Alaska
Alaska would not have been my first choice for my family’s summer vacation as I always prefer a city for its cultural offerings. However, my kids love animals and active adventure, so I thought Alaska was a good choice for us. I did not regret that decision and I may have been the one who loved it the most.
The easiest way to see Alaska is by boat. None of us were thrilled with the idea of taking a cruise, but we went on a small ship (80 passengers). The emphasis was on getting off the boat as often as possible, either on the water (kayaking, stand up paddle boarding, river rafting, looking for wildlife by skiff or taking a polar plunge) or on land (hiking or bushwhacking). We all loved it and agreed that was the way to see all that Alaska has to offer.
The highlights of the trip were the wildlife and the glaciers. We saw about 20 humpback whales in all their glory, both feeding and breaching (leaping out of the water) right next to the boat. We saw numerous orcas (killer whales), sea otters, sea lions, seals, bald eagles and bears. We hadn’t expected to see bears since we were on a boat, but we saw 8 of them, and the highlight was seeing a mother with 2 cubs. After about 30 bald eagle sightings the kids stopped pointing them out.
Our cruise ended in Juneau and the night we spent there was one of my favorites. Juneau’s icefield is made up of 1,500 square miles of glaciers. You can do a helicopter tour over the glaciers and land on a few of them. My kids were fascinated with how deep the fissures were in the ice; you would drop a rock in and not hear it hit the bottom for seconds. It seemed very other-worldly to be there with no one else around.
The time to visit Alaska is June - August, but even in the summer months it can be chilly (and sometimes rainy). We didn’t mind though; the amazing scenery and wildlife viewing were worth it!
