Native Heritage Center, Anchorage

We left Palmer yesterday morning for Hope, AK. On the way we stopped at the Native Heritage Center and spent over two hours. The center houses art and examples of tools, kayaks, houses and etc. of the nine native cultures in Alaska. This is a first rate exhibition. Outside the center is a beautiful pond surrounded by examples of the various tribes' housing styles. Contrary to the belief that "Eskimos" live in igloos, they are not Eskimos (A French term) and none of them lived in the igloo. Their homes are either wood long houses built half way under ground or on top of the ground or dugouts in the colder north country that had no trees. Sometimes, when they were on a hunt and a storm came up they might build an ice cave. This was as close as they came to anything like an igloo.

When we arrived we spent the first 45 min or so watching a dance performance by native young people. The young students act as guides and were at each native home to tell us about various hunting tools, the making of kayaks, and their specific culture. These people were so ingenious! Their rain parka was made from waterproof seal intestine and looked like a translucent plastic. I was just amazed at what they could do. It was all quite fascinating and made me wonder how I could endure such a primitive life. My little casita home seemed quite advanced.

We left the center after having lunch in the parking lot and made our way through Anchorage (or I should say īfought our way through Anchorage! Our drive leveled out a bit as we went along the Turnagain Arm. The Turnagain is a water inlet south of Anchorage with a relatively small opening from the sea. Consequently, it gets a Boar tide coming through the opening. The tide comes in as a 6 foot wall of water very fast bringing with it silt from glacier runoff. This silt is like a gray mud that is very dangerous if you happen it get stuck in it. It holds you in somewhat like quicksand. The highway travels along the Turnagain down to the Kenai Peninsula. We were on our way to Hope, a very small town on the edge of the Turnagain Arm.