I didn’t know what to expect from Alaska before coming. Had it not been for a travel creator conference I signed up for, I don’t know that I would have gone anytime soon. It is one of those bucket list destinations and once you begin to research it, you get caught down the never-ending funnel of Alaskan history and tidbits. I did not know why it was called “The Last Frontier,” but I wholeheartedly get it now.
I bought my flight months in advance, in preparation for any unexpected price increases. I knew of the expenses of Alaska and knew that I needed to plan ahead (as usual), especially as a solo traveler. The next thing on my plate was to find an AirBNB. Hotel prices were astronomical when I looked. It took me several attempts over the course of a few weeks, but I secured my AirBNB in May even though I wasn’t due to go until the end of September. For one week, I spent just over $600. This was amazing, as nearby hotel prices were starting out at around $180 a night. The AirBNB was cute and I had my own private space ($1300 for the week). It was within 15 minutes walking distance of downtown where the convention was and three minutes walking distance from Anchorage’s mascot-in-residence: Star the Reindeer.
I also rented a car. I knew the type of things I wanted to do and these required a car. Many of the activities were spread out; I’m talking up to three hours north or south of Anchorage. Anything for the adventure. I also spent a while with finding a rental car. An SUV or a truck is the most popular vehicle in Alaska. The prices weren’t agreeable to my budget, so I went on Turo and got so lucky. Well, not lucky, I prepared months in advance. I was able to secure a 2025 Subaru Forester for my entire stay for just under $700. The rental companies were charging in the 1000s. Did I need the rental for every single day? No, but it was wonderful having it especially when unexpected things happened, like my back injury. Could you imagine walking fifteen minutes in the rain with a lower back injury? Exactly. Plus it rained every single day of my stay.
Day 1: Seaplanes
On Saturday, September 21, my adventure would begin. I flew from LAX to SFO to ANC and landed in the early afternoon. The views from the plane before even landing sold me. Snow-capped mountains and crystal blue bodies of water in every direction. I kicked myself for not already having come here. Upon landing and taking my first few steps in the airport, I could already tell that this would be a very different kind of trip. Taxidermied animals were at almost every turn. The hunting gear and outdoors lifestyle was apparent. It all reminded me of my many trips to Montana. Next on my list was getting my bags and then getting to my rental car. I already had an itinerary for the day and needed to hit the ground running. The airport’s automatic doors opened and the most crisp, fresh air hit my face. The sky was so clear (coming from Los Angeles) and the air I breathed in felt so natural. After boarding the shuttle and arriving to my rental, the fun could now begin.
I’m sure you’re curious about the activities I took part in. I would like to preface this by saying that the majority of my activities were covered by the conference: Travel Blogger’s Exchange (TBEX). I don’t know the actual dollar amount these activities cost, but the websites of the tours will all be hyperlinked and you can see if those prices interest you.
After getting my rental, I immediately went to Lake Hood. Lake Hood is where the seaplanes land and take off, so there’s constantly planes going by. There’s over 10,000 pilots in Alaska because of accessibility. This is something free you can do and pretty fun if you enjoy aviation, as I do. You’re able to park your car and pull up right to the lake. I walked around and sat by the dock. When I got my fill, I went to run errands. I wanted to pick up items I forgot, such as toiletries and a tripod [not actually forgotten, but I realized mine was broken two hours before my flight].
It was time for a light bite. After driving around, I noticed lots of mini buildings in Anchorage that I had not seen anywhere else. Several small businesses and restaurants use these and the majority had a drive-thru. They’re about the size of a parking space. The one I went to was a barbecue place. They had reindeer sausage on the menu, which was what I had wanted to try. I ordered the reindeer hotdog with fries and a drink. I found somewhere to eat the food, but was surprised by the taste. In the beginning, it had the flavor of a hotdog, but the more I chewed, the more the flavor went away. The gaminess took over and I was not a fan. One thing I didn’t get to try was moose meat. For some reason, it’s illegal to sell moose meat, but not reindeer meat. So, you have to know someone who hunts and prepares it in their own home.
I would now go checkin to my AirBNB. The place was perfect and included free street parking. The owner, a doctor, stayed on site. Her house was connected to the unit and she lived there with her husband. I didn’t see them too much after the first day, but that was okay because my schedule was filled from sunrise to nighttime. After settling in, I knew it was time to wind down and prepare for my journey in the morning.
