Leaving Alaska....only to return

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Well, it’s been almost a year since we updated the blog, so I’ll try and catch up. Can I attribute this to writer’s block?? Nah, just laziness, I guess, or the daunting task of reviewing thousands of photos and trying to remember stuff.

After leaving Fairbanks in August, we re-connected with friends Patti and Bill and headed back through the Yukon Territory and northern British Columbia to visit the Alaska town of Skagway. A favorite cruise ship port, Skagway is only accessible by land if you drive through British Columbia.

A visit to the Red Onion Saloon was fun, as we had a couple of beers and sang along with the piano player.

The four of us squeezed into a Bush Hawk X-P for a Glacier Bay Flightseeing tour, which was breathtaking. http://www.glacierbayflightseeing.com/

Another day, we took a ride on the steam-powered White Pass & Yukon Railroad, which was a must-do for Bill, a real train buff. http://www.wpyr.com/

On the way out of Skagway back into British Columbia, Patti and Bill were stopped at Canadian Customs for a thorough inspection, which proved to be uneventful, except they opened every compartment for the snoop-a-thon.

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Photos

Emerald Lake
On the way to Skagway...

Alaska Highway Under Construction
This section north of Whitehorse, YT, was especially nasty

Fellow Hokie
We spent a night at a roadside pull-out and woke up the next morning to see a couple sleeping in their car with this license plate. We left them a note on the windshield before we left.

Port of Skagway
Much easier going in than coming out.....for some of us

Old Timey Saloon
A real tourist attraction, but fun nonetheless

Skagway Tours
Several cruise ships came and went while we were there, and the town rolls out the red carpet

Red Onion Saloon
Bill having a little TOO much fun

Our intrepid pilot and his baby
Great plane for flightseeing, if a bit cramped

Glacier #1
This thing is huge

Glacier #1
A bit longer view to show the scale

Glacier #1
Remote view...still amazing

Glacier Waterfalls
The ice melts, runs under the glacier and flows into the bay

Glacier Waterfall
A closer view

Glacier Ribbons
Rock and debris form ribbons as the glacier slowly moves and scours the earth

Glacier Crevasses
One reason we are flightseeing, not hiking

A great flight
You can see the plane's wing in the upper right corner

Returning to Skagway
Cruise ships lined up in port

Fuzzy RVs
Ours is in the middle of the pack....not exactly an RV resort, but there weren't many options