Flying High, in a Plane

Our second full day in Alaska was also packed with adventure. We left Anchorage early that Monday morning and headed north. We were able to schedule an airline flightseeing trip to Mt. McKinley for late morning. Seemed like forever to get to Talkeetna, AK, but it was worth it. The flight lasted over an hour and took us over mountains, frozen rivers, glaciers, and very near Mt. McKinley. (In the winter they do not fly over the mountain. Didn't ask why.) Our speed was 150 mph, but it seemed as if we were hanging still in the sky as we soared through the other mountain peaks. At one point, I felt as if I could reach out and touch the mountain. Our pilot assured me that we were a quarter of a mile away. The valleys below were covered with glaciers. Hard to believe that at different times of the year the pilots land on those glaciers and then take off. Glad we didn't that day. The cost for our adventure was high, but not nearly as high as we felt from the whole experience. I would recommend the trip to everyone and would go again. I was just disappointed that the pilot couldn't take us the additional 350 miles north to cross the Arctic Circle. Maybe next time.