7-17
Well after spending a week in Denali and only seeing a small piece of the Great One we left the campground heading south towards the Kenai peninsula once again. Nice cool day for a drive when we come upon a couple vehicles on the side of the road and people taking pictures. One of the guys had a white Canon telephoto lens so I figured they saw a moose or something. Nope, Denali! Cindy yells. So I pull over as fast as I can and we climb out and walk back to a clearing through the trees.
Yep, there she was in all of her glory!
It was fascinating to watch as the clouds would form up around the peaks and hide the mountain only to open up again. We watched for a while then hopped back in the coach and continued our drive.
Continuing our drive through Anchorage we remembered that a couple weeks ago Cindy had asked me what was a bore tide? A bit of research and we found out that Turnagain Arm inlet just south of Anchorage was one of the few places in the world that has the phenomena of a bore tide. The bore tide is a huge wave or series of waves that advance down Turnagain Arm in a wall of water up to 10-feet high. The bore tide is a rush of seawater that returns to a shallow and narrowing inlet from a broad bay. Bore tides come in after extreme minus low tides created by the full or new moon.
Bore tides occur all over the world—there are around 60 of them—but only a few are large enough to make a name for themselves. One in China, for example, stretches almost 30 feet tall and travels more than 20 miles per hour. Alaska’s most famous bore tide occurs in Turnagain Arm, just outside Anchorage. It climbs up to 6 – 10 feet tall and can reach speeds of 10 to 15 miles per hour. It takes not just a low tide but also about a 27-foot tidal differential (between high and low tide) for a bore to form in Turnagain Arm.
What's So Special About the Turnagain Arm Bore Tide?
Well, it’s huge—one of the biggest in the world, actually. Also, all other bore waves run up low-lying rivers in more southerly latitudes. The Turnagain Arm bore wave is the only one that occurs in the far north and the only one bordered by mountains, making it the most unique and most geologically dramatic bore tide in the world. It’s also amazingly accessible: you can see it by road along its entire 40- to 50-mile length. And it’s a wildlife-spotting opportunity: harbor seals often ride the tide into Turnagain Arm. Beluga whales may come in a half hour or so later once the water gets deeper. Unfortunately we didn't see any.
After that we drove down to Girdwood for the night. After parking and unhooking the truck we drove to the Double Musky Cajun Restaurant. Cajun in Alaska? Actually it was pretty good. Walking in it was decorated with New Orleans and Mardi Gras memorabilia. Cindy had the shrimp scampi and I had the halibut stuffed with crab. Cindy's was nicely done served over pecan rice. No not Konriko pecan rice but rice with pecans. And plenty of barely sautéed celery. My halibut was very good but the crab stuffing wasn't up to our standards as cajuns. Good but not enough seasoning or crabmeat. Still a very nice meal.
After stuffing ourselves and still bringing back doggie bags we retired to our coach for a nice quiet night.
Well after spending a week in Denali and only seeing a small piece of the Great One we left the campground heading south towards the Kenai peninsula once again. Nice cool day for a drive when we come upon a couple vehicles on the side of the road and people taking pictures. One of the guys had a white Canon telephoto lens so I figured they saw a moose or something. Nope, Denali! Cindy yells. So I pull over as fast as I can and we climb out and walk back to a clearing through the trees.
Yep, there she was in all of her glory!
It was fascinating to watch as the clouds would form up around the peaks and hide the mountain only to open up again. We watched for a while then hopped back in the coach and continued our drive.
Continuing our drive through Anchorage we remembered that a couple weeks ago Cindy had asked me what was a bore tide? A bit of research and we found out that Turnagain Arm inlet just south of Anchorage was one of the few places in the world that has the phenomena of a bore tide. The bore tide is a huge wave or series of waves that advance down Turnagain Arm in a wall of water up to 10-feet high. The bore tide is a rush of seawater that returns to a shallow and narrowing inlet from a broad bay. Bore tides come in after extreme minus low tides created by the full or new moon.
Bore tides occur all over the world—there are around 60 of them—but only a few are large enough to make a name for themselves. One in China, for example, stretches almost 30 feet tall and travels more than 20 miles per hour. Alaska’s most famous bore tide occurs in Turnagain Arm, just outside Anchorage. It climbs up to 6 – 10 feet tall and can reach speeds of 10 to 15 miles per hour. It takes not just a low tide but also about a 27-foot tidal differential (between high and low tide) for a bore to form in Turnagain Arm.
What's So Special About the Turnagain Arm Bore Tide?
Well, it’s huge—one of the biggest in the world, actually. Also, all other bore waves run up low-lying rivers in more southerly latitudes. The Turnagain Arm bore wave is the only one that occurs in the far north and the only one bordered by mountains, making it the most unique and most geologically dramatic bore tide in the world. It’s also amazingly accessible: you can see it by road along its entire 40- to 50-mile length. And it’s a wildlife-spotting opportunity: harbor seals often ride the tide into Turnagain Arm. Beluga whales may come in a half hour or so later once the water gets deeper. Unfortunately we didn't see any.
After that we drove down to Girdwood for the night. After parking and unhooking the truck we drove to the Double Musky Cajun Restaurant. Cajun in Alaska? Actually it was pretty good. Walking in it was decorated with New Orleans and Mardi Gras memorabilia. Cindy had the shrimp scampi and I had the halibut stuffed with crab. Cindy's was nicely done served over pecan rice. No not Konriko pecan rice but rice with pecans. And plenty of barely sautéed celery. My halibut was very good but the crab stuffing wasn't up to our standards as cajuns. Good but not enough seasoning or crabmeat. Still a very nice meal.
After stuffing ourselves and still bringing back doggie bags we retired to our coach for a nice quiet night.
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