Trip to Whittier with my best friend

Kim and I decided to take a little road trip to Whittier to find out what the little coastal town has to offer our customers. Whittier is one of the places our Wildlife and Glacier viewing cruises travel out of. We had been telling people about how to get to Whittier and warning them of "The Tunnel" and Tunnel Times", but had little idea of what we were actually telling the customers about as they would call the Anchorage office and book their cruise. Finally, we decided to go see it for ourselves.

As we approached the first tunnel we encountered on our drive to Whittier we stopped and took a picture of the snow covered mountains surrounding us. The mountain directly behind Kim's head is the one the tunnel goes through. This is the longest tunnel on the North American Continent and is approximately 2 miles long. It is one lane and allows access only one direction at a time. Go figure, right? Vehicles are allowed into Whittier every hour on the hour, and access out of Whittier is on the half hour. Throughout the tunnel there are about 8 different "Safe Houses" I am assuming these are put in place so if the tunnel were ever to cave in at any point along the 2 mile stretch, the people stuck inside would have a nice place to go and share a cup of hot cocoa while they wait to be rescued. That's if they happen to be so lucky. I am sure the tunnel is completely rock solid, though. :)

The small A-frame structure is the entrance to the tunnel heading into Whittier. Looks kind of puny compared to the big mountain, eh? 

Entrance headed out of Whittier.

Kim posing for a great advertising shot of the Whittier office.   Seats are filling fast!

This is to prove I was there too :)

The light at the end of the tunnel

First glance of Whittier...    Ok, can we go back home now.

The snow was a little deep off the beaten path.
Is this some kind of sick joke targeting those who are handi-capped?

Its okay though, it seems to keep the riff raff out.

Kim and I were looking at some of the ocean front property 

We found that Whittier offered small quiet neighborhoods with custom built homes under 400 sq. ft.
We decided that with all the extra space we would have and no one willing to come visit, we would have to pass up the opportunity to settle down in Whittier.

It was actually good weather and turned out to be a beautiful day

View out into the Prince William Sound
Can you see the killer whales?
Huh?
Neither could we

There's not much for sandy beaches here in Alaska, but if you like sharp jagged rocks and steep cliffs, its the place for you!

Magnificent sight!
It was such a clear and beautiful day you could see the snow blowing off the tops of the peaks and ridges. 

Sun beginning to set over the mountain peaks