I’ve only driven three times since we moved to Anchorage. Sal likes to drive; me, not so much. Anyway, so Sal was driving down the Turnagain Arm Saturday on our way to Girdwood for the Forest Fair when I spotted a surfboard in the water. I told Sal, who yelled out “It’s the bore tide! It’s the bore tide!” And it was!
What is a bore tide? Here I have to quote: Tidal bores are a natural phenomenon that occur when an incoming extra high tide meets an extreme minus tide in a large bay with a narrow inlet. This tidal phenomenon is called a ‘bore’ when a large continuous wave is formed by the meeting tides and this rushes into the narrow channel. They vary in frequency, height and the distance they travel.
There are 60 bore tides around the world, the largest being in China where the bore tide has reached up to 30 feet and traveled for 30 miles. Turnagain Arm is a narrow branch off the Cook Inlet and is one of the only places in the US to see a tidal bore wave, THE only place in the US according to some sites. Here the bore tide can see waves as large as 6 to10 feet and can take up to five hours to travel the length of the Turnagain Arm.
Once we spotted the surfer, we pulled over at the next pullout. There were three surfers riding the wave, but they all stopped about the time we pulled over. The unique aspect of surfing a tidal bore is how long you can surf. It’s possible to surf the one wave for hours. A British surfer, Steve King, set the record when he surfed the Bono Bore in Sumatra for a distance of 12.8 miles.
At the pullout spoke at length with a couple from California who were RVing it in Alaska for 48 days. They had seen the wave the night before with 10 surfers tiding the wave. The wave had been higher the night before, they said, and estimated the wave this morning was about five feet high. It was pretty neat to see. I spoke briefly with a surfer returning to her car who said her ride had been “amazing.” An Alaska bore tide schedule is posted online and Sal has marked the days later in the month when a ‘Big’ wave is predicted. (The tidal bores happen twice a day but sizes are predicted as Tiny, Small, Good and Big.) We plan to go back again to get a better view of the surfers.
We shared some recommendations with our new California friends who were heading down to Homer and eventually bear viewing at Brooks Falls. Sal and I are kind of familiar with the Seward Highway now and we’re pleased to be able to answer questions.
Then on to Girdwood. We got there in plenty of time for the parade. We’ve seen lots of parades in Alaska and this was my favorite. It was just so fun! Lots of costumes, even among those watching. Fairy wings, crowns of flowers and lots of glitter everywhere. Very whimsical.
After the parade we walked to the Fair, which had tons of crafts people with their booths set up along paths in the woods. Also stages set up for musicians. The whole thing was very ‘A Midsummer’s Night Dream’ like. We didn’t buy anything though. I saw two coffee mugs I liked, but one was $50 and the other $75. I would be so upset if I broke a $50 coffee mug, so I passed on those. They had cute Forest Fair tee shirts which would have been a good souvenir, but the line was sooo long. Ditto at the food truck for Spinach Bread. We’ve had that twice before. Very yummy. Garlic bread with sautéed spinach and lots of cheese. But the line, the line. Not today.
On the way back to the car, we got our picture taken with the parade Grand Marshall!
We were so glad we went early. Driving out of Girdwood toward the Seward Highway, traffic was backed up for miles. It would have been miserable. But we timed it right; saw a bore tide and had no traffic or parking issues, it was a very fun day.
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