Palmer Journals

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Alaska's Farmland - The Mat-Su Valley

A September 2010 trip to Palmer by MilwVon

Quote: We spent a day and a half in Palmer, which wasn't nearly enough time to do all we wanted to in this beautiful area of Alaska. This journal highlights what we did do, plus a few things that will have to wait until our next summertime trip to this area.

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Alaska State Fair

Attraction | "Fun Evening at the State Fair"

Quote: OK I have to admit, I think Wisconsin has a pretty darn good State Fair, with lots of great animal exhibits, entertainment, midway games, amusement rides and of course wonderful food! I have to say, we were very impressed with the Alaska State Fair which is held each year starting approximately ten days prior to Labor Day and running through the last hurrah holiday of the summer (Labor Day).
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When we first started planning for this trip nearly two years ago, I knew that the State Fair would need to be worked into our itinerary; I just wasn’t sure what specific day. Since we were going to traverse the state in two directions making Palmer possible during at least two different windows of time, I’m really glad we were able to do it earlier in the trip. The weather as just about as perfect as could be wanted, well that is until the dark storm clouds came in over the mountains and dumped buckets of rain on us.

We arrived at the State Fair right about 5:00pm. Once parked, we were on our way into the fairgrounds on the hunt for dinner. We spent some time getting a lay of the land and offerings, and finally settled for a vendor who had a little of everything. I opted for the shrimp boat while David went for the deluxe nachos. I know, not much of a supper but we were both saving room for who knows what other treats awaited us around the next aisle.

Unlike the Wisconsin State Fair, where all of the vendors are in an exhibit hall or pavilion, here in Alaska they are mixed right in with the foodies and others booths. Much of what we saw was truly unique to what Alaska is known for . . . beautiful wood carvings, handmade clothing and seafood. Some was not unlike what we do have in the lower 48 including hot tubs, sham-wows and kitchenware. I am always amazed that people would go to the state fair to buy pots and pans or mops.

I really enjoyed the animal and vegetable exhibits that were inside their pavilion center. The growing season in Alaska while short in terms of calendar days, is long thanks to the land of the midnight sun and the extraordinary amount of sunlight things have to grow under. The award winning pumpkin was crowned earlier in the day . . . and state record 1,101 pounds. Seeing is believing, so take a look at the photo attached to this review. I was also amazed at turnips and radishes that were nearly the size of bowling balls.

Over in the animal section we witnessed a real miracle. There was a pen of piglets with one apparently in distress. Frankly, when we walked up to the area, I thought it was already dead. It was on its side, eyes rolled back in its little head and not appearing to be breathing. Two of the littermates were there, pushing it and grunting a bit. They were pushing this little sick piggy around in the straw, but it was just not responding. A third came over to start working on the piglet, all of them acting with could only be described as a real sense of urgency.

All of a sudden, the piglet that had been unresponsive let out a squeal and jumped to its feet. It was pandemonium in the pen for a couple of minutes, with all of the piglets running around. I’m assuming the big momma sow was in the pen next to this one, as she watched through the chicken wire pen as the little ones romped. She didn’t seem upset or anxious to get to the young ones, only curious what the commotion was. As I said, it was a miracle . . . a barnyard miracle!

Now it was time for a dessert treat. I thought about funnel cake or perhaps even a cream puff but being from the dairy state, how could a "Denali Cream Puff" come close? Instead we opted for swirl ice cream cones. As we completed our soft serve ice cream cone orders, the skies opened and people were en mass heading for a tent or building for cover. Had I realize rain was in the forecast, I would have proven my "tourist" status by carrying an umbrella with me. Apparently locals NEVER carry or use umbrellas. They just have rain suits and go out in it regardless of how much rain is anticipated. With that, our evening at the fair was over and we were dashing out to our RV.

In addition to the great fair activities, we utilized the AK State Fairgrounds for one of our camping nights. For just the $15 parking fee, it was a nice location providing close proximity to the fair plus easy access from the highway between Denali National Park and the Kenai Peninsula.

Park admission is available on a per day basis or six-pack basis . . . and purchasing online in advance will save you a buck or two. Gate prices are $12 & $7 for weekends (adult & kids) and $10 & $6 on weekdays . . . with discounts to the kids’ rate for seniors age 65 and older.

There are separate fees for their headliner entertainment, which this year included Howie Mandel, Boyz II Men and Kenny Rogers. Unfortunately the night we were there it was Ricky Scaggs so we took a pass not being country music fans. (I would have stood in line, however, to see Phil Vassar!!!)

