The first hour or so we were on windy mountain roads, following the Matanuska River. Then the land flattened out quite a bit, and we were in an area with many small lakes (good fishing?). By Glenallen, the land was fairly flat but with huge Mount Sanford, Mount Drum, and Mount Wrangell rising in front of us.
Turning south onto Route 4, the Richardson Highway, the going was somewhat boring for the first part, then we went into more big mountains. Here there were glaciers, and we stopped for a walk and lunch at Worthington Glacier, about 30 miles north of Valdez.
Coming into Valdez, one passes through an alpine region with incredible snowy mountains all around, then one comes down, down, down a seven and a half mile long decline into the Keystone Canyon, with waterfalls and big stone walls. Very dramatic scenery! Once in Valdez, one is again at sea level, but with snow-capped mountains all around. It's colder here than it has been in past days, and the tour guide says that the average summer temperature is 53, and in the winter they average over 300 inches of snow!
We decided to stay in an "in-town" RV park in Valdez, so we are basically in a gravel parking lot. However, it is across the street from the small boat harbor (which provided Dan with entertainment on an afternoon walk) and in easy walking distance of the small shops and restaurants of Valdez. This is the "new Valdez", having been re-built entirely after the 1964 earthquake (magnitude 9.2). We stopped into a business that provides sea-kayaking tours in the Prince William Sound and made reservations to go out paddling tomorrow.
No comments:
Post a Comment