Our Ultimate Multiple Personality Travel Adventure
We’re on an adventure streak.
Our head-clearing time in Glacier National Park confirmed that we want to take our “live now” attitudes to the next level AND seek more aggressive adventures while our bodies can still hack it.
We’re off to Alaska, and we gonna tear it up.
Well, sort of.
We need to keep our “multiple personality travel” label alive and well. So, in Alaska, we’re actually going to extremes – from the outdoors-y all the way over to the more splashed out side of things.
The Rugged
We’re going to kick things off in Fairbanks. We’ve been up there before – to see the Northern Lights – so it’ll be good to do some more poking around in that region. Also, summertime is much more conducive to exploring. When we were in Fairbanks, in the cold cold of winter, everyone pretty much hung out at Barnes and Noble. And ate pizza (or maybe that was just us).
We won’t be in Fairbanks long though. We’ll quickly set out to explore some of the rest of the interior of the state. We’re still constructing our plan, but we know we’ll be checking out: Chena River State Park, Wrangell-St. Elias Park (it’s huge!), Valdez, Chugach National Forest and Kenai Fjords National Park – among other areas.
During this land portion of our adventure well be doing a lot of camping and trekking. We’ll also get the chance to – finally – do something we’ve wanted to do for a long time. We’re going to backcountry hike and stay in a remote cabin on a lake.
After all of that – no matter how things unfold – we’ll be more than ready for phase two.
The Un-rugged
You know we like a good cruise (“good” being the operative word). We’ve had great luck with Princess Cruises, so we are excited to have chosen them to take us home in style. Besides, they are known for providing a best-in-the-business “Voyage of the Glaciers” between Whittier and Vancouver. We can’t wait to see for ourselves. We’ll have no problem carving out an experience that’s perfect for us. No one size fits all cruise agenda for us.
We already know we’ll be looking forward to things like…. oh, regular showers, no sleeping bags and not packing/moving every day or two. That’s the beauty of a cruise, you unpack once but don’t remain in one place.
Best of all, we’ll see lots of stunning scenery. Here’s what we saw from a ship off the coast of New Zealand:
By the time we get back to Seattle, in September, we’ll be ready for falling leaves and a big end to the year. We’ll be plotting just how we want to mark our upcoming 5 YEAR anniversary of this life.
I know, I know – you’re wondering how such young guys could possibly have been living this life for FIVE years. Seems impossible doesn’t it 
We’ll get into all that down the road. For now… Alaska… here we come!
My goodness, your photos are stunning!
I love that you’re combining the rugged with the un-rugged and crusing back home. It’s like your catering to both sides of your travel brains/personalities. Can’t wait to read about it.
I can’t wait to hear all about your trip! I have been on two cruises to Alaska and both times, I wished we could have done more on land. I’m also very interested to hear about your experiences with Princess. They are one cruise line we have not done yet.
Thanks, Jan. We think Princess does a great job. We especially like the fact that they offer a lot of unique itineraries (that make for non-cookie-cutter experiences).
Can’t wait to read about this trip. I love your mottos and multiple personality adventures!
Thanks! Yes, we like to keep people guessing – a tent one week and a 4 star hotel the next.
Loved the trip so far.. can’t wait to hear your take on Alaska! Keep those great photos coming.
You must be talking about our pics from Glacier. Yes, we’ll have a lot of pics to share from Alaska.
I like this plan! Variety in travel is a good thing. Still haven’t done a cruise, but an Alaska cruise would be a good one to start with, I think. Love the pic from your NZ cruise. Looking forward to finding out about your 5 yr anniversary plans. Have fun!
We are in disbelief about reaching the 5 year mark. We wanna make it a huge year.
I have heard that Princess is the best of the “big guys” in Alaska. Will be excited to read about your experience.
Thanks, Bill!
Ah yes, the vacation life for the no vacation required. This Alaska bit better be amazing and filled with northern lights. I send all my best energies your way!
5 year anniversary huh? Looking forward to what you have in store!
I notice you didn’t mention the cruise side of this post
Alaska is very high on our bucket list… Bob can’t wait to get up there. Sounds like we would really love the hiking and trekking portion… and after I’d love to relax on a good cruise! Have fun guys!
We are probably most excited to camp/hike in Denali. Fingers crossed for great weather.
Sounds like a fabulous trip! I’ll be looking forward to reading about this adventure! You’re are right, Princess is known to be the best in that class of cruising Alaska.
Sounds fun! How long are you two going to be up there for?
About three weeks!
