After the long hike to and from Mendenhall Glacier the day before, Tristan and I were ready to try something new. I recommended kayaking, since we had never tried that together before.
The next day, we went to a company we had driven past many times to rent our gear. One of the attendants then recommended making the drive to Kayaker’s Beach and kayaking there, because we would have open water and more to see.
That sounded like an excellent idea, so we got fitted for our life jackets and received a bucket full of everything we needed, except the kayak itself. She then instructed us on how to get in and out of the kayak safely, who should sit in the front or back and why, and what to do if we capsized.
Armed with all this, we hopped into the Jeep and drove back, past the way we had come, to Kayaker’s Beach. It was easy enough to find with the directions she provided and parking was free.
We were first greeted with this information about the natural environment at the beach and its surrounding areas.
Despite planning to pass up on hiking for the day, there was a bit of a hike to the beach. My guess would be about a mile or so. Here are some of the pictures from that beautiful trek through the lush Alaskan forest.
Beautiful, isn’t it? The ocean was more beautiful, still. It’s amazing how blue the water is in Alaska. It’s not tropical blue, to be sure, but it has its own hue that makes it inviting.
After our first glimpse of the ocean, we picked out a kayak from the rack that was holding about half a dozen or so. We then hauled it down to the beach and climbed inside to begin our adventure out on the ocean.
The view out there was absolutely stunning. If you’re wondering how on Earth we felt brave (or stupid!) enough to take out our phones, we had waterproof bags for them that floated. I had bought them for us about a week before leaving for Alaska and I’m happy we found the perfect occasion to use them.
Once out on the water, we plotted our course to one of the smaller islands we noted straight ahead. We had no idea what to expect once we got there, or if it would be safe to get on and off its shore, but nothing tried nothing done! The water there was even more beautiful and blue than we had seen from Kayaker’s Beach.
We couldn’t do much exploring on the island beyond the shore due to the thick forestry that blocked entry to its inner portion. That was probably for the best. Who knows what we might have stumbled upon or the trouble our curiosity could have led us to? So, after we had rested and taken a few pictures, we climbed back into the kayak and charted a new course to the island straight ahead.
As we closed in, I was very lucky to catch this beautiful picture of the ocean and the beach house. If you look to the far left of the rocks, you will notice an eagle is perched there. If you still can’t spot him there, then I’ll do better by you. Check this out.
If that isn’t the luckiest shot I’ve ever gotten in all my life, I’m not sure what it is. My Pixel 2 XL’s habit of taking motion pictures that I can export into these short videos is an amazing feature. I would never have gotten that shot without it.
Kayaking is fun and ocean kayaking on beautiful blue water even more so, but as hunger started to seep in, we turned our kayak back to shore. After hauling our kayak back to the rack, we lingered to say goodbye to the beautiful ocean.
Once we had our fill, we prepared for two more stops on the way back to town. The first was at an arboretum and the other was at the Saint Therese Shrine. But, those tales are for another day. Today, I’ll end this piece of our amazing trip to Alaska here.
Have you ever ever been kayaking before? Would you like to? Why, or why not? Share your thoughts in the comments below!
Cost breakdown for this trip:
- Round trip from Atlanta to Alaska: $711.61
- Round trip from Las Vegas to Alaska: $579.80 (Tristan paid for his flight)
- Airbnb Booking: $317.99
- Turo Car Rental: ~$347.35 (Tristan paid for the car rental)
Thus, the entire trip cost me $1,029.60 and cost Tristan $927.15. Together, we shared a total cost of $1,956.75. This was our most expensive trip to date and worth every penny!
It is certainly stunning scenery and I am glad you enjoyed your kayaking experience. I love the ocean in all its colours and the mystery of the life beneath. They say we know more about Space than about our own oceans on Earth!
We did canoeing and kayaking with our son when he was younger and our best experience was seeing a sea turtle off Dunk Island, near Mission Beach, Queensland, in north east Australia. I would love to try white water rafting next: it must be an adrenaline-filled experience too. Let me know if you ever do!
I don’t ever want to try white water rafting, haha. And you’re right. They do say we know more about space than our oceans. Penetrating air is much easier than going into deep, dark waters I suppose. I believe the percentage is at about 80% that’s not explored. Really makes me wonder what’s down there and whether it’s to our benefit or detriment that we don’t know. 👀
I love kayaking but I still prefer ocean paddle boarding and wish I had the opportunity to keep at that. Who knows? Maybe in the future!
Australia is on my travel list as well. I’ve always heard the beaches were beautiful there.
More gorgeous views! My mom just got her kayak on the lake near her house this past week (:
Lucky her! I’m sure she’ll be having all kinds of adventures out there! Did she always go kayaking before or is this new for her?
She went a few times before on the river near the old house, but now that she’s walking distance from the lake- she wants to go all the time (:
Does she need company? Tell her I’m on my way! 😅
Wowww, that might be the most beautiful place I’ve ever seen. And that eagle shot, fantastic! I’m so happy you and Tristan were able to go to Alaska!
Although next time you should take me along. Just a thought.
Haha, you’re welcome to join us if we ever head back there. I want to go see Canada before I head back to Alaska though.
It was far more beautiful than I thought it would be!
Oh mah gawd, you must go to Canada! The most amazing place I’ve ever visited was a lovely little fishing camp in the middle of a giant lake in Quebec that was in an area that can only be described as “wilderness” (despite the problems attached to that term). If I had a chance to move to Canada I’d do so in a heartbeat. Not because I hate the US that much, but because Canada is awesome.
I love that Canadians generally do not impose themselves on others. They are an easy going set and far more used to West Indians since we make up most of their Black population, if memory serves.
I want to go to those beautiful beaches I saw up there. That’s what first got my attention. Not sure if we can go into the water but my it was beautiful! And anyway, it can’t be much different from Alaska. The water was chilly but not unbearable. It was even warmer than Cali beaches in the summer.
I’ve thought many, many times that I’d make a decent Canadian, for the reasons you listed above. Perhaps one day I’ll find a way to move there…
I don’t think it’s very hard for an educated American to move to Canada. Look it up. I do know they prefer families over bachelor’s though, because the country is *underpopulated.
I was actually looking at PhD programs in Canada for a while. I stopped thinking much about it in July, because I became too busy. But perhaps I should resume my search…
I think you should. You never know what might come up!
My husband has three kayaks and loves it. They wobble a little too much for me. I prefer our canoe.
You do need great balance and a strong core for kayaking on the ocean, especially with someone else in the kayak. We wobbled a few times, but no capsizing! I’ve been canoeing once before. You’re right. That’s a lot more stable.
I have neither balance or a strong enough core.🤪🤪
Buahahahaha! Well as long as the other person does, all you have to do is sit really still!
Ha!
Great post
Thank you!
No problem 😁 check out my blog when you get the chance 🙂