INTO THE UNKNOWN

 "The core of mans' spirit comes from new experiences." ~ Jon Krakauer

Entering Caines Head State Recreation Area.

This past weekend, we embarked on our first backpacking trip in Alaska, and more specifically in the 6,000 acre Caines Head State Recreation Area. We were getting antsy to start backpacking as soon as possible, given the oncoming "onslaught"😊 of the tourist season and the increasing accessibility of Mother Nature's wilderness due to raising temperatures. With that, we decided two weeks ago that we were going to make our way to South Beach this weekend, rain or shine. And of course, much to B's joy and my consternation, it rained as we loaded the packs on our tandem bicycle and made our way over to the trail head!

The sun decided to come out right as we started our hike along the coast! 

It was a route we had never hiked before, mainly because it is a combination of coastal and mountain hiking. The coastal part is blocked unless you hike it during low tide which means it is only passable about every 12 hours or so. Once you go in you should be prepared to spend the night or get a boat or plane to pick you up on the other side. Lacking a boat or a plane, we were left to feel a combination of urgency and excitement as we started our trip on foot on Friday afternoon, racing the tide.

This is a pretty popular backpacking route for locals, but we were able to avoid the crowds because we left on a Friday afternoon. We didn't see anyone the entire time we were out there on Friday and all day Saturday morning. We had the secluded beaches, mountains and historic WWII monuments to ourselves, except during the last 2-3 miles of our trip back. We covered about 10 miles on Friday and 8 miles on Saturday.

Sign at North Beach. 4.5 miles into our hike.

We were on the coast by 2:30pm on Friday and in the tent by 10pm. During those 8 or so hours, we enjoyed beautiful coastline views of Resurrection Bay and surrounding mountains. We watched seagulls and Barrow's goldeneye ducks flying overhead or hanging out in the coastline waves. We listened to waterfalls rolling over mountains and into the bay. We discovered wonderful public use cabins and creepy WWII fort (Fort McGilvray). We explored lush temperate rainforest covered in moss and flowering wild blueberry bushes along with receiving three magical visits from rufous hummingbirds. It was certainly a day to remember, and one that left us thoroughly satisfied and exhausted by the time we snuggled into our sleeping bags on Friday evening.

One of the two main 6 inch gun blocks that is part of Fort McGilvray overlooking Resurrection Bay.

Drawing of Fort McGilvray that was built during WWII and at one point housed 2,000 soldiers. The fort still stands, and is open to the public, though it's in disrepair and quite creepy. 

Exploring one of the many overgrown bunkers built during WWII. 

After spending the night near the water, close enough to hear the waves crashing through the night, we got up the next day rejuvenated and ready to seize the day...or so we thought! We stretched our sleepy limbs with a leisurely walk along the shoreline, and a breakfast of PB&J sandwiches and cold water. Shortly thereafter, we packed up and were back on the trail by 9:45am.

South Beach on Friday evening. Our campsite was nearby.

Once again, we were heading into new territory, having chosen to complete the loop trail and thus follow a different route on our way back to North Beach, where we were going to catch the low tide and arrive back in Seward. At this point, we were 6.2 miles away from North Beach and we had about 6 hours to get there. I was a bit nervous about trying out a new trail with so many time constraints, but B felt that it would work out ok.  And so, with a combined sense of trepidation and excitement, we embarked into the unknown once again!

Snack time overlooking a waterfall on Rainforest Trail between South Beach and North Beach.

Beautiful moss-covered woods and more stunning waterfalls!

Over the five hours we huffed and puffed our way through steep mountainside, stopping to eat alongside one of the countless, huge waterfalls. Though we were hiking the Rainforest "trail" we lost the trail three times. The trail was washed out by flooding as we climbed up the south face and then buried under snow fields as we started down the north face of the mountain. After losing the trail on the descent the second time we gave up finding it again and so decided to follow the water downward instead. We got soaked from head to toe bushwhacking our way through snow, mud, swamp, growing evergreens, devil's club shrub, and flowering wild blueberry bushes. What seemed like ages later, not knowing exactly where we were, and still racing the clock for the low tide, we hooted and hollered in pure joy when we recognized the North Beach day hut through the trees. We were going to make it in time for the tide.

Walking on North Beach toward Seward.

Enjoying the refreshing alpine waters on our way home.

Needless to say, we took it easy once back on the coastline, reveling in all the excitement we had just experienced and appreciating the calm bay waters gently hitting the shoreline. It was at this point that we also started to run into other hikers, backpackers and walkers going in the opposite direction. We stopped to chat with a few and suggested that they stick to the Caines Head and South Beach Trails and avoid the Loop and Alpine Trails, unless they were ready to bushwhack and snowshoe their way up and down the mountain 😉.

Seagulls hanging out on the rocks, while we hiked nearby. 

Once back at the Lowell Point State Recreation Site trail head, we loaded our packs onto our tandem bicycle, got on and biked the last 5.5 miles of our trip back home. As we rode through downtown Seward, we were greeted by sunshine and hundreds of people enjoying the local Mermaid Festival. We discussed possibly stopping to see what was going on, but promptly decided that all we wanted to do was get home, eat pizza and be lazy for the rest of the day 😊.

Happy exploring of the unknown!
~Modern Akhmatova