ALASKA By: Johanna Hatzell

INTRODUCTION TO ALASKA

I am very fortunate to have the opportunity to travel through Alaska. I have always marveled at the beauty of the landscapes in their natural form. There truly nothing else like it. Throughout these slides I will share some of my favorite finds and experiences of my trip.

This was probably one of my favorite parts of my trip to Alaska. The picture above is of a mountainous form in the Icy Straight Point. I found it incredible of how different the landscape can be in such close proximity. It was amazing to see the mountain closest to me have greenery on it, meanwhile the large mountain in the back of the picture is covered in snow.

This picture is of the famous peak in Alaska called Mount McKinley. This is also called the peak of Mount Denali. One interesting fact about this peak is that the Alaskans call it Mount Denali because that is actually the mountains real name. Tourists call it Mount McKinley because it was renamed by a senator.

I have always wanted to see a real glacier because of climate change. This picture is of one of the glaciers that I saw in Alaska. It is incredible that Alaska’s geology and history has created these magnificent structures made out of ice.

I was extremely fortunate to see more than one glacier on my trip. Seeing the Hubbard Glacier, pictured above, was especially special. This was because I was able to witness the glacier crack and the result was a large piece of the glacier fell off.

Traveling to Alaska in June allowed me to see many different Alaska landscapes. I traveled to Denali National Park. There I was able to see many different types of animals and plants that I have not seen in Pennsylvania. This picture above is of a river running through Denali National Park.

CONCLUSION

I found this trip to be everything that I thought it would be. It is incredible to travel across the country and find such a different place, culturally and geographically. There is so much history behind all of the glaciers and mountains that I have seen. They are a product of the earths natural cycle. I hope that they will continue to be around for generations to come.