving rise to Mt. Spur, Mt. Redoubt and Mt. Illiamna, all
volcanoes over 10,000 feet in height.
Clam Gulch residents – The residents of Clam Gulch represent a sampling of people who are
passionate about living in Alaska. Although very different in professions, educational
backgrounds, values and politics, they somehow don’t let their differences divide them. Alaska
can be a very harsh place to live where people that are different still need each other to survive.
Native lands via Wise Owl Road – Rather than set up Indian reservations in Alaska, the federal
government established native corporations to generate revenue for its shareholders, the native
people. The CIRI native corporation owns and manages a significant amount of land between
Clam Gulch and the Harding Ice Field. A warming climate during the past two decades resulted
in an outbreak of spruce bark beetle which killed thousands of acres of spruce trees. A network
of logging roads provides access into the heart of the native lands.
Russian Orthodox Church in Ninilchik, AK: -- Before Alaska was owned by the United States,
Russia occupied it in to the 1800s. Russians enslaved the native people of the Kenai Peninsula
and brought with them their customs and religion. A few Russian Orthodox Churches built in
the late 1890s still exist on the Kenai Peninsula, one of which is in Ninilchik.
Norman Lowell Art Gallery: -- Norman Lowell and his wife moved to their present location near
Anchor Point, AK in the late 1940s where they homesteaded and Norman began painting
landscapes. Still painting, the gallery represents his life work and is a wonderful representation
of the culture and environment of the southern Kenai Peninsula. Both Norman and his wife are
usually present in the gallery to answer visitors’ questions.
Seaside Farm: -- Located on the north shore of Kachemak Bay is Seaside Farm which offers
amazing views of the Bay, the Kenai Mountains, glaciers and the Harding Ice Field. A large
pasture and outdoor kitchen and living area make for a wonderful base camp from which to
explore Homer and the surrounding maritime environment.
Alaska Islands & Oceans Visitor’s Center: -- The Alaska Islands & Ocean Visitor’s Center exists
to educate visitors about the Alaska Maritime National Wildlife Refuge. There are more miles of
coastline in Alaska than in all of the rest of the United States combined. The refuge seeks to
protect the abundant and unique wildlife that exists on thousands of islands throughout the
region. Few people have the time or money to visit most of the refuge, so the Center’s exhibits
halls and wet labs were created to help people understand why the refuge is so important.
Pratt Museum of Natural & Cultural History: -- The Pratt Museum of Natural & Cultural History
is a small private museum dedicated to educating its visitors to history and natural resources of
the area. It has excellent exhibits on geology, archeology, history and biology. Its exhibit on the
Exxon-Valdez Oil Spill of 1989 has won many awards and is a must see.
Homer Spit & Harbor: -- Homer Spit is a glacial moraine upon which a road was built. At the
end of the road is a “working” harbor which protects boats and ships of all shapes, sizes and
uses. There are literally hundreds of fishing vessels mixed in with pleasure craft. Along the road
next to the harbor, many small businesses serve the visiting public with food and gifts to
purchase. Homer and Whittier are a striking contract to each other.
Kachemak Bay: -- Kachemak Bay is the second largest estuary in the world measured in terms of
number of species and biomass of species. It is surrounded by the southern terminus of the
Kenai Mountains and Harding Ice Field and the Caribou Hills making for a beautiful and
memorable landscape/seascape.
Greywinck Glacier Lake & Halibut Lagoon: -- A glacier is nothing more than a river of ice
flowing downhill. In the case of Greywinck Glacier, it flows from the Harding Ice Field, the
largest ice field in the world. Chunks of ice routinely fall off the face of the glacier forming
floating icebergs in the lake. A hiking trail originating from the glacial lake leads over a
mountain pass to Halibut Lagoon, an arm of Kachemak Bay.