Copper Center - Valdez

ALASKA TRIP 3 Breakfast at the Lodge, the we boarded the bus (again).   The Copper Princess Lodge is located in the middle of nowhere but the view are still worth the trip  Today we'll go to Valdez from Copper Center, about 100 miles. On good roads it would take a couple of hours but the crew were resurfacing patches about 20 different places along the way where we had to slow to a crawl.  The fabulous scenery made the drive pleasant even through the rain. At one point along the trip we went though Thompson Pass which averages 690 inches of snow in the winter!  And to think we hate Indiana winters...YIKES! We embarked on the tour boat Glacier Spirit with our group of 47 plus another large group of Korean tourists.  The boat had inside and outside observation seating.  The 65 degree temp felt cooler, especially in the rain. Though we dressed in layers, wimpy me stayed inside while our more adventurous friends chose seats in the covered yet open upper deck.  We boarded the boat about 11 AM and were not scheduled to return to dock until 7PM.  Our cruise took us through from Valdez, through the straits and out to the Columbia Glacier. Along the way we saw Sea Otters (puppy-dog cuteness), gulls and assorted birds, majestic Bald Eagles, Stellar Seals and Puffins! The Port of Valdez never freezes, making it the ideal site for the Alaska Pipeline terminus.  It's sad to imagine how damaging the Exxon Valdez wreck would be to this pristine area.  Our boat captain related the circumstances of the spill and its aftermath.  Now, twenty-three years later, its effects are still unknown but luckily unseen to our naked eye.  Since then, many more safety measures are in place to protect both the environment and the town.  Long before we reached the Columbia Glacier by boat, icebergs appeared along our route.  The beautiful blue-green color of the ice shed from the glacier is a surprise. The weight of the centuries-old snow compresses into dense, crystal clear ice that light waves struggle to pierce. The aqua color comes from penetration of only the blue light waves. Our crew members fished out a few nature-sculpted ice chunks for us to see and even taste.  Knowing that we wouldn't return to the Lodge in time for dinner, we bought sack dinners to eat on the way back. Lunch on the boat included a pretty good chowder, a bagel and cookies. The efficient crew distributed trays for our laps and then all the food. The Korean travelers mostly ate their cup-of-ramen noodles that they brought aboard. I'm thinking they've done this before.  The 100 mile trip back to the lodge made this an exceptionally long day. We're told that our choice of land travel the first week and cruising and recovering the second is more relaxing.  Wow.  I hope so.  Rick reminded me to tell about the people here and their interesting stories. Our bus driverStan winters in Arizona where he retired from his truck-driving career. For 16 years he worked for RR Donnelly (Warsaw company-small world).  He's also an amateur photographer when he's not driving bus and had good suggestions for capturing the scenery.   One young man on the crew of the Glacier Spirit was born here and is working on his Captain's license. He went to college in Hawaii, but returned here because he missed the snow.  Michael, our chatty waiter, landed here by way of Utah and Arizona. Hey, he gets to live in Alaska in summer and then winters in Arizona, with a month off on between gigs.  I don't know if we could do that but it sure would be fun to stay for a longer time. We see lots of RVs and campgrounds so there are other people who feel that way too!