Today is sunny, warmish and a great day to be alive. I am off on my kayak, hiking trip and I am psyched. I walk to the harbor at 10am to meet my leader and six others in the group. We drive to the gravel road that leads to the Valdez Glacier. This glacier used to come all the way down to the old town and was very important to the area. The gold prospectors had to hike up and over this river of ice to get to the gold fields. This could take several days and was a strenuous hike with all your supplies strapped to your back. Unfortunately the gold was a myth and there were many disappointed men. The influx of people did bring prosperity to the town and gave the steamship companies fares and income on the way up as they shipped furs and other commodities downstream.
Anyway we had inflatable kayaks that held two people. These were rather large, stable boats where you sit on top and not in a hole. I paired up with the only other woman, Sandy, and we had fun paddling in the glacial lakes up to the mouth of the glacier. There were huge ice bergs and little pieces of crystal clear ice floating by. It took about a half hour to reach the glacier and the front was a thirty foot wall of ice and rocks. At the right edge was an area of loose rocks and we landed there.
We scrambled up the rocks and started walking along the glacier eventually reaching the ice area. There were many crevasses (cracks) and holes in the ice many of which were large enough to fall through and never be found.The rocks were pretty large and loose so the footing wasn't stable and lots of slipping, but luckily no falls. Under the layer of rocks and gravel was clear blue ice and many rivulets of water flowing. It was incredibly beautiful out there and so remote. We were surrounded by mountains with trees and waterfalls and snow covered peaks.
Finally we reached the middle of the glacier which is called the moraine. This is a wide area of rocks and gravel pushed in from the sides by the flowing ice and becomes a huge dark line when you are looking up. Being close to it is awesome as it is about thirty feet high and of course we climbed up to the top where we sat around and ate our lunch. I also used the ladies room, which was located behind a large rock and had great ventilation.
We then hiked back to the kayaks and had walked about a mile each way. We then paddled back to the van and I was quite pleased with the entire adventure. The other trekkers were really nice and we all enjoyed chatting and getting to know each other a little. I particularly liked the quiet and calmness. As you glide in the kayak the only noise is the creaking of the ice and the dripping of melting bergs. The blue color of the ice is beyond a regular palette.
Back at the campground Jeff and Ziggy were waiting for me and had spent a quiet day up at the salmon area watching the water and relaxing. We went for fish and chips with a few couples and then went back out to Dayville Road where the fish hatchery is located. We saw thousands of pink salmon, otters and eagles along with more gulls then you can count. I could stay here and watch for hours as it is so fascinating. A few couples from our trek were there and we ran into my paddling buddy and enjoyed introducing her and her friends to Jeff. This is definitely the hot night spot in Valdez.
Back at the RV we watched the DVD of Bridget Jones's Diary and I laughed out loud as I do each time I see this movie.
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