Alaska answers

[clevercraig]

Ok I feel like an ass....I used to be somewhat of a frequent poster on this site but the last year i've been more of a stranger. This site was so helpfull to me before I went to Europe a few summers back and I kinda' feel like I've since turned my back on it......So sorry............And of course I make my return looking for a little advice But first for those of you who might be interested in Alaska. GO. After my Euro backpacking trip two summers back I was approaching this past summer with low funds and that itch to go someplace different and exciting. So i decided it was time to finally go out ot Alaska.....But again I was low on money. So I did quite a bit of internet research and found myself a bartending job (my trade) in the beautiful little town of Skagway, Alaska. It's a town that has 600 year round residents but 2,500 people come in to work the summers. It is a cruise ship town. On an average weekday 4-6 cruiseships pull into port (Skagway is on an amazing glacier lined Pacific canal called the Lynn Canal) dropping off 10 thousand people for the day.....I pretty much worked my ass off all day and partied all night. Kinda' like home except I was surrounded by glaciers and great hiking, bald eagles flew above my head, I could see Orca and humpback whales in the bay while walking to work every day. Skagway is a pretty laid back hippy little town where the ganj is good and the people even better. They call Alaska the last fronteer for a reason. Not just the unspoiled land but the sort of person that goes there. It's a special breed, my and our type of breed. The adventurer, the person fed up with the lower 48's style, the outdoorsmen, fisherman and the "hippy." ..... I've been all over europe......But if my family would not be so far away I'd choose to live in the majestic wildrness that is Alaska.................Oh yeah, besides the great 4 and a half months I spent there I was able to make 14 thousand dollars...yup, 14K. Suffice to say, I'll be returning next summer. I would HIGHLY recommend seeing Alaska as I did if you are interested. No I did not get to roam freely as I did in Europe but I did get to live in an amazing area with some great people from all over the world for a summer. Give it a try...Type in "seasonal work in alaska" on your search bar and see where it takes you..........What to do after another summer in Alaska though?................well here's where I could use some advice. I've been seeing a Peruvian girl who is working the season here in the Adirondack mountains of NY state. She's inspired me to check out Peru sometime next winter upon my return. Machu Pichu (sp?), the desert drawings, Lima night life...It's going to be a blast. But it would be ridiculous to be in South America and limit my adventures to one country. Brazil is a must but can anyone suggest any other must countries. I've begun my preliminary research for this trip..........which means I've bought a few lonley planet books and flipped through them while on the "throne." As the date of deperture approaches I naturally will know my shit, but now I am a southern hemisphere green horn. I s'pose they don't have as inticate a rail system down there as in Europe? Is the language barrier as easy to sidestep as it was in Euro? Are guerillas going to shoot at me with machine guns (who'd give an ape a gun anyway).............Any advice would be great.........Thanks and I promise to post more frquently and get my Alaska photos on here.

[pinion]

you're alive!!!

I though Alaska ate you!

[U2fan]

Wow great to hear from you!

You def. need a visa to get to Brazil so get on that if you`re going there. Depending on how much time you have I would try to go to Bolivia if you`ll def. be in Peru (I unfortunately didn`t get there but met loads of people who had just been or were going and saw pictures and I was SO sad I didn`t get to go). I am the biggest advocate for Argentina now that I spent 2 months there. Incredible people, incredible food, incredible scenery, and incredibly cheap....if you loved Alaska you will love Patagonia. Chile is very nice too; didn`t spend as much time there and it is more expensive. If you make it to Buenos Aires you might as well spend a few days in Uruguay b/c it`s right there too...

Can`t wait to see your Alaska pics!

[Somnambulation]

I know exactly what you mean about Alaska being the last frontier. Its got that wild west feel to it that you just dont get much down here, and people have real jobs like fisherman or lumberjack. Glad you were able to make some cash up there.

[urOZm8]

Craig, welcome back mate! Alaska sounds like the place to be! I haven't been to South America before so I really can't say much but as I hope it is a future destination for myself I look forward to everybody elses replies.

ev

[kingcrazylegs]

Great to have you back, and to hear your adventures! We looked at moving to Alaska beofre deciding on Seattle. It is still on my to do list

[space virgin]

Welcome back, Craig! I seem to remember that you were supposed to stop by Seattle on your way out of Alaska last fall... Next time, right?

[worldwidemike]

Welcome back, c/c!

The advice everyone is giving you is pretty spot-on. Other South American highlights could include

* Patagonia (Argentina/Chile)
* Easter Island (5 hour flight from Chile -- not cheap!)
* Galapagos Islands (Ecuador, from Guayaquil)

And you're right, there's not a good intercontinental rail network. It will pretty much have to be airplanes or buses. The distances can be huge in South America, so if you can find cheap airfare between countries, go for it...

