The first vacation is the most rustic one visiting the terrific state of Alaska. This would be great for the adventurous family that likes to camp and get dirty in the process of seeing new sights. A great way to see Alaska is to find a local fishing guide to take you on a tour close in to the wildlife . These guides usually fly water planes to go in and out of the wilderness which will offer you a bird’s eye view you will never forget . The beautiful scenery as well as the majestic bears fishing for salmon are all memories your family will appreciate for years to come while visiting Alaska.

The next trip for an outdoorsy family is to go to the Rocky Mountain high state of Colorado. This would be for the family that loves the outdoors but also enjoys staying at luxury resorts also . The top resort in Colorado is Cordillera which sits just above Beavercreek. The views are breathtaking and the resort itself is unbelievable . Whether you want to ski or snowshoe in the winter or want to horseback ride or go white water rafting in the summer months this is the perfect place to be active for your family.

The last vacation suggestion is to head to Jackson Hole, Wyoming. This is one of the most beautiful parts of America and complete with 2 awesome and most visited state parks. It is home to the famous Yellowstone as well as the Grand Teton Park. It is suggested to spend a minimum of a week to be able to see all that you can in Yellowstone and the Grand Tetons as well as Jackson itself. A trip to Old Faithful geyser is a a popular stop to make and staying at the historical Old Faithful Inn is an experience in and of itself . To ensure you get a reservation there, call a year in advance to get in. The wildlife sightings in these National parks is phenomenal often having a herd of buffalo stroll directly down the road by your car for unusual photo opportunities. Top off camping at the parks by spending some time in the most sophisticated cowboy town around of Jackson Hole.

Whatever of these states you visit to bring a camera as view .

My passion for prospecting and my enduring love for the wilderness of Alaska were born on the beaches of Nome in 1993. I couldn’t stop whistling, North To Alaska! It was my good fortune to spend seven adventure packed weeks that summer on the crew of a gold camp 15 miles west of Nome. I have returned twice on the same crew, my latest expedition in 2007.

Nome’s weather is dominated by the Bering Sea and can change rapidly. In the summer, highs average in the mid-50s, with lows in the low to mid-40s. The coldest three months are December through February, when the highs average about 13 degrees and the lows average a little below zero.

The beaches are often still covered in ice pack and snow in May. June offers the best combination of clear skies and warm temperatures. As the summer progresses, more rain can be expected. Severe storms are common and the window of opportunity for working the beach sands diminishes as September approaches.

Nome is located on the southern Seward Peninsula coast of Norton Sound in the Bering Sea, approximately 540 air miles northeast of Anchorage. There are no roads connecting Nome to any major city in Alaska. A robust 4,000 folks now inhabit what was once one of the most populous cities in Alaska. Half of the population are Native American Eskimo. Incorporated in 1901, Nome lies within the region of the Bering Straits Native Corporation. The Sitnasuak Village Corporation has its land holdings in and around the city of Nome.

There Is No Place Like Nome

If the prospectors of 1899 had followed Johnny Horton’s lyrical directions to the gold in the movie North to Alaska, they would have found themselves in the frigid, salty waters of the Bering Sea. In the song, Horton places the golden bonanza beneath that old white mountain, just a little southeast of Nome. That would place the mountain in the ocean. But in the actual story, that is where the gold is, in the water.

History shows that the majority of the Nome gold recovered to date has been gleaned from the beaches of Nome, rather than the creeks and rivers. Thousands of gold seekers tromped over this golden treasure in their quest inland, never realizing that they were grinding beneath their boots the elusive mineral they so avidly sought.

The majority of the credit for the Nome gold rush goes to the triad of John Brynteson, Erik Lindblom and Jafet Lindeberg, who became infamous as those “Three Lucky Swedes,” although Lindeberg was actually from Norway.

In the summer of 1898 John Brynteson was a member of an exploration party from Council City prospecting the Seward Peninsula. Foul weather forced their ship to seek refuge in the mouth of the Snake River, 13 miles west of Cape Nome. The men passed the time waiting for the storms to abate by prospecting the drainages within a four or five mile radius of the ship. They found some color in their gold pans, but not enough to excite them. J. Brynteson, however, had faith and he formed a partnership with the two other Scandinavians, Lindblom and Lindeberg. The men continued to prospect and they eventually worked their way to Anvil Creek where they discovered an impressive amount of coarse gold. After restocking their meager supplies at Golovin, a small trading post 100 miles east, they immediately returned to Anvil Creek, formed the Cape Nome Mining District, and between the three of them, staked out 43 claims. By power of attorney, they also immediately filed on 47 additional claims for backers, relatives and friends.

