Permission to Come Aboard - Day 3

Monday June 10th is day 3 in Alaska, but was the first day for the cruise..departure day. Had a nice breakfast at the hotel in Anchorage, then it was time to catch a cab to the train station for the 2 hour trip to the port of Whittier.

The train followed the same route along Seward Highway that I drove on Saturday to Kenai Peninsula, however, it left the main tracks in Portage and headed over to Whittier. To get to Whittier the train had to cross 2 mountains with glaciers,rather than climb the tracks tunneled through. 

The first tunnel was like any other, it was a mile long and when we emerged on the other side we were in a giant bowl valley with high peaks and glaciers all around. Once we got to the other side of the valley the train stopped.

We were at the mouth of the other tunnel, it was a 2.5 mile long tunnel and on the other side was Prince William Sound and Whittier. The thing is, this tunnel was a shared tunnel by trains and cars. And only one lane.....so the train waited until cars emerged coming out of Whittier. Once they emerged the train blew the horn and proceeded into the tunnel with about 50 cars and trucks following us through on the way to Whittier.

We emerged in Whittier and the Cruise ship was in plain site. Not really a huge town, it was formerly a military base, a secret one, hence the tough access. No mostly tour boats but not much in way of a town to explore. So, I took some photos and then proceeded to the ship for lunch and got situated.

We pulled out at 9PM and headed on our way. Dinner at 9:30PM with stunning views, remember it is still light out here, and then off to the observation deck for a glass of wine and watch the sunset as we navigated through the Sound and its islands. Dolphins flying in the bow wake. Was very cool and serene.

It’s Tuesday and I just finished breakfast on the balcony of my room. It is a very foggy morning in the Gulf of Alaska, and the seas are slight at 1.4 Ft. We have about 105 miles until we reach the Hubbard Glacier and sail through the fjords and passages. Today is a day at sea. I’ll post more on next entry, right now I need to finish my coffee and enjoy the foggy morning.

Photos may be lacking due to slow connect speeds. I’ll try though later.