If ending our
cruise wasn't depressing enough, we woke up to gray, rainy skies...not conducive
to the plans we had for the day.
The ship had
docked around midnight in Whittier…a distance of only 31 miles from College
Fjord where we had been the previous evening. Thousands of visitors come to
Whittier by cruise ships, charter boats and commercial fishing vessels yet the
town only has about 200 full-time residents…most likely due to the fact that
annual snowfall is around 250 inches! Most all of the citizens live in a
14-story former army barracks
called Begich Towers which holds a police station, a health clinic, a church,
and a laundromat.
The Buckner
Building in Whittier, once the largest structure in the state of Alaska, now
sits empty. The former military facility, damaged heavily in the 1964 Alaskan
earthquake, has become a playground for mischievous youth...check out this video of a guy skiing through the Buckner Building in Whittier.
A large portion
of the passengers on our ship continued their travels with a Princess
land-based trip. They had disembarked very early so by the time we left the
ship around 8 a.m., most of the luggage had been claimed, making it easy to
find our bags. Although our ultimate destination was Seward, we first had to
make our way to Anchorage where we would pick up our rental car. Shortly before
9 a.m. our driver arrived and the four in our group plus five others went through a covered
walkway to get to our shuttle bus.
Traveling into
or out of Whittier, you must pass through the 2 ½ mile long Anton Anderson
Memorial Tunnel… the second-longest highway tunnel and longest
combined rail and highway tunnel in North America. With only a one-lane road (with
railroad tracks embedded in the pavement), the tunnel is open at the top of the
hour for northbound traffic, and at half-past the hour for the southbound. Because it was a few
minutes before 9:00, our shuttle driver, Judy, offered to give us a tour of
Whittier before we left.
The tunnel is located right at the edge of town.
En route we passed by a waterfall and a glacier.
At the tunnel, our shuttle waited in line for our turn to enter.
On the way to Anchorage, Judy gave a running commentary on what we were seeing. With such a small group, we had an opportunity to chat with the others in the van. Two guys were headed home to Germany, another couple had plans to tour Alaska by RV and the single lady turned out to be the wife of Duncan Tuck, one of the entertainers on the ship.
We were dropped off at the Anchorage Airport where we were to pick up our rental cars. Since Kent & Laurel were extending their trip several days after we left, we decided it would be best for us each to get our own car rather than share. (I also doubt that we could have fit four people PLUS all of our luggage into one car!)
Despite calling to confirm the rentals, Laurel and I both had nightmares about the reservations. The cars had been booked last September and at that time the rate was…$10 per day! Knowing somehow that such a cheap rate in Alaska MUST be a mistake, we were worried that we would end up paying hundreds of dollars or worse yet…not get a car at all.
But…although the agents were very surprised…everything worked out as smooth as possible! With the added taxes and fees our three day rental came to $58.23!
But…although the agents were very surprised…everything worked out as smooth as possible! With the added taxes and fees our three day rental came to $58.23!
Judy had told us about a spot near the airport where we could go and actually see Denali (265 miles away!) so that was our first stop. Yes…it is very far away, but I can still say we saw Denali (Mt. McKinley)! At 20,320 feet, the mountain is the tallest in North America.
Just down the road was Earthquake Park. We walked the path through the park and saw where a neighborhood disappeared in a giant landslide in the 1964 quake. Had there not been an incredible amount of mosquitoes, we would have spent more time reading the informational signs along the way.
Before leaving Anchorage, we stopped at a Walmart to stock up on snacks and grab a quick lunch at the McDonalds inside the store. The rain continued as we left Anchorage.
Getting to Seward meant backtracking much of the route that we had been on that morning from Whittier to Anchorage. Although we wanted to make several stops on the way, the crummy weather was enough to change our plans. One attraction we did take time to see was the Wildlife Conervation Center near Girdwood. The center provides care for injured and orphaned animals and gave us a chance to see "wild" animals up close. The rain was not letting up so we pulled on our rain jackets & pants and changed into our waterproof hiking shoes. The place was incredibly muddy but we put up with the mess and got some great photos!
The dead trees in the next photo were a common sight all over this area and were caused by the tsunami that followed the 1964 earthquake. The ocean water killed the trees and the salt permeated the wood in such a way that the trees are basically preserved and won't decay.
The Seward Highway follows along Turnagain Arm which was at low tide.
And the rain continued...
Traffic was fairly heavy on the highway so the drive seemed to take quite a long time...but eventually we made it to the Kenai Peninsula and our lodging for the next two nights at the Sunshine House Bed & Breakfast in Seward.
After unloading and dragging our luggage up to the second floor bedrooms, we headed downtown to find a place to eat. Walking down mainstreet, we checked the menus posted in the windows of several restaurants and eventually decided on Apollo...a sort of Greek/Italian place. The guys had gyro plates, I had lasagna and Laurel had what was billed as "the biggest calzone in all of Alaska!"
By the time we got back to the B & B we were all exhausted from our day of travel. The owners, Mike and Marsha, were in their jammies but wanted to check with us about what time we wanted our breakfast.
We said our "good-nights" and our heads hit the pillow...long before sunset!
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