Talkeetna, Alaska

Talkeetna's Alaska-Style Life


End of Trip
Seaplane slides towards others already moored in a river near Talkeetna.
alaskan affection
Couple embraces in front of the Nagley Store in Talkeetna, a popular grocery store in the village.
Grizzly at the Table
Naife panel of the West Rib restaurant-pub.
Full house
Fairview Inn bar patrons watch the Bathtub Gin show.
Great North Decoration
Detail of the facade of the West Rib restaurant-pub.
small expedition
Adventurer descends a river in a small rubber boat.
Almost Familiar Concert
Bathtub Gin perform at the bar at the Fairview Inn.
Alaskan Composition
Train in the colors of the Alaskan flag passes near Talkeetna.
Bottomless mug
Creative logo of a Talkeetna cafe.
Alaskan Amber & Rooms
Neon Interior advertises the sale of the 49th state's most famous beer, Alaskan.
Ecological Parking
Bicycles on the wooden facade of the West Rib restaurant-pub.
Fudge and Cinnamon Rolls
Panel displays the specialties of a Talkeetna cafe.
Alyesca Pipeline
Section of the long Alyesca pipeline that carries oil from the northern coast of Alaska to Valdez in the south.
Taxi Station
Due to the absence of roads in many regions, seaplanes are considered Alaskan taxis.
Iglo City
Abandoned Iglo City building, an old 4-story attraction, shops, accommodation and service station.
Once a mere mining outpost, Talkeetna rejuvenated in 1950 to serve Mt. McKinley climbers. The town is by far the most alternative and most captivating town between Anchorage and Fairbanks.

Past Wasilla and Palmer, civilization is left behind.

With it, the last crossings and detours. The possibility of getting into the wrong way disappears in the almost deserted George Parks Hrightway.

It's eleven forty-five at night. The light still expands from the horizon. Illuminates the white night. Despite the name, the surrounding atmosphere is bluish, enhanced by the natural tones of the landscape.

The mountains insinuate themselves in the distance, detached from the clear sky by their snowy summits. As a counterpoint, the coniferous forest dominates the lowlands. It stretches right to the side of the road. It imposes a damp and mysterious pitch that we are forced to probe with extra care

Moose are the leading cause of road accidents in Alaska. It is after the sun goes down that they feel more comfortable crossing the roads or parking on them.

Brown, tall and slender, they blend in with the trunks of trees. Drivers often only detect them on the asphalt.

It was a bad luck we were determined to avoid.

From time to time, we pass wide arms of river, made of wild waters fed by the continuous melting of the surrounding glaciers.

Ditching, Alaska Fashion Life, Talkeetna

Seaplane slides towards others already moored in a river near Talkeetna.

We are in the middle of the salmon season. Alaskans devote a considerable part of their energies to them. During the day, the banks delimited for this purpose are filled with fishermen enthusiastic about the inexhaustible offer of fish and the competition that takes place.

call combat fishing to this communal way of fishing but most fans don't take the name too seriously and bet on camaraderie.

At mile 98 of George Parks Highway we take a detour.

The Secondary Road that Leads Us to Talkeetna

We point to Talkeetna, one of Alaska's most iconic towns. Around the XNUMXth century, a new gold mining hub was formed there, which had since been discovered in different regions of the state.

With the end of the fever, the preservation of its historical aspect, the fact that it is located at the gates of the Denali National Park – to top it off with an airport – became attributes that attracted the families of greater Anchorage.

Hug at the Nagley Store, Alaska Fashion Life, Talkeetna

Couple embraces in front of the Nagley Store in Talkeetna, a popular grocery store in the village.

And all adventurers eager to sight and conquer the grandiose Mount McInley, the highest mountain in North America. This mission is so challenging that the cemetery of the village is full of tombstones that honor the men who tried to fulfill it.

In 1991 alone, eleven lives sacrificed by the mountain were counted.

But it wasn't just climbers who promoted the town to its quasi-Alaskan stardom.

And Life on the Margins of Little Talkeetna

Other sub-cultures enrich the alternative community that inhabits and frequents it: the intrepid aviators who transport climbers and tourists to the mountains and later fly over them.

The social wild animals dissatisfied with the cloned and materialistic ambitions of most of their compatriots and who arrive determined to wrest an existence from the 49th state in their own way. The uncommitted groups of neo-hippies, of environmentalists sworn in support of the Green Party or not, who have already made the Green Party the most voted party in Talkeetna.

These characters and social clans mix dynamically, democratically and affably. As a result, Talkeetna radiates a sense of well-being and warmth that causes many visitors to postpone their matches. Some of them forever.

West Rib, Alaska Fashion Life, Talkeetna

Bicycles on the wooden facade of the West Rib restaurant-pub.

