For our final week in Alaska, Shae and I drove down from Anchorage to Seward. Seward is perhaps best known for being right next to Kenai Fjords National Park, home of Exit Glacier, the Harding Icefield and more.
We’d had high hopes for some beautiful hikes in the area and, although we did get to do some, things went awry halfway through our time there. Our dog Truffles had what appeared to be a serious medical emergency (I won’t go into the gross details). Seward didn’t have a vet, so our best option was to drive the two hours back up to Anchorage.
I’d had to work that day and the next, so Shae took Truffles up there and they stayed overnight. Truffles ended up being OK thankfully, but it did mean that a couple of days in the area were lost.
Here’s what we got up to during the rest of our time in Seward.
Where We Stayed In Seward
We stayed all week at this Airbnb where we had a great stay. It’s a house that’s been converted into four or five guest rooms, with a smart lock on each bedroom door for security.
The hosts Elyssa and Curtis were lovely and they had a couple of adorable pups of their own. The house was only a short drive to downtown Seward and Kenai Fjords National Park, so it was a convenient spot to stay.
It was also pretty good value. We paid $121.45 per night including fees which, for Seward in the summer, is very reasonable even though there was a shared bathroom. Ultimately, it didn’t cost us quite that much as we paid with Airbnb gift cards we’d bought at a discount.
What We Did In Seward
Scenic Parking Lot
On our drive into Seward we stopped at a parking lot as there was a porta potty available. What we hadn’t initially realized when pulling in is that the parking area was there due to the stunning views of purple lupine fields with mountains as a backdrop. In case you ever drive into Seward, here’s its location on Google Maps.
Hiked The Tonsina Creek Trail
Before Truffles had her medical emergency, she’d already not been feeling too great and so we hadn’t wanted to do any long hikes. We therefore picked the Tonsina Creek Trail as it’s only a three mile out-and-back trail.
After passing over Tonsina Creek, we took a side trail that led to Tonsina Point which looks out on to Resurrection Bay. Although it was overcast that day, the temperature wasn’t bad and so we stopped to have our lunch there.
Waterfalls On Way To/From Tonsina Creek Trail
The drive to and from the Tonsina Creek Trail passed several different roadside waterfalls, so after our hike we stopped at each one to check them out.
Alaska SeaLife Center
On the morning just before Truffles got particularly sick, Shae had visited the Alaska SeaLife Center in downtown Seward while I worked. Here’s a quick summary of our visit – check out this post for more details.
The Alaska SeaLife Center is a great place to see the marine life indigenous to Alaska. The touch tanks were some of the best I’ve every experienced – between the staff and variety of marine life to touch and learn about. But it is incredibly cold since they pump ocean water straight into the tanks from the bay.
The other exhibit that I loved was the Coho salmon. Normally, I wouldn’t feel the need to highlight an exhibit, but I loved that they had tanks of the same Coho salmon at various stages of their development for you to see – rather than just the adult fish.
If you’re going to Seward it’s a can’t-miss experience.
Kenai Fjords National Park – Resurrection River Trail
On July 4 we decided to pay a quick visit to Kenai Fjords National Park. The park isn’t very pet-friendly trail-wise, but on the drive in there is the pet-friendly Resurrection River Trail. It’s a 17 mile long trail and so we didn’t hike all of it, but it was nice to have an opportunity to take Truffles on a short hike with some nice views, even if it was pretty buggy.
Scenic Riverbed Area
I’ve no idea what this place’s name is as it doesn’t come up with anything on Google Maps. However, on the drive back out of Kenai Fjords National Park there was a pull-off with space for a couple of cars. Next to that was a dirt road that led out to what appeared to be a dry riverbed. Lots of vehicles had driven out there for July 4 where people were relaxing, having a cookout, etc. It was a beautiful spot to do that thanks to the views; here’s the location on Google Maps.
Unsuccessful Bear Spotting At Russian River Falls
We’d heard that Russian River Falls can provide a good opportunity to see bears neat Seward. That’s because it’s a popular fishing spot for people, which means it’s also a popular fishing spot for bears!
One evening we drove to the Russian River Falls trailhead and hiked the 2.3 miles down to Russian River Falls. It’s a pet-friendly trail, but Truffles was recuperating at that point and so we left her back at the Airbnb (not to mention she’s snack-sized for bears).
It’s not a particularly strenuous hike, but there is a good amount of up and downhill, so be prepared for that. Also be prepared with bear spray (just in case) and bug spray (not just in case – you will need this if visiting in the summer).
Once you get to the falls, there’s a platform looking out over the falls, but sadly there were no bears to be seen.
