When choosing top holiday spots around the globe, Alaska is probably the last state we would think of travelling to.
It is probably a great place to try out your complete icebreaker wardrobe and to sample the seafood from the state's 54,000km of coastline and 15,000 pristine rivers andstreams.
It seems Alaskans eat everything: from moose, caribou, elk and bear to wild berries, salmon, king crab and scallops.
This is all washed down with tea made from the soft inner-bark of the birch tree. Because of the cold, Alaskan wild berries have a thicker skin trapping in a luscious tangy interior, fantastic for making berry jams and jellies.
Regularly harvested are wild blueberries, smaller and sweeter than New Zealand varieties; high bush cranberries and salmonberries - which resemble raspberries but are yellow or orange and taste completely different.
But the jewel of Alaskan cuisine is the bounty from the sea - one king crab or stone crab is large enough to feed an average family.
In May, wild salmon are held in high regard. The firm red flesh has a nutty flavour developed by long, icy rapid rivers emptying into a sound. Alaska is also home to halibut, the largest flat fish in the world - the largest was recorded at 211kg and 2.5m long.
And the diversity of this food culture doesn't stop at the sea. Sourdough bread is so popular it is practically a slang word for being Alaskan. During the Klondike gold rush, everyone kept a pot of sourdough starter so they could bake bread wherever they were.
It is a myth that a slab of icecream on sponge and encased in meringue - Baked Alaska - originated in Alaska. It originated in New York in honour of its newly acquired state.