It's the tiny size of the hamlet (let's call it that) which starts by surprising. In Alaskan fashion, downtown is down to a single street, Main Street.

The the oldest buildings are concentrated, now shops, tour agencies, bars and restaurants embellished with paintings, signs and other colorful decorations.

From June to September, this street is walked up and down again and again. Until the novelty runs out and outsiders are forced to choose a place to enjoy the evening.

Fairview inn, Alaska Fashion Life, Talkeetna

Fairview Inn bar patrons watch the Bathtub Gin show.

One of the most charming places in the village, the Fairview Inn, lets out chords of live music into the street and challenges the most curious passersby.

Fairview Inn and the Intoxicating Show of Bathtub Gin

Founded in 1923 as an overnight inn for the long journey between Seward (near the south coast) and Fairbanks (hundreds of miles north, halfway to the Arctic Circle), this property has kept up with Alaska's recent past. Over time, it became a kind of living museum.

As soon as we enter the bar on the ground floor, we notice the classic construction. The floor is made of plank, worn. The huge counter, square to optimize contact with customers, is protected by a frightening skin of grizzly hanging from the ceiling and accompanied by a few others as well as moose and caribou frames.

All around, the furniture is made up of various relics, including an old jukebox and Talkeetna's only slot machine. Scattered all over the place, there are still testimonies of the region's history, in the most diverse formats and humorous warnings that take the opportunity to regulate the erratic behavior of customers.

As in most of the state, beer is a kind of institution here. In addition to the famous Alaskan – the emblematic brand, par excellence – numerous small bars and breweries offer new flavors at various frequencies that can be weekly.

Bathtub Gin, Alaska Fashion Life, Talkeetna

Bathtub Gin perform at the bar at the Fairview Inn.

When Bathtub Gin starts to perform, the two rooms on the ground floor are filled to capacity. Beer refreshes most of the audience.

The band's musicians – including the banjo-playing vocalist and keyboard player, his then-octogenarian mother – live in the city. That night, songs from Louisiana and Mississippi are heard. This choice drives an unexpected southern sector of the public crazy.

Alaskan Amber and Craft Beer Alaskan Fever

Excited by the concert, we only left the bar so often. Outside, as throughout the state, the night is white. We rest for a few hours. We have breakfast at the first bar to open.

At that hour, the employee had more time, so he decided to start a conversation. The morning hadn't even started and we found ourselves praising once again the Alaskan Amber who had enchanted us so much.

Alaskan Amber, Alaskan Fashion Life, Talkeetna

Neon Interior advertises the sale of the 49th state's most famous beer, Alaskan.

Mark accepts the admiration. Note that we were in those parts a few days ago: “Alaskan is a good beer but here in Talkeetna we have our own private breweries.

I'm crazy about improvising new flavors. Me and several others here on earth. Do one thing. Change your plans. Stay at home until Sunday. So you can better explore these places and our homemade beers.”

As commonplace as it may sound, for these and others it is that those who lived the Great North know that it is better not to say goodbye.

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The Tropical Wild West of the USA

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Ketchikan, Alaska

Here begins Alaska

The reality goes unnoticed in most of the world, but there are two Alaskas. In urban terms, the state is inaugurated in the south of its hidden frying pan handle, a strip of land separated from the contiguous USA along the west coast of Canada. Ketchikan, is the southernmost of Alaskan cities, its Rain Capital and the Salmon Capital of the World.
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Journey to the End of the Alaskan Road

If Anchorage became the great city of the 49th US state, Homer, 350km away, is its most famous dead end. Veterans of these parts consider this strange tongue of land sacred ground. They also venerate the fact that, from there, they cannot continue anywhere.
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The Sacred Ceiling of North America

The Athabascan Indians called him Denali, or the Great, and they revered his haughtiness. This stunning mountain has aroused the greed of climbers and a long succession of record-breaking climbs.
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Sitka: Journey through a once Russian Alaska

In 1867, Tsar Alexander II had to sell Russian Alaska to the United States. In the small town of Sitka, we find the Russian legacy but also the Tlingit natives who fought them.
Juneau, Alaska

The Little Capital of Greater Alaska

From June to August, Juneau disappears behind cruise ships that dock at its dockside. Even so, it is in this small capital that the fate of the 49th American state is decided.
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Journey through a Glacial Alaska

Nestled against the Chugach Mountains, Prince William Sound is home to some of Alaska's stunning scenery. Neither powerful earthquakes nor a devastating oil spill affected its natural splendor.
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In the Footsteps of the Grizzly Man

Timothy Treadwell spent summers on end with the bears of Katmai. Traveling through Alaska, we followed some of its trails, but unlike the species' crazy protector, we never went too far.
Valdez, Alaska

