Travel to, from and around the bush

I have never had a huge problem with flying. In fact, I used to love everything about it from wandering the airport to the thrill of take off to endless re-fills of pop.

However, that was my opinion from when I would fly Laguadia to Denver non-stop. Getting to and from Connecticut from Bush, Alaska has changed those views a little.

Here are some tips for any future bush traveler as well as my personal observations throughout my travels:

1.) Bush pilots don’t fly if they can’t see within 15 miles all around them. And they often don’t tell you whether or not they are going to fly that day until the end of the day. This may lead to cancelled flights, many hours on hold with airlines to change connecting flights and plenty of time to attempt to get comfy in the airport itself. If you are good at sweet talking your way through life, that may help in getting fees waived for changing tickets.

2.) From a traveler’s perspective, the muffin is quite universal. From New York to Anchorage- they are everywhere. At first, it may seem like a simple ounce of joy. When one first gets to the airport, there is nothing more thrilling than sitting down at a Starbucks, surrounded by luggage, muffin in hand. Although, the longer one spends in the air and in various airports, the more the muffin starts to lose it’s appeal. It becomes a dry, tasteless bun that does nothing but limit the body’s number of regular bowel movements.

3.) The temperature changes as your travel. Don’t get stuck in your east coast shoes in the icy muck of Dillingham, Alaska. Unless you deem the hot chocolate to be worth it.

4.) There is nothing better then having a random conversation with a random stranger who you will probably never see again on a plane or in a taxi. Yea, it is probably not best to get pregnant in Dillingham. If anything goes wrong, there is really not much they can do.

5.) It can suck to be stuck whether in Togiak, Dillingham, Anchorage, Chicago… but it can also be awesome. Go on a shopping spree, eat every single dinner out… who knows you might see a moose!

6.) Sometimes out-of-your-control wacky things happen. Get in a tug of war fight over your luggage with a drunk who thinks they should be able to get on their plane despite being intoxicated? Airport security is getting better and better by the day!

But more importantly, don’t freak out about anything that may happen. You can’t plan a trip to the bush and expect it to go perfectly so you might as well embrace the adventure.  

Just to clarify.. I still don’t have a problem with flying. Just more of an appreciation for my destination the longer the trip takes!