Prince William Sound Books has a bunch of really interesting books, especially the ones by Jim and Nancy Lethcoe. One of these is "The History of PWS Alaska".

The following is some old stuff from the early version of this web page. It was designed to prepare our people for the trip. It may still be useful to anyone planning a trip.

During my May 2004 visit to Valdez I questioned my Alaskan friends, and they all said that June is the best month because of the generally good weather and the long length of the days. The fishing is better in July-September, but the crowds are bad and accommodations are often booked. In September the days are shorter and the probability of rain is much higher.

Please be aware that South central Alaska is beautiful partly because of all of the rain and snow. Plan on having a good time even if it is cloudy or raining. I don't think we will see snow; more likely experience heat. The summer of 2004 was very warm and dry.

Alaska is a huge place and it would take years to get to know it very well. Prince William Sound is one of the most beautiful parts of Alaska. I think it is possible to see a few highlights of the sound in a couple of weeks.

My experience is that the finest Alaska has to offer are its scenic views, its wildlife and its local ambiance. With this itinerary I am trying to expose you to as much of these as possible within reasonable time and money limits.

Cordova has historic buildings that survived the Good Friday, 1964 earthquake. Hard economic times have kept Cordova from developing into a modern town. In addition to its old Alaska charm, Cordova is the base for exploring the Copper River Delta. We can ride an excursion bus along the route of the old railroad line up to Childs Glacier and the "Million Dollar Bridge". When active, the Childs Glacier drops house-sized chunks of ice into the Copper River directly across from the viewing area.

The Copper River Delta is home to millions of migratory birds including huge trumpeter swans. Alaska River Rafters advertise one day hiking and boating trips in the delta area.

It is possible that we can fish for king salmon and red salmon, the famous "Copper River Reds" near Cordova. There are some places where one can fish from shore. Or we can charter a small fishing boat for the day. Red salmon are difficult to catch with a rod and reel. Streamer flies are the best bet.

The Cordova Chamber of Commerce has a web site.

Originally I had an idea about hiring a private boat to transport us from Cordova across Prince William Sound to Valdez or from Valdez to Cordova. I thought we could maybe do a little wilderness-water and historical exploring on the way; maybe stay on the boat overnight. There are some adventure tour people who will set up custom boat tours, but the per-person, per-night costs are pretty steep. (Tour business people have only a short season to make all of their money for the year.) We will have to make do with the Alaska State ferry.

Prince William Sound scenery is beautiful and the water is usually smooth. On board the ferry there is a bar and restaurant. We will not have to travel overnight.

I have friends in Valdez and I would like you to meet them and see their lifestyles. There are hiking trails around Valdez; also day excursion boats go to see the Columbia / Mears Glacier. Eagles and sea otters are all over the place. There are a couple of good restaurants.

In Valdez we will rent a van so we can explore the high country interior where the rainfall is less - and the vistas infinite. It looks like Denali without the hordes of tourists. I think I can find a place for us to stay overnight at Chitina, a little town on the road to the remote Kennicott/McCarthy. (I need a contact in Chitina and in Kennicott / McCarthy)

Going on to K/McC is an option depending upon various circumstances. It may be possible to drive, but the road is rough. It may also be possible to fly from Chitina to K/McC for not too much money if we have a group. A small plane flight in Alaska is an unforgettable experience. Parts of the Chitina / Kennicott / McCarthy trip will be within or along the edge of Wrangell St. Elias National Park, the largest national park in the US.

Yakutat is a very small town with lots of ambiance. It is also close to the Situk River, one of the best salmon and trout rivers in Southern Alaska. We can also take a small tour boat up Yakutat Bay to see the glacier and marine mammals. Having lodging with a kitchen is really handy if you manage to catch, beg or buy some fish.

If you want to see Anchorage or Denali National Park on your own, do it before or after this tour. Denali is beautiful if you really get into it, but tourists usually get stuck in a tacky motel on the commercial strip near the entrance. Anchorage is just another semi-big town like Seattle or San Diego. I think the Anchorage-Denali-Anchorage tourist circuit gives a relatively poor impression of Alaska.

Useful Links

I have been Googling to find appropriate photos and text to describe some of the areas mentioned above. This is rather difficult with a straight Google keyword search so I used the Google images search. This produced some interesting pages. If you go to the following you can surf around and find even more photos and information.

Photos and travelog of Copper River Delta and Cordova

More photos of Copper River Delta

And even more

Photos of Chitina

Road from Chitina to Kennicott / McCarthy

Kennicott travelog

More Kennicott McCarthy

Humongous travelog on Alaska

Personal travelog regarding Yakutat.

National Park Service site regarding Yakutat.

Alaska Fish and Game web site re Yakutat.