jackie_mccully

Good morning!

 

It's getting close and everything is nearly set. However, we have a couple days at the end of our trip and can't quite decide which would be best. So far, we are visiting the conervation center, taking two whale watching cruises (one full day, one half) out of Seward, moving on over to Homer for a couple days of wandering and one day scheduled for bear watching. Then on up to Denali for a couple days including a full day tour and another day for a shuttle trip. Shuttle bus tours all the way in are canceled this year which is why we added the full day tour with a private company. We are flying in and out of Anchorage, but could change the departure city if needed.

 

The question is for the last two days. Would you suggest Valdez, Juneau, Ketchikan or someplace else? My husband was thinking Juneau and I was thinking another whale watching cruise. Thoughts/suggestions?

Oh my gosh!! These replies are amazing!!! Lots of homework and planning to do, but very excited!! Thank you all so much!

Greetings!

We are finally ready to plan our trip to Alaska. The timing totally depends on the best time for shooting bears during the salmon run. We can probably schedule two weeks. We'd like to see as many National Parks while there as possible, Please provide any advise about lodging and road trips. We're not big fans of tours, but realize some may be necessary, like for Denali, We hope to go next year, if things settle down and if it's not too late to make reservations. What are the recommended lodges near the run? It'll be two of us and hiking is not part of our plans. Thanks in advance for any and all tips!!

<p>Great tips! Thanks everyone!!</p>

<p>Haha, good tip on the scat and thanks for the info regarding the sesquicentennial in Canada.</p>

<p>Great shot! But, not something I want to walk upon even if it is a Black bear.</p>

<p>Thanks so much for all of your responses. This helps a lot. Funny tip about the cows and we will definitely watch for them. Unfortunately, we can't move our trip because the purpose is to celebrate our anniversary & hubby's birthday so the dates are pretty firm. I am a bit anxious about hiking with the possibility/danger of grizzlies but also want to go to the beauty so will definitely looking into the bear spray. Thanks again -</p>

<p>Thanks so much!! We've not decided yet on flying or driving, but thanks for the tips!!</p>

<p>Thanks for your response. We're not bringing either the camper or our furbabies this trip. Not fan of tour busses either for the reason you mentioned. We like to stop & shoot on our schedule rather than that of the bus driver's. Good reminder about the weather. We've traveled to the Tetons & Yellowstone often but not this far North before. We do have "get passports" on our prep list already, too. Should be exciting.</p>

<p>Greetings! We are planning a trip to Glacier National Park and hope to be there during the last week of September. We've never been to that area so have several questions. I've researched previous posts as well. Where would be the best area to stay? We're also interested in heading up into Canada a bit, time allowing. Any suggestions on travel routes, spots not to be missed? Thanks, in advance,for any tips you might have for us.</p>

<p>Well, only 9 days until we leave on our winter adventure. Normally, when we drive to Jackson from Texas, we drive cross country via Raton Pass. However, driving in winter we are considering staying on interstates more due to possible issues with snow. We'd head up I-35 to I-70 and across to Jackson The time difference only seems to be about an hour (according to Mapquest). I think the most challenging part will be as we get within a couple hours of Jackson driving through the mountains. Any thoughts/advise? Have any of your driven that way in winter and, if so, do you recommend tire chains? Thanks!!</p>

<p>We've decided to stay in Jackson Hole for most of our trip and take the snowcoach to the Snow Lodge for a couple days. While in Jackson, we should expect to see quite a lot of wildlife correct? Will the best viewing and shooting opportunities still be in the morning and early evening or should we expect more activity during mid-day? I'm hearing that we can expect quite a few moose in the area around Jackson and possibly even in the town. What about snow tires? Since we're driving in from Texas should we rent a car with snow tires once we arrive in Jackson or is that not necessary? As always, thanks for any tips!</p>

<p>Thanks so much for this great info. I agree with the idea of splitting our time including part of the time at the snow lodge. As much as we love Jackson Hole considering the distance it may be smarter to go with either West Yellowstone or Mammoth. I've not been to Livingston but will look into that option as well. Now I'm getting excited!</p>

 

<p>We are trying to plan a Christmas trip to Yellowstone and not sure where to start. I understand that only the northern road is open during the winter. So, if we stayed in Jackson Hole, how would we access the park? Is the Grand Teton park open during the winter? I see that the Snow Lodge in Yellowstone is open during that week, but we'd rather not stay there the whole time. Can we travel from Jackson to Yellowstone during the winter or would we have to drive around to the west and to Mammoth? It would be great to spend part of the time in Jackson, visiting the Elk Refuge, etc. and then up to Yellowstone for snowmobiling and wildlife and landscape shots. Also, are there any recommendations on where to stay during the winter in that area? Thanks!</p>

Thanks so much for your thoughts. I think we have it narrowed down to one of these parks: Devil's Den, Lake Catherine state park, Petit

Jean state park. Any suggestions between those? It looks like there would be great photo ops. at each. Thanks again.

