Whittier used to be reachable only by train. But there's a Rube Goldburg sort of deal whereby on certain times of the day you can drive the new tunnel, the longest highway tunnel in North America, to Whittier. Two long tunnels. In the longest one, cars are kept 100 feet apart with a speed limit of 25 mph. When you're in the longer tunnel, you can't see either end. Umph! There's a new parking area between the tunnels where you can now see Portage Glacier without having to get on a boat. I think I'll stick to the train.
Whittier is beautiful in winter. A harbor village on the other side of the mountains from Hwy 1. A cruise ship port in summer. Darn quiet in the winter. Lots of folks cross-country skiing. I prefer walking/hiking. Bear and moose sightings. Be wise! Services are limited. Stay out of the freight yards--walking there is a federal offense. Do not attempt to walk back through the tunnels! High risk of avalanches in the mountains. This isn't Palm Springs!
Update: The Adventure. Two of us set out on a bright winter day to see the other side of the mountain. Two middle-aged women. Dare I say? Both experienced winter hikers, but when we found outselves in over 14 feet of snow, we realized we had a serious think coming. We arrived in Whittier via the train, which is slow and uncomfortable during the snow season. Our view of the magnificent Prince William Sound was frosted on all sides by millions of pounds of cold, white snow and blue ice.
We began our walk by committing a federal crime as we walked along the tracks through the train yard. Our destination somewhere ahead, an old cafe/bowling alley. A bit of nattering between us. We were on the wrong side of a long, long train. My dear hiking buddy Anne led the way as we climbed up into and through the cab of a locomotive. A second crime, I'm sure. We left the train and pushed on through the deep snow to the cafe. Coffee and candy bars. Suddenly a new thought. We were about to miss the return train back out to the highway where we'd left our Subaru.
We moved as quickly as one can when in such deep snow and made it back to the train just as it was pulling out of the station. A missed train meant a 2-day wait in Whittier. We would have had to knock on doors until we found someone willing to take us in. Don't do what I did! We threw both experience and common sense to the winds. It was very hard going in all that snow. Was it dangerous? Yes! Was it stupid? Incredibly! Was it an Alaskan thing to do? Certainly!