Alaska – Glacier View

August 20 – 250 Feet of Fun

Well… morning weather report brought rainy skies back. Such a bummer.

This morning we packed up and started the drive back towards Anchorage, with our destination being along the route at an area called Glacier View. Leaving Wrangell allowed for a bit more scenery as the ceiling wasn’t as low as it had been on our arrival day, so we were pleased for that. We again marveled at the fact we passed 3 campers and maybe 4 cars on the 60 mile park road – just so crazy!

We made a quick stop for gas and ice. While I was parked, looking down reading the map, someone backed into us. ARGH! It turned out to be an Israeli national who had bought his own car while he was here. The rental car sustained minor damage and after checking with them on what we should do, we continued on down the road.

We made it to our planned stop with about 30 minutes to kill, almost enough time for Billy to try and talk his way out of the activity or try and convince Jenny she didn’t need to do it for his sake.

I had signed him up to zip line with Jenny today. It was only two zips but the second one was to be a doozy. I have zip lined a handful of other times and had fun each time but this one seemed a bit over the top, so to speak. Besides, I did class IV rapids with Jenny; it was Billy’s turn to do some adventures with her!

After getting rigged with protection gear, harnesses and the piece of equipment they are suspended from, we made our way to the first drop off point (they let me ride along since the tour wasn’t full). The weather was threatening rain, but held off up to this point.

The first line required a climb up a tower that you then launch from, sending you through trees, maybe 30 feet off the ground. Billy volunteered to go first – having no issues whatsoever; Jenny followed behind. There were six other people zipping, including a hot shit 80 year old woman!

The second and final line was where I had drawn the line. It starts from a hut 15 feet back from the edge of a cliff, 250 feet high. Seconds after take off you clear the cliff’s edge and are suspended over the river valley, flying along at speeds up to 60 miles an hour, for half a mile. The lines are tandem so Billy and Jenny were able to go together, at the same time.

Billy ended up having a blast; I knew he would! The entire time took only about one hour and when it was done, we headed to our cabin for the last night in Alaska.

This little cabin was in the woods on a piece of property the owner’s parents had homesteaded. We loved chatting with guy, born and raised in Alaska, and hearing some stories about how they live and how everything there came to be.

We cooked a yummy dinner and had a Yahtzee throw down. We were also pleased to see the skies cleared. We joked how fitting it would be that the day we leave, will be the best day of the trip, weather wise!