Day 5- You Know Juneau?

Socked in by clouds is common in Juneau...Rain is a way of life here!

Well, I'm sure you've heard of Alaska, and I'm sure you learned that its capital is Juneau. However, have you ever had the chance to visit Juneau? Today is your lucky day! Join me as we tour this wonderful state's capital city!

The rain continues...all day long...starts and stops, but all day long.

In the picture above I am headed out of Juneau for a ten minute ride to the neighboring harbor. We are getting ready to go whale watching!

Note the unusual pier mooring above...can you figure out why they are so tall?

As I arrived at the pier I learned one of the most unusual facts of the day. The water height varies so much that the pier and the boats have to be able to raise and lower by as much as fifteen feet with the tide. Therefore, to keep that in mind, the rectangular pi-shaped structures above are the anchor points where the docks and boats attach. If I were to come back at high tide, I could look down at the top of the mooring!

Learn how to whale watch with Mr. K.!

Here we are out with Captain Cory taking in our first whales of the day! Since I am a Chicago native, I had to first learn how to the find the whales in the water! Captain Cory told us to look over the water for columns of water vapor. Those columns indicate that the whales were exhaling and getting ready to dive! Look at the picture above...can you see the column of water vapor?

There they go! Two whales dive into Auke Bay!

Just as Captain Cory suggested, the two whales went under water! Two tails up...what a TREAT! Besides seeing the graceful whales surface and dive, I also learned that boats can only loiter near whales for a specific amount of time, then they must move on to other areas to view new specimens.

Peaceful Auke Bay!

As Captain Cory piloted the boat from whale to whale, there was plenty of opportunity to reflect on the day's geography. Alaska's scale is beyond comprehension. Here I am in a smaller bay and it seems huge. From the bay, one can go to the even grander Inside Passage, then to the ocean. Within Auke Bay I was surrounded by beautiful scenery in all directions. The clouds constantly changed, the sun came and went like to shy child...there one minute, hiding the next.

Mendenhall Glacier...Epic!

As if whale watching wasn't enough of a cool experience, about about visiting a huge glacier to round out the morning adventures! Mendenhall Glacier, tucked into the Tongass National Forest is a great way to come face to face with a natural phenomenon. The photo above suggest the scale of the glacier as it is about a mile from where I took the picture. The ice you see is hundreds of years old...in fact you are allowed to touch some when you see a chunk on display in the visitor's center!

Note how the mountains give way to the glacier's deposits...an on-going ice parade caught in super slow motion. As you stand facing the glacier you can feel the cool, moist air blown across the lake while you hear the roar of the lively waterfall to the right of the frame. I only had about an hour to visit the Mendenhall Glacier area...I would love to spend a day there in the future...

The floating hotel awaits...!

After a fantastic day, it was time to return to the ship...Cruising offers such value and opportunity as you can have fantastic day adventures and return for rest and relaxation after dinner. Stay tuned...tomorrow we're off to

All aboard!!!