Portage and Whittier

June 30, 2009
Portage, AK

Today was an easy travel day. We started by moving about 100 feet - to fill the now-depleted fresh water tank at the Elks. From there, we drove about 20 miles south to Eagle River, where we took advantage of a free dump station at a local gas station. At least, we think it was free although we didn't bother to stop in the office and ask. Next, we stopped at a fuel stop in Anchorage for diesel before heading through part of the city (Anchorage is Alaska's largest city, with half the state's population and a land area about the size of Delaware - really). We're headed for the Kenai Peninsula, south of the city, and we drove along the Turnagain Arm of the Cook Inlet, which is very scenic. We stopped for lunch and watched the tides come in. The flow is so fast, you can actually see the water level rise.

After lunch, we continued on to our stopping point: Portage. Or, at least where Portage used to be. It was a small village, basically a flag stop on the Alaska Railroad, when it was wiped out by the Good Friday earthquake in 1964. A 9.2 magnitude quake will do that.

Anyway, we parked the coaches and headed out for the afternoon. Our first stop was Portage Lake, fed by Portage Glacier. This lake was interesting, since the glacier calves into the lake, creating mini-icebergs that float to the other end, right up to the shore.

After the required photo opps, we headed to the small town of Whittier, notable because it used to be only accessible by land via rail. During the gold rush, a 2.5 mile long railroad tunnel was blasted through solid rock to open up the port and connect to the Alaska Railway (giving rise to Portage). Once railroad traffic decreased, someone got the bright idea of paving the tunnel (leaving the rails exposed) and charging an exorbitant toll for vehicles to drive through. Not bad work, if you can get it. So, rather than pay $70 for the two coaches to go through, we opted to pile in the Range Rover and pay $12 to spend an hour there sightseeing. We made the right choice.

Part working port and part tourist trap, Whittier was interesting, and we had a good time poking around in shops and taking pictures. Since we weren't chartering a fishing boat or taking a cruise of Prince William Sound, we were glad we made an afternoon of it.

Click here for today's photos.

Tomorrow, we'll head south toward Seward...