Portage Glacier

The rain has stopped and we can see some blue sky. Yesterday Ken went into town and he called right after he left to tell us to go look out the window toward the Alaska Mountain range. We could see about 200 miles in that direction (southwest) and could see the snow covered mountains just touching the clouds. It was beautiful. I tried to take a picture out the window but there was a power pole in the way.

On Sunday after church and lunch at the Glacier Brewhouse, we decided to drive down to Portage Glacier. Ken had a meeting in town that evening, so we only had about four hours, but the weather was nice and the road down Turnagain Arm has been upgraded in the last few years, so it was a beautiful drive. We stopped on the way to see a pretty waterfall and get a good look out across the bay. There is a brand new visitor’s center at Portage that has all kinds of wildlife depiction and information about the area, the glaciers and the changing environment. You can take a boat tour right up to the glaciers, but of course, we didn’t have time for that.

We had Steven’s birthday celebration last night. Grandma and Poppy, and all of the Browns (Ken’s sister’s family) came over for cake and ice cream. The Browns have 3 kids so with Megan and Steven that was 5. I had made a scratch cake and Robin decorated it with pictures of Steven, and the kids made a great celebration of the evening. It was hard getting everyone settled down after the festivities because the kids were so wound up.

It’s a nice day and I took a walk this morning with Steven in the stroller. He enjoyed it but his little hands were cold by the time we got home. Today we are going to go back up to Robin and Ken’s new property so I can get some good pictures. Tomorrow we thought we’d drive up to Wasilla. It’s only a short distance but a pretty drive and we might be able to see Mt. McKinley. It’s my last day before heading home, where I understand they are still seeing 100 degrees. Oh yuck!