Rainbow at Mendenhall Glacier It was cloudy most of the day (typical of Alaskan summers). After a short shower, the sun came out just long enough to bless us with this rainbow. It lasted no more than about two minutes. - Chris Cessna Photography- powered by SmugMug

Norwegian Sun- Alaska
September 2-9, 2006
We had port stops in Ketchikan, Juneau, Skagway, and Prince Rupert, BC.
The highlights of our cruise were The Mendenhall Glacier, Tracy Arm Fjord, and our train ride into the Yukon Territory.

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cessna > Our next port stop was in Juneau- Alaska's Capital.
This picture is of the Alaska State Capitol Building.
With 31,000 people, Juneau is Alaska's third most populated city. In terms of land area, Juneau is the second largest city in the United States! At 2,715 square miles, it trails only Sitka, AK in area. Compare Juneau's 2715 mi² to New York City at 303 mi².

cessna > The Mendenhall Glacier is located 13 miles from downtown Juneau. This picture shows the glacier reflected in Mendenhall Lake, which didn't exist until the early 1900s. The glacier has receded nearly 2 miles in the last century.
Mendenhall Glacier is part of the massive Juneau Icefield, which feeds 38 different glaciers. The snow and ice depth at some points in the Juneau icefield reach 4,500 feet!

cessna > Rainbow at Mendenhall Glacier
It was cloudy most of the day (typical of Alaskan summers). After a short shower, the sun came out just long enough to bless us with this rainbow. It lasted no more than about two minutes.

cessna > Chris and Heidi at Mendenhall Glacier

cessna > Rainforest near Mendenhall Glacier.
We hiked the East Glacier Loop trail, which follows the eastern trimline of the glacier along Mendenhall Lake. Our ship left Juneau early in the afternoon, or we would have hiked the 7 mile West Glacier Trail, which ends near the terminus of the glacier.

cessna > Mendenhall Glacier from an opening in the rainforest along East Glacier Loop Trail.

cessna > Tracy Arm Fjord
An incredibly beautiful area! My favorite part of our Alaskan experience!
Massive cliffs, 5,000 ft+ peaks on all sides, scattered icebergs... kind of a surreal experience.
The Tracy Arm Fjord contains the Sawyer Glacier and North Sawyer Glacier.

cessna > Tracy Arm Fjord
As we traveled further up Tracy Arm, icebergs became much more frequent. We made it further up Tracy Arm than any other cruiseship had this year. Many others had to turn around before getting a view of the Sawyer Glacier because there were too many icebergs. Icebergs are formed when chunks of ice fall off of the terminus of a glacier, called "calving".

Rainbow at Mendenhall Glacier
It was cloudy most of the day (typical of Alaskan summers). After a short shower, the sun came out just long enough to bless us with this rainbow. It lasted no more than about two minutes.