Juneau's weather wasn't very cooperative for touring but we still had fun. We couldn't fly anywhere due to the low hanging clouds. So, good ol' dad hooked us up with some land tours that were pretty cool. 
We went dog mushing, and held some puppies too!
We went dog mushing, and held some puppies too! These dogs are in training for the Iditarod dog sled race. Many of them, like the two lead dogs in the picture, participated in last year's race with our tour guide's husband. The team did quite well, they were 27th(-ish) out of a few hundred.
The dogs will run until the age of 8 years or so (my memory could be wrong, Andy may correct this later). After their racing days, they are adopted out to families as pets. The trainer said they are great family pets and really enjoy their rest and relaxation by that age. They don't require much exercise after several years of running. So, they can be pretty ideal pets for a person with a full time job. Yes, this is a small plug for anyone looking for a pet in the near future.
We took a short tram ride up the side of Mount Roberts. The clouds were too thick to really see any views of Juneau but the scenery was still beautiful.
We rode on a whale watching tour that fed us and took us north west to find some wildlife. We saw sea lions, eagles-from afar, and humpback whales. There were about 13 whale feeding together when we arrived. They are typically independent mammals but once in a while they work together to really feast. There is a lead female that sings to the others, telling them when to blow bubbles and when to swim up to the surface. The boat had a hydrophone that allowed us to hear the songs, it was really cool. The whales swim below a school of fish, blow bubbles that push the fish to the surface and then swim straight up, leaping above the water level, mouth open, landing on their portion of fish. The pictures don't do justice for the experience but here's one anyway.
Zip lining was our last tour of the trip. 
We were speeding through the rain forest (while it was raining) over the old pit mines from the gold rush. It was exciting and I totally wasn't scared or nervous at first. 
We were speeding through the rain forest (while it was raining) over the old pit mines from the gold rush. It was exciting and I totally wasn't scared or nervous at first. 
How attractive the safety gear was!
More recently, while many of you were in Ocean Shores, we went to Alta Lake with Kyle, Tiff, Gabriel and some of Kyle's extended friends. We didn't take any pictures but it did have some great Eastern Washington scenery. Andy and I went tubing, jet skiing, and I even got up on water skiies.
Hopefully I will be going to Heron Island for Labor Day weekend?
Well, I will wrap up this post with a pic of the two men that I love. Halas totally thinks he is a human. He actually fell asleep sitting like this, head falling to his side and all. It was hilarious.
I hope all is well with everyone. We should see each other soon!