Good luck, and keep us posted!

worldwidemike

[clevercraig]

Originally posted by space virgin@Feb 11 2006, 08:26 PM
Welcome back, Craig!* * I seem to remember that you were supposed to stop by Seattle on your way out of Alaska last fall...* Next time, right?*

[snapback]102185[/snapback]

Actually I speant 5 days inSeattle Space Virgin. Stayed at the green tortoise hostel and ahd a blast. Pioneer square was a lot of fun but I found myself gravitating to the Whiskey Bar just a few blocks up from the hostel on a nightly basis. Hung out there a couple of nights with a few brits i met. I liked Seattle a lot, different kind of a feel there than other big cities. Aslo it was sunny all five days I was there....It rains in seattle? yeah, that John Denver's full of shit (i pay homage to Dumb and Dumber there)

[space virgin]

^ Dude!! I can't believe you were here and you didn't send us a PM. And by US I mean me and also KingCrazyLegs/ScarlotteDorian. They moved here in August.

And it does rain... quite a bit, in fact. It rained every single day in January. But summer/fall are generally nice.

[kingcrazylegs]

^ yeah, were's the love!

[clevercraig]

Originally posted by kingcrazylegs@Feb 12 2006, 10:17 PM
^ yeah, were's the love!

[snapback]102332[/snapback]

man...now I feel like an Asshole........I'll touch basis with ya'all when i come through this spring...I'll be there jsut for a day or two but we'll knock a few down

[TheJake]

"that john denver's full of shit"

isn't that a national lampoons vacation quote?

And so tell me craig are you going to alaska this summer?

[florencia9699]

As usual WWM is right... I was gonna say the exact same thing, you cant rely on trains as much as in Europe, but there are loads of buses everywhere, and quite cheap too.... though you have to bare with really long trips... I've known people who've gone from Perú to Buenos Aires by bus, but if you can afford airplanes from time to time try those instead, at least for the really long trips. South American countries, compared to European ones are huge! (I've read somewhere that Argentina alone is almost 2/3rds of the European continent.... not to mention Brazil).
And if you decide to make it this far south you can't miss Buenos Aires (ok ok, so I live here... but this place is amazing!!) and also Patagonia. it'll remind you a lot of your trip to Alaska. But I already posted on all the lovely things to see here....

Argentina!!

ANd theers even more! so if you have any questions just ask!!

[bluepea]

Welcome back. Wow, I can't believe how many people responded so positively to your post. I mean, you disappear and come crawling back when you want something? Just joshing. You know we don't care. Anyhow, Alaska sounds amazing. We've been wanting to visit there for awhile. We talked about taking a cruise there for Christmas (we've given up on the family thing until we're obligated by children) but who'd a thunk. They don't run cruises in Alaska in December.

Thanks for sharing the info! Good luck on your SA trip.

[Somnambulation]

Originally posted by TheJake@Apr 15 2006, 06:15 PM
"that john denver's full of shit"

isn't that a national lampoons vacation quote?

Nope, Dumber and Dumber. BUt it does come during the roadtrip sequence, so youre not far off.

Harry: I expected the Rocky Mountains to be a littel rockier than this

Lloyd: Yeah. That John Denver's full of shit

[futboller]

Welcome back! Alaska sounds great, I might have to give that a shot.

[uninspired]

I was born and raised in Anchorage . . . you're so right about the people there. Even in the "city" of Anchorage, people are generally the same way--laid back, pleasant, and usually have great stories to tell. One thing I'd definitely recommend is to take the train from Anchorage to Denali--it's kinda pricey but soo worth it. My dad used to work for the Alaska Railroad so we got to do it all the time for free. I miss those days. Kennicott Copper Mine is cool too, but I can't remember where it is--I know you have to take a little cart-and-cable contraption over the river to get there, though. Oh and the hiking is fabulous, of course. Also, if you go from Seattle, I hear taking the ferry (it takes a couple days) is a really awesome way to do it.

Oh, and if you go, bring some poetry by Robert Service. It's quaint stuff and the rhyme is kinda silly but it channels Alaska really well--and he was quite the TPunker in his time.

No! There's the land. (Have you seen it?)
It's the cussedest land that I know,
From the big, dizzy mountains that screen it
To the deep, deathlike valleys below.
Some say God was tired when He made it;
Some say it's a fine land to shun;
Maybe; but there's some as would trade it
For no land on earth -- and I'm one.

--from "Spell of the Yukon"