Whitefield's Travels: Day 5 Juneau

What a great day! First the girls left at about 8:30 for whale watching and seeing Mendenhall Glacier. Next it was me, whale watching and a hike out to the Glacier, followed by Dad and Monte with a helicopter ride and a walk on the glacier. Unfortunately, it was a rainy day, but we were all prepared with warm clothes. I guess the biggest draw here is the glacier, and it is amazing!

First I went whale watching with a group of just 19 people. It seemed kind of like a whale chase. All the different boats would radio each other with sightings, then we'd hurry out to the site. I think we went to three different sights and saw many different whales. We could see blow holes all over the place, lots of "humps" and twice we saw the whole tails. Someone saw one whale breech, but I missed that. It was pretty incredible! I bet we spent at least 2 hours. It was cold, but worth the thrill. I was lucky enough to sit right near the front of the boat so when we stopped I was the first one outside on the front deck. I was out there when a big wave hit us and I got sprayed from head to toe! Next we took a bus to a trail head and hiked though forest where the glacier had previously been. It was interesting to see the " old growth" vs. the " new growth". There was a clear marking of where the glacier had been, and there were people on the tour that had seen the glacier about 20 years ago. They said they could see a huge difference in it since then. Incredible sight!

Just a note: I used a porta potty in the parking lot before our hike, and with lots of layers, carrying a back pack, wearing gloves, it was quite an adventure just trying to pee. In fact, with my gloves in my mouth, holding my back pack and trying to squat with four layers of jackets, etc. I couldn't squat well enough and ended up with pee running down my leg.... Oh well, I guess it felt warm on this cold day!

Monte and Dad loved the helicopter flight and walking on the glacier. They even walked to the edge of many crevasses. It was a thrill of a lifetime for them both.

The girls agreed that the whole day was spectacular. The saw many whales too and where amazed at everything.

We will leave soon for a salmon bake for dinner, and the girls are looking forward to dinner in the dinning room. It is interesting that I think they prefer to dine without us, and look forward to meeting new people at what ever table they sit at.

Here is the salmon bake