Exploring Old Healy

Old Healy is thus titled because it was to be the site for the town before it... wasn't. Quite frankly, I don't know why the town was moved... probably something to do with the highway coming through. Anyway, the original site is a lovely area filled with sand cliffs and greenery.

J and K

Piper, the resident border collie

Kelsey and Nikki

Overview

Daredeviling under Windy Bridge

Windy bridge takes the George Parks Highway over the Nenana river between Healy and McKinley Village. It is thus named because of the speed of the breeze whipping through the canyon. We hung out here one afternoon-- drank some beers, watched the river, and balanced our way across somewhat oblivious the the drop below.

Rafting the Nenana beneath the bridge. We rafted earlier in the summer-- good times!

Johnny, giving a shining example of the kind of ridiculous shenanigans we should not have partaken in whilst drinking.

On the Cruise: Harbour Seals

Embrace the cute. Just wrap it up in your arms and make it part of you. You know you can't resist.

On the Cruise: the Sawyer Glacier

The Sawyer Glacier, a magnificent and mammoth sheet of ice, was the climax of my day cruise. Standing on the ship, staring at the wall of ice (the photos do not do the size of the thing justice), watching with bated breath as chunk broke off and fell crashing and tumbling into the sea, was one of the most dwarfing experiences of my life.

On the Cruise: the Tracy Arm Fjord

According to the Wiktionary, a fjord is a long narrow inlet between cliffs. That is true. I will supply the fact that they are often formed by glacial movement; my captain will supply the opinion that the Tracy Arm Fjord rivals those in Scandinavia and New Zealand. That I cannot attest to, although I can attest to the utter beauty of the Tracy Arm.

These photos do not do justice to being amongst the cliffs, surrounded by such wild natural splendor.

On the Cruise: Icebergs

On the Cruise: Wildlife

My final day in Juneau I took a day cruise into the Tracy Arm Fjord to view the Sawyer Glacier-- it offered a wide array of stunning scenery and several great wildlife sightings. Aside from the ones below, we also saw bald eagles, humpback whales and harbour seals. The first and the final can be viewed in posts linked to their titles.

a black bear

a sea lion

In the Rainforest

Juneau, and most of Southeast Alaska for that matter, is located in the Tongass National Forest, a temperate rainforest teeming with flora and fauna.

The Mendenhall Glacier

The Mendenhall Glacier is located near Juneau-- the visitor center offers a lovely view, but the vistas are more stunning from a nearby trail that scales the peak adjacent.

Juneau Trails

Earlier I mentioned that in insular Juneau, Alaska there are more trails than roads, many of which are easily accessible.  Behold!  Pictures--

Juneau-- Alaska's Capital

I took a vacation from my vacation and flew to Juneau, the capital of Alaska (a fact that causes some contention in the state due to it's size, liberal nature, and the fact that it is unreachable by car).  It primarily is known as the seat of government and as a bustling port for cruise ships.  Founded as a gold mining town in the early days of the Alaskan gold rush, it is located in the center of a vast coastal rain forest, easily explorable by the vast system of trails throughout the town, of which there are far more than roads.

Port of Juneau on a Foggy Morning

Fishing Boat

Downtown

St. Nicholas Roman Orthodox Church, the oldest in Alaska

Alaskan State Capital

Alaskan Governor's Mansion