05-05-2021, 03:08 PM
11
Re: Whole town under one roof!
Wow! I knew that was the Beigash Towers before I eve clicked on the link! Whittier is gorgeous!Getting there by car is fantastic, but it can take a while. The tunnel is a single lane that alternates directions every 30 minutes. Get there at the wrong time and you can have quite a wait, and the drive through is very slow. The tunnel is crudely wrought, eerily light and water seeps down from the surfaces above, but it's a very unique and fun experience.
When you reach the end, it opens to one of the most beautiful bays in the world, surrounded by mountains and water in every direction! Although the town is mostly industrial, it has an exceptionally beautiful marina (I have sailed out of with friends several times). In the summer, the whales, sea lions and sea otters are abundant!
The Towers are condos, so they are privately owned, and there are a few houses sprinkled around the area. A few of the units are vacation homes and rentals. When you go inside, it does feel bizarrely like walking into 1980s college dorm but they have been pretty clever with the indoor play area, bowling alley, doctor's office, etc. What makes it so weird is that the outdoors is so incredibly wide open, and the Towers feel so artificial. I do feel bad for the kids, but what the world offers outdoors makes up for When the arctic winds are howling, no one is complaining! The biggest downside is that the whole place is prone to earthquakes.
05-05-2021, 05:44 PM
13
Re: Whole town under one roof!
Wow I've just done a mini tour of the place on street maps, and 'drove' right up to the Beigash Towers, round the harbour, up near the glacier - OMG that is an awesome sight!Isn't it great that we can do these virtual tours thanks to Google street maps? I've visited so many places from my living room, places I would never, ever have the opportunity to see otherwise.
05-05-2021, 05:45 PM
14
Re: Whole town under one roof!
Originally Posted by Surfermom
->
Wow! I knew that was the Beigash Towers before I eve clicked on the link! Whittier is gorgeous! Getting there by car is fantastic, but it can take a while. The tunnel is a single lane that alternates directions every 30 minutes. Get there at the wrong time and you can have quite a wait, and the drive through is very slow. The tunnel is crudely wrought, eerily light and water seeps down from the surfaces above, but it's a very unique and fun experience.
When you reach the end, it opens to one of the most beautiful bays in the world, surrounded by mountains and water in every direction! Although the town is mostly industrial, it has an exceptionally beautiful marina (I have sailed out of with friends several times). In the summer, the whales, sea lions and sea otters are abundant!
The Towers are condos, so they are privately owned, and there are a few houses sprinkled around the area. A few of the units are vacation homes and rentals. When you go inside, it does feel bizarrely like walking into 1980s college dorm but they have been pretty clever with the indoor play area, bowling alley, doctor's office, etc. What makes it so weird is that the outdoors is so incredibly wide open, and the Towers feel so artificial. I do feel bad for the kids, but what the world offers outdoors makes up for When the arctic winds are howling, no one is complaining! The biggest downside is that the whole place is prone to earthquakes.
05-05-2021, 06:05 PM
15
Re: Whole town under one roof!
Originally Posted by Bathsheba
->
Wow I've just done a mini tour of the place on street maps, and 'drove' right up to the Beigash Towers, round the harbour, up near the glacier - OMG that is an awesome sight! Isn't it great that we can do these virtual tours thanks to Google street maps? I've visited so many places from my living room, places I would never, ever have the opportunity to see otherwise.
I love virtual travelling via google maps!
05-05-2021, 06:30 PM
16
Re: Whole town under one roof!
Alaska is a state of extremes, one being daylight .....
Whittier is, apparently, one hour from Anchorage, which, AFAIK, gets only 4 hours of (not much) daylight in midwinter and 4 hours of (not much) darkness in midsummer.
Summer in Whittier may be great but being banged up in The Begich Towers for weeks on end in winter may not be so enjoyable .....
Coincidentally, I recently started watching a documentary series called "Alaska: Ice Cold Killers" ..... small, isolated communities attract misfits and "weirdoes" who, owing to the danger from local wildlife, are, like all residents, permitted to carry weapons .....
05-05-2021, 10:53 PM
19
Re: Whole town under one roof!
They experimented with a similar idea over here in the fortie and fifties ( Quarry Hill Leeds) but it didn't work. Self contained communities complete with shops etc. They became run down and ended up like ghettos.They were demolished eventually.
06-05-2021, 12:19 AM
20
Re: Whole town under one roof!
Originally Posted by Meg
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Sounds like my idea of hell I will take an igloo and some Huskies to keep me warm and stay on my own thank you
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