By Editor HJ Yang (hjyang)
Edited and published by Yvette Depaepe, the 15^th of November 2024

'Blue field'

I have been to Alaska many times. I remember the first time was on a cruise ship with my whole family. It was very impressive to see the iceberg floating in the ocean and the ice breaking with a big sound and splash. But we only saw one or two bears from a distance. After a few days on the ship I felt bored. The second trip to Alaska was to Denali National Park in the summer of 2014. We drove there, stayed at the Sky Lodge at the edge of the park and flew out for a few days. The flight was magnificent with wonderful views of Denali Peak and the glacier. The weather was great and we saw the summit very clearly and lots of wildlife.

Alaska is a non-contiguous U.S. state at the northwestern tip of North America. It is part of the Western United States region. The only other non-contiguous US state is Hawaii. Alaska is also considered the northernmost, westernmost, and easternmost (the Aleutian Islands cross the 180th meridian into the eastern hemisphere) state in the United States. It borders the Canadian territory of Yukon and the province of British Columbia to the east. It shares a western maritime border, in the Bering Strait, with the Russian Autonomous Okrug of Chukotka. The Chukchi and Beaufort Seas of the Arctic Ocean lie to the north, and the Pacific Ocean to the south. Technically a semi-exclave of the USA, it is the largest exclave in the world.

Indigenous people have lived in Alaska for thousands of years, and it is widely believed that the region served as a gateway for the first settlement of North America via the Bering land bridge. The Russian Empire was the first to actively colonise the area from the 18th century, eventually establishing Russian America, which spanned most of the current state and promoted and maintained an indigenous Alaskan Creole population. The cost and logistical difficulties of maintaining this remote possession led to its sale to the US in 1867 for US$7.2 million (equivalent to $157 million in 2023). The area underwent several administrative changes before being organised as a territory on 11 May 1912. It was admitted as the 49th state of the USA on 3 January 1959.

My first landscape photography tour started in Alaska with Marc Adamus in August 2019. It started in Juneau, the capital of the state of Alaska, with two helicopters dropping us into the mountains with all our camping equipment. We camped at the first site for two days. Then helicopters came to pick us up and drop us off at the different sites. But after the helicopter left, Marc realised that we were far away from where we were supposed to camp. So we had to carry all our luggage and tents a long way up the mountain on rocky terrain, because there is no road. And probably no one had ever been there before. After more than an hour's struggle, we finally reached our campsite. The weather looked perfect for the day and everyone was happy after a delicious dinner cooked by Marc. Marc is an excellent cook. He has cooked us different meals every day. All are delicious. However, the next day, early in the morning around 2am, the heavy rain started with strong winds. All the tents were blown away except for one. I had to move to another place to put up my tent. We walked to the ice cave and explored inside and out. A few days later we went to Petersburg. There we took a small helicopter operated by father and son to take photos. We saw beautiful Alaskan scenery from the helicopter and on the mountain.

This is one of the most memorable trips for me and I learned a lot from Marc, not only about landscape photography, but also about his love of wilderness and his dedication to the art of landscape photography.

I went back to Alaska in the summer of 2022. We rented a camper van in Anchorage and drove along the Glenn Highway to Valdez. This is the most beautiful area of Alaska with glaciers, lakes, rivers and snow-capped mountain peaks. There are other times I went to Alaska for wildlife photography, in the summer of 2018 and in March and autumn of 2024.

Alaska is a unique place in the world for nature photography. Besides two polar regions, Alaska is my favourite place to travel and photograph because of its wilderness. It offers unique wildlife and natural beauty.
I find myself going back to this place many times over the last few years. There is something special or mystical about this place and I could feel it but could not put the exact word to it. I just feel that I have to go back there again and again for no apparent reason. I like the snow-capped mountains, the glaciers and the wilderness.

'Alaska Diamond'

'Alaska highway-Glacier field in Alaska'

'O Alaska'

'Golden glacier II'

'Alaska morning glory'

'Golden glacier III'

'Morning view'

'Alaska glory'

'Morning in Brooks Bay'

'Driving out from sunset'

'Alaska lake'

'Matanuska river'

'Just before sunset'

Untitled

About Editor Huijun (HJ) Yang, Ph.D.
Dr. HJ Yang, Scientist, Businessman and Nature Photographer, writes about his photo trips around the world and his personal view on art, science, philosophy and life experience. Some of his writings are below:

Giving a voice to nature through photography

Journey to Baffin Island

Photography strongly connected to nature

Patagonia Special Expedition

Tracking Polar Bear Cubs

Emperor Penguins on Snow Hill Island

Jaguar and Harpy Eagle in Brazil

Book / Huijun Yang: Wave Packets and Their Bifurcations in Geophysical Fluid Dynamics, Applied Mathematical Sciences, 85, Springer, New York, NY, 1991.