When we awoke on the third day of our cruise, we were in Alaska waters. We could see the coast line of Alaska. It was a breathtaking sight!
There were magnificent mountains on both sides of the ship. The mountains were covered with thick forests of trees. The water around the boat was clear and calm.
We spent much of our morning on deck just taking in the sights of beautiful Alaska.
We saw small fishing ships that were dwarfed by our huge cruise ship. We saw small cabins along the shore line that appeared to only have one way to get to them, the sea.
Here is our first glimpse of Juneau, Alaska. Juneau is the capital of Alaska. It is a small town and their are no roads to or from Juneau. The only way you can get to Juneau is by ship or by plane. 
Once we left the ship, we went on a bus tour to Mendenhall Glacier. As we rode through Juneau to the glacier, our driver pointed out the capital building, the governor's mansion and several other important sites. We saw two bald eagles along our drive too.
Glaciers aren't soft billowy piles of snow. Glaciers are created by years of excessive snow fall. As the snow compacts, the oxygen is squeezed out of the individual snowflakes. This turns the snow into solid ice. The blue you see in the glacier is the densest part of the ice. This glacier has been receding for several years. As it recedes, it has carved out this valley and left a glacier lake.
Floating in the glacier lake at Mendenhall Glacier are icebergs. These icebergs are parts of the glacier that broke off in a chunk. There are many icebergs floating around the lake.
Near the glacier on the side of the mountain was a roaring waterfall. We didn't have enough time to hike to the waterfall but we could hear its roar from the observation deck.
The brown you see in this glacier is dirt and rocks that the glacier has ripped up off of the mountains as it has slid down the valley. The glacier starts further up the mountain in a snowfield. Parts of this glacier are a mile thick. That's a mile of solid ice!
Because we are standing so close to a huge ice field, it was definitely chilly! I'm so glad I had a sweatshirt on!
Brent's parents came with us on this tour. Grandma and her friends came to the glacier too but they went to a creative garden first. Ask Grandma to see the pictures. You won't believe what someone did to create this unique garden! 
From the observation deck we could see the visitor center. All of the land you see up to the visitor center used to be covered by this Mendenhall Glacier. Just 70 years ago, this entire area including where the visitors center is standing was all beneath thick layers of ice. 
After we toured the glacier we had the bus drop us of in the thriving town of Juneau. We had lunch and then explored the tourist trap part of the town. To my surprise, 70% of the stores on this street were jewelry shops. I had no idea that so many people went on cruises to go and buy jewelry! 
There isn't much room for the shops on the small street. As you look up the staircase in the middle of the picture, you will see the thick forest and a steep mountain right behind the stores. We were told that there are small homes at the top of the staircase. However, we didn't hike the stairs to find out.
Brent and I had fun shopping at a few places and enjoyed the rugged culture of the town.
After a fun afternoon exploring Juneau, we headed back to the ship for a relaxing evening of sailing to Skagway, Alaska. This is a picture of the sun finally setting. The sun didn't set until around 10:30pm. Spectacular sight!
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