Kenai peninsula was our favorite place in Alaska! Since we were by the ocean, the temperature was a bit warmer, we even got to walk in our t-shirts couple of days! Since we are in Japan now, I won't go into much detail about the last leg of our trip, I think everyone is waiting for our impressions about Tokyo :)

From Matanuska we went straight to Cooper Landing, famous for fishing. The rivers were boiling with fish, especially sockeye salmon which turns a beautiful red color once it leaves the ocean for the rivers. We enjoyed catching salmon and watching bears on a Russian river. It's thrilling to be close to a wild grizzly who doesn't pay attention to you being there whatsoever!!! From Cooper Landing we went to Homer, self-proclaimed "capital of halibut fishing". It was a very cute mellow town with an active artist community, great food (of course I've never tasted fresher halibut in my entire life!) and local wine (who knew?). From Homer we went to Seward where we took a tour with Kenai Fjords Tours and visited Kenai Fjords national park. We saw sea otters, whales, seals, variety of birds and of course many glaciers which never ceased to impress us with their grandiosity...



Next stop - Hope. A little community of maybe 15 buildings where the showers were in the convenience store right next to Spam and ATM :). The local hostel was the worst accommodations we've had yet! However, the lady who runs the place gave Ian all the equipment needed to pan for gold, which in my opinion was a complete waste of time, but if it brings happiness to my husband, hey, why not? The best part about Hope was King Boletus mushrooms (baravykai!!!!!). They actually paved a way to a deep discount at a very nice lodge in Cooper Landing where we went again the next day. The owner (Bob) let us stay for three nights in a very nice apartment for only 70$ while it usually costs 125-150$. I would highly recommend the place: Drifter's Lodge. They have a sauna, smoker house and organize fishing tours.

Our last adventure on Kenai peninsula was canoeing on two lakes. It was probably one of the nicest and peaceful evenings in Alaska. We had freshly caught trout with wild mushrooms while in the background bold eagles where calling as the sun was setting...
At the end of the trip we went to Fairbanks, which did not impress us much, I wouldn't go back... The only highlight was Chena hot springs, we walked outside in our swimsuits!!!
The trip back on Denali highway was even more impressive than the first time. Tundra and taiga changed - red, burgundy, yellow and brown were dominating colors, I don't think I've ever seen fall so beautiful...
Finally, we spent our last two days in McCarthy and Kennicott, two old mining towns where I went wild photographing...
Overall, the trip was all what we expected, and I realized that I like nature and hiking in doses, not as a full-time lifestyle :)