Saturday March 8, 2008

Day Eight in Alaska

July 2003

The highlight of today was going on a sightseeing/whale-watching trip on the Lu-Lu Belle.

We were the first ones on the boat, so were able to pick our seat. 

The view outside our window as we were leaving the harbor.

Sea Otters were playing just outside the harbor.

The captain stopped the boat for awhile so we could watch these seals.

We saw lots of birds.  I particularly enjoyed the Puffins.

The highlight of our day was seeing Killer Whales (Orca).

 We had about fifty sightings, but many were repeats.  We probably saw about twenty different whales.

The captain called this one “Floppy” because of his floppy dorsal fin.  We saw him several times.

On our way back toward Valdez, we headed toward the Columbia Glacier.

By this time in the trip it was very cold outside.

The captain took the boat into the ice bergs until he couldn’t go anymore.

As we approached the harbor, we saw these storage tanks for the Alaska Pipeline.

~~~

This picture is for Jere and Kristen (in Texas).

We had a relaxing day, and the boys spent a  lot of time racing cars.