A Prince Of A Day...Whittier, AK

June 12, 2014

Today's adventure, took us into the little town of

Whittier.  It is a small fishing town with a beautiful

harbor.  It is also the home of the

Klondike Express.  On the advice of a friend, we signed up for the

 

26 Glacier Tour on  Prince William Sound.

The boat didn't leave port until 12:30, but, we had to be at the

toll plaza and in

line at the staging area by 10:15 in order to get through the

Anton Anderson Memorial Tunnel at 10:30.  The 2.5 mile World War II - era railroad tunnel was transformed into the longest vehicle-railroad tunnel in North America by 2000.  It is a one lane tunnel and times are alternated in and out of Whittier.  However, to complicate matters, automobile traffic also share the tunnel with the incoming and outgoing train.  Someone really had to work out that schedule!

We made it through the tunnel and on to Whittier to

check in for our tour.  We found that we had time to see

a little

of the town before time to board our little ship.

What a beautiful

view of both mountains and

sea.

We were back at the dock in plenty of time, boarded, and

our Captain  headed out to the Sound, leaving behind us, the

quite little town.

Our journey aboard the largest, fastest catamaran in Alaska took us through

rugged wilderness and into the open waters of

Prince William Sound, which is composed of 2,100 square miles of islands and fjords carved by 15 million years of glaciations and surrounded by the Chugach National Forest.

In most of the Sound, we were in

really deep waters!

On our way out, we caught a glimpse of a

Humpback whale just as he was

headed down.  Today, he was a little less than cooperative with the cameras all pointed his way.

Next, we caught up with a fisherman.  He is

gill fishing.  I had never seen this before.  I am sure it is hard work, but, it looked like the only way to go to me...

He puts out the nets, waits, and then starts

reeling them in...hopefully with fish!  This type of fishing is regulated by the hatchery, so this fisherman could fish from 8:00 this morning for 24 hours only.

After leaving the fisherman, we ran upon some

sea otters.  They seemed to love having us there and put on quite a show!

As we meandered in and out and around the waters of Prince William Sound, we were served a lunch of batter fried cod, chips, and coleslaw.  It was very good.  They also had complimentary hot coffee and tea all day.  And, they served us warm, fresh baked chocolate chip cookies!

By the time we were finished we lunch, we begin to see the first of the

ice fields and

glaciers.  But, it wasn't until, we reached these

glaciers, that we realized just how awesome is this place called Alaska!

We saw up close

and personal, the majesty of the glaciers.  The sounds they make when

calving, and pieces of ice fall into the

water.

All around we saw

ice floating in the cold waters.

  The floating ice was a resting spot for the

harbor seals.

Our day was almost over and we had to leave this

sight to memory.

But, before, we made our way back to port, we made one last stop to see the

Black Legged Kittiwake.  They are the most prevalent of all bird species in the Sound.  This Passage Canal colony near Whittier has more than 10,000 nesting in the surrounding

sea cliffs.

By the time our boat docked, a cold rain was sitting in.  We made our way to the

Swiftwater Seafood Cafe where a warm bowl of chowder, rolls, and butter would be just thing to warm us up.  Not too hot, not too cold...just right on a cold summer night!

After dinner, we walked to the town's

seafood market.  We watched while they

cut,

filleted, and made steaks out of this King Salmon.

Then, we had a real treat...a lady that had taken one of the fishing charters from Whittier today caught this

31 pound Rock Fish.  They said it was well over 100 years old!  What a way to end our time in Whittier.

  It was time for us to head to the

tunnel.  We made it, just as the outgoing traffic light turned green!

What an awesome day!  There are no words nor pictures to justify the

beauty we saw today!

We just wonder, can it get any better?