Day 2: Mama Nature Said No to Kenai Fjords
As a National Park lover, it is essential for me to visit a park wherever I go. Alaska has eight national parks that are pretty spread out, so I figured two would be a good goal for this trip. The conference I came for gave us a 20-30% discount code for this tour, which made the price much more feasible. The ship would set sail at 11am in Seward, so I knew I would have to leave around 7:00am. It was a 2.5 hour drive, raining, and I know I like to pull over to take pictures. I did have to pull over and take a nap an hour and a half into the drive because of drowsiness. I forgot I took a motion sickness medication, so I slept it off and kept driving. Thank goodness I left early! I arrived to Seward around 10:20am.
At checkin, the crew let us know the waters were a little rough. If you suffered from pretty bad motion sickness, this would have been the opportunity to turn around and they were offering full refunds. I continued on because I was fully medicated and had already come all this way. I boarded the boat and 11am on the dot we set sail. It was sprinkling and overcast. For a short while, we all thought it would be fine, but the weather began to pick up after lunch; just two hours into our 5-6 hour tour.
The boat began to rock side to side, with people launched airborne out of their seats. We were hitting six foot waves. We got as far as we could, but the captain looked at the forecast and saw that the weather would be so much worse than it already was if we continued. We turned around and took a rocky ride back to port. Mother Nature reigns supreme. Although, I didn’t get a chance to see it, it makes for a pretty good story and it’s fun how I have the visuals to also show. After this, I took the drive back to Anchorage and fell asleep as soon as I got to the AirBNB. I had another early morning adventure to prepare for. This was one “L” I was happy to take.
Day 3: Matanuska Glacier Hike
Today I was doing one of those activities I told my mom about and she said, “You’re taking a risk.” But isn’t that the point of adventure? I couldn’t believe it myself, but in a few hours I would be hiking on a glacier. I went to the convention center and met up with a large variety of other travel creators. This was one of the tours the convention prepared for us and I was grateful, not knowing if this was something I would be able to experience without them. There were several tours going on, but I was going to be hiking the Matanuska Glacier with Greatland Adventures. There were two sprinter vans worth of us. We soon boarded the vans and took a two hour journey to Matanuska. We stopped for the snacks, bathroom, and a few photo ops along the way.
When we arrived, we were taught by our guides how to put on crampons. Hiking shoes do you no good without these. The crampons provide all the necessary traction. Once everyone was outfitted, we began our two hour hike around the glacier. I never thought this was something I would ever do, but had a lot of fun doing. I did get nervous around the crevasses. Some we had to jump over to get to the next destination, but I felt safe. Our guides were with us every step of the way. I also drank glacier water! I know many people will say that’s not safe, but YOLO!
It was a surprisingly steamy hike. We were all in winter wear from head to toe. It was the movement that got me, especially as someone who gets hot easily. When we got back to the van, I stripped several layers down. Next, our guides would take us to lunch local to Matanuska. The views here were spectacular and I was living my fall Pinterest girly fantasy. This was another place rich in taxidermied bears. Here, I ordered the halibut sandwich. It’s an odd combo but I got it with hot chocolate so I could sit on the porch and watch everything “out there.” After a satisfying lunch, we continued back to Anchorage. The day was so tiring, there wasn’t one open eye during this ride [except the driver]. We got back to the convention center, shared contacts with those I connected with, and went home. More adventures tomorrow, of course!
Day 4: Hatcher Pass UTV Rides
What is chill? Not me on vacation! Today, I got to the convention center for another tour prepared by TBEX. We waited in our sectioned off areas for our tour before heading out. This was a monumental moment for me. I met someone in my group, Outdoorsy Diva, who is the OG outdoorsy, adventure chick! We talked each others ears off the entire way. Today’s ride was much shorter; only 45 minutes away and I was thankful. We arrived at Hatcher Pass ATV Tours and soon the adrenaline rush would begin.
We started by checking in with the tour guide, Kevin. We showed our driver’s licenses and signed waivers. Then, he took us out to a shed to change into rubber boots. I didn’t know why this was necessary at the time, but I was interested to see where things would go. Our group sectioned off into four UTVs. Each sat four people. Before this, I have never heard of a UTV. I like these better than ATVs because they are enclosed, have heat and A/C, and feels more secure because they have seatbelts.
Over the course of a few hours, we each took turns driving through rocks, brush, and rivers! Our guide would stop at certain stops that were great for photos. It rained for almost the entire time. When we got to a little prairie guarded by mountains, we got out and the rain stopped for about ten minutes. I knew this might be the only time I was able to fly my drone, so I took quick action. After taking photos and video, and bringing my drone down, it started to rain again.
