A Typical, Not So Typical Day Off in Alaska!

We work hard and long all day and we play just as hard on our 1 (sometimes 2) days off that we get a week. Things operate a little different out here in Alaska, rather than taking a day off to relax, we band together and hunt for the most extreme epic adventures we can possibly find/afford.

A few examples…..

Went deep sea Salmon fishing with one of the best captains/friends we met this summer!! Most of us were total rookies and yet we all still caught at least 3 salmon each along with a few Hallibut and Cod. We learned how to work down riggers and spent all day exploring the islands and coasts around our island. Felt great to get off our little island for a while!!

We had exactly 24 hours to complete one of the most extreme hikes on the island. We packed all our camping gear and set off to conquer Deer mountain, camped on a ridgeline, and traversed 7 peaks, and hiked 14 miles! We dominated the most sketchy decent I have ever done while hiking which consisted of a steep drop off we had to conquer by means of a rickety metal ladder.

We stepped off the ladder of death and onto a 2 foot wide ledge which led us to a steep wall of rock. The only way to descend further was by metal cables scattered along it and jammed into crevices. Although they looked deadly, they seemed to be jammed in far enough for us to alternate repelling down and Tarzan swinging from cable to cable.

After getting though the tough parts all we had to do was pick our way further down the mountain side with nothing but broken wood with tetnus infested nails sticking out everywhere to hold onto. This was followed by a forest of Devil’s Club (a very spikey and poisonous bush) to get through using moves from the Matrix. We finally made our way back to the highway and hitch-hiked back to our car! Awesome awesome time!!

One of the best perks of being an outdoor guide is that we can get on any other tours that are offered on the island! One especially rainy day we all went “adventure carting” which is a combination of go-carting and four wheeling. We drove our little caravan down 14 miles of muddy off road trails in the backwoods of the rainforest. Pretty sure we were the loudest, rowdiest, and muddiest bunch that company has ever had!

Made a sick friend with a killer God story who lives on what we call “the Wild West” of southeast Alaska (aka Prince of Whales Island). My bro was hanging on our island just to be back in somewhat civilization for a while. He started a really intense outdoor laser-tag company so that the teens on his island would have something to do. He happened to bring all his gear (which consisted of 6 types of guns!) to our island and was kind enough to set up a night of hardcore laser tagging for me and my friends!!

 And of course the only way to see the Misty Fjords, which is one of the most breath taking places of our islands is by float plane! Got to take a 2 hr tour and land in the middle of the mountain range in the middle of a lake!

I believe I'm learning how to live life to the fullest!

A Feast Every Night!!

Thanksgiving in August! I helped pick the huckleberries

So usually the diet of an adventure guide consist of lots of Raman noodles, tuna fish, and canned soup. Most guides know that it’s part of the lifestyle you just kinda power through. This menu however, was not to be the meal plan out here at Southeast Exposure once we all came to realize that my roommate is a professional chef when she’s not adventuring!!!! It turned out that dear sweet Becky Tucker really enjoys cooking for people and so plans were quickly made to start a dinner club J All we had to do was throw in $30 from our tips and help cook here and there which I have been wanting to learn how to do!

I can’t explain how big of a difference this made for our summer. Here in the rainiest city in the USA, there is nothing quite like coming back from a long day of workin hard in the rain knowing a good home cooked dinner is waitin for us! From pizza to thai food to a thanksgiving feast, Becky always had a theme with at least 3 different dishes going on. The only thing most dishes had in common was the main ingredient of bacon grease. 

The “guide kitchen” is one of our favorite places where we all get to sit at a huge table, hang together, (use electricity!!!) and make fun of all the crazy tourists we had to deal with that day. These are the times that really bonded us together. No matter how gnarly a day was, we all looked forward to gathering around that dirty table, laughing and carrying on with the sound of the coast guard radio blasting in the background!  It all made for some good good summer nights!

The Hunter Haven

This is me and my closest church friends, Bonnie and Dave are on the left

As much as I love my life here, I am starting to sense a longing for some soul fellowship. After being surrounded by missionaries and nomadic Jesus freaks during my time in New Zealand, I’m starting to really feel the contrast of being on a remote island without any outside friends or church family.

I walked along the dock one evening praying and singing which has become a tradition I really look forward to, and asked God where to go, knowing that he wanted this for me as much as I do. The next Saturday night I set off walking to a big red church located up the hill from my yurt. Wanting to make sure this was the right place for me, I asked God send me a sign, I asked Him to let me feel welcomed here within the first 10 minutes.

I walked through the large cedar doors and was immediately greeted by the firm handshake and warm smile of the pastor himself! His wife Bonnie joined us and within minutes (less than 10 I might add *wink*) we were laughing and getting to know each other as I tried to explain how the heck I got from Florida to their little church in the forest.

Before long I felt comfortable enough with them to be very honest in what I needed. I humbly asked them if they would consider adopting me for the summer, I am a big fan of mentorship and love making friends with a local family whenever I travel.

I wouldn’t trade my epic lifestyle for anything however; the longer I’m away from home the more difficult it gets to be so far away from my church and family. Bonnie and Dave Hunter were to become my heaven sent haven during this challenging and rewarding Alaskan season of life.

Rather than just meeting up for tea every week or so, the Hunters went above and beyond my humble request and invited me into their home whenever I needed them. Over the months these 2 genuinely became my Alaskan mom and dad. I spent many late nights drinkin tea and either crying with them during some dark times or laughing with them during the good times. 

