Drizzly rain greets the murky dawn and we snuggle a little deeper for a sleep in…we don’t need to check out until twelve and Gordon is not feeling too well. The plan had been to kayak in Barlett Cove (Glacier Bay sea kayaks are here and are a good activity to fill in the time) but we decide to ditch this is in favour of the warm bed. Our flight doesn’t actually leave Gustavus until 5:40pm (the only jet flight each day to Juneau) with the bus leaving the lodge at 3:45pm. This means there is a lot of fill in time not only for us, but for many other guests, so after midday checkout we are all hunkered down in front of the lodge fireplace, squeezed on the few couches again, attached to our devices and sucking up the limited wifi. If Gordon had been feeling better and the weather was nicer, we could have taken one of the short walks around the park – highlights include a pretty lake, mossy forest and the skeleton of a large humpback whale named Snow, that was killed a few years back by a cruise ship – it’s now been turned into an interesting display and meant some rules were changed for boats in the area. Upstairs in the lodge, there is also an excellent National Parks display complete with a willing ranger to answer questions.

Finally, we all pile in the bus for the short ride back to the airport in Gustavus…there are about twenty of us. We file in, ready to check bags and collect boarding passes only to be greeted with the news that our flight is delayed by two hours…it hasn’t left Seattle yet…yay…there aren’t enough seats I the little building, so we move outside and Gordon lies on the concrete. He just wants to sleep and the warm sun is inviting even if the pavement is not. Probably the low point of the trip. I wander over to the other airport building, one for small planes, and buy some drinks…that’s it..no other facilities. Some of the children who are waiting head out to pick the wild strawberries growing along the roadside…myself and another passenger join them…it passes the time and the strawberries are small and delicious. We also get chatting to a retired couple, who are on a long trip…turns out they are from Wollongong…just an hour or so down the road from Sydney. We swap tales. Eventually the plane arrives and we board quickly. The flight to Juneau takes exactly thirteen minutes…I think it’s the shortest flight I’ve ever taken. The hotel van is waiting at the airport when we arrive, so we jump in only to find another couple from Glacier Bay on board. They had taken the ferry and beaten us back to Juneau. The ferry takes two hours. Hmm…might be a lesson here.

Coming in for landing – Juneau

Back at the Driftwood, we repack yet again, this time for our kayaking adventure leaving early next morning, then take a short walk to the local shops. We place an order for pizza at Dominoes (this turns out be surprisingly good) while we hit the supermarket for brekkie supplies. TV and early lights out complete what was probably our last favourite day (not too bad a strike rate on reflection).