Kayaking in a T-shirt Under Blue Sky in Seward by Alex Wakefield

My name is Alex Wakefield. I grew up in Hudson, WI and currently to still live there as a senior in high school. I work as a nanny and in my free time, which is very little, I like to baby sit, hand with friends and family, horseback ride, and to be outdoors. I came to Alaska with Green Edventures because it has so much to offer. It also has been a life long goal of mine. I’ve learned a lot.

July 10, 2010

Seward, AK

The morning of our kayak day started off with waking up with a blue sky and the sun shining downJ. After getting fitted into PFDs we headed down the road to launch the kayaks for a 6-mile journey to Caines Head State Park. Along the way we saw many kinds of birds, but we also saw sea otters up close. One I remember I could see eating an urchin.

As we paddled towards our destination, we got to see the coastline in detail. I was in awe that just 6 miles of coast has so much to look at. When we arrived at Caines Head, we parked our kayaks on the shore and headed on a 2-mile hike to the WWII bunkers. The view was amazing. We saw all of Resurrection Bay and across were snow covered mountains.

After eating lunch, we headed back down and journeyed back. My favorite part was not only getting to explore the bunkers but getting to be right on the water and enjoying being on the water in just a t-shirt! Overall, this was an awesome day and 16 (roundtrip) miles of fun.

Day with the Kenaitze, Alaska by Student Camden Droppo

I am your average outdoors man, I love to go fishing and hunting. I am going to be a junior at our high school after this summer. At the end of my freshman year I heard about this trip to Alaska, and it obliviously got my attention. My first thoughts we yeah right like I’d be going to Alaska in High School with out my parents. The funny part is here I am now writing my blog in our hostel at 1:30 in the morning. For any kids that read this take the chance to come up to Alaska. It will be something you will remember forever. For me the reasons I came up here was to experience the different cultures, go see how you feel climbing a glacier that makes you look like an ant from distance. Through this trip my favorite parts was visiting the Kenaitze and hiking to the bowl on Mount Marathon.

July 12, 2010
We forgot to set an alarm for today. It was funny I woke up at 7:55 a.m. I was still the first one up to eat like I usually am. Today was my day I was looking forward to this week. The main part was going to net salmon with the Kenaitze tribe. We first drove an hour to our first stop at K’Bec. It was a Kenaitze National Park just outside of Kenai. There we took a tour with one of the girls in the tribe. She showed us some old native homes which were called natish. In the homes it was a whole family including the grandparents. The grandparents in the family got there own room, because they deserved it from all the work they have done in their lives. Like me I got my own room too, but the kids in the tribes haven’t earned the right yet. It was interesting hearing our everything guide had to tell us. After our tour we got to do some arts and crafts. 

We made necklaces and at the end is an agate. It is said by the elders the agate’s are lucky and can bring luck to the one wearing it. I decide to wear this necklace at home as much as I can and test its luck out. We continued our to the town of Kenai. Our group got another tour of the town, and while on the tour of the town we saw a calf moose with its mom. They were being barked at by a dog and the mom charged at the dog. We had to leave to she wouldn’t charge us. We stopped by the Russian church, it looked very old. The priest looked very old school, with his long white beard. He told us about his beliefs and how their services worked. I am not a very religious person , but I enjoyed hearing what he had to say. Later after that we had some fun learning some dances. One was about a Raven and a man who needed an axe. The dances were more fun than I thought they were going to end up being. Finally the real fun was going to start. (Below: pulling in the nets)

We drove to the Kenaitze private beach where we’re going to net the salmon. Through the day we netted two hundred and fifty red or sockeye salmon, and one king or Chinook salmon. It was nice helping the natives catch there favorite food. In our free time we got to look for some of the lucky agates on ocean beach. I got to know two of the tribe girls named Allison and Josie (below).

 They were the girls who taught us the dances earlier in the day. The natives made our group a dinner, and it was amazing. They made salmon, chicken, rice, and this funnel cake like bread. After dinner we got to do all of the dances with the tribe. It was a lot of fun being apart of what they love to do. There was so much I could have put into this blog, but would end up being like five pages. I think I summed up the day by putting all my favorite parts. If I could I would come back and visit the tribe and those two girls I met every year. This was by far my favorite party of the Alaska Green Edventures Trip.

From Sand to Snow: North-South Adventure by Student Jackie Mantione

I am Jackie Mantione (left); I am sixteen years old and from Orlando, Florida! I discovered Green Edventures from an internet search engine. This past summer I went with Tara on the North South Adventure. That is a two week program where for the first week you spend it in Baja, Mexico and the next week is spent in Seward, Alaska. The north south adventure is definitely a perfect opportunity to discover two completely different regions and get all the perks of a great week you could be missing out on. Being able to spend a week in Mexico was truly a week paradise. Activities ranged from snorkeling with sea lions to hiking on a mountain that still has remains from over one hundred years ago and is still considered a “private” site because Archaeologists are still revealing new things there. In Alaska you do a lot of activities where you have fun and help out the little populated town of Seward like hiking, animal watching, and investigating and getting rid of invasive plants.

In Mexico you arrive at the airport, and then you take about an hour and a half car ride to the city of La Paz, where you get to eat lunch, get your snorkeling gear, and load onto the boat. After that you take another hour and a half boat ride to the point called Espiritu Santu, where you stay on a little private island called Ensanada Grande. This island is perfect because you have mountains around you are literally sleeping in a tent on a beach! If you ever thought you have been to heaven on earth, you haven’t experienced anything yet. Then in the mornings you would go on an adventurous activity like snorkeling, scuba diving, or hiking a mountain. On the activities you learn so many things! It is amazing to hear about what everyone knows about their surroundings like animal behavior and flower growths. After about five days on Ensanada Grande you pack your bags and go to another beautiful escape called Cabo Pulmo. There you get to go snorkeling on a reef right on the beach! Also, you get to go to a private freshwater waterfall where you are sure to have the best time of your life! Getting to know all the workers, experiencing all the excursions, and learning the Mexican Culture is definitely something you cannot experience if you were to do a trip not with this amazing company!

In Alaska you get to travel to a cute and small little town called Seward, which has a population of about 2500. There you get to go on amazing kayak tours, hiking with the view you have to see it to believe it, help out a conservation center to do something good for a community and do something good for yourself. In Alaska everywhere you turn is a picture opportunity. Pictures can show how pretty something in Alaska is, but in my opinion, pictures don’t do Alaska any mercy. Every excursion you do gives you an amazing workout and can seem a little tiring, but everything is so worth it in the end. You will forget about every inch of soreness or tiredness you feel when you see Alaska from the top of a glacier, or see a moose eating on the side of the road minding its own business. Another amazing thing you get to experience is meeting the Kenaitze Tribe. That day is so amazing because I was just awestruck by how proud these everyday people are about what they grew up with and how they try their very hardest to keep the tradition going. The tribe treats you to a nice salmon feast with some of the best food you will ever try, even if you aren’t a fish fan! They also show you some of their native performances where everyday teens like you and me are singing inspirational songs invented hundreds of years ago.

Going from Mexico to Alaska is a definite change in culture, temperature, and may be a little tough to fit packing into a small bag but it is the experience I am so glad I went on and definitely something you don’t want to miss. The North South Adventure will provide you with learning that keeps you interested and doesn’t make you want to fall asleep. And if you’re looking for the best two weeks of your life, the answer is a simple one and is right in front of you.