Page 42 - (DK Eyewitness) Travel Guide 2017 - Alaska

40  INTRODUCING ALASK A

Cruising the Gulf Route

Vast seascapes and endless mountain ranges are the
great attraction of a Gulf of Alaska cruise. The shoreline has
relatively few conventional or con venient cruise destinations;
instead of ports, the wilderness of several national parks,
forests, and wildlife refuges commands attention. Mammoth
calving glaciers, such as the Hubbard, are top of the itiner ary
on all cruise lines and many passengers tack on a multi-day
trip north from Seward to Denali (see pp166–9). Most ships
transit the Gulf’s wild expanse between Whittier or Seward
and Juneau during the night; however, there may still be College Fjord (see p119) snakes
enough light between May and late July for whale-watching. towards the pinnacles of the
Chugach Range, dazzling at
every turn. The dense network of
tidewater glaciers were named
for Ivy League schools.
Whittier has become an
important port of call, as
ALASKA
CANADA it is so close to Anchorage
and on Passage Canal, an
inlet just off beautiful
The Prince William Sound.
Gulf Route
Anchorage
The Inside Passage
see pp38–39 Valdez
Cook Inlet
Locator
Area of main map
Prince
Whittier William
Sound
Seward
Montague
Island

0 km 50
0 miles 50
Seward is the beginning or
end point for some cruises
sailing the Gulf of Alaska.
Nestled between mountains
and the sea, this attractive
city has plenty of charm.

PORTS OF CALL
1 Cordova see p122
2 Valdez see pp120–21
3 Whittier see p118 Prince William Sound’s fragile environment has made a partial
4 Seward see pp102–5 recovery since 1989’s disastrous Exxon Valdez oil spill (see p121).
Wildlife sightings are practically guaranteed.

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