Juneau, Saturday, June 30...more hiking!

Saturday we we were in Juneau, the capital of Alaska. We signed up for a guided Ike because the hiking opportunities were too far from the dock to walk to. Our hike was the guide's choice based on weather conditions. We hiked a 4 mile loop just south of the Mendenhall Glacier I the national park. It's in the Tongas National Forrest which has the most life per square foot of any rain forest in the whole world. And true to its name, it rained...and rained, and rained, and rained. Our guide, James (who said he had just graduated college but didn't look old enough to legally drive the van in which he took us to the trail head), said that it was the rainiest hike he'd been on all summer. I loved it! But, as you'll see, it made for a pretty soggy morning!

The trail up often looked more like a stream than a trail...I guess water finds the easiest route!



The rain forest we hiked through has the highest level of life per square foot of any place on the plant. A lot of that has to do with all of the moss and lichen:















What we really came to see: the Mendenhall Glacier. We're about a mile away from it here. When I was here in 1993 the glacier would have filled up this whole picture.




Looking the other way down Lake Mendenhall:



In front of a pond that formed when the glacier left a big chunk of ice in its wake and the ice melted.



I don't have pictures to share of Sunday in Ketchikan and Monday on shipboard because all we did was SHOP! Mostly trinkets like nail polish that changes color in the sunlight and a couple of locally hand made Christmas tree ornaments. And, of course, we spent some money in the casino and took naps! It was the perfect vacation and a welcome break from our chaotic life at home. But we're ready to go home to the kitties (HUGE thanks to Mike and Lauren for looking after them for us) and packing for the move to Emporia!

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