Alaska Inspires Imagination

When I took my kids outside, a muddy puddle became an inland sea to go fishing in with long sticks. A sandy stretch of beach became important ground for digging. And a slushy trail was our own Iditarod. The boots were really just the passport for exploring Alaska and a wild world unhindered by fences, roads, and walls. 

Now that my children are older, they’re still in their boots a lot of the time, and exploring the natural world around us is often the focus of our time together. As they’ve gotten older, the ways they experience life in Alaska have changed. No longer do they toddle gingerly around soggy meadows in springtime looking for insects at ground level; they now walk home from school eyeing those same meadows for moose. No longer do they “fish” in puddles and roadside ditches; they now hook their own halibut and salmon. 

Alaska as a Classroom

Alaska makes us all kids again— inspiring a sense of wonder, exploration, and abandon. And it also presents challenges that offer teachable moments with nature as the classroom, that grow with us as we grow up. The rocky beach offers a chance to splash and also a chance to explore tidepools, pick up sea stars, and learn about the fascinating ecology of this sometimes dry and sometimes drowned habitat.

Hiking trails here can be glorious strolls through wildflower meadows or challenging pitches up the sides of mountains. As my growing children embrace the challenges that Alaska offers, I watch them learn and build their confidence, their education, and their grit.  

Your Alaska Vacation

And the rewards for these challenges are immense. An all-inclusive lodge in Alaska like Stillpoint Lodge offers families the opportunity to experience an authentic Alaska vacation, with the added comforts of luxury (and our Kids’ Program!) . A day hike can bring you to a turquoise glacier lake dotted by icebergs that nature has carved into the most outlandish forms. A fully outfitted stroll down the beach can deliver you to the front door of an octopus den. A paddle on a sea kayak might take you within arm’s reach of a sea otter. And the end of an active day might mean a chance to watch the sun set gloriously behind the volcanic peaks of the Alaska Range across Kachemak Bay. 

Isn’t this what we want for our children? A chance to help them navigate real challenges—and also to be awed? 

There is nothing virtual about reality in Alaska. Here, amidst the mountains and glaciers, clean waters and wild coastline, kids of all ages can find things that challenge and awe them—at their level. A trip to Alaska means an opportunity to create memories that will last a lifetime, and a chance to help our kids learn about themselves and the world around them. Alaska may not be the only place to do this, but in my mind at least, it’s the best.

by Miranda Weiss, author of Tide, Feather, Snow: A Life in Alaska

www.mirandaweiss.com