Seward

Judy. After our second disappointment at the cancellation of our Denali flight, we headed south to Seward. A long-time friend of ours had been a ranger in Alaska, and had suggested it as a good base. Unfortunately, the rain and clouds obscured the beautiful drive—no belugas at Beluga Point, and no Dall sheep at Windy Point. 

But when we arrived at our little cabin, Hemlock Retreat, the clouds parted just long enough for us to see Mt. Eva through the trees. The cabin was cozy, and well-appointed, and that night we slept well.

Mt. Eva from our back porch

Our cozy cabin

While I was eating my breakfast the next morning, next to the sliding glass doors, a young bear wandered up and peered in. I guess he didn’t like my looks as he turned and walked off before I could get a photo. Over the next several days, he showed up several times, and we finally got his picture. 

Homer Seward the bear looking for a snack

Rain or no, we headed into Seward. First stop was a smoked fish facility, where we tried the dips the young man offered us. We couldn’t quite place his accent till he let slip that he was originally from Turkey. Well, that set off another conversation! 

At the Resurrect Art Coffee House we nabbed the only empty table, then offered seats to an older couple when they got their drinks. What fascinating folks! Dot, as it turns out, is a famous painter in Alaska, and has lived there for 51 years, arriving there with her husband in the seventies to start and manage fish canning facilities. Her stories were riveting. Her brother, Devananda, arrived five years ago when she asked him to come live with her. Devananda has been a devotee of Rajaneesh (now known as Osho) and was the fifty-first member of the village they built in Oregon—remember when the cult was kicked out? There’s a documentary about it that’s worth watching, called “Wild, Wild West.” We sat with them for two hours, and, if they hadn’t needed to do their grocery shopping, we’d have kept them there longer. 

We normally cook at home, but since it was my birthday, we got reservations at Ray’s Waterfront, a famous fish restaurant on the harbor. What an incredible meal! And we got to watch harbor seals swim around.

 

Crab and sparkling wine--a nice starter!

While the rain curtailed our hiking plans, we enjoyed the quirkiness of Seward. Rain or no, people walked or jogged in shorts and sweatshirts. The only raincoats we saw were on us tourists, and there were plenty of those getting ready to board for the Inside Passage cruises. 

In case you lost something...

And in case you went the wrong way...

 

Repurposed train cars into a mall

One of my favorite examples of how funky Seward is came from the Public Safety Report of the SEWARD JOURNAL: "A caller reported on June 19 at 2:09 PM that on June 19 at 8:36 AM an individual in a gorilla suit broke into their yard and left behind a rooster."

One of dozens of murals--Exit Glacier, painted by Dot

We wandered the Best Western Hotel, which was a kind of gallery for Dot’s paintings, and we drove the town to check out the murals. Seward is the “Mural Capital of Alaska”. 

Mural at the Welcome Center

Sea critter

Different sea stars than I've seen before

We went to the Alaska Sealife Center—creatures so different from the ones we see in the south! 

We drove around Resurrection Bay (so named by the Russians because they arrived during Easter Week), to a fishing campground on one side and the hauntingly beautiful Fourth of July Beach (NOT named by the Russians) on the other. 

Fourth of July Beach

On the one sunny morning, we hightailed it to Exit Glacier, spotting a moose by the side of the road, and taking a hike with young Ranger Teagan. She has lived here all her life, and began coming to the park when she was in grammar school. There were 45 in her high school graduation class. Then she decided to go to Boston University, where there were 5,000 in her freshman class. Brave chick! The glacier itself was beautiful, but, sadly, has retreated a long way. I’m glad we saw it. 

Exit Glacier from the 2005 point. It's retreated a long way since then.

Closest I've been to a moose--from inside the car!

Another day we drove the three hours to Anchorage in hopes of catching the flight to Denali, but it, too, was cancelled at the last minute. The lemonade, as Ted pointed out, was the overwhelming magnificence of the drive, since the clouds had parted. When we got back, we chatted with Colin, our host, and learned about his winter environmental work around the world. We’re hoping to meet up with him in New Zealand, after he finishes some studies of the Antarctic. 

The little nuthatches and Stellars Jays enjoyed the bird feeders

Much of our time in Seward was spent reading in the cabin, and just relaxing. While it’s not what we planned, we were reminded that sometimes it’s good just to live somewhere—go to the grocery store, pick fresh raspberries, watch the birds at the feeder, meet people, and enjoy what’s there. We slept hours every night. I guess we needed it.