From left: a family of
From left: a family of brown bears in Lake Clark Park in southwestern Alaska; rock glacier in Wrangell– St Elias National Park; all aboard for a scenic ride on the Alaska Railroad The exclave AMERICA’S LAST FRONTIER A handful of upscale operators offer extraordinary ways to experience Alaska’s majesty From left: abandoned quarters of the Kennecott copper mine in the Wrangell–St Elias National Park, now a tourist attraction; adventurers on an Un-Cruise voyage approach an iceberg; Athabascan "Cry Baby" mask shown at the Anchorage Museum Immense, wild and purchased from Russia in 1867 for a paltry .2m, the 49th state is a blaze of scenic superlatives. It is home to 16 of the highest peaks in North America, three million lakes, 100,000 glaciers, 30,000 rivers and 23 national parks. But there are only 730,000 residents – fewer than live in half of Manhattan. Alaska is a treasury of crowd-free thrills, be it kayaking beside colossal icebergs, riding the glass-roofed carriages of the Alaska Railroad or beholding the great celestial disco that is the Northern Lights. Take Wrangell-St Elias National Park, set beside the epic Richardson Highway that links Valdez and Fairbanks. This is the largest park in the United States, bigger than Switzerland and with higher mountains – but with just 87,000 visitors a year. Admission is free, and the rangers pounce on you with the zeal of prospectors discovering gold. Given such natural blessings, it’s no surprise more and more of us are awaking to this wonderland. Visitor numbers have been rising for the last three years, with last summer seeing a seven per cent increase in arrivals. Cruising through the labyrinthine islands of the Inside Passage remains the most popular way to travel, with a growing choice of exclusive and exploratory voyages aboard small ships. Based in Sitka, Alaskan Dream Cruises (alaskandreamcruises.com) operates three vessels carrying no more than 58 passengers though the mighty fjords and bays. This season Un-Cruise (un-cruise.com) has introduced themed cruises aboard the 86-passenger Safari Endeavour that feature a guest marine biologist and a Captain’s Choice exploration of “not in the guidebook” places. Whales, porpoises and sea otters are some of the marine life to be seen – and that’s just on a half-day cruise though the Kenai Fjords (kenaifjords.com). On land, bears are the superstars. Alaska is home to 70% of the brown (grizzly) bears in North America. And let’s not forget the people, whose hard-pressed lifestyle holds a fascination that has spawned a multitude of reality shows, from Ice Road Truckers to Alaskan Women Looking For Love. Most of its citizens live amid such harsh beauty because they love it, including the highly artistic Native Alaskans, 16% of the population. For a window on their rich heritage, the superb Anchorage Museum (anchoragemuseum.org) has powerful CLOCKWISE FROM BOTTOM LEFT: FOTOLIA, © UN-CRUISE, GETTY IMAGES, FRANS LANTING/GALLERY STOCK, NIGEL TISDALL, DONALD E. HURLBERT/© ANCORAGE MUSEUM SMITHSONIAN ARCTIC STUDIES CENTER 34 departures-international.com
exhibits including masks, hunting tools and resourcefully made Arctic clothing that are a reminder of the hard old days, which in some cases are not so distant – Anchorage will celebrate its centenary in 2015. As the state license plate puts it, Alaska is the “Last Frontier” – now winning first place on many a traveller’s itinerary. SCOUTING FOR GRIZZLIES Homer, at the southwestern tip of the Kenai Peninsula, is not just the halibut fishing capital of the world; it’s also a prime spot for flightseeing trips to see brown bears in the wild. Using a six-seater Cessna 206, Alaska Bear Adventures (alaskabearviewing.com) boldly flies its guests over snow-cloaked volcanoes to land on desolate beaches lost in the vast wilderness of the Katmai Peninsula. A decade of experience and habituation means close encounters are highly likely, such as watching a sow and her four-month-old cubs digging for clams just 45m away, while a menacing grey wolf looks on from the nearby dunes. BY NIGEL TISDALL Alaska Bear Adventures flies its guests across the state’s untamed wilderness, allowing close encounters with its enthralling ursine population Island hopping CLOCKWISE FROM TOP: © ALASKA BEAR ADVENTURES, MICHAEL HUGHES, © MONTAGE KAPALUA BAY, © HYATT ANDAZ; BACKGROUND: FOTOLIA With memories of the recession and a 2011 tsunami fading like a Pacific sunset, elegant new hotels are blossoming across the island chain. Wowing visitors on Maui, for instance, is a 300-room Andaz (maui.andaz.hyatt.com), which opened on a golden curve of beach last autumn. A long stone bridge conveys guests into a buzzing open-air lobby, and the property, designed by the Rockwell Group, is also graced with a restaurant from chef Masaharu Morimoto. Nearby is the Montage Kapalua Bay (kapaluabay.montagehotels.com), which LEI OF THE LAND Perched in the middle of the Pacific, the 50th state is adding still more wonders this winter emerged from the former Kapalua Bay Hotel after a multimillion-dollar renovation. With 50 rooms and a similar number of residences, the waterfront property features four restaurants, two golf courses and live music daily. And the Big Island has gone big with the 340-room Mauna Lani Bay resort (maunalani.com), which enjoyed a m renovation itself. Airy wood-trimmed bungalows with private beaches dot the sprawling property, while natural lava stone saunas and a meditation pavilion bejewel the spa. Above left: Maui’s sprawling Kapalua Bay; above right: the light-filled lobby at the island’s new Hyatt Andaz SEISMIC PLATES As downtown Honolulu, on Oahu, reinvents its mid-century buildings, foodies may be benefiting the most. MW Honolulu (mwrestaurant.com), an ocean-to-table offering in a former TV news station, is the creation of Wade Ueoka and Michelle Karr-Ueoka, a husband-and-wife team. Dishes like pork belly bao and shrimp and uni linguine helped it nab two James Beard nominations this winter. And a former department store has delivered the similarly fêted French-Japanese Vintage Cave (vintagecave.com). Helmed by Chris Kajioka, who did a stint at New York’s Per Se, the restaurant offers ambitious multicourse, hours-long prix-fixe dinners that combine island flavours in inventive ways – caviar and turnips, apples and bonito, pineapple and chocolate. Who needs the beach? BY CJ HUGHES CONTACT PLATINUM CARD SERVICE FOR BOOKINGS departures-international.com 35