On the Black Gold Route

In 1989, the Exxon Valdez oil tanker caused a massive environmental disaster. The vessel stopped plying the seas, but the victim city that gave it its name continues on the path of crude oil from the Arctic Ocean.
Skagway, Alaska

A Klondike's Gold Fever Variant

The last great American gold rush is long over. These days, hundreds of cruise ships each summer pour thousands of well-heeled visitors into the shop-lined streets of Skagway.
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The Longest 4th of July

The independence of the United States is celebrated, in Seward, Alaska, in a modest way. Even so, the 4th of July and its celebration seem to have no end.
Seward, Alaska

The Alaskan Dog Mushing Summer

It's almost 30 degrees and the glaciers are melting. In Alaska, entrepreneurs have little time to get rich. Until the end of August, dog mushing cannot stop.
Lion, Elephants, PN Hwange, Zimbabwe
Safari
PN Hwange, Zimbabwe

The Legacy of the Late Cecil Lion

On July 1, 2015, Walter Palmer, a dentist and trophy hunter from Minnesota killed Cecil, Zimbabwe's most famous lion. The slaughter generated a viral wave of outrage. As we saw in PN Hwange, nearly two years later, Cecil's descendants thrive.
Aurora lights up the Pisang Valley, Nepal.
Annapurna (circuit)
Annapurna Circuit: 3rd- Upper Banana, Nepal

An Unexpected Snowy Aurora

At the first glimmers of light, the sight of the white mantle that had covered the village during the night dazzles us. With one of the toughest walks on the Annapurna Circuit ahead of us, we postponed the match as much as possible. Annoyed, we left Upper Pisang towards Escort when the last snow faded.
Architecture & Design
napier, New Zealand

Back to the 30s – Old-Fashioned Car Tour

In a city rebuilt in Art Deco and with an atmosphere of the "crazy years" and beyond, the adequate means of transportation are the elegant classic automobiles of that era. In Napier, they are everywhere.
Era Susi towed by dog, Oulanka, Finland
Adventure
PN Oulanka, Finland

A Slightly Lonesome Wolf

Jukka “Era-Susi” Nordman has created one of the largest packs of sled dogs in the world. He became one of Finland's most iconic characters but remains faithful to his nickname: Wilderness Wolf.
Saida Ksar Ouled Soltane, festival of the ksour, tataouine, tunisia
Ceremonies and Festivities
Tataouine, Tunisia

Festival of the Ksour: Sand Castles That Don't Collapse

The ksour were built as fortifications by the Berbers of North Africa. They resisted Arab invasions and centuries of erosion. Every year, the Festival of the Ksour pays them the due homage.
Elephant statues by the Li River, Elephant Trunk Hill, Guilin, China
Cities
Guilin, China

The Gateway to the Chinese Stone Kingdom

The immensity of jagged limestone hills around it is so majestic that the authorities of Beijing they print it on the back of the 20-yuan notes. Those who explore it almost always pass through Guilin. And even if this city in the province of Guangxi clashes with the exuberant nature around it, we also found its charms.
Meal
Margilan, Uzbekistan

An Uzbekistan's Breadwinner

In one of the many bakeries in Margilan, worn out by the intense heat of the tandyr oven, the baker Maruf'Jon works half-baked like the distinctive traditional breads sold throughout Uzbekistan
capillary helmet
Culture
Viti levu, Fiji

Cannibalism and Hair, Fiji Islands' Old Pastimes

For 2500 years, anthropophagy has been part of everyday life in Fiji. In more recent centuries, the practice has been adorned by a fascinating hair cult. Luckily, only vestiges of the latest fashion remain.
combat arbiter, cockfighting, philippines
Sport
Philippines

When Only Cock Fights Wake Up the Philippines

Banned in much of the First World, cockfighting thrives in the Philippines where they move millions of people and pesos. Despite its eternal problems, it is the sabong that most stimulates the nation.
Christmas in Australia, Platipus = Platypus
Traveling
Atherton Tableland, Australia

Miles Away from Christmas (part XNUMX)

On December 25th, we explored the high, bucolic yet tropical interior of North Queensland. We ignore the whereabouts of most of the inhabitants and find the absolute absence of the Christmas season strange.
Ethnic
Shows

The World on Stage

All over the world, each nation, region or town and even neighborhood has its own culture. When traveling, nothing is more rewarding than admiring, live and in loco, which makes them unique.
View of Fa Island, Tonga, Last Polynesian Monarchy
Got2Globe Photo Portfolio
Got2Globe Portfolio

Exotic Signs of Life

Champagne Beach, Espiritu Santo, Vanuatu
History
Espiritu Santo, Vanuatu

Divine Melanesia

Pedro Fernandes de Queirós thought he had discovered Terra Australis. The colony he proposed never materialized. Today, Espiritu Santo, the largest island in Vanuatu, is a kind of Eden.
Ilha do Mel, Paraná, Brazil, beach
Islands
Ilha do Mel, Paraná, Brazil