<p>Thanks for your responses. Both Eureka Springs and Buffalo National River look beautiful and perfect! After doing some research it looks like there are several areas that will be fabulous! The problem now is going to be having enough time to enjoy it all. We may spend a day or two just driving around the area exploring. Thanks again!</p>

<p>My husband and I are planning a 4-5 day camping trip to Arkansas from Austin and would like some tips. We plan on being there at the end of September or first of October and are thinking of the Ozark's, River Valley, or Ouachitas areas. We will be bringing our golden retriever and probably our canoe. Neither of us have visited Arkansas before so we would appreciate any thoughts on the best campsites, best scenic opportunities and any wildlife possibles. Thanks so much for any suggestions.</p>

<p>Normally, we also go during the last week of September. However, a couple years ago we visited during the time you'll be there (the third week) and experienced our best year for wildlife viewing. On the right side of the road as you're traveling to Wilson and away from the park along the Moose-Wilson road, there are several huckelberry bushes growing. For three days of our visit, there were three different sets of black bears coming to eat the berries in the mornings (around 10:00am) and in the afternoons (around 4:00pm). It was amazing! There was one sow and two cubs, one sow and one cub and one male. We were able to get the best bear photos of any previous trips. With the shortage of pine nuts this year, you should spend some time in that area. Good shooting!</p>

<p>Thanks for all the helpful tips - I love this site! I think we're all set now. We are driving up to Anacortes when we arrive and leaving our car parked there overnight. We'll take the ferry over and stay overnight in Friday Harbor. On Friday, we're taking one of the whale tours and heading back to pick up our car. We'll then drive all the way over to Forks, arriving fairly late, but in the perfect spot to spend the whole day Saturday exploring Olympic National Park as we work our way back to Seattle. Thanks to your ideas and suggestions, I think we're definitely getting the most out of this short trip. I'm excited about all the photo ops.</p>

<p>Rick, now you're opened up a whole different idea - yikes!<br>

We really wanted to try to do some whale watching and assumed that would take at least 1/2 day. We arrive Thursday around noon and could, possibly head over to the west coast area, hoping for a spectacular sunset and stay in that general area. Friday morning we could head over to Port Angeles or Port Townsend for a 1/2 day whale watching tour and stay in that area. Would we then have time to head toward North Cascades and still get back to Seattle at night? We have a very early flight out on Sunday morning so need to stay our last night back in Seattle. All of that may be a bit ambitious, right? It's hard to judge the driving time. I'm thinking we may need to pick two and slow things down a bit. I'm sure we could spend three complete days in any one of these areas.<br>

Which two of these options are actually "doable" with our timeframe?<br>

1 - Olympic National Park<br>

2 - San Juan Islands<br>

3 - West coastal area<br>

4 - North Cascades NP</p>

<p>Thanks for the responses. My interests are landscape/nature and wildlife. We'll be arriving on Thursday afternoon and fly out again on Sunday morning, so we don't have much time. We understand this is not nearly enough time, but it's all we've got, and will give us an idea of what's there so we can better plan our next extended trip. Our first thought was to spend the better portion of one day whale watching. Does anyone know if they will still be in the area during that time?? The rest of the time we're thinking of heading out the Olympic NP. We're not really interested in exploring or shooting much in Seattle.</p>

<p>We are taking a quick trip to Seattle at the end of September and first couple days of October. We've never been and would appreciate any photo suggestions. We're getting mixed messages about the whales - will they still be in the area at that time? What about the Olympic NP - is that worth exploring? Any ideas are appreciated. Thanks!!</p>

<p>Well, I guess I'm in the minority here as I would spend most of the time in the Grand Tetons NP. I have been several times and have never been disappointed with the amount and variety of wildlife I've found there. We've seen moose, bears, elk, bison, otters, eagles, deer, coyotes and gotten great photos of each. Be sure to drive behind Oxbow Bend on that little dirt road as that is where I've experienced both the best moose and the best eagle viewing. Don't give up, though, just keep driving back through. Along the Moose-Wilson road there are several huckleberry bushes. Black bears love huckleberries! We were in the park one year during the third week of September and there were three different sets of bears who visited the bushes each day at almost exactly 10:00 am and 4:00pm! It was amazing! It sounds like your visit will be a bit too early, but it's worth a try. As I understand it you only have 3 total days for the parks. I'd spend most of two days in the Tetons and one to run through Yellowstone. But, I'm just not a big fan of the geyers. That said, I've had great luck along the Madison river towards West Yellowstone. With only three days, your best bet is to do some research and hit all the high points in both parks. My experience is that the more time you have to hike and just sitting watching, the more wildlife you will be able to experience and since you don't have much time it will probably be best to simply drive through as a tourist. Then, as quickly as possible, begin planning your return visit. Enjoy your time!!</p>

<p>You should visit Garden of the Gods. It's a nice fairly small park near Denver. There won't be much fall color, but lots of red rock formations which will look great with the early morning or late afternoon light. I also agree with the suggestion of heading down to the Ouray/Silverton area - beautiful country. You might also check the distance to Rocky Mountain National Park which would offer some color and wildlife opprotunities. Have fun!!</p>

<p>We just got back a week ago. You are picking a perfect time, as the flowers were just barely showing up over the 4th. You'll be fine for Yankee Boy Basin, though I'm not familiar with American. There were also several places renting ATV's which is what we'll do next trip - it looks like a hoot! Have a great trip!</p>