Alaska Day 24, Timing the Tunnel

 Day 24

 Monday June 25

     I had two choices this morning.  Get out super early to beat the Anchorage morning rush hour, or linger and leave a little later. With a light day planned, I chose to linger over some coffee before hitting the road.  For some reason, I found this humorous...

     My main goal was a revisit to the Portage Glacier and the coastal community of Whittier.   Hwy 1 goes directly through downtown Anchorage.  I was surprised how smoothly the traffic flowed.  Sure, there were plenty of traffic lights, but everything still seemed to move.

      A few miles south of town is a large pulloff for a place they call Beluga Point.  Beautiful scenery, but alas, no whales.  I talked with a guy who told me it’s because the tide was out.  It seemed plausible. 

     About ten miles further is the town of Girdwood.  It’s very close to the epicenter of the earthquake of 1964.  When the shaking was over, the town had dropped eight feet.  Apparently there are ruins out there if you know where to look. 

      I was looking for something very different.  I found the turnoff easily enough and followed it back to the side street. 

   What I wanted was three miles beyond the pavement.  I started up the dirt road and soon encountered rocks in the road significantly larger than my fists.  That’s when I decide to turn around.   Imagine if you can a small canyon.  To get across, you can either climb down or take the tram.  Imagine the tram being attached to a cable that stretches across.   Now imagine having to pull hand over hand on the cable to get the tram across.   Seriously, how cool is this.

     When I came through here seven years ago, I didn’t have time to check out Portage Glacier. It’s at the back end of the two mile long lake and not visible from the road. The only way to see it is by tour boat.  I bought my ticket and hopped on board.   

       Our captain for this voyage...

    Then there were these two people.  They had paddle boarded the two miles out to the glacier.  

    On the drive out to the tour boat, there’s a parking area for the trail out to Byron Glacier.  It’s a fairly level .9 mile walk out to what was the edge of the snow and ice seven years ago.  This short wall was the end of the trail.  The ice started just beyond.  The edge of the glacial wall was so much closer.  

   Wanting to get closer, I crossed the snow to the rocks and considered.  I saw a few people picking their way through them.  You guys know I’m not that thrilled about crossing boulder fields.  But, I decided to go up to the top of the first ridge.  It turned out to be further than I thought.  But, this was far enough.  I did eventually meet a guy who picked and climbed his way up to the ice.  We both agreed he was a bit crazy for doing it.  Then he showed me his pictures.  I still think he was crazy though.

    In the end, it was a fortuitous decision.  Funny how you see different things on the way back. 

       I made it back to the car promptly at 3:30P.  I knew I had to hurry if I was going to make the tunnel to Whittier.  It’s the only way to drive there and it’s a little tricky. 

    The Anton Anderson(no relation) Memorial Tunnel was a World War II project and completed in 1943.  This opened Whittier to become a major port supplying Alaska’s defense.  At two and a half miles, it’s the longest highway tunnel in North America.  It’s also one of the few that service both rail and road traffic.  As an added twist, actual jet engines are used to pump fresh air into the tunnel.  So, who was Anton Anderson?  He was chief engineer for the Alaska Railroad, of course.  

    Having been built as a railroad tunnel, it’s only wide enough for one lane of traffic.  So, access into Whittier is only at the bottom of the hour, and only runs fifteen minutes.   First priority are the trains.  Everyone else waits.  Then they let some cars go, then a few trucks and RVs.  Then back to more cars.  Seems fair.  But, if you haven’t gone through the barricade by 45 past, you’re out of luck and have to wait.   Thus my concern.  There’s also the delay of the toll booth($13 round trip) But, I made it and seemed to have the tunnel to myself for part of the journey.  According to the dashboard clock, it took six minutes to drive through at 25MPH. 

      Here’s the thing about Whittier, on the north side of the mountain it was sunny.  On the south side of the tunnel it was gray and overcast.  I found the Inn at Whittier and checked in. 

   It was a little early to eat, so I just walked around what little there is to downtown.   There really isn’t much going on here.  There are a handful of hotels, a few tourist shops and a whole lot of fishing charter services.

     Where else are you going to find a rental car agency and taxidermist under the same roof?

     The hotel dining room has a wide view of the harbor.  Suzy was terrific and took good care of me.   

      After dinner, I tried taking some shots with the new zoom lens from the overhang by the hotel’s front door.  There was a guy there enjoying a smoke and we got to talking.  He’s native Alaskan and was born here in 1954, when it was still just a territory.   He likes to tell people he's an Alaskan first and an American second.  

Coming Up,

A Ghost Story