Stephanie's Exotic ePortfolio

• Introduction
• Travel Experience
• Review
• Photo Essay
• Video Tutorial
• Citations

Hi! My name is Stephanie Jennings. Discover my love for the outdoors and my passion for hiking through my ePortfolio. Find my true love for travel and read through my memories about my previous travel experiences. Maybe you will find out how much you enjoy nature. 

In my travel experience, I will be talking about how I traveled to Alaska over the summer. In June 2023, I went to Alaska with two high school teachers and a group of students from my high school. Although everyone who attended the Alaska trip was from Louisa County High School, the trip was not affiliated with my high school. 

The trip started early on June 10, I had to be at Dulles International Airport at 5 a.m. Once I got through TSA, I was able to get breakfast before boarding the plane at 7 a.m. My first flight was from Dulles to Seattle which was a total of six hours. Once we landed in Seattle we had a 2-hour layover, before flying to Anchorage, Alaska. This flight was 4 hours. It was quite an adjustment to the time difference from Virginia to Alaska, especially after being on a plane for ten hours. Alaska is four hours behind Virginia.

The trip was five days long, but our itinerary was full. We arrived in Anchorage and checked into our hotel, on our first day. Then we met our tour guide for the entirety of our trip and he took us on a mini tour of Anchorage. 

On the second day, we checked out of our hotel in Anchorage and rode a train to Wasilla. Once we arrived in Wasilla, we got on the bus and went to Happy Trails Kennels, where we met a local musher and Iditarod sled dogs. Then we got back on the bus and started for Denali. We checked into our hotel, which was located in Healy, before we met with a man named, Jimmy Hendrix and he told us about his adventurous hike up Denali. 

On our third day, we went to Denali National Park. Once we were in Denali National Park, we got onto a private bus that drove us through the park. While in the park we saw many different types of wildlife: grizzly bears, caribou, moose, Dall sheep, and mountain goats. On our fourth day, we checked out of the hotel and headed towards Seward. On the way to Seward, we stopped at the Alaska Wildlife Conservation Center. There we saw Alaka’s wildlife in enclosures because they were injured or orphaned animals. 

On our fourth day, we got on the bus and headed towards Exit Glacier. This was a hike to view a glacier in between two mountains. We then went to Kenai Fjords National Park, where we boarded a boat. We spent four hours on the boat to explore wildlife within the national park; we saw orcas, humpback whales, stellar sea lions, puffins, and sea otters. 

On our fifth day, we checked out of the hotel and headed back towards Anchorage. On the way to Anchorage, we stopped at the Begich Boggs Visitor Center, where we were able to explore interactive exhibits within the Chugach National Forest. We then got back on the bus, to go explore downtown Anchorage before it was time to head to the airport. 

The trip began to come to an end on the night of June 15. We had to be back at the Anchorage airport at 6 p.m. even though our plane did not board until 8:50 p.m. We flew from Anchorage, Alaska to Dallas, Texas which was a six-and-a-half-hour flight. Once we arrived in Dallas we had about an hour layover before boarding the plane to fly to Baltimore, Maryland, which was a 3-hour flight. 

Overall, this experience was more than I ever imagined. Our days were always busy, but I loved all of the memories that I made. This trip truly sparked my love for traveling, and I hope I will be able to go to Alaska again one day. 

In my review, I will be talking about a hike that I did with my high school hiking club. Within the hiking club, we participated in one hike each month with about 20 students to different places all over Virginia. 

One of the hikes that I went on is called Humpback Rock which is located in the Blue Ridge Parkway. The Humpback Rock trail is approximately 6 miles long, to go up and to come back down. The hike is considered to be a moderately challenging route, with a gain of about 1,000 feet, as you hike up the mountain. 

We left our high school at 6 a.m. and we rode a school bus to the trail. The bus ride was only about an hour, which was one of the shorter bus rides that we took throughout the year. Once we arrived, we made sure we knew which routes to take during the hike, in case we were to get no cell phone service while on the trail. Then we immediately began our hike. 

It about 2 hours to hike to the top of the mountain. The mountain would not have normally taken this long to get up to the top, but it rained the entire time during our hike, causing many of the rocks to be slick. Once we got to the top of the mountain, we enjoyed our view for about 30 minutes, and we just took a break while we soaked in nature. We then began our journey back down the mountain, which took about an hour. 

Overall, this hike was one to remember. I had never hiked Humpback Rock before, so it was good to do something different. It was also a new experience for me because I had never climbed up a mountain in the rain before. 

Another one of the hikes that I went on is called Stony Man Trail located in Shenandoah National Park. The Stony Man trail is approximately a 1.5-mile long loop. The hike is considered to be a moderately challenging route, with about 400 feet of elevation gain. 

This hike took the entire group about an hour and a half to complete. Once we got to the viewpoint of the mountain, we stopped and spent about 30 minutes, taking a break and exploring. We then headed back down the mountain to return to the bus, and then return to our high school. 

Comparing Humpback Rock to Stony Man Trail, I think that the Humpback Rock trail was much harder, even though both of the hikes are considered to have a moderate difficulty level. Humpback Rock was much harder to climb and took much longer since we hiked in the middle of a storm. The bus ride to Stony Man Trail was about 2 hours long whereas the bus ride to Stony Man Trail was only an hour.

Overall both of these hikes were highly enjoyable. I would recommend the Stony Man hike for anyone who is just getting started because it is a short loop with a great view. I would recommend the Humpback Rock trail for anyone who enjoys hiking because it is a moderately difficult hike and the view at the top is truly amazing. 

Google Maps, Alaska, 2023

Google Maps, United States of America, 2023

“Stony Man (U.S. National Park Service).” National Parks Service, U.S. Department of the Interior, 10 Feb. 2021, www.nps.gov/thingstodo/stony-man.htm.

“Humpback Rocks Hiking Trails.” National Parks Service, U.S. Department of the Interior, 25 July 2016, www.nps.gov/blri/planyourvisit/humpback-rocks-trails.htm.