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Portage and Exit Glaciers, Seward, Sea Life Aquarium and all day cruise
We rented a car at the airport in Achorage and drove to Seward . It was an easy drive and there was plenty of time for stops at the Portage and Exit Glaciers. 
On the Kenai peninsula the highways are broad and even and run along side of the mountains, rarely through them. From Anchorage to Portage there were many scenic pull-offs, giving us views of the arm of the bay with the snow covered mountains beyound. Several offered telescopes that one could use to search the crags for Dahl sheep.At Portage there is a junction with the railroad, where those can board who wish to ship themselves and car through the railroad tunnel to Whittier. Further on one approaches the Portage glacier itself, which is hidden from view by a ridge of mountain; there is a small museum there, and boat rides are offered for a close look at the glacier. The glacier museum is small and pleasant and there is a walkway to water's edge. We also saw a display of ice worms in the museum, a subject of great interest since seeing "Smilla's Sense of Snow", a movie whose plot turns on the existance of ice worms. Along the access road to the glacier there are a number of small parks. We pulled off into one to eat our lunch (sandwiches and fruit we'd picked up at a supermarket in Anchorage before setting out) and enjoy a spectacular view of Mountain and lakelet with beaver dam and ducks.
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We stopped again at the Exit Glacier, just outside of Seward. As we turned off the main road and headed toward the glacier, there were signs marking the year that the glacier had ended at that point. The parking lot was around year marker 1950, and then we followed a well marked path toward the glacier itself. Wide streams edged the flat area left by the glacier, and large boards had been laid across for the benefit of tourists. We climbed the moriane at the far end of the field, and there it was, melting and dripping - Exit Glacier! The ice within reach was dirty and granular, further up it displayed the beautiful blue tones one comes to expect with glaciers. It was a very short drive from Exit glacier to the city of Seward. | |
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Seward is a very small city, quaint, nestled on a small strip of land between the mountains and the harbor. So many boats - fishing boats, pleasure boats, cruist boats and a huge Princess Cruise Tour Boat looming over all the rest. We had reservations in the Marina Motel, which was not a bed and breakfast and very decidedly not quaint - but it was within walking distance of the Marina and that was very handy. We were able to leave the car at the motel the next day when we took the all day cruise. The motel was at one end of the town, the new Sea Life Aquarium and restaurants were at the other. We had a late supper at a small restaurant overlooking the Aquarium, with the sunlight streaming in on us. Afterwards, we walked over to the Aquarium. We had an hour and a half before closing time which turned out to be ample. 
At $12.50, the admission is a little high, but one has to take into account that the museum is new and the season is short. It is beautifully done. There are three huge tanks, two stories tall, one for sea birds, one for seals and one for sea lions. Visitors could view at water level or go to the lower level to view from well below the surface.  Watching the sea birds dive for fish -- and the length of time they were able to stay below, poking and jabbing for their supper -- was quite an experience! Under water, the sea birds looked more like fish than birds. Fish with flapping fins!We asked a staff member walking by, when was feeding time? "It changes day to day." she said. "We want to make it as much like in the wild as possible. I don't even know when they will be fed." There were other tanks, not yet filled. They had a touch-me tank with various star fish. How interesting that some are leathery, and some are quite soft. And the water is very cold! You don't touch them for long -- The Aquarium is also dedicated to research and the healing of injured sea life. Outside, there is a huge pool and an area of cages. Several large fish were recovering in the pool. The cages were filled with otters. One of the scientists explained to us that they were studying the otters to see how diet could alleviate the effects of an oil spill. No one knows how many otters died in the Exxon Valdiz oil spill. Now they are experimenting with diet to see if they can decrease the oil in an otter's system quickly after an oil spill.
There are several day cruise companies operating out of Seward; the cost is about the same, company to company, the route and opportunity to see wild life about the same. It was a toss of a coin as to which we would go with.
We left Seward the next morning after breakfast, heading north to the Moose Pass/Cooper Landing junction and then west and south down the Kenai peninsula.
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Here are some of the wildlife we saw on our day in Glacier Bay:
