This has been a very special year. The places I have been and the things I have seen has made this one of the best years of my life. A trip to the state of Alaska was the cherry on top.

My best friend, Jim, and I flew into Fairbanks on September 8, 2015. We were beyond fortunate to have Hajnalka, our close friend, who not only helped us plan our route, but also accompanied us on the first half of our trip. Hajnalka was key in turning this crazy idea into a reality. Her hospitality and sense of adventure not only made our trip exciting, but also pushed us out of our comfort zones. We were also lucky have to have John, Manoach and Max (the dog) with us on our two day float down the Tanana River. Luckily, we all managed to survive the trip.

In addition to floating the Tanana, I can also say that I have seen the Aurora Borealis, taken a selfie with Santa in the North Pole, camped on a gravel bar, climbed a random river-side rock face, ate moose and, of course, rented a movie from one of the eleven remaining Blockbusters in the country.

Another crucial piece to this puzzle was Hajnalka let us use her brand new truck to travel from Fairbanks all the way south to Seward and back. We called the truck Clifford, The Big Red Dog. The photo above should explain where we got the name.

This road trip was unlike any I have been on. We were immersed in nature for the entire trip. The only place that even resembled home was Anchorage - a place that we were told was a half hour from Alaska in every direction. We mainly camped and only paid to sleep two of the nine nights we were there.

We drove for hours surrounded by fall colors, varying weather conditions and beautiful snow capped mountains. Once we reached our southern most point, the town of Seward, we took a five hour boat trip with Major Marine Tours. The tour, despite the cold and misty conditions, proved to give us quite a marine-life showcase. We saw seals, humpback whales, otters, and the amazing orca whales. We even witnessed an extremely rare double breach. The cold, wind and mist made for an ominous and erie environment, especially when we arrived at the Holgate Glacier, a huge glacier that is slowly receding into the mountains above Resurrection Bay.

We documented ever nook and cranny of our adventure and the photos truly do not recreate the feeling of being in the moment. The climax of our trip was the Kenai Fjords National Park. Against our better judgement we decided to get up at 6am so we could hike to the Exit Glacier. The hike was 8 miles round trip. We gained 1000 feet of elevation for the first four miles of the hike. At mile two, we were engulfed in a dense fog and we were faced with a decision to either press on or head back down. Needless to say, we pressed on and over the course of the next two miles we saw views that few have ever seen. The clouds opened up and revealed the massive Exit Glacier in all it's glory. We felt like we were at the end of the Earth. It was truly one of the most breathtaking sites I have ever seen.