Our tour also included gold-panning in a nearby body of water. This area was rich in gold. If you found gold, you can enjoy the moment, but you have to put it back. The owners of the property allow people to come on land for tours, with the one exception of people leaving the specks of gold behind. I found some gold and returned it to the water. The tour was soon over, but this is a tour I highly recommend. The guide running the tour, Kevin, was one of those people who you could just tell loves their job and was happy to be there doing it. After returning back to base, we thanked Kevin and departed back to the convention center.
Later in the evening, was the opening ceremony event for the convention at the Alaska Native Heritage Center. I would rest for a few hours before heading to it. The event was filled with convention-goers, food, and performances by Native tribes. I spent a few hours here networking and checking out some of the inside and outside exhibits. I recommend coming here if you visit Anchorage. It details the history of various Native groups throughout a long timeline in Alaska, as well as how they used what was around them to create methods of survival.
Day 4 &5: Convention Days
On days four and five, I attended the convention and networked my butt off! On the evening of day four, I attended a meetup for Black Travel Alliance. I had joined it the day before. Black Travel Alliance promotes equity within travel and it was fitting for me to join. I was surrounded by other Black creators. The event was about honoring and promoting Black businesses in Anchorage. We got to sample food from restaurants, as well as learn about the groundwork being done behind the scenes. By the end of this night, I got extremely sad knowing my trip was coming to an end. I was having so much fun in Alaska; somewhere I couldn’t put my finger on before coming here. I cancelled my flight that night and extended it one day. I was determined to add one more piece of adventure to close this trip out and add to my closet of content. On the last day of the conference, I secured it.
Tonight, the convention ends with a bang! This was a bucket list item: riding the Alaska Railroad. TBEX actually booked a private train for us. Each car was different: a quiet car, a party car, a food car, and a karaoke car. Throughout the train, drinks were flowing. The train went from Anchorage to Seward. I thought it was pretty amazing how it didn’t rain the entire train ride. The skies were completely clear, as we trekked along the water. We came to a standstill in Seward for about thirty minutes before reversing the train back to Anchorage.
Day 6: Operation Fly into Denali National Park
You already know the story of my early mornings! Today, I ventured off to Talkeetna for the adventure of a lifetime. This was a two hour drive. My scheduled tour with K2 Aviation for a Denali flyover with glacier landing was at 10am and they wanted us there by 9:30. So, I left at 7am (for pictures and stuff). There was lots of rain along the way, but when the rain would break, I took my drone out. I arrived to the office right at 9:30 with bad news; there were too many low clouds and it wasn’t safe to fly. They rebooked me for a 1pm flight where the forecast said things would be pretty much clear with minimal winds.
I stuck around the area and explored the little town of Talkeetna while I waited for the next flight. There were two others from the convention [Jason and Robert] also scheduled for the same flight, so I ventured off with them. We decided to go to the Kahiltna Birchworks just down the street. Outside were several trees roped with buckets that had spouts just above. They actually collected and bottled the syrup and other goods here! We entered the shop to find all sorts of variations. It wasn’t birchwood season, but they offered tours when it was.
There were bottles showing the process of the syrup and as the days go on, the less sweet it is. We got to sample each of these. I really enjoyed the birchwood brittle and took this as a souvenir. After spending about forty-five minutes here, we went over to Main Street and took a walk. We looked for the Mayor of Talkeetna, but had no luck! The Mayor is actually a cat that is typically found at the general store, but was off today. Time went by fast and it was soon time to head back to the office. We checked back in at K2 and were clear for takeoff!
It was time to visit another National Park! Denali! The area we were going to was very remote and we were going to land on a glacier. The pilot, Dorothy, was a woman! I was and still am excited about not just that, but being able to sit cockpit with her on the way there. The views?! My flight was filled with, “Wow” every few seconds. Jaw-dropping views at every angle, especially when we crossed into Denali territory and saw the summit. After about a thirty minute flight, we landed. I got to play in the snow. This was the most pristine place I had ever been in. I was so happy and tears filled my eyes. We were given 15-20 minutes here before heading back to Talkeetna base. I smiled all 113 miles back to Anchorage. I will never forget this experience. EVER.
I love how when things go left, things still turn out right for me. This is why I say approach everything as open-mindedly and as an adventure because you never know how things will turn out. I have so many stories to tell because of Alaska. There’s so much more that I have to see here that’s unique to this area of the world. I know I will be back. If you can go here at least once in your lifetime, don’t hesitate. Go.