Photos: 10,000 miles flying around Western Alaska

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Blue Ice Aviation visited Port Alsworth, on Lake Clark. They stayed on the island at left.

In two and a half weeks of flying around Western Alaska, I traveled about 10,500 miles, which sounds impressive. But Alaska is so huge, I barely scratched the surface. The weather was great and we saw everything from 15 to 82 degrees. We stayed in Port Alsworth, located on private land within Lake Clark National Park and Preserve about 170 miles southwest of Anchorage, and had a fantastic time.

About once a day we "swam" in Lake Clark, though most immersions lasted less than 10 seconds. The only swimming that took place was the frantic thrashing of water following each icy jump.

We found the lake irresistible because of the amazing sauna built on the shore by Roger Ledford. If I had any brain cells left to kill, they died somewhere between the 35-degree lake water and 150-degree sauna.

Port Alsworth is an amazing destination, full of amazing people. The late two-term Alaska Gov. Jay Hammond called it home. If you ever have the opportunity, I highly recommend going to visit.

These photos were taken during the 2013 fly-in, which included a pizza drop competition, a spot-landing competition, many games, and a film festival all hosted by Lake and Pen Air.

Matthew Keller is the owner and operator of Blue Ice Aviation. He was born and raised in Alaska, and his office is the cockpit of his Super Cub. His goal is to transport everyone into Alaska's vast wilderness. See more of his videos and writing at Blue Ice Aviation.