We took another day trip from Anchorage down the Seward Highway to Girdwood. On the way, we passed the Bird Ridge Trailhead and Bird Creek. There is a bike path called the Bird to Gird that is 12 miles long and runs beside the highway along Turnagain Arm. We weren’t that ambitious, so we drove.
Our destination was the beautiful Alyeska Resort.
The Bird Ridge trail was closed again because someone dumped 300 pounds of fish scraps in the parking lot. Earlier this summer, a boy was mauled to death by a bear in the area so the park Rangers did not want the fish smell to attract bears and possibly cross paths with people.
We bought ride and dine tickets for the tram and ate lunch at the top of the mountain.
The resort has two trams that run up or down every 15 minutes. After paying a fee, you can go up and down as much as you want during the day.
There is also a hiking trail that will get you to the top for free. Darin said he could make it, but the rest of us preferred the tram.
In the past week, the finish line for the AlaskaMan Triathlon was at the top of this mountain. Participants swam in 52 degree water and biked 112 miles, then traversed the Alyeska mountain twice at the end.
The surrounding mountain range is breathtaking. The snowy peaks are a nice contrast to all the green slopes. Alyeska was the name used by the native inhabitants for the territory. It was later called Alaska.
We could see a little water in the inlet (Turnagain Arm) and the town of Girdwood down in the valley. The Alaskan Railroad stops in Girdwood as well as the cruise ship buses that transport people from Anchorage to Seward.
Once we got off the tram, there were additional ski lifts to go higher up the mountain. Several Alaskans have told us that this is an awesome place to ski with no crowds and a lot cheaper than Colorado ski resorts. There is a small airstrip near the hotel if you are brave enough to heli-ski.
Just about anywhere you go there are bear warning signs. We did not see any wildlife during the ride up or down but the views were to die for.
After our lunch at the Bore Tide Deli, we started to head back to Anchorage. On the way, we saw this store and laughed at the name. We didn’t stop to see what they had for sale.
Mom wanted to stop at the wood carving store to look around. We couldn’t afford a $900 wood fish to hang on the wall or an $1800 bench!
The most impressive piece was this octopus. I couldn’t believe all of the suction cups that were carved from wood. I was afraid to see the price tag!
We had our tide table with us and saw that the bore tide was coming in at Beluga Point during our drive back to Anchorage. The “bore” is a tidal phenomenon in which the leading edge of the incoming tide clashes with the flow of the outgoing tide to form a wave that travels up a river or narrow bay. The water is so murky with silt that it is hard to see in this picture.
Beluga whales come in with the tide and this spot was named Beluga Point just for that reason. It attracts a lot of people who sit and wait to see the tide roll in. We saw some surfers and paddle boarders waiting as well. The weather was perfectly sunny for our tram ride. For that, we were very grateful!