On Friday it was finally time to head toward home. We left Girdwood in the morning and rode to the Whittier Railroad tunnel, where we had to ride between the rails. The tunnel was opened in 2000 to vehicle traffic after 55 years of being the only access to Whittier from the rest of Alaska - and only by trains. To get a car or boat there, you had to put it on a train.
The brochure I read made it sound very complicated, but basically they added some safety shelters along the length of the tunnel and put concrete between the rails so you could drive through there. The tunnel is open for 15 minutes for one direction, then closed for 15 for trains to go through, then open for 15 minutes for the other traffic direction, then the trains get it again.
The tunnel is 2.5 miles long and very tall and skinny compared to a normal car tunnel. They make you close your convertible roof and if you are on a motorcycle you go last and have to wear a helmet (duh) because rocks and water come down off the ceiling (it is bare rock)
I was a little leery of having to ride for 2.5 miles on a strip of concrete 3 1/2' wide, while trying not to get dizzy from the passing lights and carbon monoxide, but it went just fine. The concrete was textured so it had good grip for my tires, and the speed limit is only 25. They also made a big deal about the jet fans at the entrances, but compared to the winds we've been riding through for 2 weeks it was a light breeze!
Once we were in Whittier it was time to catch the Ferry to Valdez, AK. I had booked us on a "Fast Ferry" and was not disappointed. After waiting in the rain outside on our bikes we were let on board to strap down our bikes on the vehicle deck and take a seat in the passenger level. The ferry wasn't at all what I expected - it was clean, modern, and very smooth and quiet. We left the dock so fast and smooth that you almost couldn't tell we were moving. After clearing the harbor we were going 39 knots - 45mph. That is faster than a lot of motorboats and we passed a few that were going in our direction.
After the safety briefings - similar to an airliner's - the displays showed a moving map along with our course and speed. I made sure to go outside to the sun deck (rain deck?) and take photos from there since the rain was beading on the windows making it hard to photograph from inside.
Dad used the time to catch up on his sleep.
When we entered the area of Prince William Sound where the Exxon Valdez had it's troubles I went outside to take some photos and nearly fell over when the ship suddenly changed direction. We then whizzed past an iceburg, then another turn and several more icebergs went by... There were dozens of them. Most were about the size of a car (OK, the part above water was...) and a few were the size of the fishing boats. Since they were the "tip of the iceberg" I have no idea how big the rest was!
We left the ferry in Valdez and I needed gas, but we didn't see a gas station so we decided to just head out of town and I'd get gas somewhere along the way. Soon we were in a very remote area and climbing fast. I stopped at the summit and took a photo of the snow by the side of the road. I threw a snowball at dad but he didn't seem to want a snowball fight. (and since I had snow and he had rocks it would have been a lopsided battle anyway, so I backed down)
No gas though - and there weren't any more gas stations until we got to the next town 60 miles away! Fortunately I made it and dad was still very wet and cold from getting stuck in the rain without his rainsuit while waiting for the ferry so we checked into the Caribou motel (where they "caribout you") and had dinner at the Caribou Restaurant. (but I had a hamburger, no reindeer meat please)
We left most of our stuff outside and wrapped the bikes in tarps which was good because it rained really hard during the night.
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