The Sweetened Paraná of ​​Ilha do Mel

Located at the entrance to the vast Bay of Paranaguá, Ilha do Mel is praised for its nature reserve and for the best beaches in the Brazilian state of Paraná. In one of them, a fortress built by D. José I resists time and tides.
ala juumajarvi lake, oulanka national park, finland
Winter White
Kuusamo ao PN Oulanka, Finland

Under the Arctic's Icy Spell

We are at 66º North and at the gates of Lapland. In these parts, the white landscape belongs to everyone and to no one like the snow-covered trees, the atrocious cold and the endless night.
On the Crime and Punishment trail, St. Petersburg, Russia, Vladimirskaya
Literature
Saint Petersburg, Russia

On the Trail of "Crime and Punishment"

In St. Petersburg, we cannot resist investigating the inspiration for the base characters in Fyodor Dostoevsky's most famous novel: his own pities and the miseries of certain fellow citizens.
Howler Monkey, PN Tortuguero, Costa Rica
Nature
PN Tortuguero, Costa Rica

Tortuguero: From the Flooded Jungle to the Caribbean Sea

After two days of impasse due to torrential rain, we set out to discover the Tortuguero National Park. Channel after channel, we marvel at the natural richness and exuberance of this Costa Rican fluvial marine ecosystem.
Mother Armenia Statue, Yerevan, Armenia
Autumn
Yerevan, Armenia

A Capital between East and West

Heiress of the Soviet civilization, aligned with the great Russia, Armenia allows itself to be seduced by the most democratic and sophisticated ways of Western Europe. In recent times, the two worlds have collided in the streets of your capital. From popular and political dispute, Yerevan will dictate the new course of the nation.
Agua Grande Platform, Iguacu Falls, Brazil, Argentina
Natural Parks
Iguazu/Iguazu Falls, Brazil/Argentina

The Great Water Thunder

After a long tropical journey, the Iguaçu River gives a dip for diving. There, on the border between Brazil and Argentina, form the largest and most impressive waterfalls on the face of the Earth.
Conflicted Way
UNESCO World Heritage
Jerusalem, Israel

Through the Belicious Streets of Via Dolorosa

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In elevator kimono, Osaka, Japan
Characters
Osaka, Japan

In the Company of Mayu

Japanese nightlife is a multi-faceted, multi-billion business. In Osaka, an enigmatic couchsurfing hostess welcomes us, somewhere between the geisha and the luxury escort.
The Dominican Republic Balnear de Barahona, Balneario Los Patos
Beaches
Barahona, Dominican Republic

The Bathing Dominican Republic of Barahona

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Pemba, Mozambique, Capital of Cabo Delgado, from Porto Amélia to Porto de Abrigo, Paquitequete
Religion
Pemba, Mozambique

From Porto Amélia to the Shelter Port of Mozambique

In July 2017, we visited Pemba. Two months later, the first attack took place on Mocímboa da Praia. Nor then do we dare to imagine that the tropical and sunny capital of Cabo Delgado would become the salvation of thousands of Mozambicans fleeing a terrifying jihadism.
Train Fianarantsoa to Manakara, Malagasy TGV, locomotive
On Rails
Fianarantsoa-Manakara, Madagascar

On board the Malagasy TGV

We depart Fianarantsoa at 7a.m. It wasn't until 3am the following morning that we completed the 170km to Manakara. The natives call this almost secular train Train Great Vibrations. During the long journey, we felt, very strongly, those of the heart of Madagascar.
Reindeer Racing, Kings Cup, Inari, Finland
Society
Inari, Finland

The Wackiest Race on the Top of the World

Finland's Lapps have been competing in the tow of their reindeer for centuries. In the final of the Kings Cup - Porokuninkuusajot - , they face each other at great speed, well above the Arctic Circle and well below zero.
the projectionist
Daily life
Sainte-Luce, Martinique

The Nostalgic Projectionist

From 1954 to 1983, Gérard Pierre screened many of the famous films arriving in Martinique. 30 years after the closing of the room in which he worked, it was still difficult for this nostalgic native to change his reel.
Maria Jacarés, Pantanal Brazil
Wildlife
Miranda, Brazil

Maria dos Jacarés: the Pantanal shelters such Creatures

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Bungee jumping, Queenstown, New Zealand
Scenic Flights
Queenstown, New Zealand

Queenstown, the Queen of Extreme Sports

In the century. XVIII, the Kiwi government proclaimed a mining village on the South Island "fit for a queen".Today's extreme scenery and activities reinforce the majestic status of ever-challenging Queenstown.
PT EN ES FR DE IT