Thursday 13 June - Juneau

The port of Juneau was full, so we had to sit off the wharf and catch a tender onto land. As with a things cruising, there may be a queue but it’s very well organised.  Early tour departures get priority, so we enjoyed a relaxing breakfast onboard.  The days are long in Alaska at this time of year. I’m not sure we could cope with the reverse during their winter.

We jumped aboard the Mendenhall Glacier Express to promptly bump into Peter and Jenny. Like many of the glaciers in Alaska it is retreating. Glacier dynamics are interesting and there are some glaciers that are actually growing – even in these times of Global warming.

After a hurried lunch we joined our cycle tour.  Cycle Alaska took us to the Juneau ski resort – Eaglecrest.  From there we cycled downhill and along the flat for approximately 19km. We had regular stops for talks on the local forest, salmon (there are five types apparently) and were fortunate enough to see bald eagles perched in the trees next to the road.

We then caught the tramway up Mt Roberts which overlooks Juneau.  There are no roads into Juneau. We were told there are only 3 ways into Juneau:

1.       Aeroplane

2.       Ship

3.       Birth Canal