Had a good nights sleep, the first night I’ve slept in a bed since we left Washington. It was really comfy. Got up early though, edited photos and text then uploaded it. Walked around Anchorage for about an hour this morning, talked to a few bicycle cops for a bit, they knew of Stockton. 😉 Got a recommendation for a coffee shop from them, good coffee, then bought the obligatory t-shirt. Haven’t found anything for Judi yet. Maybe I’ll catch her a halibut when I’m on the ferry.
Rode south from Anchorage to Whittier, out shortest ride of the trip and one of the prettiest. Those that told me I should ride to Homer were right, it is beautiful riding south along the water. We left the highway south of Girdwood and headed towards Whittier. Low clouds covered the tops of the mountains and a light rain fell. The bottom of blue glaciers could be seen just below the clouds on the mountains.
We arrived at the tunnel to Whittier where the attendant came out to talk to us about riding through the tunnel. They take their safety seriously. It’s 2 ½ miles through the tunnel and you ride between a set of railroad tracks. If you fall you are told to find a safe area and they will help you. There are two turbine fans in the ventilation. Traffic takes turns going through the tunnel from each side so you could wait awhile if you get there early in the time schedule. The locals certainly know the schedule.
Got to Whittier in the early afternoon and checked in to the Inn at Whittier. It’s a nice place overlooking the harbor. You can sit in the bar and watch the fishing boats come and go, which is what I’m doing this morning. Snuck into the bar to write after the cook opened up the dining room. All the charter boats are heading out now.
Had a calamari steak sandwich for dinner at Swiftwater Seafood. Really good, haven’t had one like it since the place I used to get them in Monterey closed many years ago. It’s an eclectic place, mostly filled with locals and fisherman. I asked if I could get onion rings with my sandwich instead of fries, and was immediately told NO. Nice people, great food, I may grab something there for the ferry ride to Valdez today.
Came back from dinner, too a few photos and the crashed for the night, literally, laid down on my sleeping bag and I was out. Woke up a few hours later, and crawled into my bag, everyone was asleep.
Today we take the ferry to Valdez then head back towards Haines. We’ll travel up Hwy 4 to Hwy 1 towards Tok again. Don’t know where we’ll stop for the night, we’ll figure that out on the way.
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