Undeterred, we decided to try our luck by hiking a little further. Just before reaching the viewing platform, there was a sign saying that 600 yards off to the right was a sports fishing area. There were warnings that people fishing should give up their fishing spot to a bear if one came along, so we hoped we might be able to see one from a distance.
Alas not.
Kenai Fjords National Park – Exit Glacier Ranger-Led Hike
While I was working, Shae headed to Kenai Fjords National Park to go on a free ranger-led hike – here’s her account.
I’d hoped to write a stand-alone post for this hike but sadly it’s not going to possible – therefore I’ll be writing a bit more for this round-up post about the hike than I normally would.
I (Shae) spent our final full day in Alaska seeing my very first glacier up close. Well, closer than the day we drove to see it from the overlooks along the road. I joined Ruby, an incredible ranger, on a guided tour to the Exit Glacier Overlook. At first it was just going to be her and me but then another family joined us.
You meet outside the Exit Glacier Nature Center, which is a visitor center (but not the one downtown in Seward which is a visitor center for the entire Kenai Fjords National Park) at one of the specified times. Arrive a little early and check out the cool facts and info inside the Nature Center and to get your National Park stamp (if you’re into that), postcards, Jr. Ranger activity books, and more.
Ruby was full of information and enthusiasm for the indigenous population, the ecology of the park and the Exit Glacier. One activity she did that was really informative and interactive for the younger participants in our group was showing how the trees “speak” to one another using the mycorrhizal fungi network – having two participants be the trees and one be the fungi to pass the messages along.
One of the most interesting stops along the way, before reaching the Exit Glacier, was a stop at a shelter that was built in 1987.
She shared a fun secret with us – a nest of Hermit Thrushes. You want to leave baby birds undisturbed so we just looked at them to take a quick picture. The really cool part of this experience was two-fold. First, the nest was near the ground under a rock outcropping right near the trail and second, all the white hairs you can see in the nest are moose hairs.
One thing that was incredibly interesting was driving (and then walking) past the dates following the recession of the Exit Glacier over time. If the 1987 to today pictures haven’t already shown you, driving through full forests that were once covered in glacial ice will bring home the scope of the speed at which the Exit Glacier is melting.
The entire walk took 90 minutes to get to the Exit Glacier Overlook. It’s worth noting that it’s 90 minutes just to get to the overlook. The ranger leaves you there to make your own way back at your own pace. You can skip the ranger-led walk and make it there much faster, but it was worth learning all of the cool facts and seeing the photos and secret “extras” like the bird’s nest by going with a ranger, especially one as wonderful as Ruby.
Here are a few more pictures of Exit Glacier from my camera – rather than my phone.
Downtown Seward
Shae had already gotten to see a little bit of downtown Seward when visiting the Alaska SeaLife Center. After she and Truffles got back from the vet in Anchorage, the three of us went back there so I could check it out.
It’s a cute area to wander around, with boutique stores, lots of restaurants and bars, a waterfront park looking out on to Resurrection Bay and more.
Where We Ate & Drank In Seward
We’d already gone way over budget in both May and June, so we were trying to be a little more careful with our pennies in Seward, what with an expensive drive back down from Alaska still to come. As a result, we made dinner at our Airbnb each night, only getting food and drink out a couple of times fairly cheaply.
Seasalt Alaskan Bar & Grill
There was a brewery in downtown Seward we wanted to visit, but they didn’t have a pet-friendly patio and pups weren’t allowed inside. A few doors down from there though was Seasalt Alaskan Bar & Grill. They had a large outdoor patio with craft beer, wine, cocktails and more, so we stopped there for a quick drink.
I ordered a Whaler’s Wheat (an American style hefeweizen) from Kassik’s Brewery which was good, while Shae got a blueberry cilantro margarita which she loved.
Caines Head Coffee Co & Sweet Treats
While driving to the Kenai Fjords National Park visitor center in downtown Seward, we drove past a food truck with a sign outside saying something like
Seafood
Donuts
Coffee
We assumed that meant that they served both seafood and donuts, but that’s an uncommon lineup for a food truck and so we were curious just in case they offered seafood donuts. We’re all about trying weird food, so while Shae went inside the visitor center I walked over to their truck to check it out.
It turns out that they served seafood and donuts, but not seafood donuts sadly (or perhaps that’s a good thing!) You can get mini donuts with one of the following flavors:
- Cinnamon sugar
- Chai sugar
- Apple cider
- Vanilla with crushed Oreos
- Maple bacon
- Frosting with sprinkles
We love apple cider donuts, so I ordered us a serving of those. They weren’t a disappointment – they were tangy, flavorful and some of the best apple cider donuts we’ve ever had.
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