The tour season ended fairly early this year as we didn't have any bookings for the last week of August. It was just as well, really, because the weather turned gray and rainy (as is typical for late summer).
I had five tours in all - two tours that had little physical activity, which are geared towards those who might otherwise do a cruise but wanted a small group, van tour type experience. For me, these tours are tough because they require lots of driving and eating and very little exercise. I end up the week feeling fat and lazy. However, these tours do end up with a wonderful boat tour in Seward. I normally don't go on the tours, but I had a nice group and decided I'd go along. I was thrilled that I did because we saw puffins, sea otters, Steller sea lions and cormorants (aalscholvers) and we were surrounded at one point in the trip by a whole pod of orcas. We also had a portion of the trip in which we had at least 4 humpback whales (bultrug walvissen) in sight. One of them was playing by flapping its tail against the surface of the water. Excellent!
I also led two day hiker tours, which include 5 days of camping and 1 to 5 hour hikes each day. One of the trips (with Michiel) was great and the other was awful (bad weather and a difficult group, who bonded well with each other, but treated me like a servant. The highlight of THAT trip was getting stuck at a road construction stop and talking to a father and son from the Netherlands (Drenthe).)
The 5th trip was a new 7-day itinerary that included 4 days of camping. The weather was incredible! Hot, clear and sunny in all parts of the state. I couldn't believe that we could see every single mountain, including Denali, throughout the week. We even breakfasted at our campsite while watching the colors of Denali change from pink to white.
Now that the season is over, Michiel and I are enjoying recreational time in Hope and soon, we'll start packing and preparing for our ice departures.
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