June 1, 2018
The day began with a morning run and a bit of yoga, followed by breakfast in the RV with the other troopers. We didn’t really need to wake up too early as our boat cruise from Whittier to Prince William Sound wasn’t till 12.15 in the afternoon. This almost 5 hour (round) trip was a great introduction to Alaska.
Whilst it was a short walk from our ‘beautiful’ parking lot to the embarkation point, we pushed our luck and two of us, just about made it by 11.55am (last boarding was supposed to be 12.00noon). Whilst we thought we were uber late, an announcement was made informing the passengers that there would be a 10 minute delay as they were waiting for a group who were getting off the train that comes into Whittier. So much for all our huffing and puffing to make it on time.
Around 12.30pm, we finally left Whittier. A Chugach National Park Ranger was on board explaining the geography of the region, how the mountains were formed and the consequential fjords. Whilst I certainly found it interesting, the rest of the 50-60 people on board were yawning, asleep or having a coffee. Some kids were entertained by the Junior Ranger Program (three cheers for that). You can pay an extra $$ to avail of the buffet lunch (with complimentary soft drinks) on board. Now I am not a fan of buffets, but the salmon and prime rib that was served was fantastic. Maybe it was the quality of the fish that is native to this part of Alaska or the chef did a great job of cooking it, but it was beautiful.
We got really up close to some waterfalls as well as the big blocks of ice en route to Surprise Glacier. The lush green mountains and snow covered peaks just add to the serenity of it all. It’s always a treat to see tons of sea otters, seals, and needless to say hundreds of glaciers.
We returned back to Whittier around 5.30pm with our bellies full and our camera SD cards a little more full than from the previous days.
With the sun not setting till midnight or really not ever setting, we took the opportunity to drive on to Seward – an easy 2 hours and we got there just in time for dinner.
A gorgeous meal at The Cookery – one of the culinary highlights of Alaska. We had the fish cakes and the wild & tame mushroom toast was certainly to die for. We had The Halibut and Salmon for mains followed by Cream Cheese Ice cream and Dutch Baby for dessert.
Now, we weren’t sure if we would return to dine here, so after our mains we ordered another portion of the mushroom toast. As it I sit back and reminisce about our dinner, I remain dreamy about that mouthwatering mushroom toast. A great meal to end the day.
We then did the 20 minute walk back to the RV (thanks goodness for that – we had to walk off that meal). The Seward Waterfront Park is a great spot for large RVs and campervans as the mountainous outlook is simply stunning.
Stunning views everywhere – taking it all in through binoculars
The Wayfarer Travel Co. 