Well I flew from Edmonton in Canada to Seattle in the USA and then from there to Anchorage in Alaska. It took me quite a long time and I did not get to Alaska till VERY late at night BUT the airport was alive...so many people as it seems all the planes come and go at night. I did not realise that Anchorage is much bigger than Darwin...over 300 000 people live there. It was really cold...only 4 degrees when I flew in.
I picked up my hire car and took to the roads...although it was the different side for driving than I drive on in Australia. I stayed for the night at the Alaskan Longhouse Hotel....very basic and not my usual style of accomodation but fine for the night and close to the airport.
I woke up for my first day in Alaska and it was raining.......and COLD! This did not stop me...I drove into the city and located the Tourist Information Centre.....the next priority was some shopping to pick up some winter boots...check them out....and of course a few other little items I just knew I would need.
* Darwin is 6613 air miles from Anchorage.
* In 1996 they had a huge Earthquake in Alaska and in one place we saw called 'Earthquake Park' over 75 houses sunk into the ground....you can only see their chimneys today.
That afternoon I drove 41miles out of the city to a resort called Aleyska where I was staying for the next 3 nights.....on the way there I had to keep stopping and take photos as the scenery was amazing and just like I had seen on TV and on the internet.
As I drove into the resort I saw a fire ready to greet guests and the men who would look after my luggage and park my car.....this was a beautiful place to stay. They tell me that in winter time it is completely covered in snow and has some of the most difficult ski runs in the world.
The next day I travelled further in my car to a small fishing / harbour town called Whittier. On the way there is a very special tunnel which goes form 2.3miles (yes they talk in miles here NOT km's) and traffic can only go one way at a time so you have to wait till half past the hour and then the tunnel opened for 15mins. If you miss your time you have to wait 45mins.
There I boarded a boat for 5 hrs cruising Prince William Sound......again it was raining for some of the day but this did not stop us. We saw the most amazing valley and tidewater glaciers......we even saw some 'calving'...this is when the ice breaks away and falls into the see like a mini explosion.
These are some pictures of Beloit Glacier and Blackstone Glacier - both are tidewater glaciers which means they flow down and meet the ocean.
I thought I could see figures 'dancing' in this glacier!
We also spent some time checking out the various waterfalls such as this one....for some reason it is known as 'Hidden Waterfalls'.For my bird watching friends Libby & Eric I was on the lookout and saw some Bald Eagles and a huge amount of Black legged kittiwakes....tried to take some pics for you....see these but will also email you some through.
The guys running the tour looked after me so well they even went fishing for ice for me as they learnt I liked ice in all my diet cokes and milkshakes......Parker and Otis got me to hold the ice that they fished out and then they crushed up the ice and made me a special milkshake with the fresh ice - 'The White Whale.....it was a mix of hot chocolate, ice, milk and something else which I cannot remember...but it was yummy!!It was VERY cold holding one of the big chunks straight from the water near the glacier!
Otis used the crushed up chunks of ice in our drinks!
There was a Park Ranger on board the boat and she told us all about the glaciers and the wildlife. The children on the boat got a special certificate and were awarded badges as 'Junior Rangers' These 2 walked around the boat sharing this animal pelt with us all.
The next day I visited Portage and the glacier there as well as the Alaskan Wildlife Conservation place...I saw so many Alaskan animals but was disappointed that the bears would not out and say hello to me....BOO HOO!These are caribou.
In the afternoon the rain and stopped for a while so I took the opportunity to go to the top of the Aleyksa Mountain in the special tram...it took me up really high and only took 8minutes to get to the top. As we climbed through the air I saw people climbing the mountain by foot.....it was a very long steep climb!
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