Posted on September 17, 2020, 2:02 pm, by QT Luong, under
Locations.
Continuing the Alaska dreaming and remembering started with the springtime backpacking trip in Lake Clark National Park, I am re-publishing here a longer account of a more arduous autumn backpacking trip in Gates of the Arctic National Park, illustrated with photographs all captured on 5×7 large format film. It was one of my wildest and […]
Posted on September 3, 2020, 6:22 pm, by QT Luong, under
Locations.
With long-distance travel somehow curtailed, it is time to reminisce about past experiences and long for the day when they will be possible again. Today marks the 56th anniversary of the Wilderness Act that provides the highest level of protection for America’s lands. One of my favorite wilderness journeys of the last two decades was […]
Posted on May 7, 2017, 5:25 pm, by QT Luong, under
Locations.
Visitors to Brooks Camp, Katmai National Park, come for the bears, and few are even aware of the Dumpling Mountain Trail. However, the hike offers superb scenery and an environment very different from the Brooks River. Follow me up the mountain on an autumn day with changing weather. As the first part of the trail […]
Posted on April 29, 2017, 1:14 am, by QT Luong, under
Locations.
While nowadays visitors come mostly to see the bears, Katmai National Park was established as a National Monument in 1918 to protect the site of the 1912 Novarupta eruption, the largest volcanic blast of the twentieth century. It buried a valley in pumice and ash and its surface was steaming with thousands of fumaroles, hence […]
Posted on April 22, 2017, 10:16 pm, by QT Luong, under
Locations.
Most visitors to Katmai National Park come for bear viewing during July to see thousands of salmon jumping over Brooks Falls, sometimes straight into a waiting bear’s mouth. The autumn is a much less known time to visit, but it is also great, providing a quite different experience. Brooks Camp is one of the most […]
Posted on March 24, 2017, 12:53 pm, by QT Luong, under
Locations.
Lake Clark National Park is the third less visited of America’s 59 National Parks. Lack of road access may contribute to that. My summer visit used a chartered floatplane to travel into the park’s backcountry. On a recent 2.5-day visit aimed at seeing some of the park in the autumn, I limited explorations to the […]
Posted on February 19, 2017, 11:20 pm, by QT Luong, under
Locations.
In Alaska, because of the size of the land and the limited number of roads, much of backcountry access is by small plane. I have made aerial photographs in each of the Alaskan national parks. However, when planning an aerial session in Kenai Fjords National Park, it was exciting to notice that helicopter flights have […]
Posted on February 12, 2017, 9:20 pm, by QT Luong, under
Locations.
The combination of easy access, interpretive signage, and dramatic change makes Exit Glacier in Kenai Fjords National Park possibly the best place in the world to witness glacial retreat with your own eyes. This is an account of the changes I saw in my four visits to Exit Glacier from 2001 to 2016. Exit Glacier […]
Posted on February 4, 2017, 1:46 pm, by QT Luong, under
Locations.
Although Wrangell-St Elias is a national park of immense size – the largest of all with immense potential for exploration, perhaps none of the experiences it offers is as accessible and remarkable as exploring its Root Glacier. Find out what I discovered by spending a day wandering above and also under the ice. Of all […]
Posted on January 28, 2017, 12:00 pm, by QT Luong, under
Locations.
Besides the incredibly raw ghost mining town, the Nabesna road in Wrangell-St Elias also provides access to the more expected experience of a national park: a beautiful scenic drive that leads to several trailheads for great hikes, with a campground and lodges available. But unlike on other park roads, you won’t have to share with […]
