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      06-27-2021, 01:36 AM   #5
Wild Blue
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Drives: 2021 X7 M50i, 2004 330i w/ZHP
Join Date: Dec 2012
Location: Alaska

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Day 3 of the wilderness road trip. From my lodge near McCarthy, a drive out of Wrangell-St. Elias National Park, to the coastal town of Valdez, Alaska.

The day started wet and rainy again, which again made for muddy and poor road conditions, and a TON of mosquitos. It's pointless even to try and keep them out, while getting in the vehicle. The little buggers buzz around the inside of the car. Driving with the windows down does blow them out sometimes, but remnants still buzz around the cabin.

The electric fly swatter can do the trick, but it's awkward and comical, waving it inside the cabin and making sure not to leave smudges anywhere. The "ZAP" is satisfying, but then leaves a trace burnt aroma, that mixes with the new car smell. Makes me again wish BMW hadn't removed the Ambient Air order option.

For an extra measure of safety on the rugged dirt and gravel road, I raised the X7 suspension height. Note that the highest setting only stays at the lowest speeds (below 18 mph if I remember right), but even the next highest gives just a bit more clearance.





These pretty flowers are all alongside the road. I don't know what the blue ones are, but the red/purple ones are fireweed, a grass weed that's all over the state. Some fields are solid bright red with it. Very pretty.








Once off the rugged McCarthy Road and back onto luxurious pavement, I took a few pictures back at the gateway village of Chitina.














Then a drive back west, and it was time for a left turn to rejoin Richardson Highway 4 south to Valdez.





This is a really pretty drive, full of mountains, rivers, glaciers, and more.





Driving to Valdez, you can periodically catch glimpses of the Alaskan oil pipeline, along the highway. You have to look hard, though, as the eye is naturally drawn to the vast beautiful landscape.





The pipeline runs from Prudhoe Bay at the northern reaches of Alaska, down to the port of Valdez, where it is held in vast storage containers, before loaded onto oil tankers to take south.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trans-...ipeline_System

One interesting factoid is those little trestles that the pipeline runs on have heat dissipators on them. It's not to protect the oil inside, but rather to prevent the pipeline from heating up and potentially melting the permafrost in the ground. (which is mostly farther north from here)














Another glacier, approaching Thompson pass.





Then, climbing up to Thompson pass, I got into the clouds, and things unfortunately got foggy, just where the most majestic views would have been.








Arriving in Valdez, the first order of business was to find a manual car wash. I must have spent $40 and a good hour and a half or so, hosing the filth off the car, so I could go back out and take some nice pictures.





There's a nice visitor's center in Valdez. Most of their recommendations of things to do center around outdoor recreation, like hiking, fishing, glacier ice climbing, or boating.








And this is VERY Alaskan, especially the further you get out into the bush. Not only riding your ATV to the grocery store, but this dude even had the balls to park it in the handicapped parking spot.





Then it was back up the highway a bit into the Keystone Canyon, to take pictures with a clean car and waterfalls.











Hikers climb this big one, Bridal Veil Falls, in the winter as an ice climb.





The gulf at Valdez:











There's several microbreweries around Alaska, as locals love to do their own thing up here. I swung through one while working up an appetite for dinner.











I tried the P.O.G. (Passion Orange Guava) Whit. And I collect shot glasses from my travels all around the world, so I picked up a small taster glass as well:





On a recommendation, I went down to the docks and went to the "Fat Mermaid" for dinner. If nothing else, I liked the restaurant name.





In port towns, I enjoy getting eatery recommendations from locals, and going down to the wharf. Then ordering whatever version of a seafood sampler platter they have, and sampling the local fare, even if I have to take some to go, for later.

Here, this is steamed shrimp, fried calamari, baked Alaska cod, and a red smoked salmon dip with chips. House cocktail. Fresh is always awesome, and this was simply delicious, in a beautiful setting.

Funny enough, the waiter came up to me and meekly asked "um... are you a celebrity?" I don't know if it was the car, or what. I'm just a normal guy. May be because there was a small theater convention in town. Gave me a laugh, though.





Now today, was the summer solstice. The longest day of the year, and my favorite day of the year, marking the epitome of what makes Alaska summers so awesome.

With such a late sunset, the sky stays light 24 hours a day. We're well south of the Arctic Circle in this part of Alaska here, so the sun does go down, but does so at an angle, dipping below the horizon for a few hours before coming up again. Light glow stays in the sky.

Alaskans will literally be out mowing our yards at midnight, playing golf, fishing, or whatever.





My hotel was nothing much to write home about. A bare-bones 2-star hotel. Tiny little room, exposed pipe along the ceiling, bathroom fan like a turbine engine. But it did its purpose for one night, especially being up late with the solstice.

Other hotels were either booked up, or far more expensive. Oh well. Again, good for one night.

Trip continues with more tomorrow!











__________________
Cross-continent road trip journal from BMW PCD to Alaska in new X7 M50i in this thread HERE!
New EVEN BIGGER road trip in X5 from BMW PCD to Alaska NOW ONGOING LIVE IN THIS THREAD!
Wilderness road trip journal to Eastern Alaska in this thread
And road trip journal to Denali and the Arctic Circle here in this thread!
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