Stan Stephens Cruise to the Columbia Glacier

Well our last hurrah in Alaska was taking a cruise to the Columbia Glacier in Prince William Sound. Even though the day was a bit overcast and rainy at times, we had a great time. The views of the Glacier and ice fields were amazing....we even saw some wildlife! Unfortunately both our phone batteries died on us at the same time, so we were not able to get too many wildlife pictures. But the pictures of the Glacier are incredible. For those of you who are saying, "Gee, I think I have heard of Valdez, Alaska but can't remember why".....does the Exxon Valdez oil spill in 1989 ring any bells? Yes, indeedy.....we passed by where the accident happened off of Bligh Island (this island was named after Captain Bligh...of Mutiny on the Bounty) Another tidbit of information is that the 800 miles of Alaskan Pipeline ends in Valdez and this a picture of the terminal.

Alaska is happy to report that the beauty of the Sound, its wilderness quality with the glaciers, high mountains, lush forests, thousands of bays and many islands is almost back to normal....however complete recovery is a natural process at this point which will take years.

The boat we were on was only a year old...it was luxurious. It made the six and half hour cruise delightful complete with comfortable chairs, a dining table, lunch and beverages. A Korean couple joined us and even though we could not communicate with words, we made ourselves understood....they even had me try their Korean Noodle Soup. I even tried eating it with chopsticks... Here is a picture of our traveling companions!

We happened to have seen more wildlife on this tour compared to the rest of our time in Alaska....we saw harbor seals, sea otters, sea lions, a humpback whale, a bald eagle, mountain goats, and puffins.

I was disappointed with so few wildlife pictures but don't worry...here are those amazing pictures of the Glacier and ice fields!

After the cruise, we went back to the Motorhome where I prepared our first salmon dinner compliments of Fisherman Lee. It was a pink salmon fillet and it was delicious...what a wonderful way to end our Alaskan Adventure!

Now we are ready to go home!!!! I wonder what our next adventure will be????