We should have known that it would be an auspicious day for animal sightings. More on that later...
Our first stop was the Alaska State Capitol. Unfortunately, it was closed, but we were able to see the outside. It is much smaller than I expected.
There was also a statue of Seward directly across the street. He's a pretty big deal in Alaska.
The Governor's Mansion was a few blocks away, so we decided to go take a look. There was a pretty view of downtown Juneau nearby.
The Governor's Mansion was bigger than I expected. And, in case you are wondering, the answer is NO! You can not see Russia from the house. Ha!
Here's a nice nod to the native Alaska heritage...
Dan thought it looks like Piedmont Funeral Home.
As we walked back to the boat to pick up Nana and Poppy for our excursion, the kids found a bear. Not a real bear, but the closest we would come on this trip to seeing one.
Here's a pic of the boat from the shore.
We joined up with Nana and Poppy and boarded a bus to go on a whale watching excursion. The bus took us to a smaller marina in Auke Bay to board a smaller boat. We had a beautiful and slightly chilly day for it.
We were very fortunate to see Orcas a little way into the trip. The naturalists/tour guides told us that they only see orcas on about 10 percent of their tours, so this was a treat.
We were also able to see bald eagles soaring above us, but we didn't capture any pictures of those. The biggest excitement of the day was to spot several humpback whales. Here is a picture after they sprayed (probably not the technical term).
Then, you can see parts of their backs.
Finally, Sidney was able to capture a picture of one of the flukes before it dove back into the water.
So exciting! We were able to watch them for about 15 minutes off and on. We also spotted some sea lions hanging out on a buoy.
Our next stop was Mendenhall glacier and a hike to Nugget Falls. Here are pics of the glacier from a distance.
The 20 minute hike brought us a bit closer to Mendenhall Glacier and the adjoining Nugget Falls.
Here is a panoramic view of both the glacier and the falls. How beautiful and peaceful! The pictures don't do it justice.
On the way back into Juneau to board the boat again, the bus driver took us to catch a glimpse of the Juneau whale sculpture. There's a funny story behind the sculpture. Apparently, at the same time that the City of Juneau, Alaska commissioned a whale sculpture, the City of Juneau, Florida commissioned a pelican statue from the same sculptor. The sculptor mixed up the statues and sent the pelican to Alaska and the whale to Florida. Juneau, Alaska finally received its whale, but it kept the pelican, too. We didn't see it, but it is displayed in another part of town.
You can see the cruise ship docked in the distance. It was a fun, animal-filled day!
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