Good Taste is the Worst Vice

Fat Ptarmigan, Anchorage AK

One final post from Alaska - our departure day meal. I'd done some research on Anchorage restaurants, and it was honestly tough to choose just one.  In the end, we chose Fat Ptarmigan, a wood-fired pizza place that's open all day, perfect for a very early dinner to tide us over for a red-eye ... continue reading...


On the park road, Denali

Most animal sightings in Denali are from the park road, during a drive in or out, which partially explains why a 90 mile trip takes around six hours.  (The one lane dirt road, complete with occasional hairpin turns and steep drop-offs, explains the rest!) Everyone on the bus keeps a close eye on ... continue reading...


Oktoberfest at Pierrot Gourmet, Peninsula Chicago

You might not expect to find Oktoberfest celebrated in a French cafe inside a Hong Kong-based hotel, but Pierrot Gourmet puts on a very good one, complete with an oompah band.  We go every fall - D loves the schnitzel.  I like schnitzel too, but I especially like the music! Start out with a stein ... continue reading...


Fairbanks to Anchorage on the Alaska Railroad

The train isn't the fastest way to get between Fairbanks and Anchorage (it takes twice as long as driving!) but it offers some uniquely Alaskan experiences - spotting moose and trumpeter swans at the side of the tracks, looking straight down from a narrow bridge to the rushing river at the bottom of ... continue reading...


Dining at North Face Lodge, Denali

Our first North Face Lodge "dinner" was actually a picnic buffet, served in about the least optimal conditions imaginable: in a muddy lot on the side of the park road in Denali, during a torrential downpour, beneath a tarp stretched between two buses. Given how luxurious that turned out to ... continue reading...


Three days in Denali

Despite persistent rain, we had an incredible experience in Denali during our three days in the park. Day 1 North Face Lodge offers three levels of daily excursions: a "foray" that's pretty relaxed, a moderate hike, and a strenuous hike.  We chose the foray on the first day, figuring we'd ease ... continue reading...


North Face Lodge, Denali Alaska

Most people only see Denali National Park from the windows of a bus - that's how I first experienced it as a child.  An all-day trip may get you only to the Eielson Visitor Center at Mile 66 of the park road and back, 4 hours each way.  But 30 miles farther along, there's some private land with a ... continue reading...


Among the glaciers in Alaska

Our little fleet of zodiacs launched from the Sea Lion and headed towards Dawes Glacier, weaving among ice floes on the way. It was the final day of our Lindblad / National Geographic trip, and we were off on one last adventure.  The glacier itself is beautiful to see, a mile-wide wall of ... continue reading...