Photographic Highlights of Alaska

• Fairbanks
• Mt. McKinley and Denali National Park
• Glacier Bay
• Skagway

What surprised me most about Alaska was the amount of water and color during the period between fall and winter. The feel of the Alaskan wilderness is by far the most intriguing and comforting that I have ever had the pleasure of experiencing.

Denali's West Buttress: A Climber's Guide to Mount McKinley's Classic Route

One of the most incredible parts of my journey through Alaska was riding the rails and seeing the pristine countryside. I spent the majority of my train rides hanging off the back of the caboose snapping pictures left and right. I still cannot believe how beautiful the landscape was.

One interesting aspect of travel in Alaska is that many people fly bush planes to get around to different parts of the state. I have included a few pictures of these as well.

My bad luck did not fail me on my trip to Alaska. Mt. McKinley located in Denali National Park, is the highest mountain in the United States. Due to it's high elevation, Mt. McKinley decides it's own weather patterns around the peaks. Ironically, the mountain has an allure that the Alaskan residents like to tell the tourists about how the mountain decides for itself when it is going to appear and if you're lucky you'll catch a glimpse of the peaks. I stayed at the Mt. McKinley wilderness lodge located outside of Talkeetna Alaska for two days... and never saw the mountain. All I saw was clouds and fog. The morning I was boarding the bus to head towards Anchorage, the clouds began to part and I caught my one and only glimpse of the monstrous mountain. You can bet money that I will be back during the springtime to catch some better photos of this beauty!

Frommer's Alaska 2010 (Frommer's Colour Complete Guides)

The brief ride by the Gold Rush Cemetery in Skagway provided an eerie glimpse into the gold rush days of Skagway. The grave in this picture is the grave of the infamous gangster called, "Soapy Smith," otherwise known as Jefferson Randolph Smith II. He was a notorious gangster and con artist back in the mid to late 1800s. He died in a shootout at the Juneau Wharf in 1898 in Skagway, Alaska. His grave stood out to me because he was considered so evil in his mortal life that the townspeople believed he would desecrate the sacred and pure cemetery. So the townspeople buried Soapy Smith outside the cemetery gates!!

Well that's it folks for my little retrospective look at some of my most favorite photographs from Alaska. I hope you enjoyed them as much as I loved taking them! Goodbye until next time!