I'm telling you all this to encourage you to reach out for help when you need it. I needed to have a family, that I could really depend on for guidance and prayer and God gave that to me. Sometimes I wonder how many cool blessing we don't get simlpy cuz we don't ask. Ask God for what you need and you might be surprised how he replies in very creative and exciting ways!

Alaskan Sea Kayaking...Is My JOB!!!!!

Guiding a tour around the Tatoosh Islands

After I finished training for ziplining, me and my fellow rooky guides took to the Alaskan sea, looking like a bunch of seals in our full body wetsuits to practice kayak rescues. With whales spouting in the distance, we took turns falling out of our kayaks into the FREEZING waters and learned how to climb back in in case of a capsize.

I’m proud to say that I can officially get back into my kayak faster than everyone else, simply because my Floridian self has the biggest motivation to get out of that Arctic water!

Pushing kayaks off the shoreline

Our duties are divided between guiding kayak or zip line tours. To add to the variety, we offer either a 2 hr kayak tour around 2 nearby islands right from our boat dock or a scenic ½ hr boat ride to paddle around the remote Tatoosh islands. 

Kayakers coming back from our Eagle Island Tour

Both of these tours allow the possibility of seeing stunning wild life such as bald eagles, harbor seals, sea lions, and humpback whales!! No matter how many times I paddle these routes, the wild life never gets old even though I’m surrounded by it everyday.

A Pod of Humpback Whales!!

It's not uncommon to paddle in complete rain and wind for the entire day due to the weather pattern of our Island but early on we all learned to put on our rain gear with a smile everyday and eventually got pretty used to it. We work really hard all day long, and usually come home sopping wet. There's nothing quite like getting all showered and warm and hangin on the dock or porch together watchin the sun go down after another epic Alaskan day.

Sunset from our boat dock

Day in the Life of a Zipline Guide!

It never got old!

After training for a grand total of 1 and ½ days Becky and I awoke to pounding on our yurt door and were informed that we were desperately needed on the zip line course. We climbed the 50 ft tower geared up with a harness, helmet, lanyard with clips, and a trolley ready to zip through the trees. For being complete rookies we handled ourselves with amazing style and confidence.

As a kid I used to love climbing trees, which is a past time I haven’t quite grown out of. The fact that I get to play in a rainforest canopy for a living blows my mind ever day! Our zipline course consists of 7 different zip-lines and an obstacle course complete with a swinging log and tons of other fun stuff to play on. My job is to clip people up to the ziplines and send them to a receiving guide who catches them on a tree house-like platform on the other side of the cable.

Explaining to people how not to fall out of trees during the safety talk

This is certainly no job for the faint of heart! Everyday brings a new battle scar as we are constantly body-checked and slammed into trees by some guests who have perhaps enjoyed the cruise ship buffet a little too much.

 All of our clients are from cruise ships that stop in our port for a few short hours. Their only job is to work up an appetite while enjoying their choice of a variety of different excursions, and then enjoy their everlasting buffet as they sail off to their next destination.

There isn’t quite a way to describe the feeling of adrenaline mixed with some healthy fear that I acquire as I brace myself at the edge of a platform situated 60 ft in the air, arm outstretched, trying to smile at the giant guy zooming at me, knowing its my job to stop him in his tracks.

Early on I learned to trade my expression of terror for an “eye of the tiger” appearance so as not to let the lovely tourists in on the fact that they are inches from clobbering me. I wish I was able to wake up everyday loving my job like I did doing this!

Preparing to catch someone!

Home Sweet Yurt!

After spending my first few days in town, I’m headed out 15 miles into the wilderness where I will be living and working. I’m in the middle of a temperate rainforest surrounded by the greenest trees I’ve ever seen! My new room mate Becky, a girl with wild red hair and a personality to match it, offered to show me to our new home. We walked past the boat dock which desplayed a variety of colorful kayaks and one of the most breathtaking views I have ever seen, and along a small trail through the forest to our yurt.

 A yurt is a round and domed canvas tent/hut with a giant skylight at the top that originated in the mountains of Mongolia. They are quite popular in Alaska and are useful for pioneering new areas as a temporary home.

I crossed the rickety log bridge and dropped my bags by our small propane fireplace, which will serve as our light and heat source since we don’t have electricity. It’s a humble yet charming set up with 2 beds, a small table and couch. We are perched right in the middle of the trees with a beautiful ocean view.

With nothing but canvas separating us from nature, Becky and I are lulled to sleep every night by the sound of the surf on the jagged rocks, the rain hitting our thin roof and an occasional whale spouting and singing nearby. This is shaping up to be a summer I will never forget!!

Nothing like my bandanas and tribal jewlery to make me feel right at home! 

WELCOME TO KETCHIKAN!!!

The anticipation keeps mounting, as the delay for my Alaskan flight gets longer. I wound up making friends with the captain who ended up buying me a Starbucks chai and delivered it right to my seat right before take-off! It looks like God’s showing me his favor early on.

As my plane lands on the tiny island next to Ketchikan I am reminded that this is it, I’m officially committed to whatever this summer might have in store. I’m 500 hundred miles away from the closest Chipotle’s burrito shop and the rest of civilization. As we descend below the snowcapped peaks I can make out colorful wooden houses built on stilts peaking out from the thick rainforest tree line.

Met a friendly guy who gave me a free ride on his speedboat across the channel and was sooooo excited to finally reunite with my friend Jenna, a fellow nomad, who helped me get this unique job. Alaska is sooooo killer!!! I’m already loving how different and unknown everything is, can’t wait to live it up!!

Stoked on my free Starbucks!