5/21- Early wake up for a 6:40 flight to O'Hare airport in Chicago. The main destination was to be Anchorage, Alaska but the plan was to break it up to reduce the risk of delays and allow for some fun instead of spending all day en route. The flight went off on time and we landed just before 9:00 local time. Chicago's subway system is connected to the airport and I got a 24 hour pass for unlimited rides that cost me just $5. Smokin' deal. The trip into the downtown loop normally takes 45-60 minutes.
As expected, the weather wasn't great. Temps were in the low 50s all day with occasional drizzle. Could be worse. At least it wasn't a downpour and with relatively calm winds, I wasn't too uncomfortable out there. After dropping my bag off, I took a short walk to Grant Park and saw a nice fountain and a view of Lake Michigan. I had plenty of time before the game and actually arrived before the gates even opened. My losing streak continues as the Mariners beat the White Sox 6-5 but it was a pretty good game in a decent ballpark, number 20 for me. Only 10 to go.
It was nearly 5 PM when I got back to the hotel and I relaxed for just a few minutes and decided what to do for the rest of the day. No use seeing a skyscraper because it was too foggy at the top. I took the Red Line to Grand then walked a fair distance to Navy Pier and Ohio Street Beach. The latter looks like it will be nice in the summer. Water temperature hits 70 by July but wave action is rare.
I hit the Magnificent Mile on Michigan Ave on the way back and got some Chicago style pizza there. It was good but I still prefer the New York style. It was now past sunset and I took a nice little walk by the river but called it a night pretty early. I did meet a guy from Trussville, AL on the way back. Tomorrow's flight would leave at 9:30, so that meant that I had to be out the door by 6:30.
5/22-With 3 days in Alaska, I only hoped for one sunny day with good views of Denali. I would get 2 good weather days (sunny and 60-65), which turned out to be the nicest weather of the entire trip. I arrived just after 1:00 local time and took it easy. Even though jet lag is not as bad going west, I was still quite tired from the long flight. I decided to just chill in Anchorage for the rest of the day. I did check out a couple of parks and got a steak dinner and a drink at a bar, where I had a good conversation with a guy from Seattle.
5/23- With Anchorage as my home base, I could be flexible with my plans. Though both of the next two days turned out to be good, the forecast looked better today. I headed north to Talkeetna, which is basically a one street town with a few restaurants and hotels. It serves as a gateway to Denali and does have a nice lake with views of the mountain.
From Talkeetna, it's about an hour to the South entrance of Denali State Park with the North entrance being another 30 miles up the road. There are a couple of other trailheads in between. I drove up to the North entrance first, then turned around. The best hiking trail here is Curry Ridge, which rises above the trees for spectacular views of the mountain. IMO, this is better than Denali National Park and doable on a day trip from Anchorage.
I got back at a decent hour then saw a beautiful sunset over the bay. The sunset was at 11:00 PM this time of year and it does not get fully dark until after midnight. A few hours further north, it never does get fully dark. It's a little surreal for it to be so bright at 10:00 and I got a bit of a second wind. Yes, I was able to sleep but awoke much sooner than usual. About 5 hours of sleep was all that I needed.
5/24-Headed South to Seward and arrived by about 9:45. I walk through town then up and down the coast until the restaurants opened at 11. I got some good seafood then stopped at the Visitor's center. In a change of plans, I decided to get cruise tickets for the Kenai Fjords NP. Probably a good call but I have mixed feelings. The views were awesome but it was just too long and too expensive.
The shortest cruise was 4.5 hours, which meant that I would have to skip the hiking trails, which were located almost an hour away. Maybe I could have done it, but I would have arrived very late back in Anchorage with a plane to catch the next morning. Oh well, I did plenty of hiking the previous day and wasn't feeling great because of the pills. I only wish that a 2 hour cruise was available, which would have allowed me to comfortably do both.
5/25- Slept in a bit more but still got out the door at 8 so I could get a sit down breakfast at the airport. There was a short delay but I landed in San Francisco just after 5. The BART ride and the walk to my hotel took almost an hour and a half so that left me with about a 2 hour window for sightseeing before dark. As I predicted, I had time for either Baker Beach or Golden Gate Park but not both.
With overcast skies and no visible sunset, it was an easy call. I went to Golden Gate Park. I climbed Strawberry Hill, which offered nice views of both Stowe Lake and city streets. By this time, I was feeling better and my mood had brightened. I got some quick pizza then took Muni back to my hotel. Before calling it a night, I went to a fun karaoke bar. As usual, Californians treated me very well.
5/26- Rough day. I had 2 flights on tap today and wasn't scheduled to land until 11PM. That's the price you pay if you want to squeeze in more sightseeing. I awoke to foggy conditions, as is common this time of year. I still enjoyed the hike up to Twin Peaks but could not see anything at the top. I passed the famous Castro theater on the way back. By 10:00, the weather was nice but I couldn't wait. Check out was 11 and my flight was scheduled to leave at 2. Because of bad weather in Dallas, both flights were delayed and I didn't get home until after 1 AM. I took 2 hours off work. Should have taken an earlier flight with a different connection city. Good trip overall.
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