Yesterday when we talked to the two kayak tour companies in Valdez, we found that there were really two options for us. The usual option was to start in the harbor and have a guided salt water kayaking experience. We could see the islands in the bay and get pictures of the snow-covered mountains from the water. We would even have the possibility of seeing sea creatures.
The other option was to drive to Valdez Glacier Lake, for a guided tour of this lake full of interestingly shaped icebergs.
How would we ever decide which kayak trip to take? After checking with both guided kayak companies in Valdez, we also checked with a new company--Valdez Stay and Play. They started business last year in the middle of a pandemic, and they provide the equipment and transportation for independent travelers that don't need guides. They will deliver kayaks to any location around Valdez, and we talked to them about these two popular locations. When we couldn't decide which one we preferred, we asked if we could do something crazy and do both. No one has ever done that before, but "Yes, we'll try it!"
So we made plans with Magdalena (in the picture above) to meet us at our boondocking spot on the bay in Old Valdez at 9:00 this morning. In fact, she was the one that told us about our great camping site for last night. She was right on time, and she provided the tandem kayaks, a dry bag, life jackets, and even cold weather gloves. She also provided her expertise as we took off into the salt water bay.
She even provided her photography skills, as she took pictures of the four of us as we left from the shore.
This is also a great value for us. The guided companies charge $316 per couple for the three-hour kayak trip in the bay. Our charge with Stay and Play is only $60 per couple for the tandem kayaks and their transportation. We filled out the paperwork this morning, and Magdalena helped us get our kayaks in the water. We didn't even have to get our feet wet!
With no wind this morning, the bay water was like glass, reflecting the mountains that surrounded us.
We weren't the only ones on the water this morning. We could see the large sea-going vessels in the bay as well.
It was 51 degrees, but sunny with no wind. So it was a beautiful day to be on the water!
Without our good camera, we don't have any good wildlife pictures for today. But that's not because we didn't see them. We spotted a golden eagle close to us on the shore, and Denisa tried her best to take pictures of the red-beaked-white-birds that let us get close.
We also saw lots of seals in the water with us, but they turned out as little dots on the water in our cell phone pictures.
We especially enjoyed the sea otters that popped up around us. They were laying on their backs, enjoying the morning floating in the bay almost as much as we were.
Magdalena suggested we row under the long bridge towards the Valdez harbor, so that is our next destination.
We paddled under that bridge, where we scared up an army of sea gulls that swooped and complained about our presence.
This area is known as Duck Flats, but we think of it as Sea Gull Central.
Our next destination are the many rock islands in the bay.
It was fun to row in quietly, trying not to disturb the sea gulls.
These birds are sitting on nests that look like they are glued to the side of the rock islands.
With gentle paddling strokes we could get close enough to take good pictures even with our cell phone.
But occasionally they would get spooked, and sea gulls would fill the air, warning us to stay away.
That's when it happened. Denisa took a direct hit on her rain jacket sleeve. She yelled, "I've been hit! Abort the mission!" If you've ever smelled sea gull poop, you know it's not something that you want to wear for long.
It was a good thing that our three hours were almost up, and we were very near to the take-out place at Dock Point in Valdez.
High tide is at 11:12 a.m., so Magdalena wanted us on the water two hours before. That worked perfectly to get us all the way to the Valdez kayak dock by noon. She was already there to pick us up and shuttle us back to our motor home. It was a great day of kayaking and we're only half-way finished!
We drove the motor home to its new location at Valdez Glacier Lake, while Stay and Play transported our kayaks. Magdalena asked if we wanted a break, but we assured her that after 30 minutes for a snack we were ready to be on the water again.
Magdalena helped us get the boats in the water without getting our feet wet. Then she snapped this picture of the four of us at our second location.
There was a large open section of water close to the shore to kayak, but we were looking forward to getting up close to those ice bergs. So we kayaked close to the ice right away.
It was fun being on the water with another couple, so we could take turns taking pictures with different icy backgrounds.
All of this ice has calved off the Valdez Glacier. One of the companies we priced yesterday told us that this is the most ice they've ever seen on this lake.
After making our first little loop, we were looking for a way to get through the maze of icebergs to even bigger bergs closer to the glacier. The wind was blowing enough that it had pushed them together so we had a hard time finding a path. We were pushing the smaller pieces of ice to the side, and lifting our kayak through some smaller ice alleys.
Our efforts finally brought us into a whole new world of beautiful icebergs!
This area was also more protected from the wind, and the water was perfectly still. The lake mirrored the giant pieces of ice and the mountains around them.
We have definitely paddled into more of God's wonders today!
Some of the icebergs are about the size of a car,
some are the size of a motor home,
and some are the size of a house!
Everything around us was so big! It's hard to tell in a picture how massive it is until you spot the tiny kayak in the water below that mountain.
Some icebergs were totally white, and shined like crystals in the sunlight.
Other icebergs were covered with a layer of dirt and rocks.
The guided kayak tours we priced yesterday were charging $298 for two people. Again, Stay and Play will provide the kayak and transportation for $60. Yay!
Even boating in ice water, we were warm and comfortable with all our layers on today.
We loved the brilliant blue ice . . .
and the interesting shapes that they melt into.
At the far end of the lake, we found the biggest, bluest ice berg.
Have we mentioned that we think this is the best kayak trip ever? And we're getting to share it with good friends!
The only problem with winding our way to the far side of the lake, is now we have to find the shore where we launched our kayaks. The wind has blown the icebergs into a new maze that we have to solve to get back out.
We are looking for narrow openings, hoping that this one will lead us back to the shore. We allowed ourselves an hour to find the beach, and it took every bit of that time.
Interesting shaped chunks of ice kept blocking our way, and nothing was feeling familiar.
We started this kayak trip at 12:30, and we got back to the shore at 3:33. We made good use of our entire three hour paddling time!
Magdalena was waiting on the shore, and we helped her load the kayaks. It was an epic kayak day, and we would highly recommend Valdez Stay and Play! They had never had anyone request back-to-back kayak trips, and now they are adding it to their list of options for future customers.
They charged each couple $120 for the double kayak trip, and those same two trips would have cost us about $460 if we would have taken guided tours through other companies in Valdez. That was an awesome savings! What could possibly make this situation be better? We had our free $100 in vouchers from the chamber of commerce, so it only cost us $20! We have been blessed with the best kayak day ever!
No comments:
Post a Comment