I have to say, I never knew Alaska would be like this! Today we took the train from Anchorage to Whittier and then boarded a cruise boat to tour the calm, protected waters of Prince William Sound. The protection comes from the surrounding mountains that are covered in glaciers and some of those glaciers come right down to the water. It was magnificent scenery and everywhere we looked there were waterfalls - melt water from the glaciers.
Boarding the train in Anchorage at 9:30 a. m.
The train ride to Whittier was just over two hours.
Mud flats outside Anchorage. These can be dangerous and act like quick-sand when the tide turns.
Princess cruise ship in the port of Whittier but...
this smaller boat is the one we boarded.
There was a Ranger - Jim Sumner - from the National Parks on board. We are sitting at tables because we were served a salmon and prime-rib all-you-can-eat buffet. I had two pieces of delicious salmon. The man in the blue shirt is Ian Muir. He and his wife, Carolyn, are from O'Fallen, Missouri and we first met them in Jasper National Park in Canada.
Pleasure boats in the marina at Whittier.
Looking back at Whittier and the anchored cruise ship on the left.
Our first glacier sighting.
Harbor seals sunning themselves.
Brants - we can see their cousins on Narragansett Bay from the Olenn's home.
Salmon fishing boat with nets piled on the rear deck.
Coming in close to Beloit Glacier. Notice the ice in the water - the white specs.
Beloit Glacier
The sky beginning to clear on the east side of the Sound.
Beloit Glacier
Ice and...
kayakers at the base of Beloit Glacier.
Close-ups of...
Beloit Glacier.
Close-up of the waterfall just to the right of Beloit Glacier.
Blackstone Glacier, just to the west of Beloit Glacier.
Blackstone Glacier
View back down Blackstone Bay.
The First Mate, Miles, was able to use a net to gather in some of the "calved" ice from the glaciers.
There were so many waterfalls lining the sides of the mountains.
This is Hidden Waterfall, one of the most beautiful and accessible.
Our skilled Captain. I'm sorry, I can't find where I wrote down his name.
He was able to bring us right into the falls for an extreme close-up.
Hemlock trees on the mountain side next to Hidden Falls. Maybe the shore-line looks a little bit like Maine.
Photogenic sea otter.
Fault line on the mountain-side.
Another salmon fishing boat.
Enjoying Prince William Sound.
A tender ship that goes out to collect the salmon catch from other boats.
Approaching the Port of Whittier.
A wall of waterfalls.
While waiting for the train to take us back to Anchorage, we noticed this sign in the Anchor Inn at Whittier.
On the train ride back to Anchorage, we were fortunate to see some Dall Sheep.
This one looks like a youngster.
That is truly amazing scenery! Did you take the big camera for this one so you could get the close ups?
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