I can say that we really enjoyed the Alaska State Fair and would encourage folks to consider it if you’re planning an Alaskan holiday in late August/early September.
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Member Rating 4 out of 5 on October 1, 2025

Alaska State Fair
Mile 40 Glenn Highway
Palmer, Alaska 99645
907 745 4827

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Iditarod Headquarters

Attraction | "Pleasant Stop Along the Way"

Quote: The Iditarod race trail stretches across roughly 1,150 miles of Alaskan landscape from Anchorage (well technically Willow) to Nome that pushes man and dog teams for close to two weeks or more. Started in 1973 to commemorate the primary mode of transportation for decades, along the historical trail that actually begins in Seward, today the Iditarod represents the Alaskan spirit that makes this the great place it is today.
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The Iditarod Headquarters in Wasilla is a nice stopping point for a break in the driving through town whether you’re heading north or south, to or from Talkeetna or perhaps Denali National Park. Inside, visitors can take the self-guided tour of the artifacts and media from past races. They also have a continuous running video that was released before the 2009 race. In it, they talked a lot about the changing face of long distance dog racing with the back-to-back wins of Lance Mackey.

They foreshadowed that should he pull off the unthinkable in today’s competitive climate, a THIRD consecutive win, he could be setting the standard in dog racing for years to come. As of this writing, let it be known, Lance Mackey and his dog kennel of champions are the undisputed kings (no pun intended towards another great Iditarod champion, Jeff King) of the Iditarod with their fourth consecutive win in 2010.

While I too am amazed by the four consecutive Iditarod wins, I’m probably more impressed with the years that he won the Yukon Quest just a month before taking on the Iditarod back in 2007 and 2008, also part of a run of four consecutive wins. The Yukon is another 1,000+ mile long distance race that takes place between Whitehorse, Yukon and Fairbanks, Alaska. As you can imagine, to put man and animal through such a test over the span of just about six weeks is very impressive . . . to win them both . . . perhaps superhuman!

Back to the Iditarod Headquarters, you can buy a memento of your trip to Alaska in the form of a tee-shirt or hoodie or snow booties for your four-legged friend back home. I know our Miss Heidi would have no part of snow booties no matter how much she dislikes the cold Wisconsin snow. They have a decent assortment of items in their gift shop including several books chronicling the race’s history, its champions and the lives of perseverance that it takes to race in "The Last Great Race on Earth." One such book, which I had read before this trip, is Lisa Frederic’s "Running with Champions".

Open year-round, visitors will find extended summer hours (mid-May through mid September); 8a – 7p daily and abbreviated hours in the off-season 8a – 5p. There is no admission fee to take in the museum which includes several interesting exhibits and video of past races. For those interested in experiencing the thrill of mushing your own dog team, check out the rolling "cart" rides pulled by a small team of sled dogs (weather permitting) for $15 (summer only, 8a – 5p). While I’m guessing it may be interesting and even fun, having actually mushed for real on snow, this activity seemed a bit lame to me.
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Member Rating 4 out of 5 on October 1, 2025

Iditarod Headquarters
Knik Road
Wasilla, Alaska

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Knik Glacier Tours

Attraction | "One of the Best Tours We Did"

Quote: The Knik Glacier is one of the largest in south central Alaska, measuring some 25 miles long and five miles wide dating back to the Pleistocene ice age. Tours of this area are a rather recent development, as tourism in Alaska continues to expand adventures to visitors from around the world. We really enjoyed our time with Tom, owner and guide with Knik Glacier Tours.
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We arrived at his small roadside cabin that serves as their tour office. It was actually very nice to find out it would just be David and me with Tom for the day. I have to say, I really liked him! He was a personable Midwest guy from Michigan who after a reported "seven visits" to Alaska decided to move here over 20 years ago. Today he has a nice piece of land, a home and business sharing his "neighborhood" with others. He takes conservation of both land and animals to heart and is more than willing to help educate visitors who come to spend time with him.

At the cabin, we were loaded up into a tricked out 4x4 van, ready to go safari’ing Alaskan style. We headed into the watershed system that generally runs along the Knik River. At one point in the ride, we had to cross a small creek that seemed deeper than it really was. Further on down, we stopped to observe salmon spawning in very shallow water . . . about three or four inches max. From that point, we continued on to where he had his airboat docked.

Once aboard the boat, we were given noise canceling headsets to help prevent damage to our ears. If you’ve never done an airboat, you would be surprised at just how darn loud they are. The headsets were much nicer and more effective than the little cotton balls we were once given in the Everglades for the same purpose.

As we approached the glacier, we started to see small ice chunks floating by. At first they looked a lot like plastic bottles or something in the water. The closer we got to the face of the glacier, the larger the ice was. It was amazing to finally get up rather close to huge icebergs, several times the size of our boat. Getting too close is a real danger as the ice is known to flip or pop up surfacing higher in the air. Tom turned off the motor allowing us to drift among the ice, with the stillness of the quiet only broken by the creaking and crackling of the ice. It was surreal . . . maybe even more so than being up on that glacier in Denali National Park.