When word of this leaked out, as it always does, a feverish migration of prospectors descended on the Nome area, unaware that The Lucky Swedes had yet to find anything near a true gold strike. The chaos and confusion that ensued involved rampant claim-jumping, cross filings, lawyers, litigation and myriads of claims filed, by power of attorney, for persons who, in most cases, probably did not even exist. The stampede to Nome by thousands of prospectors from the outside world resulted in disappointment and discouragement for most and death for many.

The lawful resolution of litigations and claim boundaries was impeded by District Judge Arthur H. Noyes, who later turned out to be a flagrant crook who took part in a scheme to use the law to take over the richest gold claims.

In this treeless land, lawlessness prevailed as gangs roamed the streets, setting fires to cover robbery and looting. Troops from Fort St. Michael across Norton Sound were summoned to maintain order.

In those early weeks of the gold rush, the three Lucky Swedes must have felt anything but lucky. The blame for the whole fiasco began to settle squarely on their shoulders. Rumors spread like wildfire, the Lucky Swedes had already filed on all the productive prospects. In reality, little gold had yet been found by anyone. The Swedes’ filings were especially anger-provoking to some of the other prospectors because federal law prohibited foreigners from filing claims unless they could show valid intent to become citizens, the Scandinavians had not.

Finally, in a miners meeting where tempers flared and destinies were forever changed, the Cape Nome Mining District was declared null and void, an illegal enterprise and all their claims were revoked.

The decision was in itself illegal. The miners may have taken the law into their own hands had not a handful of soldiers stepped into the fracas and forcefully disbanded them with fixed bayonnets.

That was a lucky break for the Swedes. They got another break. A few days later they were literally forgotten when one of the soldiers stationed at Nome went to haul water from near the mouth of the Snake River and found gold in the beach sand. It was almost impossible to believe the magnitude of the discovery. Within a matter of days, gold was located stretched along the water line for over 40 miles both east and west of Nome. This time the rush really was on.

Late in the season, winter was settling in and the coast was icebound, but gold seekers began descending on the tent town in the spring of 1899. The gold rush spurred permanent, non-indigenous settlement of the booming city with the population exceeding 40,000 by 1900. According to the US Census of 1900, one third of all whites recorded in Alaska were living in Nome. During the peak of the Nome gold rush, hundreds of tents stretched out along twenty miles of the beach west of town.

Nome was a worthy strike. In the summer of 1899 alone, 2,000 miners, both men and women, worked the sand to extract in excess of two million dollars worth of gold from the beaches gravels before freeze up.

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Part of pre-planning is deciding what type of clothing to take with you. If traveling during the summer months, you will be going through quite a wide variation in temperatures and climates. If you throw in a side trip to hike, camp, fish or climb, there is even more variation in clothing needed. To avoid spoiling your vacation because of being too cold all the time, you can plan ahead and pack appropriately. You’ll want some dressy clothing to wear for dinner an dancing on board ship, but when you’re doing some of the more adventurous activities you should bring clothing that will allow you to:

Dress in Layers
If you have several lightweight layers of clothing on, you will not only trap air between the layers, but can add or remove layers along with changes in temperatures.

Go for Sportswear
Comfortable lightweight clothing and your best hiking or climbing shoes are best for the rough ground you may be exploring.

Sweats and Pantsuits
Although jeans are comfortable to wear and quite sturdy, if denim gets wet it can take forever to dry and you may not have the option to change into dry clothes immediately. A better choice is pant suits or jogging suits. Also be sure to pack windbreakers, raincoats and jackets.

Protective Accessories
Protective accessories should be considered a vital part of your suitcase contents. Bring a sun visor to protect your eyes, sunglasses, a lightweight hat or cap that is water resistant and a folding type umbrella are good choices. A pair of light gloves is also good to keep your hands warm and protected from wind and water as well. One other vital accessory is a good sun block cream to protect your skin from sun’s rays.

Think ahead and plan your activities beforehand so you will be prepared with the proper clothing and supplies. Of course, you will be able to purchase anything you might have forgotten aboard the cruise ship or when you dock in a local port.

Alaska has become an increasingly popular destination for anyone who wants to relax and enjoy the natural activities which are so prevalent in this beautiful country. It has even become an important honeymoon destination for those who want something out of the ordinary.

You can start with a luxurious cruise, with dancing and drinking, playing in the on-board casino and watching movies and live shows, watching wildlife, scenic mountains, glaciers and other historical attractions such as Gold Rush days, the White Pass Railroad. Or, maybe you’d prefer to climb a mountain or two, hike in one of the beautiful parks.