Hope, a Hidden Gem

Our new destination is Hope and the Porcupine Campground.  We are excited about this move as this will be the first time we have dry camped in the Open Range.  This state campground has no on-site facilities so we will be totally self-sufficient.  Within the camp, there are toilets and scattered throughout are old-fashioned hand water pumps where we can replenish our drinking water supply but nothing is available for us to hook-up too.  We are not worried at all about our ability to be self-sufficient as we have generators to recharge our batteries and plenty of water in our fresh water tanks.  Still, it is our first time in this rig and we are excited.

As we left Cooper Landing, the skies threatened rain and it was not long before the threat turned to reality.  The road to Hope is a two lane road that winds along between the mountain and the water.  For a part of the journey, we rode beside the Six Mile Creek.  It is a lovely, clear creek that would one day soon be full of Salmon.  We traveled deep into a lush forest feeling like we were totally alone in this wilderness.  Gradually, signs of life emerged as gravel tracks turned from the road and disappeared into the trees.  Rarely could we even glimpse the cabins set back in the trees or nestled on the back of the water.  Folks up here must really value their privacy.  At some point along the way, the creek ended and the water of Turnagain Arm came into view.  I get a bit confused when it comes to these bodies of water but basically as we came south out of Anchorage, we traveled around the Turnagain Arm which if fed by the waters of Cook Inlet.  In any case, as we traveled upward to Hope, the Arm was along the road and it was low tide.  There are signs all along the way warning folks not to walk out on the flats when the tide is out.  This mud acts like quicksand and is dangerous sort of like, look but don’t touch!

At the end of the road, we arrived at Porcupine Campground.  It sits at lands end, high above Turnagain Arm and surrounded by the Chugach Forest.  Our site is nestled deep within the Birch trees.  The overhanging trees and dense vegetation around the site create a shaded haven for us.  All around are plants with berries and flowers that we have not seen before.  As it turns out, the girls are allergic to them.  Poor dears are plagued with runny roses and lots of sneezes as the days wore on.  We hurried to set-up camp as the rain was beginning to come down in earnest.  We settled in for the night, snug as a bug in a rug.

How different it is when there is nothing like TV to fill the silence of the evening.  We have a 12 volt DVD player so I put on some soft music and we played Mexican Train.  How nice to be focused on each other instead of the TV.  Since darkness does not come until well after midnight, we went to bed in the twilight hopeful that tomorrow would bring sunshine.

It was hard to tell whether the sun was shining or not the following morning, but it was indeed.  We wanted to explore the village and check out the fishing too.  We also wanted to see the bore tide.  I never head of it before but a bore tide is created by the constriction of a tide rushing up a narrow estuary such as Turnagain Arm.  So Cook Inlet and the Arm reaches low tide and as the tide returns, instead of a gradual increase such as we see at the beach, it rushes into the Arm much like a tidal wave only not usually so powerful.  We read about tides that come in as high as fifteen feet and can sweep animals or people away if they are not very careful.  One local told us about a time he witnessed a moose being swept away by the bore tide.  I cannot imagine such a tide and looked forward to seeing this phenomenon.  There was much to see during our stay in this wilderness.  Here are some pictures to enjoy.

This view is of the Turnagain Arm from our campground.  To the right of the picture is the location of the village of Hope.  The tiny village has a deep history and is a big destination for fishermen hoping to catch salmon.  The creek flows into the Arm and is full of fish leaving the salt water for the fresh water stream.  The arm is narrow where it meets the Cook Inlet and widens as it flows inland.

 The village of Hope is full of all sorts of quaint buildings and cabins.  This cabin houses a unique gift shop and all sorts of general merchandise.

This cabin is typical of many we have seen in Alaska.  Most of the ones we saw in Hope were sadly in need of paint but then if they were painted, it would ruin their "aged" look.

As you can see, most of the cabins are basically one-room.  They are mostly quite simple structures and keeping them small ensures warmth in the winter.  One the side is usually a nice pile of fire wood.  There is still time for this owner to increase his wood or he might be cold in the winter.

You can see that there is quite a crowd here mostly fishermen flooding into the creek.  The Cafe in the forefront was part of a two building structure connected by a covered walkway.  The front building housed a cafe that served wonderful food consisting mostly of veggies grown in their own garden.  The second building was a pub bar that opened late in the afternoon.  They serve local beer and have entertainment most nights that draw folks from all over especially on the weekends.  One local told us that the crowds are hard to take but bring in much needed revenue to take them through the winter months.  She said with the noise from the pub and the smell of rotting fish from the creek it was pretty awful.  They have a "take back the town" party the first weekend after the season closes.  Hmmm, I felt a bit like an interloper.

 Fishermen and women trying their luck.  They were catching Silver and Red Salmon.  The banks were lined for yards upstream.

Overhead, Sea Birds of all sorts circled on the winds watching for someone to catch and clean a fish.  In Alaska, when you clean a fish you return the "leavings" to the running water where it was caught.  The fish feed not only us but also the birds, bears, aquatic animals and then nourish the land too.

 The groups of birds fought over the scraps to get a meal.  Their screeching and squeaking could be heard all over town.  The local I spoke with told me that if it were not for the birds, the smell of rotting fish would be unbearable.  All I could think of was, the circle of life is truly amazing.

This is Turnagain Arm at low tide.  The Arm has a high and low tide that corresponds to Cook Inlet.  The restricted entrance of the Arm creates what is called a Bore Tide.  We have watched it three times and each time it is amazing even though the height of the tide is not big at this phase of the moon, it was still amazing to see the water rush forward like a tidal wave does.  At times, it is just as powerful and can be as tall as 13 feet.

Our first Bore Tide viewing.  Here is the front edge of the tide as it moved across the Arm.

Our second viewing.  The pictures do not do the tide justice but when you see it, the power of the water is amazing.  What is really amazing is that the tide is linked to the low tide of the Cook Inlet in Anchorage.  About two and a half hours after low tide, the Bore Tide starts in the area of Hope.  We could watch the tide from the campground and then jump in the truck and hurry down the Arm and see it again as it flows upward.  About forty five minutes after Hope, it can be viewed from Bird Point and later still from Bulaga Point.  We were lucky to see it from Bulaga Point too.