Tom docked the boat at the bottom of the trail that led uphill to his Glacier Camp that provided a wonderful perspective overlooking the river, icebergs and glacier face. The walk wasn’t particularly strenuous but did require some level of physical exertion as the walk is over a rather rough and rocky footpath. At the top, the camp had a picnic table, a bear-proof walk-in shed style building and several small tented type cabins. Around the corner was an outhouse, which I did make use of before we headed back down to the boat.

Unfortunately, our ride down the Knik River did not produce much in the way of wildlife sightings. Tom told us that bears in this area are pretty much up at higher levels because it is legal to hunt black bears year-round. Additionally, moose were in season too so there was no reason for them to be around the river eating. There was a lot of moose scat up at the Glacier Camp that appeared very recent.

We did see an eagle or two, as well as the damage done by beavers who are quite the destructive little critters. We were told that a few weeks ago, Tom came down to find his boat tied down by a mere thread after the beavers had decided to munch on the tie downs.

We enjoyed just talking and learning more about this area and Tom’s dreams for his next enterprise. Turns out, he has a deep passion for the aurora borealis and apparently this little corner of the world is a perfect backdrop in the winter for photographers. He envisions an aurora viewing cabin offering folks the opportunity to come view and photograph the northern lights from deep within the MatSu valley. It is a particularly nice location given the Chugach Mountains that surround the area.

Tom offers a four hour Knik Glacier tour twice daily, 10am and 2pm. The $100 price seems appropriate, and is especially sweet if you have the Northern Lights discount providing you with 2:1 pricing! Kids can take the tour for $50.

Other tours currently offered include a hiking tour of the glacier, their "Walkabout Tour" for $80 adults/$40 kids. This is an extended tour, marketed to save guests a few bucks while getting out for the exercise while doing the three mile hike in . . . boat ride back. Take the 10a tour to get in eight hours of wilderness time, while the 2p tour will provide six. Those wishing a real backcountry adventure can do the 24 hour overnight camping option for $250/person.

For more information and more up-to-date tour offerings, be sure to look in on the website: www.knikglacier.com
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Member Rating 5 out of 5 on October 1, 2025

Knik Glacier Tours
26326 E Buckshot Drive
Palmer, Alaska
(907) 745-1577

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Krazy Moose Subs

Restaurant | "Alaska Sized Subs!"

Quote: Krazy Moose Subs is located right in downtown Wasilla and is a great spot for a quick meal. Order the "half" (5") for lunch or the "full" (10") for dinner and you'll have a full meal especially when you get the meal basket that comes with your choice of chips and soft drink.
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I had been here back in March when my friend Cathy and I went up to Willow for the Iditarod mushing experience at Dallas Seavey's kennel with Salmon Berry Tours. On that particular trip, I ordered first and our guide Mandy didn't forewarn me about the size of the subs. I went for the gusto, ordering a "full" meatball & cheese sub that looked bigger than 10 inches. The meatballs had great flavor as did the marinara sauce. Topped with provolone cheese, it was really way too much to eat in one sitting so I took half back to our hotel in Anchorage for later. Unfortunately "later" never came and the other half got thrown out when we checked out the next morning.

Cathy had the Philly steak wrap that was loaded! Take a look at the photo attached to this review. She said it was more than enough for one as well. I couldn't believe how much meat was in that wrap. Mandy had a nice salad, making me feel guilty for going large with the sub.

They not only bake their breads and rolls on the premises, they also have homebaked style cookies that are very big as well. I was simply too full to even think about a cookie to go.

They also feature soups, salads and more traditional sandwiches. During our time in the shop, there was a steady pace of what appeared to be locals coming in for carry-out which surprised me since it was pretty late in the afternoon for lunch and too early for dinner.

If you are staying (or living) local, you can your order ahead for dine-in or carry-out. The dining area is a decent size, with tables throughout. After you place your order at the counter, you take a seat and they bring you your meal. While you're waiting, take a look around at the old photos from around the area. Wasilla has sure grown a lot since the 1950's and before. As for prices, they are very reasonable. The lunch for the three of us was $40 including tip.

I had really hoped that we'd be able to stop in for sandwiches during our Great Alaskan Adventure but the timing didn't really work out as we got to Wasilla a bit too late in the afternoon if we were still going to eat dinner at the State Fair later that evening. Of course, there is always next time. Read Less

Member Rating 3 out of 5 on October 2, 2025

Krazy Moose Subs
405 E Herning Avenue
Wasilla, Alaska
(907) 357-8774