No doubt I am like many of you tempted by Alaska. The state holds wonderful adventures and the opportunities to participate in them are vast. You do your homework, and you make decisions on what to do based on the criteria of your own personal needs. Some trips are repeats, and some trips are brand new. Whatever it is, you plan for it and then you ultimately do it. This is my account of participating in such an experience.
In August of 2009, I scheduled myself to spend four nights and five days at Kodiak Legends Lodge, a full service luxury property that is located on Larsen Bay, one of the most popular remote zone locations on Kodiak Island. It rests in a spectacular scenic valley located at the terminus of a stunning narrow fjord some 60 miles southwest of the town of Kodiak. Larsen Bay is a traditional Alutiiq settlement that has been inhabited for almost 2,000 years. Native residents still practice a subsistence lifestyle and harvest fish and marine mammals. The entire economy of this community is based on fishing and the majority of its residents hold commercial fishing permits. Add to that inner structure one of the largest commercial cannery operations on the entire island. Now patch in a few luxury resorts that cling to this setting and offer world-class experiences to the outside visitor. This is where I went, and this is where I invite you to go.
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An ancient graveyard overlooks the cannery and narrow fjord in the setting of Larsen Bay. |
Let me level with you. Though I am experienced in traveling and fishing Alaska, I haven’t done a lot of it in pampered settings. Most of my prior experiences were either self-guided fishing along the road systems or guided experiences via outfitters to charters at sea, remote camping drop-offs, or all terrain adventures. I have 20 years worth of these memories under my belt and I have been pretty seasoned. Luxury accommodations were always available, but circumstances seldom allowed me to take advantage of them.
By the time opportunity reached out to me to visit Larsen Bay, my choice to go with Kodiak Legends Lodge was pretty easy to make. They invited me. The lodge had recently undergone a change of hands in ownership, and along with it came new management, and new staff. What had been was transformed to what now was, and I was brought out by the general manager to experience what this changeover had to offer. What I experienced is what you will experience, and quite frankly I will tell you that you are in for a legendary experience.
Pre-Planning
The key to any successful journey to Alaska is in the plan, and the owners and management of Legends have it down to a science by providing you with a quality website. Punch up www.kodiaklegendslodge.com and you are there. There are many comprehensive links on the site, and as you navigate your way through it, you will find information that covers everything relative to your stay. Just about every aspect of the lodge is described and the opportunities that lay ahead for you are simply a click away. Be it fishing by boat, fishing by stream, hiking, photographic odyssey, kayaking, hunting, or even a custom arranged fly-out to view bears, it’s all there. Your only responsibility is to figure out what you wish to do, and then commit to it. All arrangements are then undertaken by the lodge, and that certainly is well done by the general manger, Dean Hulce. With his wife Linda, this pair is on target to take care of your needs. Dean handles everything in terms of arrangements, while Linda compliments your stay in terms of comfort. Together, they are a formidable team.
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Scheduled air services from the community of Kodiak will drop you into the airstrip in this unique location. When you arrive, your lodge host will be there to welcome you and assist you in the orientation to the lodge. |
Follow the preliminary advice that the website site provides relative to your apparel and equipment. If you have personal questions, never be afraid to ask via electronic mail. Dean is very responsible in this area. Make sure he has your cell phone number or your in-town location phone number to reach you while you are connecting out of Kodiak. Most clients usually will have to spend the night in town prior to the lodge stay, and communication is always important. Nor will you have to worry about any medical emergency while staying at the lodge. The largest Coast Guard base in the world is in the community of Kodiak. If circumstance should ever call for it, transportation via helicopter is available and medical attention is almost immediate. It is little wonder, therefore, that your decision to stay at Kodiak Legends Lodge should give you peace of mind. Though remote, its location is reachable during any valid emergency. Larsen Bay even has its own public airport. The moment you arrive, you’ll find Dean waiting to greet you.
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