Sunshine in Whittier

This was my first time visiting Whittier, even though it's only an hour away from Anchorage. I was warned by others that it would be an underwhelming experience, but I think that is only if you are hoping for a bigger town. I was looking forward to hiking, and I heard that there are a few trails worth checking out. To get to Whittier, you have to take a train tunnel which is only wide enough for a single lane of cars! It's so narrow, the speed limit is 25mph. And that felt fast. The tunnel is open to traffic from Anchorage only once an hour, so you have to time it correctly to avoid waiting. The day in Anchorage started very gloomy and grey. As soon as we emerged from the tunnel into Prince William Sound, it was sunny and warm! And the bugs were incredible.

Because I had to pay a toll of $13 to pass through the tunnel, I was determined to hike all the trails and get as much out of my visit to Whittier as I possibly could. First stop was a hike to Portage Pass.

Once over the pass, you get a view of Portage glacier spilling in to the lake.

Water was flowing everywhere.

The lake was bug-free, and also had lots of icebergs.

The windward shore was covered in bug corpses. 

We thought we could reach the glacier if we forded this stream. After crossing one braid, we realized that there was a second braid of the stream which was running far deeper and faster. Without hiking poles, it was definitely not passable.

Compared with the cold of the glacial stream, the lake water and icebergs now felt pleasant. 

Photo credit: Dashiell Feierabend

Photo credit: Dashiell Feierabend

The bergs seem small but are actually heavy enough to be stable for climbing.

We hiked back upstream to get closer to a large waterfall.

We then hiked to Horsetail Falls, which was very lush and had a nice boardwalk for almost a mile. We were debating about whether to continue up the mountain ridge off-trail, then saw this black bear hanging out in the brush. We then decided it would be better to hike somewhere else, in case we surprised the bear on our return down the mountain.

Photo credit: Dashiell Feierabend

There is a trail that follows the coastline from the end of town, supposedly for up to 9 miles. The trail winds through the forest and becomes more and more like an animal footpath the farther you go. There were ferns and lots of lush green plants.

Photo credit: Dashiell Feierabend

The town of Whittier itself seems to be one large boatyard. We found one dorm-like residential building, which I think is where 99% of the population lives. The rest live in the hotel by the docks. For sightseeing, there is an old abandoned military barracks, a visitor center, and apparently an ice cream shop. 

Photo credit: Dashiell Feierabend

We made it to a beach around 9pm. I think we made the most of our time in Whittier. My only regret is we did not make it back to "town" in time to buy ice cream.