Sibling Rivalry

Sweet kayaking gear

I hadn't planned on blogging about my sister and her husband coming to visit, but they said if I didn't then they wouldn't come back for Fur Rondy in February. Empty threat or not, their visit was awesome, and I don't want to risk Tracy and Brian not coming back. Tray and Brian came a few weeks after my parents left. Our big challenge with our second set of guests was not repeating too many activities. We made a trip to Seward, but did not stay over night or take a cruise, we got pizza from the Moose's Tooth, but got it to go, and we went souvenir shopping and made sure Tray and Brian got different items. Aside from sharing some of the same information about Alaska, the trip similarities end there.

Starting the Loop District

Black Bear from the train

We took the train down to Seward instead of driving. Aside from having to be at the train station at 5 am, it was a great idea. It was such a relief to be able to pay attention to the scenery along the Turnagain Arm instead of oncoming traffic. Although a much longer ride, the views were fantastic. We saw Beluga Whales feeding on Salmon out in the Cook Inlet on the way down. The rear of each train car had an area where you could lean out for unobstructed views of the passing scenery.

A view of Trail glacier from the train

After arriving in Seward we started walking to the Sea Life Center. Kelly and I had been in the building a number of times, but never got around to actually going through. It's a good thing we did, we saw a baby Walrus the center was nursing back to health. We saw all sorts of fish, birds and other marine mammals. 

Chubby little fella

Brian refused to get any closer to the bird

Taking in the sights

We ate dinner in Seward and then boarded the train for the trip home. The sunset was brilliant as we joined back up with the Seward Highway. We were lucky enough to see more Beluga Whales on the way home. Unfortunately, they were too far out and surfaced too briefly to photograph. The sunset was much better for photographing.

I should sell this one to the Alaska Railroad

The next day we got up and made out way to Whittier to go kayaking. The drive to Whittier requires a trip through the Whittier tunnel - the only toll road in Alaska - a one lane 2 mile long tunnel that is also used by the Alaska Railroad. Tunnel traffic follows a set schedule, but rarely runs on time. We waited about 30 minutes past our scheduled time.

Entrance to the tunnel

After passing into Whittier it immediately started pouring rain. Luckily, the rain let up the time time we got into the kayaks, but the sun never did come out. Our guide said we might see some sea otter, black leg kittiwakes, salmon, bald eagles, and maybe a bear along the shore. We saw plenty of black leg kittiwakes (seagulls), lots of salmon, and two bald eagles. I saw some drift wood that I thought was a sea otter. We were out on the water for almost three hours, and paddled a few miles. It was an awesome day, made even better by Tracy and Brian treating us to kayaking.

Setting out

Taking a break

Bald Eagles on the hillside

We did spend some time indoors - mostly drinking Alaskan beer. We took Tray and Brian on a tour of Midnight Sun Brewery and picked up some of our favorite beers from around the state. Tray and Brian ventured out on their own a bit to visit the Alaska Zoo and check out downtown Anchorage. There was a lot we did, and a lot we didn't. We'll take some time in February to do what we missed, but we'll mostly be busy enjoying Fur Rondy events - dogsled races, fireworks, snowball fights, snow shoe softball and ice hockey. Looking forward to their next visit.

Seward: The Gateway to Alaska