Our Last Days in Alaska

We have thoroughly enjoyed our days in Alaska with Bryan.  Monday was his first day at his summer job (following training) as an assistant to the Park Rangers at the Welcome Center in Anchorage.

 While he was working yesterday we drove to the Portage Glacier hoping to take a boat cruise up to the glacier...

 The drive to Portage was beautiful, of course.  The green trees and snow of this photo are part of the same mountain, but the water gave this photo a unique effect...

Unfortunately, the snow was so deep this year that the boat is still stuck in ice at Portage and the Visitor's Center was drying out after having snow covering the entire building.

 


So, we decided to continue down the road to visit Whittier, AK and possibly hop on a tour boat there.  The only way to get to Whittier was by boat or through this 2+ mile tunnel... hmmm

This tunnel is shared between trains, cars, and larger trucks and there's an hourly schedule for each to pass through...

 Since we had experienced an earthquake on the first day of our trip, we were glad to see the light at the end of the tunnel.

 Whittier is a very small but lovely fishing village. 

 We loved this little gift shop in which many of the items were made by the owner.

 The far side of the bay is the only boat or ship exit

 Can you see the blue ice in the photo below?

This has been a wonderful trip. The people of Alaska are warm and friendly, and Anchorage is a beautiful city.

We'll be flying home during the night tonight and will try to get back onto our regular sleeping schedule.  Having spent days in so much sunlight, it will be nice to see the stars again. 

Alaska, you are beautiful and we will be back.