Sunday, 20 July 2025 -
I flew in to Anchorage, Alaska the night before on the 19th. The flight to Lake Iliamna would be at 3:00 pm,
which gave me time to wander around Anchorage until later afternoon.
At 3:00 pm we took off from Merrill Field for Lake Iliamna. We would be unable to land on the
first try and were diverted. The second try was the charm, and we landed a few hours late.
The colorful galaxy display on the Planet Walk outside the Alaska Center for the Performing Arts. I
tried to find the Milky Way but could not. This is one of the galaxies.
Between 5th and 4th street are several buildings decorated with graffiti.
A more patriotic mural.
A hiking moose.
You almost do not see the door and pipes staring at the whales under the sea.
Interesting wall of hand prints in the alley.
Great sign - unfortunately they were not open.
Walking toward the Cook Inlet trying to find the walkway along the shore there were many
pretty gardens.
Interesting Alaska weather vane.
The path along the water parallels the train track. Several trains raced by while I strolled
along. One loaded with passengers headed to cruises in Seward.
From the walkway there was a layer of grass then mud and then the water.
Sandhill Crane in the marsh grass looking for food. These large birds were the only
wild animals I would see. I was hoping to see a moose.
Driftwood in the marsh grass.
A small creek finds its way through the marsh to the inlet.
We left Anchorage and headed to Lake Iliamna. We would cross the snow-capped mountains
in the Lake Clark National Park. Unfortunately, the clouds were very low and we could
not fly between the mountains. This was the only sighting of the mountains before
entering the clouds.
The plane entered the clouds, and we could see nothing but white fog. The pilot tried to
land at Lake Iliamna but was unable due to poor visibility.
We were forced to fly to Port Alsworth on Lake Clark where we were able to see the runway.
A float plane on Lake Clark.
After an hour we loaded into a new plane and headed to Lake Iliamna.
Hoping that when we arrived we could see land. If we were unable to land, we would have to fly
back to Anchorage. It was all white clouds until about 300 feet above ground - fortunately
the pilot was able to land, and we made it to the hotel.