Sometimes the best photos take a bit of prodding in order to happen. I told the group to do their best Abbey Road impression. The mountains behind and the reflection in the alpine pool just add the the scene.
Waterfalls, alpine lakes, snow capped peaks, river crossings, and not a soul in sight- that is what we had today while hiking Knight Island here in Prince William Sound. Coastal Alaska can provide some intense hiking experiences. With hardly any upkept trails, other than game trails, it can be more like bushwhacking than hiking.
I am leading adventure tours this week all through Prince William Sound, one of Alaska's best kept secrets. Today started out with 80mph winds and sideways sheets of rain. I postponed the activities and led several presentations onboard instead. Everyone appreciated staying cozied up with their hot coffee, while still getting immersed into the area. During lunch, the landscaped changed dramatically as the weather shifted. The rain stopped, the wind went down to zero, and we were ready for adventure.
I took a small group of hard chargers on a bushwhacking mountain climb. We landed on a rocky beach, stepping off into the shallow water and clamoring ashore. Then we crossed several streams and whacked through some dense strands of hemlocks and red alder. Once we gained a little elevation we hit some clearings, that felt like walking on soft sponges. The group stayed right on my heels as we continued to hike higher. Finally, I had them turn around, knowing that the view behind us would shock them. In a short time we had gained a lot of altitude, and were rewarded with shockingly beautiful views of the surrounding wilderness.
Even that couldn't prepare us for the views from up top. Here at the summit of our hike, we could see hidden lakes, some still frozen, with waterfalls connecting them. Snow capped peaks formed the distant views, while the ocean water of the bay looked calm and flat....so different than earlier in the day. The weather here can change fast, and this time it was in our favor.
This has turned into one of my favorite hikes to take people on here... and we might be the only ones who do it. That is the beauty of the Alaskan wilderness...it still feels like the true frontier. It is hard to access, unless you have a boat like ours, but if you can then the rewards are endless.
Tall waterproof boots are a must for this kind of hiking in Alaska. This is a temperate rainforest, so there is water everywhere!
I told my group to turn and help the person behind. Tim and Amy are doing just that for this stream crossing.
Pretty impressive that they aren't just sliding on their bums for this section.
Paul, hamming it up with some old man's beard lichen.
The views from up here are amazing. You can see our mother ship, the Safari Explorer, in the top right hand corner. Also, our skiff, or small boat, is seen in the lower middle, cruising through the bay.
Selfie, with the group, from the top of our rocky outcropping.
Some of the tree growth on this exposed peak was like nature's artwork.
Enjoying views on our way up.
Hiking among stunted hemlock trees and over soft tundra. The hiking here in Prince William Sound is gorgeous, and you can often connect these treeless areas to get a lot of distance and elevation.
It had rained all morning, so the waterfalls were out in force.
This was the view looking inland from about 400ft up. We could see hidden ponds, waterfalls, and snow capped peaks. I could sit here and look at this for days.
Here we busted out of the denser forest of hemlocks and spruces to open views of the fjord below.
After having 80mph winds and sideways sheets of rain all morning, this afternoon weather was a welcome surprise.
Doesn't this look fun!?
Nobuko posing in our first clearing that we came to.
These little streams were everywhere. They look easy to cross, but they can contain deep holes that one has to watch out for. The boots only go so high!
Did I mention that rubber boots are a must while bushwhacking in Alaska's temperate rainforest?
Sometimes I feel like I am back in Yosemite, but someone has flooded it with the ocean. An apt description of coastal Alaska.
As always, keep traveling and keep posting!
Thanks for reading,
- Dai Mar