Is the weather still ok that far north in late August? I’d read that June and July are the months to visit Alaska, and after that it can be unpredictable. I’m sure you guys would know whether that’s true more than I would. Good luck!
Oh, and here’s a weird question: When you guys travel to Alaska to go camping, do you take your tent with you on the plane? Is it considered a small carry-on or do you have to pay to check it? I’ve never gone the flying + camping route but I’m hoping to do it this winter in Florida. I’d hate to have to pay to check my tent, though!
We check our camping stuff but don’t have to pay fees because we finally scored “elite” status (meaning we get treated how EVERYONE should).
August should be decent for weather. Stay tuned for pictures, which will tell the whole story.
Oh wow I am jealous… I can not wait to see what kind of pictures yall get there & if y’all bump into some “BEARS” jk… I do hope you bump into Ryan & Sandra (The Proposal)… lame joke I am sorry! One day I will make it to Alaska that would just be amazing!
You have lots of time to make it up to Alaska. No problem. (Nice movie reference – glad to see you’re up on pop culture.)
Alaska inland we want to see. Done the Princess cruise from Vancouver and up through the inland passage 12 years ago. Fantastic scenery and at Ketchikan I think it was, we were in luck to see the salmon run.
The white water rafting was really great fun too. Freezing though.
I’ll be reading you stories with keen interest guys!
Yes, it’s salmon central up there in Alaska. We hope to come across lots of bears feeding on it
Very exciting! I look forward to discovering Alaska through your experiences and photos.
Thanks, Stephanie. It’s not a bad backup plan when you consider that we were originally planning to be down there in Argentina right now.
Great! Especially looking forward to hearing about hiking through the backcountry and staying in a remote cabin – that’s going to be beautiful!
You know how everyone wants to stay in an over water hotel room? Well, that’s nice, BUT our dream is to stay in a remote (no road access) cabin. All the benefits of the wilderness without having to worry about bears in the middle of the night.
I am really exited to hear about your plans in Alaska. Looking forward to see lots of pictures. I am glad you guys like a good cruise and you have opted for a good cruise line too. I never been on a Princess cruises though I used to work with NCL and visited Alaska several times. Ok That was years back. Have fun in Alaska!
Sounds INCREDIBLE, guys!! Can’t wait to hear about it when you get back!
Thanks, Michelle – we’ll happily talk your ear off upon our return.
Love the multiple personality travel! That is how we like to do it also! Variety and adventure! Have an awesome time!
I am curious about the whole cruise thing. I have never desired to go on a cruise but I bet it is an incredible way to see Alaska!
New Zealand…now THAT is on our list for sure…
We must meet face-to-face and swap stories.
looking forward to seeing and reading about it. back country hiking through alaska sounds incredible. but where can you get the mai-tais?
In a bottle at Trader Joes. See… we really did think of everything.
I am dying to head farther north after seeing Churchill, I heard the Alaskan cruises are really spectacular – more photos please!
Will do, Ayngelina. Thanks for encouraging us to post more photos. We’re moving more and more in that direction.
Maybe you can see Sarah Palin’s house from there…
We see plenty of Sarah Palin without trying, thank you very much.
Oh wow, that sounds awesome! I’m looking forward to reading about your great Alaskan adventure already. Bit jealous
I’m not a cruise person, but I also took one in New Zealand and what you get to see from the boat is just amazing.
We feel the same way. What we saw off the coast of NZ was mind-bogglingly (?) beautiful.
Have a great time in Alaska! It is a lesbian dream land with all of the rugged outdoor sports. I love it there!
Thanks, Lisa!
Sounds great! I’ve heard nothing but raves from people who have recently taken cruises to Alaska.
And we’ll keep an eye on how they treat single passengers
Oh, you’re going to love camping and hiking in Alaska! I spent three weeks there in ’98 visiting many of the same places – gorgeous! I want to return for more! Hiking to a cabin sounds awesome! I just had my little tent, and some bear spray!
Is there a travel personality test like a Myers-Briggs I wonder? If so, I have no idea where I’d fall! I’m definitely an adventure travel but not nearly as rugged as you two =)
Also, have you cruised with Holland America? Wondering how you’d compare them to Princess in terms of catering to adults.
No, we have not been on Holland America. I think they are a bit more traditional.
Your trip sounds awesome, guys – can’t wait to see what you get up to! Also, congrats on the upcoming 5 year anniversary!
Thanks for stopping by, Tom!
Sounds like a great trip… You have a big ole country to explore.