Taking off from Seattle, Bill quizzes me about my plans in Alaska and is almost more excited than I am. He spent World War II stationed on Kodiak Island, and each summer for the past five years he's come back for an annual fishing trip. But the fish come second to the mountains. He reckons they are the most beautiful things you'll see, and descending into Anchorage he's really disappointed that all I can make out through the clouds below us are their tips. It's 11.30pm, broad daylight and there are more fishing rods coming through on the baggage carousel than backpacks.
Fishing is big in Alaska, like almost everything else.
Forget what they say about Texas - Alaska is twice the size. If you want to feel insignificant, this is the place to come, and maybe that's part of its attraction. You feel it when you're staring at a glacier - and Alaska has more than a few. Or cruising along the Top of the World Highway with nothing as far as the eye can see but the winding dirt road carving across mountain tops. There's more than one square mile for every resident of Alaska.